The 2025 Venice Film Festival has blessed us with divisive discourse-generators ( After the Hunt ), misty-eyed Hollywood navel-gazing ( Jay Kelly ), and some real head-scratchers ( In the Hand of Dante ), but also, thankfully, some truly great cinema—searing dramas, ravishing Gothic epics, pitch-black comedies, wild musicals, and fascinating documentaries. These are the nine debuts from the Lido you need to look out for.

The Voice of Hind Rajab

Photo: Venice Film Festival/The Party Film Sales

There are countless (very valid) political reasons that it would be meaningful for this year’s Venice jury to award the Golden Lion to Kaouther Ben Hania’s breathless and heart-wrenching retelling of the true story of the titular six-year-old who was trapped in a car under fire in Gaza City

See Full Page