Writer-director-actor Eva Victor’s “Sorry, Baby,” a comedy-drama about a literature professor trying to restart her life after a personal trauma, was the best movie of 2025, according to a vote of Utah critics.
Eighteen members of the Utah Film Critics Association met Saturday at the Megaplex Jordan Commons in Sandy to vote on the best films and performances of last year.
“Sorry, Baby,” which premiered at the 2025 Sundance Film Festival and earned the Waldo Salt Screenwriting Award, won the best picture category from the UFCA, as well as honors for Victor’s direction and screenplay.
The movie that received the most awards from the Utah critics was writer-director Ryan Coogler’s Deep South vampire movie “Sinners.” It won four categories: For Michael B. Jordan’s lead male performance, Delroy Lindo’s supporting male performance, ensemble cast and original score.
“Sinners” also was a runner-up in five categories, for Coogler’s directing and screenplay, supporting female performance for Wunmi Mosaku, cinematography and film editing.
Jessie Buckley received the UFCA’s award for lead female performance, for portraying the wife of William Shakespeare, grieving for a lost son in “Hamnet.” That movie was the runner-up for best picture and original score.
Amy Madigan won two awards for her performance as a hex-casting woman in the horror movie “Weapons.” Madigan won for supporting female performance, and tied for the Vice/Martin Award, given to a performance in a science-fiction, fantasy or horror movie.
The other winner for the Vice/Martin Award was Alfie Williams, the pre-teen survivor in the zombie thriller “28 Years Later.” (The Vice/Martin Award is named in honor of two deceased UFCA members, Jeff Vice and Jimmy Martin.)
Another multiple winner was “Warfare,” which depicted a platoon of Navy SEALs on a mission gone wrong in Iraq. The movie received awards for film editing and sound.
Here is a complete list of UFCA award winners and runners-up:
Picture • “Sorry, Baby.” Runner-up: “Hamnet.”
Director • Eva Victor, “Sorry, Baby.” Runner-up: Ryan Coogler, “Sinners.”
Lead performance, male • Michael B. Jordan, “Sinners.” Runner-up: Joel Edgerton, “Train Dreams.”
Lead performance, female • Jessie Buckley, “Hamnet.” Runner-up: Rose Byrne, “If I Had Legs I’d Kick You.”
Supporting performance, male • Delroy Lindo, “Sinners.” Runner-up: Jacob Elordi, “Frankenstein.”
Supporting performance, female • Amy Madigan, “Weapons.” Runner-up: Wunmi Mosaku, “Sinners.”
Ensemble cast • ”Sinners.” Runner-up: “Wake Up Dead Man.”
Vice/Martin Award (for a performance in a science fiction, fantasy or horror movie) • Amy Madigan, “Weapons,” and Alfie Williams, “28 Years Later” (tie).
Screenplay • Eva Victor, “Sorry, Baby.” Runner-up: Ryan Coogler, “Sinners.”
Cinematography • “Train Dreams.” Runner-up: “Sinners.”
Original score • ”Sinners.” Runner-up: “Hamnet.”
Film editing • “Warfare.” Runner-up: “Sinners.”
Visual effects • ”Frankenstein.” Runner-up: “Avatar: Fire and Ash.”
Sound • “Warfare.” Runner-up: “F1.”
Stunt design • “Mission: Impossible - The Final Reckoning.” Runner-up: “From the World of John Wick: Ballerina.”
Documentary feature • “The Alabama Solution.” Runner-up: “The Perfect Neighbor.”
Animated feature • ”Little Amelie or the Character of Rain.” Runner-up: “KPop Demon Hunters.”
Non-English language feature • “It Was Just an Accident” (Iran). Runner-up: “Sentimental Value” (Norway).
Note to readers • Sean P. Means, The Salt Lake Tribune’s deputy enterprise editor and former movie critic, is a member of the Utah Film Critics Association.