It is award season, and every film on our horizon is a contender. On Friday, we will open THE TWO POPES – a film I saw in Toronto and immediately knew I wanted to bring to all of you. Just yesterday, nominations for The Golden Globes were announced, and THE TWO POPES garnered 4 nominations – including “Best Picture: Drama” as well as nods for both Jonathan Pryce and Anthony Hopkins. I was not raised Catholic, yet I found this film to be intriguing, insightful and important (as well as full of warmth, hope and even with fun moments) – I hope you’ll support it. Every film on our list is receiving recognition from critics and awards programs. From LITTLE WOMEN and THE IRISHMAN to MARRIAGE STORY and GIVE ME LIBERTY (with its big local connection), we have the best line-up ever to wrap up 2019. In addition to having TWO POPES, DARK WATERSwill stick around (audiences are loving it). If you still need to see the phenomenal PARASITE or the crowd-pleasing JOJO RABBIT, Thursday will be your last chance.

Synopsis for THE TWO POPES: “The Catholic Church’s papacy is a singular institution, with unique demands placed on the men who would see themselves elevated to it. This decade saw one of the Church’s most important moments of transition, but news reports can fail in the face of such enormous, complex change. THE TWO POPES takes us beyond TV images of smoke rising from the Vatican chimney into the hearts, minds, and actions of those charged with leading over a billion faithful. Directed by Brazil’s Oscar-nominated Fernando Meirelles (CITY OF GOD) and starring two acting legends in Sir Anthony Hopkins and Jonathan Pryce, this insightful story ushers us behind gilded doors to watch the once and future Popes grapple with faith and religious leadership in a rapidly changing world.” (TIFF Catalog) Click the image below to watch the film’s trailer.

Thanks to everyone who came out to our DARK WATERS talk-back on Sunday evening. It was by far our highest attended screening of the weekend! Though an exact date and time has yet to be solidified (an announcement will be made within the next couple days), you can come back and learn more about GIVE ME LIBERTY from line-producer (and WSU grad) Karri O’Reilly. This film has been nominated for 4 Independent Spirit Awards – and it’s a wonderful story with incredible performances from actors we’ll certainly be seeing again and again.

Dale Farmer is bringing his award-winning film to THE NEON on Thursday, January 16 at 7:30. “Deeply infused with the traditional Appalachian musical genres of Old Time and Bluegrass, THE MOUNTAIN MINOR tells an overlooked story about the people and culture behind the resurgence of American Roots Music today and highlights artful responses to the difficult circumstances of human migration. In the 1920s-1950s, millions of Appalachians left their homes in the mountains and migrated to urban Midwestern centers in Ohio, Indiana, Illinois and Michigan. The Mountain Minor is the story of a life-worn Charlie Abner, a generation later, as he struggles with leaving his present life and family in Cincinnati, Ohio to return to the Kentucky Mountain home and musical heritage that once defined him. The story is partially told in flashbacks to depression era Eastern Kentucky, when Charlie’s parents, Oza and Vestal Abner, face the difficult decision to leave the way of life they know and move to Ohio for employment and better opportunities. This is not only film director Dale Farmer’s family story, but the story of thousands of families that left their mountain homes to move to the Dayton, Ohio area to become the heart of the working middle class. This film is unique in that all of its principal actors are traditional musicians-such as Smithsonian Folkways artist Elizabeth LaPrelle and acclaimed banjoist and fiddler Dan Gellert-and they perform all of the music in the film. Pre-film music by The Corn Drinkers will start at 7:30, and the movie will play at 8:00. A Q&A will follow the film with the writer/director Dale Farmer and actors Ma Crow, Warren & Judy Waldron and Amy Cogan Clay.” (press notes) Tickets are $12 each and will go on sale Dec. 16.

We need your help! Sponsored by The Dayton Holiday Festival, Mix 107.7 and THE NEON, The Family Holiday Film Series started last Saturday with THE WIZARD OF OZ…and we had a lot of empty seats. Tickets are FREE for kids 12 and under, and we’ll screen A CHRISTMAS STORY this Saturday, Dec. 14 at Noon. And next week, THE GRINCH (2018) will screen on Saturday, Dec. 21 at Noon. Tickets are FREE for children 12 and under and only $2 for anyone over 12. These tickets will become available at 11:15am on the day of each screening, and they are limited to one ticket per person (aka: everyone must be present in order to pick up tickets – we can’t hold or disperse tickets for people who are not at the theater – thank you for your understanding). Everyone is welcome! If you have friends, neighbors, grandkids, or grandmas who like good holiday fun, let ’em know!

Many of you have been asking about showtimes for December 25. Interestingly, Sony has asked us to go ahead and create showtimes and put tickets on sale for LITTLE WOMEN tomorrow morning. We’ll go ahead and set showtimes for THE IRISHMAN and MARRIAGE STORY too. You can get advanced tickets via our website starting tomorrow at 9:00am – www.neonmovies.com.

We hope to see you often over the next few weeks. It’s going to be quite a season!