Folk singer/songwriter Ani DiFranco crashed onto the music scene in the early ‘90s, unapologetically bisexual, political and feminist. She toured relentlessly, thrashing out hundreds of frenzied shows that were part mosh pit, part hootenanny and part full-on tent revival, then selling cassette tapes from the trunk of her car to make it to the next gig. She founded her “non-corporate queer-happy” label, Righteous Babe Records, and is now 30+ years into a career as an independent entrepreneur. This intimate doc captures her at home and recording her Revolutionary Love album at Justin Vernon’s (Bon Iver) artists' retreat in Wisconsin. “How does somebody like me move towards 60 like this?” she asks with a laugh. 1-800-ON-HER-OWN takes us on an intimate road trip, offering DiFranco as a relatable contemporary “everywoman” with her own epic fails and hard-won victories. (dir. Dana Flor, U.S., 2024, 79m)

Steve McQueen (an Academy Award winner for 12 Years a Slave) follows nine-year-old George (Elliot Heffernan) during The Blitz, the German’s more than eight months-long bombing of the United Kingdom during World War II. George is sent to the countryside by his mother (Saoirse Ronan), but becomes lost along the way, as his own private trials are mirrored by his nation’s. Inspired by true people and events, the film tells a moving story of war, separation, and survival. (dir. Steve McQueen, U.S., 2024, 120m) “Steve McQueen shows his adept ability at bringing enormous scope to deeply personal human stories.” – Collider

This comic drama is a nostalgic tribute to suburban holiday-season rituals – four generations of the Balsano family gather for what may be the last Christmas in their family home on Long Island. Amidst the rowdy celebration, two cousins sneak away to claim the suburban winter wonderland for teenage rebellion. Woven throughout the movie are scenes of the world’s two weirdest cops (Gregg Turkington and Michael Cera, who also has a producer’s credit). Filming in Suffolk County on his native Long Island, with a cast that combines ace character actors and compelling non-pros, director Tyler Taormina has made a valentine to his Italian American family, set in a richly detailed place but also not quite of this world. (dir. Tyler Taormina, U.S., 2024, 106 min.)

In this thrilling adaptation of Robert Harris’ novel, we are caught up in seismic clashes of ego, ambition, loyalty and belief. After a pope dies, Cardinal Lawrence (Ralph Fiennes), oversees the time-honored ritual for electing a new one. He must contend with a fiery reactionary Cardinal Tedesco (Sergio Castellitto), a mild-mannered but strategic liberal (Stanley Tucci), the calculating Cardinal Tremblay (John Lithgow) and Sister Agnes (Isabella Rossellini), a nun exhausted from a lifetime in service to an all-male power structure. Director Edward Berger (All Quiet on the Western Front) steers this extraordinary cast through the Vatican’s labyrinthine shadows and the brute realities of human conflict. The result is a surprising and elegant thriller, a thoughtful meditation on the mystery of faith and a reminder: election season is not for the weak. (dir. Edward Berger, U.K., 2024, 120m)

Filmmakers Scott Beck and Bryan Woods are most known for writing the dialogue-minimal A Quiet Place; now they have made a gripping film that’s all about dialogue and the arguments we make when our lives are on the line. Hugh Grant embodies the most terrifying person in any religious sphere: a man who will not shut up about his convictions. It’s a recipe for setting an audience on edge, and the more it simmers, the more Heretic proves itself a compelling, inventive thriller driven by three great central performances. (dir. Scott Beck, Bryan Woods, U.S., 2024, 110m) “Never has pondering theology been so devilishly entertaining — and amen to that.” – Entertainment Weekly

A darkly comic documentary on love, personal autonomy and death with dignity, It’s A Wrap explores one woman’s final decision to end her life on her own terms. With raw emotion and dark comedy, the film offers an intimate reflection on the complexities of autonomy, family, and saying goodbye. At the center of the documentary is Grandma Haya, a fiercely independent woman battling progressive terminal cancer. As they navigate the preparations for her final goodbye, her daughter (and the film’s co-director) Miri recognizes this as her last chance to solve some lingering mysteries. The film candidly addresses important themes of self-determination and is a poignant reminder that how we choose to say goodbye is as important as how we choose to live. Following the screening, a post-film discussion will take place. (dir. Amit Miller and Miri Urman, Israel, 2022, 56 min.) Now entering its 6th season, the Celebrating Aging Series uses the creative arts to explore evolving cultural narratives affecting multiple aging generations. Bevival’s death literacy programs include post-screening discussions with experts in the arts, medicine, and social sciences.

If it hadn’t been for a bottle of scotch and a late-night visit from musician Gregg Allman, Jimmy Carter might never have been elected the 39th President. We show this doc in honor of Carter’s recent 100th birthday – it charts the mostly forgotten story of his tight bond with musicians Willie Nelson, the Allman Brothers, Bob Dylan and others. Low on campaign funds and lacking in name recognition, Carter relied on their support to give him a crucial boost in the Democratic primaries. Once he was elected, the musicians became frequent guests in the White House. (dir. Mary Wharton, U.S., 2020, 95 min.) “Rock & Roll President” is a potent and poignant reminder of how some things used to be and may never be again.” NY Times

The original film was a smash hit, a memorable feature about an adventurous teenager who becomes a master way-finder, sailing across the ocean to fulfill the ancient quest of her ancestors. Now Moana and Maui are reunited three years later for an expansive new voyage alongside a crew of unlikely seafarers. (dir David Derrick Jr., Jason Hand, and Dana Ledoux Miller, U.S., 2024, 100 min.) “A vibrantly rendered adventure that combines CG animation with traditional storytelling and colorful characters, all enlivened by a terrific voice cast.” — Hollywood Reporter

Mogwai emerged at the height of Britpop in the ‘90s but specializing in elegant and introspective, mostly instrumental post-rock music that incorporates electronic components, found sound soundscapes, the odd whispered vocal, and orchestration. Antony Crooks documents Mogwai’s recording of their album As the Love Continues, with the urban landscape of Glasgow, the band’s city of origin, featuring heavily. The film becomes a glowing tribute to a tight-knit community where Mogwai’s fans and allies are tightly woven into a communal feedback loop. (dir. Antony Crooks, Scotland, 2024, 92m) “A vivid account of a band that has transcended cult status to become a genuine national treasure.” D Movies

Roman Polanski’s first American feature film, set in The Dakota in Manhattan, is a claustrophobic horror that taps brilliantly into the uncertainties and queasy potential threats of childbirth. Mia Farrow is gamine and vulnerable as Rosemary, the young wife who moves with her husband Guy (John Cassavetes) into a New York apartment building with a bad reputation. Very quickly she begins to feel that there is something not quite right about her overattentive neighbors. (dir. Roman Polanski, U.S., 1968, 136m)

Johan Grimonprez’s kinetic, urgent documentary features musical performances by jazz legends Louis Armstrong, Dizzy Gillespie, and Nina Simone who in the ‘60s doubled as cultural ambassadors to Africa. Their roles as unknowing decoys in the CIA’s plot to assassinate Congo’s prime minister Patrice Lumumba threads through this deeply researched, richly textured tapestry — which scrambles the simplistic good guys/bad guys narrative, foregrounds powerful women behind the revolution and sheds new light on a global conspiracy playing out often right in view. (dir. Johan Grimonprez, Belgium /France /Netherlands 2024, 150 min.) “Thrilling, galvanizing… crackling with energy, ideas and formal daring… Political history has never felt so energizing and dynamically alive as it does here.” – Screen International

Tomoroh Taguchi, plays the “Salaryman,” an average Joe who accidentally runs over a maimed “Metal Fetishist” with his car. The next day the metal within him begins to spread, eventually taking over his whole body, cell by cell:: 90% iron, 10% flesh. Meanwhile, the Fetishist seeks out the Salaryman, urging him to join his cause to “create an entirely metal world.” The film fires on multiple levels — including as a Cronenbergian AIDS analogy — it never fails to live up to whatever you perceive it as. (dir. Shinya Tsukamoto, Japan, 1989, 67 min.)

As a drum roll before James Mangold’s A Complete Unknown’s Christmas release, this powerful doc shows Dylan’s transition from troubadour to rock star, accompanied by Joan Baez, Johnny Cash and the Paul Butterfield Blues Band. Murray Lerner and his crew capture vital performances in images of rapt attentiveness. The sound mix is crisp, the black-and-white photography is shimmering, and the songs are heard in all their enigmatic glory, performed by an artist with uncanny gifts. (dir. Murray Lerner, U.S., 2007, 83m)

Part movie screening, part kaffeeklatsch and quilting bee, this intimate happening seeks to bring together women in a safe space. The brainchild of local artist Christina Brady, the event starts with The M Factor – Shredding the Silence of Menopause (dir.f Jacoba Atlas, USA, 2024, 56 mins.) a ground-breaking documentary which advocates for a revolutionary approach to women’s health. Post-screening, Christina will lead a deeply personal conversation, drawing on her own journey, while attendees stitch embroidery free-form. Materials will be provided.

This Wizard of Oz musical spinoff via Broadway is the story of Elphaba (Cynthia Erivo) – soon to be the Wicked Witch of the West – and her unlikely friendship with good witch Glinda (Ariana Grande). Based on Gregory Maguire’s novel Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West, it explores themes of power, and the nature of good and evil — all contrasted against the world of Oz. Known for its iconic songs like “Defying Gravity” and “Popular,” the Broadway show was nominated for ten Tony Awards, winning three. Director John Chu (Crazy Rich Asians, In the Heights) has split the film into two parts, the next arriving next year, so as to deepen the characters. (dir. John Chu, U.S., 2024, 160 min.)