The Arts

The 2025-2026 season at the Academy Theatre in Meadville is in full swing, and it premieres with the production of The Addams Family. 

K-pop Demon Hunters is a film that came seemingly out of nowhere on Netflix and became so popular that it is breaking ground in other ways as well. The film has a great message for kids and teens while being enjoyable enough for adults not to get sick of it easily.

Wicked is one of the best musicals that has hit Broadway, and the movie is a direct screen adaptation of the stage play. The story is solid the entire way throughout and the music is some of the best in the genre. 

Anora is a film about a sex worker in Brooklyn who meets and marries the son of a Russian oligarch. After his family finds out, they try to annul the marriage. If that premise sounds interesting to you, the movie, with six Oscar nominations including Best Picture, is much better.

Emilia Pérez, which leads this year’s Oscar contenders with 13 nominations, is as bad as people say it is. Sure, there are some good things about the film that elevate it above being just a bad movie. Unfortunately, these just aren’t enough to save the film.

Best Picture nominee Conclave follows a Catholic cardinal as he leads the conclave in choosing a new pope. While this is a very good film that closely depicts the process of choosing a new Pope, parts of it can be confusing.

The Brutalist is a 2024 film about László Toth, a Hungarian-Jewish architect who survived the holocaust and immigrated to America to rebuild his life, his work, and his marriage. The film is nominated for 10 Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Actor a and Best Supporting Actress.

A $40 Festival Pass will enable movie fans to watch all the Best Picture nominees at Cinemark Erie from Feb. 24 to March 2.

Nominations for the 97th Academy Awards are out, with musicals taking centerstage.