Celebrate Women's Day and Popcorn at Dan's Best Movie Theaters

The second Thursday in March is designated as Popcorn Lover’s Day, and in 2018, that falls on March 8. However, a much bigger holiday always takes place on that date, International Women’s Day, so let’s find a way to celebrate both of them.

First, a little history, the inaugural Women’s Day took place on March 19, 2011, and featured rallies and organized meetings across Europe. That date was chosen to commemorate the day that King Frederick William IV of Prussia promised to pass women’s suffrage in 1848. That promise was unfortunately never fulfilled, so the holiday was moved one week earlier in 1913.

In 1977, the United Nations declared March 8 as the UN Day for Women’s Rights and International Peace, with the intent of raising awareness for the unequal pay and treatment of women around the world. The holiday is now referred to globally as International Women’s Day and uses purple as its signature color to wear, much like green is for St. Patrick’s Day.

As far as Popcorn Lover’s Day, all we know is that it was created in 2012 by a Rochester resident named Bob Matthews. He really loves popcorn.

Obviously, we’re going to recommend that you should celebrate Popcorn Lover’s Day at Dan’s Best East End movie theaters, but it’s also Women’s Day, which means the movie to watch at said theater should feature strong female characters, with intelligent women behind the camera as well.

Annihilation is a sci-fi thriller that follows a group of female military scientists led by Dr. Ventress (Jennifer Leigh) as they explore The Shimmer, a bizarre zone with mutated animals and plants. Former biologist Lena (Natalie Portman) must discover the secrets to The Shimmer and her husband’s mysterious coma as her colleagues are picked off by mutants, one by one.

I, Tonya is a mockumentary about Olympic figure skater Tonya Harding (Margot Robbie) whose mother (Allison Janney) forced her to devote her life to the sport. She is the first female American figure skater to complete two triple axel jumps in a competition, but her time at the 1994 Winter Olympic becomes complicated when she gets mixed up in an assault scandal.

The Party is a British dark comedy written and directed by Sally Potter. In the film, a politician named Janet (Kristin Thomas) throws a party for her eccentric group of friends that quickly takes a turn as guests confront terminal illness, new motherhood, cocaine, spirituality and guns.

Black Panther is the latest Marvel superhero adventure taking place in the fictional African country of Wakanda. As the country deals with a political takeover, Black Panther King T’Challa must seek the help of his genius sister (Letitia Wright), wise mother (Angela Bassett), former lover (Lupita Nyong’o) and captain of the royal guard (Danai Gurira).

For those looking for a film to watch with the kids, A Wrinkle in Time, directed by Ava DuVernay, is a perfectly fun and whimsical adventure for the whole family. The story, based on a 1962 novel by Madeleine L-Engle and updated into a screenplay by Jennifer Lee, follows young Meg (Storm Reid) as she seeks the help of three astral travelers (Reese Witherspoon, Oprah Winfrey, Mindy Kaling) to rescue her father who’s being held captive on an alien planet.

Check out these great films playing now at Dan’s Best of the Best East End Movie Theaters. The North Fork is home to two excellent film venues, Mattituck 8 (10095 Main Road, Mattituck, fandango.com/mattituck-8-aabts/theater-page) and Greenport Theatre (211 Front Street, Greenport, 631-477-8600).

The Hamptons theater with the most votes is Sag Harbor Cinema (90 Main Street, Sag Harbor,sagharborcinema.org), which is closed until rebuilding is complete. Other South Fork winners include: UA East Hampton 6 (30 Main Street, East Hampton, fandango.com/ua-east-hampton-cinema-6-aabkg/theater-page), UA Hampton Bays 5 (119 West Montauk Highway, Hampton Bays, fandango.com/ua-hampton-bays-5-aaetd/theater-page), UA Southampton 4 (43 Hill Street, Southampton, fandango.com/ua-southampton-4-theatres-aabkh/theater-page).

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