The penultimate film in our Arthouse 101: Japanese Cinema series is Isao Takahata’s Grave Of The Fireflies!

In the final days of World War II, two siblings—teenaged Seita and his little sister Setsuko—struggle to survive in firebombed Kobe after losing their home, their parents, and eventually, their place in a society that has collapsed around them. What follows is not just a war story, but a story of love, resilience, and unbearable loss.

Rendered with breathtaking beauty by the legendary animators at Studio Ghibli, Grave of the Fireflies is often called one of the greatest animated films ever made. It is also one of the most emotionally shattering anti-war films of any kind—haunting not because of spectacle, but because of its heartbreaking truth.

Arthouse 101: Japanese Cinema is a curated 12-film trip through the evolution of Japan—from the quiet post-war resilience of the 1940s all the way to the radical reinventions of the 1990s. Each Monday this July-September, we will explore a new facet of this incredible nation’s cinematic journey throughout the 20th century! All films will be presented in their original Japanese language with English subtitles!

From Jared Hess, the offbeat mind behind Napoleon Dynamite, comes the legendary story of a Mexican monk who moonlighted as a luchador — Nacho Libre!

Jack Black stars as Ignacio, a monastery cook with big dreams of wrestling glory. By day, he tends to orphans with meager meals and modest means, but by night, he dons a homemade mask and cape to become “Nacho” – a bumbling yet big-hearted fighter who enters the chaotic world of Lucha Libre. Teaming up Esqueleto (Héctor Jiménez), a wiry street thief with zero wrestling skills but plenty of scrappy determination (and a firm belief in science), Nacho must balance his secret life in the ring with his devotion to the children he cares for, all while chasing respect, redemption, and the heart of the beautiful Sister Encarnación (Ana de la Reguera).

Wildly silly yet surprisingly sincere, Nacho Libre is a raucous underdog tale full of slapstick humor, colorful characters, and Jack Black at his most gloriously unhinged.

Taking our Arthouse 101: Japanese Cinema series into the 90’s is Kiyoshi Kurosawa’s heart-pounding 1997 thriller Cure, widely regarded as one of the best, most original, and most influential psychological horror films of the decade. 

A detective investigates a string of grisly murders—each victim killed in the same ritualistic manner, each murderer caught at the scene, unable to explain why they did it. The only connection? A mysterious drifter who seems to erase people’s memories—and unlock something buried deep inside them.

With icy precision and a creeping sense of dread, Cure is not just a murder mystery—it’s a meditation on identity and unraveling. Shot in long, haunting takes and drained colors, the film moves like a fog over post-economic-boom Japan: quiet and uncertain.

Arthouse 101: Japanese Cinema is a curated 12-film trip through the evolution of Japan—from the quiet post-war resilience of the 1940s all the way to the radical reinventions of the 1990s. This July-October, we will explore a new facet of this incredible nation’s cinematic journey throughout the 20th century. All films will be presented in their original Japanese language with English subtitles, at a reduced ticket price of $8.

Come see Paul Thomas Anderson’s elegant masterpiece, Phantom Thread, as it was meant to be seen: on the big screen!

Set in the haute-couture world of 1950s London and wrapped in lace and poisonous glances, Phantom Thread  is a love story—though maybe not the kind you bring home to mother. Daniel Day-Lewis (always brilliant) is Reynolds Woodcock, a genius dressmaker obsessed with beauty, routine, and control. Enter Alma (Vicky Krieps), a quiet waitress who upends his world—not with chaos, but with her own willpower, as graceful and unrelenting as his.

What begins as muse and artist becomes something far more unsettling—a power struggle played out through fashion, food, and the sharp edge of devotion. Jonny Greenwood’s lush, aching score swells like a secret, and Anderson’s camera moves like hands through fabric.

Our friends at See It On 16mm are back for their annual unspooling of George A. Romero’s Night of the Living Dead—the black-and-white nightmare that redefined horror and gave birth to the modern zombie movie!

Released in 1968, and unlike anything audiences had ever seen, Night of the Living Dead strands a small group of strangers inside a farmhouse besieged by the ravenous dead. As flesh-hungry ghouls close in outside, tensions boil over inside—fear, mistrust, and violence consuming the survivors faster than the monsters themselves.

Shot on a shoestring budget in Pittsburgh, Romero’s debut is both a relentless siege thriller and a searing social commentary–it shattered taboos with its shocking gore and stark realism. To this very day, it stand nexts to classics like The Texas Chain Saw Massacre, Halloween, and The Blair Witch Project as a game-changing genre masterpiece.

This program is a venue rental engagement. The views and opinions expressed in this program do not necessarily reflect the views or positions of The Frida Cinema or its staff.

Good Boy, the buzzy new horror film told from the perspective of a dog, finally scampers its way to The Frida!

A loyal dog (played by dog actor Indy, the director’s real life pet) moves to a rural family home with his owner Todd, only to discover supernatural forces lurking in the shadows. As dark entities threaten his human companion, the brave pup must fight to protect the one he loves most.

Premiering at this year’s South By Southwest, the film’s trailer gathered one million views in just its first four days, with its global interest only further piqued by its current 95% Rotten Tomatoes rating!  Catch it on the big screen at The Frida!

The Frida will be donating a portion of ticket proceeds from our Thursday, October 2nd screening of Good Boy to OC Animal Allies!  OC Animal Allies is a nonprofit organization founded with the mission to save animal lives and strengthen the human-animal bond in Orange County by providing emergency financial support, education, referral services, and therapy programs.