We’ve added encores of the enduring coming-of-age classic The Graduate!

Ben Braddock (Dustin Hoffman), fresh out of college and disillusioned with life, finds himself stuck between his older lover, Mrs. Robinson (Anne Bancroft), and her daughter (Katharine Ross).

Both a biting satire of suburban conformity and a timeless portrait of youthful uncertainty, The Graduate captured the anxieties of a generation coming of age in a rapidly changing America. Revered for its star-making performance from Dustin Hoffman and elevated by the unforgettable music of Simon & Garfunkel, the film perfectly balances sharp comedy with genuine melancholy, a tone often imitated, but never replicated.

We are not alone.

We’ve added some Spielberg Summer encores of the Director’s Cut of Close Encounters of the Third Kind, the director’s epically intimate Sci-Fi masterpiece!

After an inexplicable encounter with a mysterious object in the night sky, ordinary family man Roy Neary begins experiencing strange visions that consume his life and lead him toward a destiny he cannot understand. As reports of unexplained phenomena spread across the globe, Roy joins a growing search for answers that culminates in one of the most unforgettable finales in movie history.

Where many Sci Fi films imagine alien contact as a threat, Close Encounters of the Third Kind dares to imagine it as a miracle. Spielberg’s knack for groundbreaking visual effects with a deeply human sense of curiosity shine brightly here, paired, of course, with a brilliant score from the one and only John Williams. It’s a reminder of why we go to the movies in the first place.

An auteur emerges from America’s underclass.

From migrant farmworker to revolutionary artist, Luis Valdez changed American culture. His El Teatro Campesino performed on flatbed trucks and helped mobilize California’s farm workers. His Zoot Suit was the first Chicano play on Broadway. Despite critical rejection that killed the show’s New York run, he persevered, creating La Bamba, a blockbuster that brought Mexican-American life to a global audience.

Now in its 60th year, El Teatro continues to be a beacon for Latino creators. American Pachuco: The Legend of Luis Valdez is the first feature documentary about this American original, narrated by Edward James Olmos reprising his legendary El Pachuco role, featuring Cheech Marin, Lou Diamond Phillips, Dolores Huerta, and Linda Ronstadt. The film weaves 4K-restored archival footage, including over 80,000 feet of deteriorating 1970s celluloid rescued and digitized for the first time, with the story of a man who proved that Chicanos have always been America.

Our Art House for Families series is headed to Ancient Greece (pretty timely, no?) for Jason and the Argonauts! Before CGI armies and digital creatures, movie monsters were crafted by hand, and few artists ever did it better than Ray Harryhausen. 

Jason, a fearless sailor and explorer, returns to his home land of Thessaly after a long voyage to claim his rightful throne. He learns, however, that he must first find the magical Golden Fleece. To do so, he must embark on an epic quest fraught with fantastic monsters and terrible perils.

More than sixty years later, Jason and the Argonauts still delivers the kind of tactile cinematic wonder that inspired generations of filmmakers, from blockbuster directors to lifelong fantasy fans discovering these creatures for the very first time.

Our Art House for Families series celebrates the magic of moviegoing across generations all summer long. From silent comedy and international classics to science fiction and fantasy adventures, the series invites longtime cinephiles and first-time art house audiences of all ages to discover some of cinema’s most enduring films together on the big screen. This event is sponsored in part by the City of Santa Ana. 

Shhhh..Maddie’s Secret is finally sneaking its way to The Frida Cinema!

Comedian, writer, and actor John Early’s critically acclaimed directorial debut stars himself as Maddie, a plucky dishwasher who leaps to viral superstardom at a trendy food content creation company. While her life seems picturesque–complete with an adoring husband (Eric Rahill), ride-or-die best friend (Kate Berlant) and a cupboard full of woman-owned ethically-sourced chili crisp to boot–mounting professional pressures threaten to reawaken a hidden secret from her troubled past.

Marty Isenberg’s The Way I Feel Inside blends the whimsical, offbeat charm of Wes Anderson’s iconic mixtapes and cinematic language with his own personal story. It’s a soundtrack to the wonder, loneliness and nostalgia of life in the modern world. Presented as a concert that unfolds like a movie, its theatrical storytelling with Isenberg at the center of the frame.

Downbeat Magazine’s glowing 4.5 star review says its “pitch perfect” and Vintage Guitar Magazine raves, “It’s a fascinating concept, executed splendidly”.

This program is a venue rental engagement. Doors will open 30 minutes before the performance! Tickets are $30 for each showing. Frida Cinema comp passes and member discounts do not apply.