Now Playing & Coming Soon

You only get one shot at fame. The scintillating feature debut of Mary Harron (American Psycho) and one of the most controversial independent films of the 1990s, I Shot Andy Warhol stars an electric Lili Taylor as Valerie Solanas, a militant feminist whose attempted murder of Andy Warhol brought instant fame to her radically anti-male SCUM Manifesto.  Dropping out of grad school in the midsixties, the brilliant yet volatile Solanas survived in New York City as a destitute artist, sex worker, and panhandler, soon striking up a friendship with Warhol superstar Candy Darling that brought her briefly into the orbit of the world’s premier pop artist.  Featuring a blistering score by John Cale as well as covers of sixties hits by some of the nineties’ most iconic bands (R.E.M., Wilco), I Shot Andy Warhol is an incisive portrait of a rebel without an outlet and the soon-to-be-lost generation she came to define.

In remembrance of filmmaker and artist Marjane Satrapi, we are screening a week of her 2007 animated masterpiece Persepolis. Growing up in revolutionary Iran, young Marjane is outspoken, curious, and determined to chart her own path in a world growing increasingly restrictive. Sent abroad by her family for safety, she navigates adolescence, exile, love, and loss while struggling to reconcile the person she has become with the homeland she left behind. Through it all, Marjane searches for a place to belong. Rendered in striking black-and-white animation, Persepolis captures both the upheaval of political change and the intimate joys and heartbreaks of growing up. It stands as a testament to Satrapi’s singular voice: a filmmaker who turned memory into art and invited audiences around the world to see history through the eyes of one unforgettable life.

Julia Ducournau's controversial Palme d'Or body horror extravaganza, Titane, is coming back to The Frida for some July encores! A woman with a metal plate in her head from a childhood car accident embarks on a bizarre journey, bringing her into contact with a firefighter who's reunited with his missing son after 10 years. Unflinching and unforgettable, Titane fuses the visceral with the vulnerable. Ducournau (Raw and the upcoming Alpha) directs with feral intensity, crafting a film that shifts from slasher to surrealist family drama to near-mythic transformation tale all in one.

Welcome to the witching hour. We're teaming with our spooky friend Kialey Hail (aka Ghoul Host) for a special 30th anniversary screening of the ultimate teen occult classic, The Craft!  When new student Sarah arrives at a Catholic high school in Los Angeles, she falls in with a trio of outsider girls who practice witchcraft. As their powers grow, so do their ambitions, allowing them to finally take control of their lives. But what begins as empowerment soon spirals into consequences none of them can escape. A fun mix of Thriller and coming-of-age Drama, The Craft remains a defining artifact of '90s alternative culture and a certified Frida Cinema classic. Powered by unforgettable performances from Fairuza Balk, Neve Campbell, Robin Tunney, and Rachel True, this endlessly quotable cult favorite still casts a spell three decades later.

I Saw The TV Glow is back at The Frida to celebrate the upcoming release of Jane Schoenbrun's new film, Teenage Sex & Death at Camp Miasma, opening at The Frida on 8/21!  Teenager Owen is just trying to make it through life in the suburbs when his classmate Maddy introduces him to a mysterious late-night TV show, a vision of a supernatural world beneath their own. In the pale glow of the television, Owen’s view of reality begins to crack. Only a couple years after after its initial release on our screens, I Saw The TV Glow has been one of our most requested bring-back titles. Bathed in neon light and aching nostalgia, Schoenbrun transforms the language of cult television and suburban adolescence into something deeply personal, crafting a film that is both an eerie fantasy and an emotionally devastating portrait of self-discovery. Few films have ever resonated so deeply with our audience. 

Our award-winning resident performance troupe K.A.O.S. returns for their celebrated all-costumed, all-choreographed, all-leg-kicking live shadowcast presentation of 1975 cult classic The Rocky Horror Picture Show, performed on stage in front of the film! Director Jim (Don’t squeeze the…) Sharman’s cult classic stars Barry Bostwick and Susan Sarandon as Brad and Janet, two virginal small-town lovers whose car breaks down in the shadows of a creepy old castle, where they encounter an odd collective of “unconventional conventionalists” gathered to witness transvestite scientist’s Dr. Frank-N-Furter’s latest creation – a muscular man named Rocky. As their innocence is lost, Brad and Janet meet a houseful of wild characters, including tap-dancing Columbia, rocking biker Eddie, and of course, the castle’s “Sweet Transvestite” himself, Frank-N-Furter! Adapted from the 1973 stage musical by Richard O’Brien, this glam cult classic is a cinematic experience unlike any other. Sing-along (and shout-along!) to The Rocky Horror Picture Show, a classic that still packs houses 50 years after its initial release! Get your tickets now before it sells out! Doors open at 11:00pm  Official K.A.O.S. preshow starts at 11:30pm!  Movie at midnight! SENSORY WARNING: Flashing Lights and Fog effects may be used during the event. 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. Member discounts and Frida Cinema comp passes not valid.

In the summer of 2025, a twenty-something took a solo trip to Yosemite. It was his goal to rediscover what it meant to be alive -- and to say goodbye. From the director of Brainbugs comes Wildman, a new, unique vision of madness. Shot entirely on a 2009 Sony Handycam camcorder, Wildman is an oddball freakshow adventure movie. Part found footage, part one-man-show, and part quasi-musical.  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.

We're  doing an encore of the hilarious early-aughts satire Josie and the Pussycats! The film follows Josie (Rachael Leigh Cook), Melody (Tara Reid), and Valerie (Rosario Dawson), three small-town girls who form a rock band and get swept up in the glitzy world of fame, where they discover the dark undercurrents of the music industry. As they rise to stardom, they find themselves being manipulated by an all-powerful corporation that’s using their music to influence the minds of consumers. Oh, and did we mention the villain is played by none other than Miss Parker Posey? And who doesn't love Alan Cumming!? Though initially dismissed as a bubblegum teen comedy, Josie and the Pussycats has since gone on to become a cult classic, still electrifying audiences over two decades since its release!

Our documentary pick for our Art House for Families series is For All Mankind, Al Reinert's thrilling portrait about the twenty-four men who went to the moon! Constructed entirely from restored NASA footage and accompanied by a hypnotic score from Brian Eno, the film immerses audiences in the experience of the Apollo missions, transforming historic events into something deeply human. Rather than focusing on technical milestones or political history, For All Mankind captures the surreal beauty of space travel itself. Few documentaries evoke the scale of discovery quite like this one. Projected on the big screen, its images of Earth floating silently in darkness still inspire the same awe they did more than fifty years ago. 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. 

Season 2, Episode 18 - “On the Wings of Love”
Original Air Date: February 23, 1991

Relationships across Twin Peaks begin shifting in new and surprising directions, as characters act on long-held feelings and uncertain loyalties. Ben Horne’s increasingly strange behavior creates confusion within his family and business, while Cooper and Truman continue monitoring developments tied to Windom Earle.

Season 2, Episode 19 - “Variations on Relations”
Original Air Date: March 2, 1991

As Windom Earle’s influence spreads, connections between characters continue to rearrange themselves, often with unintended consequences. Bobby, Shelly, Audrey, Donna, and others navigate relationships that seem increasingly fragile, while Cooper works to understand the broader pattern behind recent events.

Season 2, Episode 20 - “The Path to the Black Lodge”
Original Air Date: March 9, 1991

Cooper and Major Briggs begin confronting ideas that suggest Twin Peaks is connected to something far older and more metaphysical than a conventional criminal case. As clues point toward the mysterious Black Lodge, Windom Earle becomes more active and more dangerous, and the town’s various storylines begin gravitating toward a shared and ominous center.

We are celebrating ten years of our beloved volunteer Sammy Trujillo, as his Volunteer of the Month pick for July is the very timely Jafar Panahi film Offside!  During the 2006 World Cup qualifying match between Iran and Bahrain, numerous young women are caught and rounded up for dressing as men so they could gain access to the game. Guarded by several soldiers in a holding pen, the women attempt to keep updated on the score. Shot during a real World Cup qualifier, Offside crackles with the energy of live sports and the immediacy of documentary filmmaking. Panahi crafts a film that is as entertaining as it is politically resonant, always showcasing his knack for quiet acts of resistance Nearly two decades later, Offside is rarely seen on the big screen, so thank to Sammy for highlighting it!

Our Staff Pick for the moth of July comes courtesy of our wonderful Director of Box Office Operations, Jill, as she has chosen Olivier Assayas’s live-wire international breakthrough Irma Vep! Starring an absolutely magnetic Maggie Cheung as a version of herself, she plays a Hong Kong action movie star who arrives in Paris to play the latex-clad lead in a remake of Louis Feuillade’s classic 1915 crime serial Les vampires. What she finds is a behind-the-scenes nightmare as egos clash, romantic attractions simmer, and an obsessive director (a cannily cast Jean-Pierre Léaud) drives himself to the brink to realize his vision. Balancing elements of silent cinema, martial arts flicks, and the music of Sonic Youth and Ali Farka Touré into a hallucinatory swirl of postmodern cool, Irma Vep is a witty reflection on the nineties French film industry and the eternal tension between art and commercial entertainment.

The Fabulous Baron Munchausen is up next in our Art House for Families series!  Director Karel Zeman conjures a story that follows the adventures of the legendary, boastful baron, whose whirlwind exploits take him from the moon to eighteenth-century Turkey to the belly of a whale and beyond. A rainbow-esque marvel that blends live action with techniques including stop-motion, cutout collage, puppetry, painted backdrops, and antique tinting, Zeman’s film is an exhilarating visual delight and a warmhearted whirl through a bygone age too entrancing to have existed. This film is presented in its original Czech language, with English subtitles. 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. 

We are not alone. Our Spielberg Summer series continues with one of the filmmaker’s most personal and awe-inspiring works: the Director's Cut of Close Encounters of the Third Kind, a Science Fiction epic that looks to the stars with wonder instead of fear. 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.

Join us for three talent-packed nights of unscripted comedy as we team up with OCIF to bring you the OC Improv Fest 2026! First held in 2013, the Orange County Improv Festival was conceived to celebrate the growing and diverse improv community of Orange County, California. Despite prevailing opinions that Orange County is a homogenized wasteland devoid of culture, the OC Improv Fest seeks to expose the vibrant comedy taking place behind the “Orange Curtain.” The largest improv event in Orange County, the OC Improv Fest is committed to the celebration and elevation of improvisation, as well as forging friendships across cities and states with diverse and open-minded performers. For the improv team line-up, workshops, and FAQs, visit: https://improvcollective.fun/ocif  All performances are live, unscripted, and unrated. Line-ups subject to change. 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. Member discounts and comp passes do not apply. 

Our second Volunteer of the Month pick for July comes via Avalon, who has chosen chosen the hallucinatory body-horror classic Videodrome from visionary filmmaker and certified sicko David Cronenberg. As the president of a trashy TV channel, Max Renn is desperate for new programming to attract viewers. When he happens upon "Videodrome," a TV show dedicated to gratuitous torture and punishment, Max sees a potential hit and broadcasts the show on his channel. However, after his girlfriend auditions for the show and never returns, Max investigates the truth behind Videodrome and discovers that the graphic violence may not be as fake as he thought. Videodrome remains one of Cronenberg's most provocative and unsettling works. Filled with unforgettable practical effects and audacious ideas, the film predicts a world consumed by screens while asking who controls the images we consume. 

The final film in our Starring Natalie Wood retrospective is the oft-requested The Great Race, the movie that paired her with the iconic duo of Jack Lemmon and Tony Curtis for an affectionate throwback to silent-era spectacle and early Hollywood farce! Professional daredevil and white-suited hero, The Great Leslie, convinces turn-of-the-century auto makers that a race from New York to Paris (westward across America, the Bering Straight and Russia) will help to promote automobile sales. Leslie's arch-rival, the mustached and black-attired Professor Fate vows to beat Leslie to the finish line in a car of Fate's own invention. Ms. Wood leans fully into broad comedy here, delivering rapid-fire dialogue and playful physical humor, a fun contrast to some of the her more intense performances covered in this series. This Summer, we are celebrating the unforgettable star power of Natalie Wood with a quartet of films that showcase the unique blend of charisma and emotional intensity that made her one of Hollywood’s most beloved screen icons. This series is co-presented by the amazing folks over at the Muckenthaler Cultural Center in Fullerton as part of their exhibit More Than Love: The Life & Art of Natalie Wood!

We're adding a matinee encore of our special celebration of everyone’s favorite football head! We have lineup of fan-favorite episodes from the beloved Nickelodeon series Hey Arnold! in celebration of it’s 30th anniversary! Thank you to All Hail Horror for partnering with us on this awesome event! Before the screening there will be an unforgettable live musical performance from the show’s legendary jazz-infused soundtrack, performed in person by show creator Craig Bartlett and original composer Jim Lang! Plus, stick around after the screening for a Q&A after with special guests! See the show like you’ve never seen before! This will be a night full of nostalgia that you don’t want to miss! Full schedule below: 3:15PM - Doors open (Vendors + Photo op by FanMail Cinema Club) 3:30PM - Live pre-show 3:45PM - Screening starts 5:00PM - Q&A and signing

On July 19th, The Frida Cinema is partnering up with All Hail Horror for a special celebration of everyone’s favorite football head! We have lineup of fan-favorite episodes from the beloved Nickelodeon series Hey Arnold! in celebration of it’s 30th anniversary! Before the screening there will be an unforgettable live musical performance from the show’s legendary jazz-infused soundtrack, performed in person by show creator Craig Bartlett and original composer Jim Lang! Plus, stick around after the screening for a Q&A after with special guests! See the show like you’ve never seen before! This will be a night full of nostalgia that you don’t want to miss! Full schedule below: 6:00PM - Doors open (Vendors + Photo op by FanMail Cinema Club) 6:30PM - Live pre-show 7:00PM - Screening starts 8:15PM - Q&A and signing

Season 2, Episode 21 - “Miss Twin Peaks”
Original Air Date: April 10, 1991

The town prepares for the Miss Twin Peaks pageant, bringing Audrey, Donna, Lana Milford, and many familiar faces together for a public celebration shaped by private tensions, and looming danger. Cooper and Truman remain focused on Windom Earle, while romantic complications and personal rivalries unfold behind the scenes.

Season 2, Episode 22 - “Beyond Life and Death”
Original Air Date: June 10, 1991

As Windom Earle’s plans reach their culmination, Cooper is drawn into the deepest and most mysterious elements of the world surrounding Twin Peaks. The aftermath of the pageant leaves several characters in danger, and long-running storylines converge in ways that feel both intimate and otherworldly. The season finale pushes fully into surreal, nightmarish territory, culminating with a haunting final scene.

For their inaugural Frida Cinema screening, Shitty Movie Club has curated a few scenes from some of their favorite Shitty heavy-hitters! We'll watch them all first, and then you'll vote on which full movie screens!   The night's selects will be real crowd-pleasers, lesser known than The Room or Sharknado, but you get the vibe. We'll have a few surprises and interactive elements along with a showreel of bizarre clips. Think of it as a shitty movie party or watching a shitty movie at home with friends. Except on a huge screen. And with tons of new friends.   Shitty Movie Club has screened almost 200 movies in 9 countries, amassing over 50M views on their Instagram over the last year, posting daily reels if you want to get a preview of what to expect! Want more info? Head over to the Shitty Movie Club website for more!  Tickets this event are $10. Frida Cinema member discounts and comp passes do not apply.

Our Page to Screen title for the month of July is the enduring coming-of-age classic The Graduate! Ben...

July's Hallucinations pick is the delightfully strange Musical Fantasy Tomorrow, featuring an early leading performance from the incomparable Olivia Newton-John! In a whimsical future where science, music, and imagination collide, a brilliant young inventor and his eccentric companions set out on an adventure that spans planets, generations, and dimensions.  Released years before Grease would make her an international icon, Tomorrow offers a fascinating glimpse of Olivia Newton-John at the dawn of her screen career. Overflowing with colorful visuals and catch tunes, Tomorrow is a charming reminder that we used to make movies like this! Hosted by Polygon’s editor-in-chief Chris Plante, Hallucinations is a monthly event that spotlights movies that challenge our expectations of story, style, and “good taste”. We invite guests to bond over films that change what we expect from the medium, the world, and themselves. So come early, stay late, make friends, and watch something strange, surprising, or just shamelessly sick.

One band. Forty years of beautiful chaos.  Catch a final encore of the brand new documentary about the legacy of NOFX with 40 Years of Fuckin' Up, up on the big screen, loud and proud! Spanning four decades of provocation, this no-holds-barred documentary dives headfirst into the band’s history: the music, the mayhem, the fights, the fallout, and everything in between. Built around their final run, it’s as much a goodbye as it is a brutally honest look at what it takes to last this long without selling out or slowing down. Both emotionally raw and gut-bustingly funny, 40 Years of Fuckin' Up is staying true to tis form and never coming to streaming. This is your chance to experience it the way it was meant to be seen: in a room full of fans, turned all the way up! Tickets are $20 to this event. Frida Cinema comp passes and member discounts do not apply. 

Jacques Demy’s transcendent musical The Umbrellas of Cherbourg is the next film in our Art House for Families series! This simple romantic tragedy begins in 1957. Guy Foucher, a 20-year-old French auto mechanic, has fallen in love with 17-year-old Geneviève Emery, an employee in her widowed mother's chic but financially embattled umbrella shop. On the evening before Guy is to leave for a two-year tour of combat in Algeria, he and Geneviève make love. She becomes pregnant and must choose between waiting for Guy's return or accepting an offer of marriage from a wealthy diamond merchant. Simultaneously intimate and visually overwhelming, The Umbrellas of Cherbourg remains one of the most beloved movie musicals ever made, influencing generations of filmmakers with its fusion of romantic melancholy and pure color-saturated movie magic. It's a long-standing Frida Cinema favorite and an absolute-must for first timers on the big screen!  This film will be presented in its original French language, with English subtitles. 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. 

Our Classic Movie Nights series is stepping into the courtroom for a battle of the sexes with the sparkling romantic comedy Adam's Rib, starring the incomparable Katharine Hepburn and Spencer Tracy! Married lawyers Amanda and Adam Bonner find themselves on opposing sides of a headline-grabbing case: Amanda defends a woman who shot her unfaithful husband, while Adam takes on the prosecution. What starts as a legal dispute quickly spills into their personal lives, as debates over marriage itself turn their once-harmonious relationship into a witty war zone. With the ever-scandalous neighbor Kip Lurie (David Wayne) stirring the pot, tensions run high. Directed by George Cukor and written by the husband-and-wife team of Ruth Gordon and Garson Kanin, Adam’s Rib is a masterclass in screwball dialogue and chemistry, showcasing one of classic Hollywood’s most iconic screen pairings at their absolute best. Make sure to get to the screening early, as our Marketing Director Bekah will be doing a very informative and entertaining presentation on the film before it starts!

In the town of Twin Peaks, everyone has their secrets...especially Laura Palmer.  Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me is coming back to The Frida Cinema, playing between seasons two and three of our Twin Peaks: The Complete Series saga! And make sure to stick around afterwards as we go further down the rabbit hole with Twin Peaks: The Missing Pieces, a 2014 compilation of deleted and extended scenes from the film. In this prequel to his groundbreaking 1990s television series, David Lynch resurrects the teenager found wrapped in plastic at the beginning of the show, following her through the last week of her life and teasing out the enigmas that surround her murder. Nightmarish in its vision of an innocent torn apart by unfathomable forces, Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me is nevertheless one of Lynch’s most humane films, aching with compassion for its tortured heroine. One ticket gets you access to two movies! There will be a ten minute intermission between both films.

OC Pride is back at The Frida to present Luca Guadagnino's sun-drenched Italian Summer coming-of-age film Call Me by Your Name! In the summer of 1983, a 17-year-old Elio (Timothée Chalamet) spends his days in his family's villa in Italy. One day Oliver, a graduate student, arrives to assist Elio's father, a professor of Greco-Roman culture. Soon, Elio and Oliver discover a summer that will alter their lives forever. With its lush landscapes, unforgettable performances, and achingly human sense of time slipping away, Call Me by Your Name captures the exhilaration and heartbreak of first love with extraordinary sensitivity. Guadagnino crafts a world so vivid that audiences can practically feel the Summer heat. 

From the Amazon's forbidden depths comes...Creature from the Black Lagoon! Cinematic Void is invading The Frida Cinema again to present one of the crown jewels of Universal's monster canon that introduced audiences to the unforgettable Gill-man!   When scientists exploring the Amazon River stumble on a “missing link” connecting humans and fish, they plan to capture it for later study. But the Creature has plans of his own, and has set his sights on the lead scientist's beautiful fiancée, Kay. Combining atmospheric underwater photography and unforgettable creature effects, the film remains a marvel of 1950s genre filmmaking. More than seventy years later, the Gill-man still stands among cinema's most iconic monsters, re-surfacing from the depths every so often to captivate new generation of moviegoers.

Bust out those plastic spoons! The Room is back at The Frida Cinema! Wiseau's peerless magnum opus finds the auteur who shaped a generation taking on the arts of acting, writing, casting, directing, editing and more. What's even more remarkable: he's mastered them all. The multi-talented director stars as Johnny, a big-time banker working in gorgeously shot San Francisco. His fiancée Lisa, seemingly a happy part of a successful relationship, has wandering eyes…for Tommy's best friend Mark. Cinema has never witnessed such betrayal! An intense, sensual thriller, at least as it was intended by Wiseau, The Room is an intricately knit web of sweet secrets and bitter lies that interrogates the very form of drama itself, as well as a truly unforgettable piece of cinema.

Éric Rohmer's The Green Ray is July 2026's Frida Cinema Film Club Members Only screening! The fifth film in the director's Comedies and Proverbs cycle, the movie captures the ache of summertime sadness with exquisite poignancy, making it a nice offbeat choice for this month.  The Jules Verne novel of the same name provides the loose inspiration for the story of Delphine (Marie Rivière), a dreamy, introverted young secretary who, reeling from a breakup with her boyfriend, faces the prospect of spending her summer vacation alone. As she bounces from Cherbourg to the tourist-choked Alps to the sunny beaches of Biarritz, Delphine passes through a whirl of social activity—but remains profoundly alone, as true human connection continually eludes her. As honest a portrait of longing for understanding as has ever been committed to film, The Green Ray is one of the most piercingly perceptive works by French cinema’s keenest observer of human relationships. Not a Frida Cinema Film Club member yet? Sign up here!

Closing out our Bogie Fest series, celebrating the legendary performances of Hollywood icon Humprey Bogart, is Nicholas Ray's 1950 masterpiece In A Lonely Place! Bogart plays Dixon Steele, a Hollywood screenwriter with talent to spare and a temper he can’t quite control. When a young woman he briefly encounters turns up dead, suspicion settles on him almost immediately. And the unsettling part is…it doesn’t feel entirely misplaced. What makes In a Lonely Place stand out in a filmography stacked full of classics is how it subverts expectations of the noir genre. Directed with a quiet intensity, letting silences stretch and emotions simmer, the violence occasionally erupts in very upsetting aways. And Bogart, often the embodiment of control, lets something fray at the edges here. His Dix is charming enough...until he's not.

From the Land Beyond Beyond…From The World Past Hope and Fear…The Frida Cinema is proud to present a brand new 4K restoration of the most influential fantasy adventures ever made: Ray Harryhausen’s The 7th Voyage of Sinbad! See it the way audiences did in 1958, larger than life on the big screen! This special event includes a rare on-screen video appearance by child star Richard Eyer, along with two additional George Pal Academy Award®-winning Puppetoons, celebrating the golden age of fantasy filmmaking. In this landmark stop-motion adventure, the legendary sailor Sinbad journeys to the mysterious Island of Colossa to save Princess Parisa, his fiancée, who has been magically shrunken by the evil sorcerer Sokurah. Along the way Sinbad confronts a towering Cyclops, battles a sword-wielding animated skeleton in one of the most famous duels in motion picture history, faces a giant two-headed Roc, and ultimately fights a fire-breathing dragon in a spectacular fantasy climax--adventure, monsters, and magic Featuring groundbreaking Dynamation effects by Ray Harryhausen and a thunderous, unforgettable score by Bernard Herrmann! The 7th Voyage of Sinbad became one of the top-grossing films of 1958 and helped redefine fantasy filmmaking for generations to come--a giant-screen fantasy experience that launched a thousand filmmakers. Its influence can be seen in the work of Steven Spielberg, George Lucas, James Cameron, Peter Jackson, John Landis, Dennis Muren, Phil Tippett, Rick Baker and many others. Hosted by producer-director Arnold Leibovit, who was inspired by the film as a child, later met and directed Ray Harryhausen in The Fantasy Film Worlds of George Pal, and stayed in touch with him for over 30 years. Leibovit also had the opportunity to meet George Pal and correspond with him for more than a year, and became a longtime friend of Pal’s widow, Mrs. Zsoka Pal. For decades, he has worked to restore and preserve the Puppetoons and carry forward the legacy of classic fantasy filmmaking. In 2008, The 7th Voyage of Sinbad was selected for preservation in the National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant,” and hailed as one of the finest fantasy films ever made, noted for its stunning color photography, imaginative creatures, and Bernard Herrmann’s thrilling score.   Doors open at 6:00PM and the show starts at 7:00PM! Tickets are $20 to this event. Frida Cinema comp passes and member discounts do not apply. 

You may be done with the DVD, but it's not done with you. Director Joseph Scrimshaw will be in the house for a Q&A as we present a very special Saturday night screening of his new film Dead Media! The story of a troubled young woman, her lonely Gen X uncle, a haunted DVD, and a movie night that won’t die. “Dead Media is an exciting homage to great horror, cult classics, and the bygone era of DVD bonus features.” -Twin Cities Geek

Sleep all day. Party all night. Never grow old. Never die. It's fun to be a vampire. A bloodsucker blast of style and sass, Joel Schumacher's cult classic The Lost Boys is joining our Sunday Scaries lineup, presented by Play It By Fear! In the sleepy town of Santa Carla, brothers Michael and Sam (Jason Patric and Corey Haim) discover the boardwalk nightlife hides more than just roller coasters and neon thrills. Enter a gang of leather-clad, motorcycle-riding vampires led by the magnetic David (Kiefer Sutherland), and suddenly it’s bloodsucking, comic book wisdom, and holy water squirt guns galore. Dripping with MTV swagger, a killer soundtrack (INXS! Echo & the Bunnymen!), and unforgettable performances from the “two Coreys,” The Lost Boys redefined the teen vampire movie as a sexy, funny, and stylish rollercoaster of horror and humor.

Twin Peaks: The Return, Part 1
Original Air Date: May 21, 2017

Twenty-five years after the conclusion of Season Two, the world of Twin Peaks expands to a network of places, characters, and mysteries stretching far beyond the state of Washington. In New York, a young man is hired to watch a mysterious glass box, while in Buckhorn, South Dakota, a grisly murder case begins raising strange questions. Elsewhere, Agent Cooper reappears under deeply unusual circumstances, as the new series immediately establishes a broader, darker, and more fragmented canvas.

Twin Peaks: The Return, Part 2
Original Air Date: May 21, 2017

As a dangerous doppelgänger appears, a confused and disoriented Cooper finds himself trapped in unfamiliar territory.  Meanwhile, law enforcement officers try to make sense of bizarre evidence surrounding the murder in South Dakota, as familiar names and places return in altered form. The result is a continuation that feels both recognizably Lynchian, and startlingly new.

One night is all that stands between them and freedom. But it's going to be a hell of a night. Our vampire-themed Sunday Scaries for July continues with Robert Rodriguez and Quentin Tarantino's From Dusk Till Dawn, presented by our friends at Play It By Fear! On the run after a violent crime spree, outlaw brothers Seth and Richie Gecko flee toward the Mexican border with a kidnapped family in tow. Their destination is the Titty Twister, a remote desert nightclub where they plan to rendezvous with a criminal contact and disappear for good. But what begins as a tense crime thriller takes a shocking turn when the bar's patrons reveal themselves to be something far more dangerous than ordinary criminals. Few films switch gears with the gleeful abandon of From Dusk Till Dawn. Combining the sharp dialogue of screenwriter Quentin Tarantino with the kinetic energy of director Robert Rodriguez, the film transforms from a hard-boiled road movie into an all-out vampire siege packed with practical effects and awesome action!

We're keeping French with the next installment in our Art House for Families series as we present Jean Cocteau’s sublime adaptation of Mme. Leprince de Beaumont’s fairy-tale masterpiece: La Belle et la Bête!  Drawing from the classic French fable, the film follows Belle as she enters the mysterious castle of a cursed Beast whose world seems governed by living statues and other impossible acts of magic. You probably know the rest of the story, but you've never seen it told quite like this. The spectacular visions of enchantment, desire, and death in Beauty and the Beast (La Belle et la Bête) have become timeless icons of cinematic wonder. It remains one of the great achievements of fantasy cinema, blending handmade visual effects and poetic imagination into something genuinely timeless. This film will be presented in its original French language, with English subtitles. 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. 

Not all girls want to play with dolls.Not all girls want to play with dolls. See It On 16mm is back at The Frida with Todd Solondz's painfully funny coming-of-age comedy-drama Welcome to the Dollhouse. Seventh-grader Dawn Wiener occupies an unenviable place in the social hierarchy: ignored at home, ridiculed at school, and perpetually caught between childhood and adolescence. As she stumbles through the everyday cruelties of suburban life, Dawn struggles to find connection in a world that seems determined to leave her behind. A mix of cringe-inducing humor and heartbreaking honesty, Welcome to the Dollhouse captures the awkwardness of adolescence more vividly than almost any film before or since. Writer-director Todd Solondz refuses to sentimentalize growing up, finding comedy in life's most uncomfortable moments.

Virgilio Villoresi’s hand-crafted and entrancing take on the myth of Orpheus, Orfeo is our new release pick for Art House Theater Day 2026! Since he was a child, Orpheus has imagined stories about an abandoned villa across the street from his house. A solitary and visionary pianist, during an evening at the Polypus, the club where he plays, he meets Eura’s gaze. An unconditional love blossoms between them, but she’s concealing a secret. Then she disappears. One evening, Orpheus sees her enter a small door on Via Saterna, in front of the villa. He follows her. Before the threshold, he encounters the Green Man, an enigmatic figure who seems to know the mysteries of that passageway. Once through the door, Orpheus enters a visionary afterlife... Art House Theater Day (AHTD) is an annual program of AHC that brings audiences together to celebrate all that art house theaters, and independent film, contribute to our cultural landscape: ambitious and innovative art that provokes, challenges, entertains, and inspires.

The crown jewel in our Art House Theater Day 2026 lineup is a 50th anniversary 4K restoration of Sidney Lumet's 1976 masterpiece, Network!  When veteran anchorman Howard Beale is forced to retire his 25-year post because of his age, he announces to viewers that he will kill himself during his farewell broadcast. Network executives rethink their decision when his fanatical tirade results in a spike in ratings. Network feels less like satire and more like prophecy. Director Sidney Lumet and screenwriter Paddy Chayefsky crafted a blistering critique of the commodification of outrage that remains startlingly relevant today. Powered by unforgettable performances from Peter Finch, Faye Dunaway, and William Holden, the film is as entertaining as it is incisive. Art House Theater Day (AHTD) is an annual program of AHC that brings audiences together to celebrate all that art house theaters, and independent film, contribute to our cultural landscape: ambitious and innovative art that provokes, challenges, entertains, and inspires.

Celebrate Art House Theater Day 2026 with a 4K restoration of Car Wash, also celebrating 50 years since its initial release! This day-in-the-life cult comedy focuses on a group of friends working at Sully Boyar's Car Wash in the Los Angeles ghetto. The team meets dozens of eccentric customers -- including a smooth-talking preacher, a wacky cab driver and an ex-convict, while cracking politically incorrect jokes to a constant soundtrack of disco and funk. Some of the workers find romance as the day moves along, but most are just happy to get through another shift. Fueled by a stacked cast that includes standout comedic turns from Richard Pryor and George Carlin, the film moves to the rhythm of its era’s funk-infused soundtrack and loose, improvisational energy. Light on its feet but rich in character, Car Wash turns an ordinary job into a day-long portrait of exhaustion and unexpected joy. Art House Theater Day (AHTD) is an annual program of AHC that brings audiences together to celebrate all that art house theaters, and independent film, contribute to our cultural landscape: ambitious and innovative art that provokes, challenges, entertains, and inspires.

Join us for a special Art House Theater Day 2026 screening of Once Upon a Time in a Cinema with a post-screening Q&A with the director of the film, David Gleeson! Set in a small-town cinema during one eventful Friday night screening from hell, the film follows the travails of beleaguered cinema owner Earl Clancy (Colin Morgan) as he faces a myriad of disasters, any one of which could sink him. Drawing from writer/director David Gleeson’s own experience growing up in a family of cinema owners where his father’s 78-year career marked the longest in the cinema business in Ireland, if not the world, this film is a love letter to a peculiarly Irish cinema experience, which was as much about connecting with people as it was about the movie. Art House Theater Day (AHTD) is an annual program of AHC that brings audiences together to celebrate all that art house theaters, and independent film, contribute to our cultural landscape: ambitious and innovative art that provokes, challenges, entertains, and inspires.

Spielberg Summer keeps rolling on with Raiders Of The Lost Ark, the film that introduced audiences to one of cinema’s greatest heroes: Indiana Jones! When the famous archaeologist and adventurer is tasked with locating the legendary Ark of the Covenant before it falls into Nazi hands, Indiana Jones embarks on a globe-trotting quest filled with pulse-pounding action! From Peruvian jungles to Egyptian deserts, Indy must stay one step ahead of ruthless enemies in a race for an artifact said to possess unimaginable power. A loving tribute to the adventure serials of the 1930s and '40s that Spielberg and George Lucas grew up on, Raiders of the Lost Ark combines old-fashioned movie magic with some of the most inventive action filmmaking ever put on screen. More than four decades later, it remains the gold standard for cinematic adventure and proof that nobody does it quite like our guy Stevie!

The Frida Cinema is teaming up with our friends at VAALA to screen the critically acclaimed documentary Jimmy in Saigon! And stick around after the screening for a special conversation with the director of the film, Peter McDowell! Jimmy in Saigon begins as a personal exploration into the mysterious death and radical life of Jimmy McDowell, an American 24-year-old Vietnam veteran who died as a civilian in Saigon in 1972, when filmmaker Peter McDowell was only five. While investigating Jimmy’s drug use and sexuality, Peter takes us from the US Midwest to Vietnam, France and back home again. In his quest to get to know his brother, he uncovers a hidden romance, new family ties and a remarkable global love story.

One...last...plan. Nirvanna The Band The Show The Movie is back for yet another late night party screening at The Frida Cinema! As the long-gestating feature expansion of the cult Canadian series Nirvanna the Band the Show, created by and starring Matt Johnson and Jay McCarrol, the film continues the misadventures of the two best friends. As relentlessly delusional Toronto musicians, their main goal in life is to “play a show at the Rivoli.” When their plan goes horribly wrong, Matt and Jay accidentally travel back to the year 2008. Like the series, the movie blurs fiction and reality, staging elaborate public pranks with unsuspecting bystanders while escalating the characters’ schemes to increasingly absurd and self-destructive extremes. If you love comedy that feels like it might collapse at any second, or perhaps maybe even get its creators thrown in jail, boy do we have a movie for you and your friends to come see!

Each holds a secret power...together they face the ultimate evil! We're harnessing the supernova star power of cinema icons Maggie Cheung, Michelle Yeoh, and Anita Mui in a gloriously unrestrained action extravaganza double feature of The Heroic Trio + Executioners! From genre maestro Johnnie To, the story follows three knife-throwing, shotgun-toting, kung-fu-fighting super-heroines who must overcome their dark pasts in order to defeat an evil, baby-snatching eunuch who is terrorizing Hong Kong. Eye-popping motorcycle stunts, brain-exploding skeletons, infant cannibals, and kinetically choreographed wire work are all part of the delirium in this unstoppably entertaining cult favorite (referenced in Cheung’s international breakthrough Irma Vep), a kick-butt showcase for three of the coolest women warriors to ever hit the screen. There will be a ten minute intermission between each film. One ticket gets you access to both movies! Our Hong Kong Action Essentials series explores the time from the mid-’80s through the early ’90s, where Hong Kong filmmakers rewrote the grammar of action cinema forever. Directors like John Woo, Tsui Hark, Jackie Chan, Sammo Hung, Ringo Lam, and Lau Kar-Leung fused balletic gunplay, risky stunts, martial arts virtuosity, and raw emotional intensity into a new cinematic language that would be oft-imitated but never replicated. (sorry, The Matrix, we love you too!) Join us every month in 2026 as we explore this golden age where style and emotion collided to change movies forever.

Twin Peaks: The Return, Part 3
Original Air Date: May 21, 2017

Cooper’s attempt to navigate his strange new condition leads him through some of the most abstract and visually arresting material in the entire series, as spaces, identities, and physical laws all seem to blur. Meanwhile, the doppelgänger continues moving across the country with chilling purpose, leaving violence and confusion in his wake.

Twin Peaks: The Return, Part 4
Original Air Date: May 28, 2017

Back in Twin Peaks, Sheriff Frank Truman, Hawk, Andy, and Lucy begin reconnecting with unresolved threads from the town’s past, while Gordon Cole (David Lynch himself!), Albert Rosenfield, and agent Tammy Preston pursue a federal investigation with possible ties to Cooper. Meanwhile, Janey-E and young Sonny Jim are introduced to a version of Cooper who is present, but not fully himself.

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. 

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 each performance! Tickets are $30 for each showing. Frida Cinema comp passes and member discounts do not apply. 

Our Broadway Thursdays: Segerstrom Center at The Frida kicks off with the greatest love story ever told...the original 1991 Beauty and the Beast!  When the bright and bookish Belle takes her father's place as the prisoner of a mysterious Beast, she discovers that the fearsome creature and his enchanted household are hiding a heartbreaking secret. As Belle and the Beast slowly learn to look beyond appearances, an unlikely friendship blossoms into one of Disney's most enduring love stories. A landmark in animation storytelling, Beauty and the Beast remains every bit as magical as it was upon its original release. Featuring unforgettable songs by Alan Menken and Howard Ashman and breathtaking hand-drawn animation, it's a timeless reminder that some fairy tales are simply meant to be experienced together in a movie theater.

Twin Peaks: The Return, Part 5
Original Air Date: June 4, 2017

As Dougie Jones moves awkwardly through home life and office life, those around him begin reacting to his blankness in ways that are comic, tender, and increasingly consequential. In Twin Peaks, Becky Burnett and Steven bring a younger generation’s turmoil into the story, while Red, Shelly, and others suggest that the town’s troubles have hardly disappeared with time.

Twin Peaks: The Return, Part 6
Original Air Date: June 11, 2017

Dougie’s strange luck continues to carry him through situations he can barely understand, while Janey-E finds herself forced to fiercely protect their household. In Twin Peaks, Richard Horne’s volatility becomes impossible to ignore, and Carl Rodd reappears as a quiet witness to the town’s pain and sadness.

It's laugh-vacation time as our Art House for Families series presents Jacques Tati's gentle comic masterpiece Monsieur Hulot's Holiday! Monsieur Hulot, Jacques Tati’s endearing clown, takes a holiday at a seaside resort, where his presence provokes one catastrophe after another. Tati’s masterpiece of gentle slapstick is a series of effortlessly well-choreographed sight gags involving dogs, boats, and firecrackers; it was the first entry in the Hulot series and the film that launched its maker to international stardom. Decades later, still feels fresh in ways that modern comedies rarely do.  This film will be presented in its original French language, with English subtitles. 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. 

The second film in our Broadway Thursdays: Segerstrom Center at The Frida is Francis Ford Coppola's adaptation of The Outsiders!  In 1960s Tulsa, class divisions ignite a violent rivalry between the working-class Greasers and the privileged Socs. When a deadly encounter forces two Greasers, Ponyboy and Johnny, to flee, their struggle for survival and redemption exposes the fragile innocence and enduring bonds of youth on the wrong side of town. Featuring an astonishing ensemble cast before they became Hollywood legends, including C. Thomas Howell, Matt Dillon, Patrick Swayze, Ralph Macchio, Rob Lowe, Tom Cruise, and Emilio Estevez—The Outsiders remains one of the defining coming-of-age films of the 1980s.

He is afraid. He is totally alone. He is 3,000,000 light years from home. Our Spielberg Summer series phones home with E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, one of the most beloved family films ever made and a landmark of modern American cinema. When a lonely young boy named Elliott discovers a stranded alien hiding near his home, the two form an unlikely friendship that changes both of their lives. As E.T. becomes part of Elliott’s family, the children must help their otherworldly companion evade government authorities and find a way back home before it’s too late. Few films capture the wonder of childhood as beautifully as E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial. Spielberg transforms a simple story of friendship into something genuinely magical. Decades after audiences first watched that bicycle lift off against the moonlit sky, the film, like so many others from Spielberg, continues to inspire awe from audiences across the globe.

Twin Peaks: The Return, Part 7
Original Air Date: June 18, 2017

The investigation begins to gather momentum as Gordon, Albert, and Tammy work through evidence tied to Cooper’s doppelgänger, while Sheriff Truman and Hawk continue following clues buried deep in Twin Peaks history. Ben and Beverly’s emotionally charged scenes introduce yet another complicated relationship into the mix, and several mysteries begin to hint at patterns to be resolved as, piece by piece, the larger shape of the story starts coming into view.

Twin Peaks: The Return, Part 8
Original Air Date: June 25, 2017

One of the most audacious episodes in television history, Part 8 detours into the origins of terror, violence, and perhaps evil itself, using a dazzling blend of sound, image, and nightmare logic. The doppelgänger's fate intersects with forces that feel cosmic in scale, and the episode reaches backward into mid-century America to suggest how long these shadows have been gathering. It is both a mythic expansion of Twin Peaks, and a singular audiovisual experience we can't wait to share on the big screen.

Charlie Chaplin’s silent comic masterwork, The Gold Rush, is the next film up in our Art House for Families series! Set during the Klondike Gold Rush, the film follows Chaplin’s iconic Little Tramp as he searches for fortune in a frozen wilderness filled with comic catastrophe. Along the way come some of the most legendary moments in film history, from the famous “dance of the rolls” to a cabin teetering dangerously over the edge of a cliff. Shot partly on location in the Sierra Nevadas and featuring such timeless gags as the dance of the dinner rolls and the meal of boiled shoe leather, The Gold Rush is an indelible work of heartwarming hilarity. Our friends at Janus Films have granted us the rights to Chaplin’s definitive 1942 version, for which the director added new music and narration. 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. 

Our Classic Movie Nights series is headed out West as we present the trailblazing Gary Cooper film High Noon! Will Kane, the sheriff of a small town in New Mexico, learns a notorious outlaw he put in jail has been freed, and will be arriving on the noon train. Knowing the outlaw and his gang are coming to kill him, Kane is determined to stand his ground, so he attempts to gather a posse from among the local townspeople. High Noon holds a massive legacy as an Oscar-winning revisionist Western that redefined the genre by emphasizing tension over shoot-em-up tropes. It is famously interpreted as an allegory for McCarthy-era blacklisting, symbolizing moral courage against cowardice. The film also introduced the now-iconic cinematic trope of a real-time, high-noon showdown, which has been oft-imitated but never replicated.

We're getting real glam with the third film in our Broadway Thursdays: Segerstrom Center at The Frida series as we screen Baz Luhrmann's adaptation of The Great Gasby!  An adaptation of F. Scott Fitzgerald's Long Island-set novel, where Midwesterner Nick Carraway is lured into the lavish world of his neighbor, Jay Gatsby (Leonardo Dicaprio). Soon enough, however, Carraway will see through the cracks of Gatsby's nouveau riche existence, where obsession, madness, and tragedy await. Overflowing with lavish production design and a bold modern soundtrack the way only Baz can do, The Great Gatsby embraces spectacle in a way few literary adaptations ever attempt.

Our Spielberg Summer series goes a little darker with Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom, the wildly pulpy sequel that pushed blockbuster adventure into uncharted territory. When Indiana Jones finds himself in a remote Indian village stripped of its children and sacred stones, he follows the trail to a sinister cult operating beneath an ancient palace. Joined by a skeptical nightclub singer and a brave young boy, Indy descends into a nightmare as he fights to free the enslaved children and recover the stolen Sankara stones. Stripped of the comfort and romance of its predecessor, Temple of Doom is a literal roller coaster cimeatic event. It’s Spielberg at his most unrestrained, mixing fairy-tale darkness with explosive spectacle.

He's not Freddy, he's not Jason...he's real. HorrorBuzz continues its 2026 series with the 40th anniversary of one of the most unsettling and influential films of the 1980s: Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer. Loosely inspired by the confessions of real-life murderer Henry Lee Lucas, the movie follows drifter Henry (played by iconic silver screen "that guy" Michael Rooker) and his volatile accomplice Otis as they navigate a bleak Chicago landscape. When Otis’s sister Becky moves in, Henry’s flat affect and unpredictable behavior begin to reveal something far darker beneath the surface. Horror Movie Night takes filmgoing to another level with a full night of entertainment, including a themed HMN Video Pres-how, Trivia, Games, Prizes, and another outstanding horror short from HorrorBuzz’s The Screaming Room Film Festival at Midsummer Scream. Doors open and video pre-show video begins promptly at 7:30 pm. Games, prizes, and short film begin at 8:00PM. Feature starts at 8:30PM. 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.

Twin Peaks: The Return, Part 9
Original Air Date: July 9, 2017

Several threads are drawn closer together as Gordon, Albert, Tammy, and Diane compare notes with the Twin Peaks sheriff’s department. Long-absent names return to the conversation, old evidence takes on new significance, and Jerry Horne wanders through the woods in a state of comic disorientation.

Twin Peaks: The Return, Part 10
Original Air Date: July 16, 2017

As a palpable dread hangs over the town, daily life continues in Twin Peaks, with scenes involving Richard, Becky, Steven, and others revealing just how much pain the town now grapples with. Meanwhile, Dougie’s life in Las Vegas remains oddly buoyant, with Janey-E, the Mitchum Brothers, and his coworkers all responding to him in ways that are baffled, yet increasingly affectionate.

Two of the most beloved family films ever made are up next for our Art House for Families series as we're presenting a special double feature presentation celebrating the poetic, adventurous world of filmmaker Albert Lamorisse. It's The Red Balloon and White Mane! Winner of the Palme d’Or for Best Short Film and an Academy Award for its screenplay, The Red Balloon follows a young Parisian boy who discovers a mysterious balloon with a personality all its own. Drifting through the streets of Paris with almost no dialogue, the film transforms ordinary city life into something quietly magical. And then after a ten minute intermission, it's time for White Mane, Lamorisse’s breathtaking adventure set in the marshlands of southern France, where a young boy forms an unforgettable bond with a wild horse pursued by local ranchers. Shot with extraordinary natural beauty and a sense of freedom that still feels exhilarating today, the film captures childhood adventure in an almost-mythic way. These films will be presented in their original French language, with English subtitles. Although, it should be noted the films are essentially wordless, with the exception of some sparse dialogue. 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. 

For our final screening in our Broadway Thursdays: Segerstrom Center at The Frida series, we're dying to bring you the wickedly funny cult classic Death Becomes Her! Longtime rivals Madeline Ashton and Helen Sharp will stop at nothing to outshine one another, until a mysterious potion promises youth and beauty forever. But immortality comes with a few unexpected side effects, and their decades-long feud quickly descends into increasingly outrageous acts of revenge, all while their bewildered plastic surgeon Ernest Menville is caught in the middle. Years ahead of its time, Death Becomes Her blends razor-sharp satire with groundbreaking visual effects and gloriously camp performances from Meryl Streep, Goldie Hawn, Bruce Willis, and Isabella Rossellini. It's the kind of deliciously over-the-top crowd-pleaser that only gets better with age.

Our Spielberg Summer series takes a more sobering turn with Empire of the Sun, a sweeping coming-of-age epic full of chaos and loss of wartime innocence. Based on J.G. Ballard’s semi-autobiographical novel, the film follows young Jim “Jamie” Graham, a privileged British boy living in Shanghai whose life is shattered when World War II erupts and he is separated from his parents. Alone in an occupied city, he survives in a brutal internment camp while clinging to the fading grandeur of his former life. One of Spielberg’s most ambitious and emotionally complex works, Empire of the Sun transforms war into a surreal landscape of endurance and disillusionment. Anchored by a remarkable early performance from a young Christian Bale, the film reveals Spielberg expanding his visual language to capture not just wonder, but its disappearance. Rarely shown theatrically, this 80s gem demands to be seen big and loud! 

Twin Peaks: The Return, Part 11
Original Air Date: July 23, 2017

Dougie’s improbable path continues to create ripples through Las Vegas, especially as the Mitchum Brothers become convinced he may be more extraordinary than he appears. In Twin Peaks, Bobby Briggs steps further into the role of deputy, and a discovery in the woods suggests that the town’s past is still very much alive beneath the surface.

Twin Peaks: The Return, Part 12
Original Air Date: July 30, 2017

Conversations take center stage as characters revisit old wounds, hidden histories, and unresolved feelings, particularly in scenes involving Audrey and Charlie, Sarah Palmer, and the members of the Blue Rose task force.

Neither Heaven nor Earth could keep them apart! Our Art House for Families series concludes with Powell & Pressburger's astonishing Technicolor fantasia A Matter of Life and Death! After miraculously surviving a plane crash during World War II, British pilot Peter Carter finds himself caught between worlds when celestial authorities realize he was never meant to live. As heavenly forces attempt to correct the error, Peter fights for the right to remain on Earth alongside the woman he has fallen in love with. Few filmmakers ever have possessed sheer cinematic imagination quite like Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger. Moving effortlessly between the everyday and the cosmic, A Matter of Life and Death excels at both dazzling visual invention and genuine emotional sweep. The film stands as one of the great achievements of postwar cinema, making it a perfect finale for a series dedicated to the wonder of experiencing movies together on the big screen. 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. 

Our Spielberg Summer series returns to a world of pure adventure with Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, the heartfelt capper to one of cinema’s greatest action trilogies ever! When Indiana Jones sets out to find his missing father, Dr. Henry Jones Sr., he’s pulled into a globe-spanning race against Nazis for the Holy Grail itself. Joined by his father (Sean Connery), Indy must navigate a lifetime of unresolved tension (oh and like booby traps and stuff) as the search becomes as much about family as it is about legend. Spielberg's take on the buddy comedy, The Last Crusade is one of his most effortlessly (at least...he makes it look that way) entertaining films, balancing whip-smart humor with his knack for old school thrills. With Ford and Connery at the center of your movie, you can't really lose.

Never was a Hero needed more... Once Upon A Time In China, Writer-producer-director Tsui Hark’s sprawling vision of a changing nineteenth-century China, is coming back to The Frida Cinema! This blockbuster hit cemented Jet Li’s status as the greatest martial-arts superstar of his generation. Li displays his stunning, fast-and-fluid fighting style as the legendary martial-arts teacher and doctor Wong Fei-hung, who, with a band of disciples, battles a host of nefarious forces, foreign and local, who are threatening Chinese sovereignty as British and American imperialists encroach upon the Mainland. Once Upon a Time in China’s breathtaking blend of kung fu, comedy, romance, and melodrama climaxes in a whirlwind guns-vs-fists finale that is also a thrilling affirmation of Chinese cultural identity. Our Hong Kong Action Essentials series explores the time from the mid-’80s through the early ’90s, where Hong Kong filmmakers rewrote the grammar of action cinema forever. Directors like John Woo, Tsui Hark, Jackie Chan, Sammo Hung, Ringo Lam, and Lau Kar-Leung fused balletic gunplay, risky stunts, martial arts virtuosity, and raw emotional intensity into a new cinematic language that would be oft-imitated but never replicated. (sorry, The Matrix, we love you too!) Join us every month in 2026 as we explore this golden age where style and emotion collided to change movies forever.

Twin Peaks: The Return, Part 13
Original Air Date: August 6, 2017

As several storylines begin moving more decisively, the tension around Mr. C intensifies, while Dougie continues drifting toward moments of accidental brilliance and emotional connection. In Twin Peaks, Sarah Palmer’s growing estrangement from ordinary life becomes more disturbing, and James Hurley quietly returns to the series in a way that reconnects the present to the past.

Twin Peaks: The Return, Part 14
Original Air Date: August 13, 2017

Old mysteries return to the foreground as Gordon Cole recounts a dream, Hawk investigates a clue left behind by Major Briggs, and several key characters begin rediscovering the hidden history of the town. Andy is drawn into an experience that is both surreal and unexpectedly moving, while the Roadhouse continues serving as a gathering place for reflection, confusion, and sorrow.

Our Spielberg Summer series flies to Neverland with Hook, the once-maligned fantasy film that time has steadily re-appraised as one of Spielberg’s most heartfelt flights of imagination!!! When grown-up lawyer Peter Banning (the former Peter Pan) returns to Neverland after Captain Hook kidnaps his children, he must rediscover the boy he forgot in order to lead the Lost Boys and face his old enemy. Along the way, he’s guided by Tinker Bell (Julia Roberts), challenged by Captain Hook (Dustin Hoffman), and slowly drawn back into a world of belief. Initially met with mixed reception and criticized for its tone and excess, Hook has since been embraced by many as a deeply personal story about adulthood’s erosion of wonder and the struggle to reclaim it. Beneath the spectacle and whimsy is a film about imagination and the cost of forgetting how to play, revealing Spielberg’s enduring belief that growing up doesn’t have to mean letting go.

Twin Peaks: The Return, Part 15
Original Air Date: August 20, 2017

Several long-simmering threads take darker and more emotional turns as Nadine, Ed, Norma, Steven, and others reach moments of painful recognition or change. Mr. C continues pursuing his goals with frightening determination, while the ominous phrase “the dreamer” begins to resonate more strongly throughout the narrative. The episode is full of endings, thresholds, and the uneasy sense that something irreversible is approaching.

Twin Peaks: The Return, Part 16
Original Air Date: August 27, 2017

A series of major turns reshapes the story’s direction as Janey-E, Sonny Jim, the Mitchum Brothers, and the FBI all find themselves pulled into events they could not have anticipated. Mr. C’s trajectory grows more perilous, and long-awaited movement in Cooper’s story brings a surge of emotion and momentum. After so much delay, uncertainty, and displacement, the episode feels electrifyingly alive.

Twin Peaks: The Complete Series, our presentation of all three seasons of David Lynch’s acclaimed television show, continues with episodes screening every Sunday night through September 20th, 2026.

An adventure 65 million years in the making. Our Spielberg Summer series is taking a trip to Jurassic Park, the groundbreaking blockbuster that made audiences believe...and then run for their lives. When a billionaire philanthropist unveils a revolutionary theme park filled with genetically resurrected dinosaurs, a small group of experts is invited to preview the island before opening day. But when the park’s security systems fail, paleontologists Alan Grant (Sam Neill) and Ellie Sattler (Laura Dern), along with mathematician Ian Malcolm (Jeff Goldblum), are forced to survive a prehistoric nightmare unleashed by the follies of human ambition. A landmark in visual effects and suspense filmmaking, Jurassic Park remains one of cinema’s great “how did they do that?” experiences. Spielberg blends awe and terror in perfect balance, expanding his horizons to new themes that he would explore even more more in the second half of his career.

Twin Peaks: The Return, Part 17
Original Air Date: September 3, 2017

As the series heads into its endgame, Cooper, the sheriff’s department, and the Blue Rose team all converge around long-hidden truths and immediate threats. Familiar faces from across the saga reappear as the story reaches toward resolution, and the line between supernatural conflict and personal reckoning grows increasingly thin. (Can you tell we've tried to be as spoiler-free as possible with all of our episode synopses?)

Twin Peaks: The Return, Part 18
Original Air Date: September 3, 2017

All good things come to an end, and the same can be said for one of the greatest television shows ever. The final chapter follows Cooper and a surprise companion into a haunting, uncertain space where identity, memory, and reality itself become unstable. Old places return in altered form, familiar questions take on new weight, and the series abandons any expectation of a tidy farewell. Rather than fully closing the book on Twin Peaks, Part 18 leaves it echoing with mystery befitting the vision and style of its celebrated director.

Join us for the Orange County premiere of Skweezy Jibbs Makes a Movie with the man himself, Skweezy Jibbs, live in person! Be among the first people to see the movie, and stay after for an exclusive Q&A with Skweezy himself as he keeps going on his US tour. One night only! Get your tickets before they're gone! Oddball internet legend Skweezy Jibbs is making the movie of his dreams. Unfortunately for him, he's got no money, no experience, no skill, and no filmmaking talent. When his controlling mother gets involved, Skweezy is forced to confront the very essence of who he is. GA Doors open at 7:00PM and the show starts at 7:30PM! Tickets are $20 to this event. Frida Cinema comp passes and member discounts do not apply.

Something has survived. Our Spielberg Summer series ventures to The Lost World: Jurassic World, the oft-maligned sequel to the 1993 classic. When mathematician Ian Malcolm (Jeff Goldblum) is pulled back into the dinosaur project after a second island is discovered, he joins a rescue expedition that quickly becomes a fight for survival as corporate greed and apex predators collide. What begins as a mission of observation spirals into full-scale chaos when dinosaurs prove, once again, who is higher on the food chain. Darker and much more unruly than its predecessor, The Lost World: Jurassic Park explores the consequences of trying to manage wonder once it’s been unleashed. Spielberg leans into scale and spectacle, building some of the best set pieces of his career, each more intense than the last.

Our Hong Kong Action Essentials series is  growing larger, darker, and more operatic with each and every chapter. There's no better example of this with our special double feature of A Better Tomorrow II + A Better Tomorrow III! Directed by John Woo, A Better Tomorrow II picks up in the aftermath of betrayal and loss, following survivors pulled back into a violent underworld they can’t escape. As old wounds reopen and new alliances form, the film pushes themes of brotherhood and sacrifice to even more operatic extremes, all building toward action staged on a mythic scale. And then after a quick 10 minute intermission...Tsui Hark’s A Better Tomorrow III rewinds the clock, re-centering the saga around the rise of its most iconic figure amid political upheaval and shifting power structures. Steeped in romantic fatalism, this prequel is less about crime than about identity and the cost of survival. There will be a ten minute intermission between each film. One ticket gets you access to both movies! Our Hong Kong Action Essentials series explores the time from the mid-’80s through the early ’90s, where Hong Kong filmmakers rewrote the grammar of action cinema forever. Directors like John Woo, Tsui Hark, Jackie Chan, Sammo Hung, Ringo Lam, and Lau Kar-Leung fused balletic gunplay, risky stunts, martial arts virtuosity, and raw emotional intensity into a new cinematic language that would be oft-imitated but never replicated. (sorry, The Matrix, we love you too!) Join us every month in 2026 as we explore this golden age where style and emotion collided to change movies forever.

After a decade of silence...the buzz came back. HorrorBuzz is slicing up our October lineup with a 40th anniversary party of unhinged insanity: Tobe Hooper’s gloriously deranged sequel The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2! When late-night DJ Stretch accidentally records a pair of murders committed by the Sawyer clan, she teams up with the unhinged Lieutenant “Lefty” Enright (a chainsaw-wielding Dennis Hopper in one of the wildest performances of his career). Their mission: descend into the Sawyer family’s subterranean lair of meat, madness, and twinkling Christmas lights to put an end to the carnage once and for all. Horror Movie Night takes filmgoing to another level with a full night of entertainment, including a themed HMN Video Pres-how, Trivia, Games, Prizes, and another outstanding horror short from HorrorBuzz’s The Screaming Room Film Festival at Midsummer Scream. Doors open and video pre-show video begins promptly at 7:30 pm. Games, prizes, and short film begin at 8:00PM. Feature starts at 8:30PM. 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.

Our Spielberg Summer series turns its attention to one of the most powerful and influential war films ever made with Saving Private Ryan, a landmark achievement that forever changed how combat is portrayed on screen. In the aftermath of the D-Day invasion, Captain John Miller (Tom Hanks) and his squad are assigned an extraordinary mission: locate Private James Ryan (Matt Damon), whose brothers have all been killed in action, and bring him home. As the soldiers journey deeper into war-torn France, the mission forces each man to confront difficult questions about the value of a single life amid unimaginable loss. Famous for its visceral opening depiction of Omaha Beach, Saving Private Ryan goes far beyond just technical brilliance. Spielberg combines staggering realism with his signature humanism, creating a film that honors both the chaos of war and the ordinary people "asked" to endure it.

Our Spielberg Summer series ventures off-path and into the Fall as we visit the future in A.I. Artificial Intelligence, a haunting Science Fiction fairy tale that stands among the director’s most ambitious and deeply misunderstood works. In a world where advanced robots live alongside humans, a young android named David (Haley Joel Osment) is programmed with the ability to love. When he is abandoned by the family he was created to join, David embarks on an extraordinary journey to become “real,” believing it is the only way to win back the affection he longs for. Originally developed by Stanley Kubrick and ultimately realized by Spielberg, A.I. is an unsettling vision of technological loneliness. Over two decades later, its questions about what it means to love feel more relevant than ever, revealing a far more profound than many audiences recognized upon its release.

The penultimate film in our Hong Kong Action Essentials series is Bullet In The Head, which also happens to be our final John Woo film in the series, as well. There's no better way to end his chapter in this lineup than with his most brutal and personal film to date. Three friends fleeing Hong Kong after a violent crime find themselves trapped in the chaos of the Vietnam War, where their loyalty and morality are tested beyond repair. What begins as a desperate bid for escape descends into a harrowing portrait of friendship under unimaginable pressure. As war strips away ideals and innocence, the bonds between the men fracture, leading to betrayals that cut deeper than any bullet. Fueled by rage and grief Bullet in the Head trades balletic elegance for raw emotional devastation. This is heroic bloodshed turned inward, and a legendary filmmaker pushing himself into completely new territory. Our Hong Kong Action Essentials series explores the time from the mid-’80s through the early ’90s, where Hong Kong filmmakers rewrote the grammar of action cinema forever. Directors like John Woo, Tsui Hark, Jackie Chan, Sammo Hung, Ringo Lam, and Lau Kar-Leung fused balletic gunplay, risky stunts, martial arts virtuosity, and raw emotional intensity into a new cinematic language that would be oft-imitated but never replicated. (sorry, The Matrix, we love you too!) Join us every month in 2026 as we explore this golden age where style and emotion collided to change movies forever.

What would you do if were framed for a murder…you had not committed yet? The penultimate film in our Spielberg Summer series is the Tom Cruise-starrer Minority Report, a dazzling Sci Fi Thriller that imagines a world where crime can be stopped before it happens. In Washington, D.C., of 2054, police captain John Anderton (Tom Cruise) leads a revolutionary unit that uses psychic visions to arrest murderers before they commit their crimes. But when Anderton himself is identified as a future killer, he goes on the run, determined to uncover the truth behind a system he once believed was infallible. Based on the novel by Philip K. Dick, the film combines breathtaking action, Noir intrigue (something you'd think would be in more Spielberg projects), and startlingly prescient ideas about surveillance and predictive technology, making it one of smartest blockbusters of the 21st century.

Our Spielberg Summer series concludes with some post-Thanksgiving screenings of War of the Worlds, his hauntingly realistic reinvention of a Sci Fi classic that transforms an alien invasion into a terrifying story of survival. When colossal extraterrestrial machines suddenly emerge from beneath the Earth and begin annihilating entire cities, divorced dockworker Ray Ferrier (Tom Cruise) is forced to protect his children as civilization collapses around them. As humanity struggles to comprehend the scale of the catastrophe, Ray’s desperate journey becomes a fight not to save the world, but simply to keep his family alive. Released in the shadow of a newly changed America, War of the Worlds channels post-9/11 anxieties into some of the most intense and visceral spectacle of Spielberg’s career. Stripping away triumphalism in favor of fear, the film stands as one of his darkest works. It's a reminder that even at his most pessimistic, Spielberg never loses sight of the human beings at the center of the story, making it the perfect film to conclude our 14 film retrospective of his work. 

"Like Lethal Weapon only far funnier and with more chainsaw action." -Total DVD After so much emotion and violence, we are choosing to close our Hong Kong Action Essentials series by cutting loose with little bit laughter and...uhhh...more violence. Directed by Lau Kar-leung and starring Chow Yun-fat, Tiger on the Beat follows a pair of mismatched cops on the trail of a violent drug dealer, a case that escalates from street-level comedy into something far more savage and unhinged. What begins as a rambunctious action/comedy steadily sheds its humor, morphing into a full-throttle collision of gunplay, hand-to-hand combat, and sheer physical excess. By the time it reaches its infamous finale, the film has abandoned restraint entirely, delivering the perfectly brutal and messy ending to our series. Our Hong Kong Action Essentials series explores the time from the mid-’80s through the early ’90s, where Hong Kong filmmakers rewrote the grammar of action cinema forever. Directors like John Woo, Tsui Hark, Jackie Chan, Sammo Hung, Ringo Lam, and Lau Kar-Leung fused balletic gunplay, risky stunts, martial arts virtuosity, and raw emotional intensity into a new cinematic language that would be oft-imitated but never replicated. (sorry, The Matrix, we love you too!) Join us every month in 2026 as we explore this golden age where style and emotion collided to change movies forever.

A singing plant. A daring hero. A sweet girl. A demented dentist. It's the most outrageous musical comedy ever made! HorrorBuzz caps off its year of 40th anniversary screenings with the show-stopping musical Little Shop of Horrors! Meek flower-shop clerk Seymour Krelborn (Frida favorite Rick Moranis) discovers a mysterious plant after a solar eclipse and names it Audrey II, after his coworker-crush Audrey (Ellen Greene). But this plant doesn’t want sunlight or water....it wants blood. As Audrey II grows from a cute little sprout to a fast-talking menace, Seymour must choose between fame, fortune, and doing the right thing…preferably before the plant eats the whole block. Horror Movie Night takes filmgoing to another level with a full night of entertainment, including a themed HMN Video Pres-how, Trivia, Games, Prizes, and another outstanding horror short from HorrorBuzz’s The Screaming Room Film Festival at Midsummer Scream. Doors open and video pre-show video begins promptly at 7:30 pm. Games, prizes, and short film begin at 8:00PM. Feature starts at 8:30PM. 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.