Pride Month

Let's ride! The Frida Cinema is proud to present the brand new 4K restoration of Lana & Lily Wachowski's pop masterpiece Speed Racer! Speed Racer is a young and brilliant racing driver. When corruption in the racing leagues costs his brother his life, Speed must team up with the police and the mysterious Racer X to bring an end to the corruption and criminal activities. Come experience the visually electric, emotionally turbocharged thrill ride that was way ahead of its time. Whether you're a longtime fan or a curious first-timer, there's no better way to see it than on the big screen with a cheering crowd of fellow film lovers.

Power, space, time and a visitor. We're presenting a 4K restoration of the European Cut of Nicolas Roeg and David Bowie's hypnotic masterwork The Man Who Fell to Earth, now celebrating 50 years since its initial release! Thomas Jerome Newton is an alien who has come to Earth in search of water to save his home planet. Aided by lawyer Oliver Farnsworth, Thomas uses his knowledge of advanced technology to create profitable inventions. While developing a method to transport water, Thomas meets Mary-Lou, a quiet hotel clerk, and begins to fall in love with her. Just as he is ready to leave Earth, Thomas is intercepted by the U.S. government, and his entire plan is threatened. Fans of dreamlike, visually intoxicating cinema will find a lot to love in The Man Who Fell to Earth, which remains one of the cornerstones of 70s cult classic cinema. Restoration: The restoration is based on a 4K scan of the original camera negative, followed by a full 4K workflow, with the approval of cinematographer Anthony Richmond. Please note: we are screening the 139 minute European Cut of the film, also known as the Director's Cut or Uncut version of the film!

Award-winning actor, screenwriter, and Youtuber Maggie Mae Fish joins us in person to present a new series aptly titled Nu-Classics at The Frida Cinema! This series spotlights cult films that deserve to be added to the canon, programmed and hosted by Maggie, with special appearances by her YouTube and Nebula friends. The first nu-classic is Julia Ducournau’s Palme d’Or winning-masterpiece Titane! Following the screening, Maggie will discuss the movie with Will Reese, director/co-showrunner of her Nebula series Amy's Dead-End Dreamhouse. The story follows a woman with a metal plate in her head from a childhood car accident as she embarks on a bizarre journey, bringing her into contact with a firefighter who's reunited with his missing son after 10 years. Fresh off its historic win at Cannes, the film became one of the most talked-about releases of the year 2022. Critics and audiences alike were electrified, praising Ducournau’s fearless vision. With only her second feature film, she has carved out a gnarly niche of body horror and melodrama that we absolutely adore at The Frida. Come see it on the big screen!

She's evil...and not just high school evil. OC Pride is back at The Frida Cinema to present a special one-off screening of Diablo Cody and Karyn Kusama's iconic 2009 cult classic Jennifer's Body! Jennifer, a gorgeous, seductive cheerleader takes evil to a whole new level after she's possessed by a sinister demon. Now it's up to her best friend to stop Jennifer's reign of terror before it's too late. Cody's signature dialogue, the emo-era soundtrack, and terrific darkly comedic performances from a stacked cast including Amanda Seyfriend, Megan Fox, Johnny Simmons, Adam Brody, Kyle Gallner, and many more, make Jennifer's Body the perfect 2000s era time capsule to present for Pride Month this year! Come see it on the big screen with a hot crowd!

Our Classic Movie Nights is diving headfirst into the deliciously catty world of The Women, a glammed-up showcase of all-out social warfare! Society wife Mary Haines (Norma Shearer) seems to have it all, until whispers start circulating that her husband is having an affair with a predatory perfume clerk. What follows is a cluster-mess through high society circles as Mary navigates the uniquely cutthroat support system of her all-female friend group, including the sharp-tongued Sylvia Fowler (Rosalind Russell) and the endlessly naive Peggy (Joan Fontaine). Directed by George Cukor, The Women is famous for its entirely female cast—no men appear on screen—and its dazzling blend of biting dialogue and high-fashion spectacle, including a legendary Technicolor fashion show sequence. Adapted from Clare Boothe Luce’s hit play, the film remains a masterclass in ensemble performance and unapologetic melodrama, where every line lands like a perfectly aimed dart. 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!

Brian Helgeland's medieval action comedy A Knight's Tale is coming back to The Frida Cinema to celebrate its 25th anniversary, and we are honored to be hosting an in-person Q&A with Shannyn Sossamon, who plays Jocelyn in the film! William Thatcher (the unforgettable Heath Ledger) is a peasant who disguises himself as a noble knight to compete in jousting tournaments across Europe. With the help of his loyal friends, including a witty writer named Geoffrey Chaucer (Paul Bettany), William rises through the ranks of the tournament circuit, all while hiding his true identity. Along the way, he falls in love with a noblewoman and faces off against the ruthless Count Adhemar (Rufus Sewell), his main rival. With its energetic blend of medieval action and humor, A Knight’s Tale quickly became (and has remained) one the 21st century's most beloved cult classics!

Who wants to cook Aloo Gobi when you can bend a ball like Beckham? We're celebrating the World Cup and Pride Month with two ultra-rare screenings of Bend It Like Beckham, presented by our friends over at the Orange County Soccer Club! Jess Bhamra, the daughter of a strict Indian couple in London, is not permitted to play organized soccer, even though she is 18. When Jess is playing for fun one day, her impressive skills are seen by Jules Paxton, who then convinces Jess to play for her semi-pro team. Jess uses elaborate excuses to hide her matches from her family while also dealing with her romantic feelings for her coach, Joe. Endlessly quotable and packed with charm, this early-2000s nostalgic classic hits the sweet spot by blending sports movie thrills with a fresh and funny look at identity. Chase your goals!

Brian Helgeland’s medieval action comedy A Knight’s Tale is getting a very special late-night encore on June 20th to celebrate its 25th anniversary!  William Thatcher (the unforgettable Heath Ledger) is a peasant who disguises himself as a noble knight to compete in jousting tournaments across Europe. With the help of his loyal friends, including a witty writer named Geoffrey Chaucer (Paul Bettany), William rises through the ranks of the tournament circuit, all while hiding his true identity. Along the way, he falls in love with a noblewoman and faces off against the ruthless Count Adhemar (Rufus Sewell), his main rival. With its energetic blend of medieval action and humor, A Knight’s Tale quickly became (and has remained) one the 21st century’s most beloved cult classics!

As groundbreaking now as it was when it was released 25 years ago, By Hook or by Crook is coming to The Frida Cinema with a brand new 4K restoration via our friends at Altered Innocence! Shy, a handsome, gender-bending, small town dreamer with a nagging messiah complex, and Valentine, a deliriously expressive, wise-acre adoptee on a misguided search for her birth mother. The two freaky grifters join forces and learn the true meaning of "poise under pressure" in this visually stunning and wonderfully acted, anti-authoritarian tale of friendship, trust and redemption. Provocatively exploring issues of queer representation, gender and trans identity in ways that contemporary LGBTQIA+ culture and cinema are still catching up with, By Hook or by Crook has created a powerful cultural impact that endures today. The film has been digitally restored in 4K by the Academy Film Archive and UCLA Film & Television Archive in conjunction with Frameline, Outfest, Steakhaus Productions, Inc., and the Sundance Institute. 

Love is a force of nature. Our Page To Screen series in June is headed to Brokeback Mountain, Ang Lee's heartbreaking American epic starring Heath Ledger and Jake Gyllenhaal. The film is about Ennis Del Mar and Jack Twist, two young ranch hands whose chance summer tending sheep on Wyoming’s Brokeback Mountain sparks a lifelong, impossible romance. What begins as a brief encounter deep in the wilderness grows into a decades-spanning bond shaped by the harsh realities of the world around them. With luminous cinematography capturing the staggering beauty of the American West, a mournful score by Gustavo Santaolalla, and deeply vulnerable performances from Ledger, Gyllenhaal, Michelle Williams, and Anne Hathaway, Brokeback Mountain remains a landmark of Queer Cinema.

Did somebody say..."more Audrey, please"? Witness the suffocating moral hypocrisies of mid-century America with The Children's Hour, William Wyler’s haunting adaptation of Lillian Hellman’s scandalous stage play about the potentially devastating consequences of forbidden desire. Reuniting screen legends Audrey Hepburn and Shirley MacLaine as Karen Wright and Martha Dobie, two women running a private girls’ school whose lives are destroyed after a malicious student accuses them of being lovers, the film unfolds as a quietly radical portrait of queer longing under siege. Shot in stark black-and-white with Wyler’s elegant precision, and anchored by MacLaine’s extraordinary portrayal of self-recognition and heartbreak, The Children’s Hour remains a landmark of coded queer Hollywood cinema.

Celebrate Pride Month with a signature themed cocktail and 30th anniversary FREE screening of The Celluloid Closet, a documentary adaptation of Vito Russo’s groundbreaking book and lecture series exploring LGBTQ+ representation in film. The Celluloid Closet is an epic story, by turns surprising, hilarious, and disturbing. Academy Award-winning filmmakers Rob Epstein and Jeffrey Friedman assemble clips from over 100 Hollywood movies and interviews with many of the filmmakers and actors who created them (including Tom Hanks, Shirley MacLaine, Susan Sarandon, Whoopi Goldberg, Tony Curtis, and Gore Vidal). "Thoroughly enjoyable...a colorful overview with the popular appeal of a 'That's Entertainment'...sheer fun." - The New York Times "TWO THUMBS UP...terrific" - Siskel and Ebert

Our official Santa Ana Pride afterparty this year is the hilarious early-aughts satire on the superficiality of the music industry: 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!