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The great free movies continue in October, with a French psychological thriller – Les Diaboliques, and Emma Stone in her Oscar winning performance – Poor Things. All screenings are held on Wednesday evenings at 7pm at the Borrego Springs Performing Arts Center, 590 Palm Canyon Drive, Borrego Springs, CA 92004 . Our full schedule for 2026 is posted on the BSFI website: www.borregospringsfilminstitute.org . Please check the website for the most up to date information. Here are the movies coming in October: Wednesday, October 7, 2026 at 7pm – Les Diaboliques – 1955 – Not Rated – 1h 47m Les Diaboliques , released in the United States simply as Diabolique , is a landmark of psychological suspense and one of the most influential thrillers in the history of cinema. A French psychological horror thriller co-written and directed by Henri-Georges Clouzot, it stars Simone Signoret, Véra Clouzot, Paul Meurisse, and Charles Vanel, and is based on the 1952 novel Celle qui n'était plus by Pierre Boileau and Thomas Narcejac. Set in a decrepit French boarding school for boys, the film follows the wife (Véra Clouzot) and mistress (Signoret) of a sadistic, irredeemably cruel headmaster (Meurisse), who conspire to murder him and disguise his death as an accidental drowning. When his body vanishes from the school swimming pool, however, and a ragtag detective (Vanel) begins poking around, the two women start experiencing chilling evidence that their tormentor may not be dead after all. Clouzot had optioned the rights to the source novel immediately after finishing The Wages of Fear (1953), reading it through the night and securing the rights the next morning — in doing so, narrowly preventing Alfred Hitchcock from acquiring them. Les Diaboliques went on to have an enormous influence on Hitchcock and directly inspired his horror-classic, Psycho (1960). The film premiered in Paris in January 1955, where it ran exclusively for seventeen weeks, and in the United States its press screening was held on Halloween 1955. Critically, the film was a sensation, earning the reputation that has followed it ever since: the Criterion Collection describes it as "a heart-grabbing benchmark in horror filmmaking," calling it "an almost perfect movie about a very nearly perfect murder," and the National Board of Review named it among the best foreign films of 1955, calling it "a genuine thriller — a shocking, satisfying chunk of Grand Guignol psychological suspense." The film earned Clouzot the enduring sobriquet of "the French Hitchcock," though many have argued, with considerable justification, that the comparison undersells him. In French with English subtitles. Wednesday, October 21, 2026 at 7pm – Poor Things – 2023 – Rated R – 2h 21m Poor Things is a wildly inventive, exhilaratingly strange, and visually ravishing work of absurdist cinema that stands as one of the defining films of recent years. Directed by Yorgos Lanthimos and written by Tony McNamara, based on the 1992 novel by Alasdair Gray, the film is an Ireland-UK-US co-production starring Emma Stone, Mark Ruffalo, Willem Dafoe, Ramy Youssef, Christopher Abbott, and Jerrod Carmichael. The story follows Bella Baxter (Stone), a young woman brought back to life by the brilliant and unorthodox scientist Dr. Godwin Baxter (Dafoe), who, hungry for the worldliness she lacks, runs off with Duncan Wedderburn (Ruffalo), a slick and debauched lawyer, on a whirlwind adventure across the continents, growing ever more steadfast in her determination to stand for equality and liberation. The film is a Frankenstein story refracted through feminist philosophy, dark comedy, and steampunk visual extravagance, moving from black-and-white to lush, outlandish color as Bella's consciousness expands. Poor Things premiered at the 80th Venice International Film Festival in September 2023, where it won the Golden Lion, and was released theatrically in the United States by Searchlight Pictures in December 2023. It became Lanthimos's highest-grossing film, earning over $117 million worldwide on a budget of $35 million. Critically it was celebrated with tremendous enthusiasm, where the consensus describes it as "wildly imaginative and exhilaratingly over the top — a bizarre, brilliant tour de force for director Yorgos Lanthimos and star Emma Stone." The film was named one of the top ten films of 2023 by both the National Board of Review and the American Film Institute. At the awards ceremonies, it swept the season: it won the Golden Globe for Best Motion Picture — Musical or Comedy and Best Actress for Stone, five BAFTAs including Best Actress in a Leading Role, and at the 96th Academy Awards received eleven nominations — second only to Oppenheimer — winning four: Best Actress for Stone, Best Production Design, Best Costume Design, and Best Makeup and Hairstyling. And looking forward, here are the scheduled movies coming in November and December: Wednesday, November 4, 2026 at 7pm – Babette’s Feast – 1987 – Rated G – 1h 42m Directed by Gabriel Axel and adapted from a short story by Isak Dinesen, the film tells the lovingly layered tale of a French housekeeper with a mysterious past who brings quiet revolution in the form of one exquisite meal to a circle of starkly pious villagers in late nineteenth-century Denmark. The title role of Babette is played by Stéphane Audran — with Birgitte Federspiel and Bodil Kjer as the two devout sisters into whose isolated lives Babette quietly, transformatively arrives. Babette’s Feast became the first Danish film ever to win the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film. Among its many admirers is Pope Francis, who named it his favorite film of all time. In French, Danish, and Swedish with English subtitles. Wednesday, November 18, 2026 at 7pm – The Daytrippers – 1997 – Rated R – 1h 27m Written and directed by Greg Mottola in his feature debut, the film follows the distraught Eliza (Hope Davis), who discovers a love letter written to her husband (Stanley Tucci) by an unknown woman and turns to her tight-knit Long Island family for help — sending the whole clan, including a strong-willed mom (Anne Meara), a taciturn dad (Pat McNamara), and a jaded sister (Parker Posey) with her pretentious boyfriend (Liev Schreiber) in tow, piling into a station wagon and heading into Manhattan to find out the truth. With its droll humor and bittersweet emotional heft, The Daytrippers announced the arrival of an unassumingly sharp-witted new talent on the 1990s indie film scene. Critics were largely enthusiastic: the Washington Post called it proof that "a great movie isn't a matter of dollars, so much as creativity," while Newsweek noted that "thanks to the superb cast and Mottola's deft touch, this modest-looking comedy proves quite memorable." Wednesday, December 2, 2026 at 7pm – Brief Encounter – 1945 – Not Rated – 1h 26m Directed by David Lean and adapted from Noël Coward's one-act play Still Life, the film stars Celia Johnson and Trevor Howard as two married strangers who fall into a fleeting, unconsummated love affair after a chance meeting at a railway station, told largely in flashback through Johnson's internal narration. Restrained, quietly devastating, and shot in stark black-and-white with Rachmaninoff's Second Piano Concerto as its emotional backbone, Brief Encounter became a landmark of British cinema for its portrayal of repressed longing and moral duty. It was widely praised on release — earning the Grand Prix at the first Cannes Film Festival in 1946 and Academy Award nominations for Lean's direction, Johnson's performance, and the screenplay — and it continues to be regarded by critics as one of the finest British films ever made, frequently topping "greatest films" lists for its emotional precision and understatement. Wednesday, December 16, 2026 at 7pm – The Holdovers – 2023 – Rated R – 2h 13m Directed by Alexander Payne, the film is set at a New England boarding school over the 1970 Christmas break, where curmudgeonly ancient history teacher Paul Hunham (Paul Giamatti) is stuck supervising the handful of students with nowhere else to go. As the group dwindles to just one, sharp-tongued troublemaker Angus Tully (Dominic Sessa), Paul and the school's head cook, Mary Lamb (Da'Vine Joy Randolph), who is grieving the loss of her son, form an unlikely bond over their shared isolation. Written by David Hemingson, The Holdovers was a major critical success, earning five Academy Award nominations including Best Picture, with Randolph winning Best Supporting Actress. Critics praised its warmth, wit, and old-fashioned craftsmanship, with many calling it one of the finest films of the year and a worthy heir to the character-driven dramas of the era it evokes. Wednesday, December 30, 2026 at 7pm – The Thin Man – 1934 – Not Rated – 1h 33m Directed by W.S. Van Dyke, the film stars William Powell and Myrna Loy as Nick and Nora Charles, a witty, hard-drinking former detective and his wealthy wife who are pulled back into sleuthing when an old acquaintance's inventor father goes missing amid a string of murders. Their affectionate, wisecracking rapport, as much as the mystery itself, became the heart of the film, setting the template for the screwball detective comedy. Based on Dashiell Hammett's novel of the same name, The Thin Man was a critical and commercial sensation on release, earning four Academy Award nominations including Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Actor for Powell. It remains a landmark of 1930s Hollywood, celebrated for launching a beloved franchise and for Powell and Loy's chemistry, still considered one of the great screen partnerships in film history. This season’s BSFI movie screenings are being generously underwritten by the Borrego Valley Endowment Fund (BVEF). See you at the movies!

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Two amazing movies are coming to BSPAC in September! On September 9 th , we have the winner of last year’s Cannes Film Festival’s Grand Prix, Sentimental Value. And on September 23 rd , it’s John Huston’s finest – The Treasure of the Sierra Madre, for which he won the Best Director and Best Adapted Screenplay Oscars, starring Humphrey Bogart and Huston’s father, Walter Huston (who also won an Oscar for Best Supporting Actor). It was the only time a father and son both won Academy Awards during the same ceremony! All screenings are held on Wednesday evenings at 7pm at the Borrego Springs Performing Arts Center, 590 Palm Canyon Drive, Borrego Springs, CA 92004. Our full schedule for 2026 is posted on the BSFI website: www.borregospringsfilminstitute.org . Please check the website for the most up to date information. Here are the movies coming to BSPAC in September: Wednesday, September 9, 2026 at 7pm – Sentimental Value – 2025 – Rated R – 2h 13m Sentimental Value (Norwegian: Affeksjonsverdi) is a 2025 Norwegian drama written and directed by Joachim Trier, the acclaimed Danish-Norwegian filmmaker known for The Worst Person in the World and Oslo, August 31st, in collaboration with his longtime writing partner Eskil Vogt. The film follows sisters Nora and Agnes as they reunite with their estranged father Gustav, a once-renowned director who offers stage actress Nora a role in what he hopes will be his comeback film. When she turns it down, he gives the part to an eager young Hollywood star, forcing both sisters to navigate their complicated relationship with their father while contending with an American outsider dropped into the middle of their family dynamics. The film stars Renate Reinsve and Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas as the sisters, with Stellan Skarsgård as their charming but complicated father and Elle Fanning as the Hollywood star dropped into the middle of their world. Sentimental Value won the Grand Prix at the 2025 Cannes Film Festival and went on to win the Oscar for Best International Feature Film at the 2026 Academy Awards — the first time Norway had ever won in that category. It also received nine Academy Award nominations in total, including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actress, and Best Original Screenplay. In Norwegian, Swedish, Danish, and English with English subtitles. Wednesday, September 23, 2026 at 7pm – The Treasure of Sierra Madre – 1948 – Not Rated – 2h 6m The Treasure of the Sierra Madre is one of the towering achievements of American cinema, widely regarded as John Huston's masterwork and one of the greatest films ever made. Written and directed by Huston and based on B. Traven's 1927 novel of the same name, the film stars Humphrey Bogart, with Walter Huston (John Huston’s father), Tim Holt, and Bruce Bennett in support, along with Alfonso Bedoya as the menacing bandit Gold Hat. The story follows two hard-luck American drifters, Dobbs (Bogart) and Curtin (Holt), who team up with a wily old prospector named Howard (Walter Huston) and head into the Sierra Madre mountains of Mexico to mine for gold — only to find that the treasure they uncover unleashes suspicion, paranoia, and murderous greed. The film is notable for Bogart's extraordinary willingness to subvert his own star image, as his character diminishes steadily into madness and delusion. Huston insisted on filming in the harsh Mexican mountain terrain — making it one of the first Hollywood productions to shoot primarily on location outside the United States — and the rugged setting lends visceral authenticity to the tale. The Treasure of the Sierra Madre was a critical triumph: Pauline Kael called it "one of the strongest of all American films," praising its "powerful cumulative effect." At the Academy Awards, the film received four nominations and won three: Best Supporting Actor for Walter Huston, and both Best Director and Best Adapted Screenplay for John Huston — the only Oscars he ever won. Notably, Bogart was not nominated for Best Actor, a decision that modern critics and Academy members have since widely condemned. In his Oscar acceptance speech, Walter Huston said, "Many years ago I brought up a boy and said to him, 'Son, if you ever become a writer, try to write a good part for your old man sometime.' Well, by cracky, that's what he did!" And looking forward, here are the scheduled movies coming in October and November: Wednesday, October 7, 2026 at 7pm – Diabolique – 1955 – Not Rated – 1h 47m Directed by Henri-Georges Clouzot and set in a decrepit French boarding school, the film follows the wife (Véra Clouzot) and mistress (Simone Signoret) of a cruel, abusive headmaster (Paul Meurisse) who conspire to murder him — only to find his body mysteriously vanishes after the deed is done. Based on a novel by Pierre Boileau and Thomas Narcejac — whose work would later provide the basis for Hitchcock's Vertigo — Clouzot expertly builds a feeling of mounting dread, culminating in a twist ending that pushes the film into the realm of nightmare. With its unprecedented narrative twists and outstanding performances, Diabolique is considered a benchmark in thriller filmmaking and one of the most influential films of its kind. In French with English subtitles. Wednesday, October 21, 2026 at 7pm – Poor Things – 2023 – Rated R – 2h 21m Directed by Yorgos Lanthimos (The Favourite, The Lobster) and set in a whimsical version of Victorian England, the film follows Bella Baxter (Emma Stone), a young woman brought back to life by an eccentric scientist (Willem Dafoe) who implanted a baby's brain into her body — sending her on a globetrotting adventure of self-discovery with a sleazy lawyer played by Mark Ruffalo. Wildly imaginative and exhilaratingly over the top, the film is considered a bizarre, brilliant tour de force for both Lanthimos and Stone, and it announced itself immediately upon its debut at the Venice Film Festival, where it was awarded the prestigious Golden Lion. At the Academy Awards, Stone won Best Actress for her performance, while the film took home additional Oscars for Best Costume Design, Best Hair and Make-up, and Best Production Design — a sweep that cemented Poor Things as one of the most celebrated and visually inventive films of the decade. Wednesday, November 4, 2026 at 7pm – Babette’s Feast – 1987 – Rated G – 1h 42m Directed by Gabriel Axel and adapted from a short story by Isak Dinesen, the film tells the lovingly layered tale of a French housekeeper with a mysterious past who brings quiet revolution in the form of one exquisite meal to a circle of starkly pious villagers in late nineteenth-century Denmark. The title role of Babette is played by Stéphane Audran — with Birgitte Federspiel and Bodil Kjer as the two devout sisters into whose isolated lives Babette quietly, transformatively arrives. Babette’s Feast became the first Danish film ever to win the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film. Among its many admirers is Pope Francis, who named it his favorite film of all time. In French, Danish, and Swedish with English subtitles. Wednesday, November 18, 2026 at 7pm – The Daytrippers – 1997 – Rated R – 1h 27m Written and directed by Greg Mottola in his feature debut, the film follows the distraught Eliza (Hope Davis), who discovers a love letter written to her husband (Stanley Tucci) by an unknown woman and turns to her tight-knit Long Island family for help — sending the whole clan, including a strong-willed mom (Anne Meara), a taciturn dad (Pat McNamara), and a jaded sister (Parker Posey) with her pretentious boyfriend (Liev Schreiber) in tow, piling into a station wagon and heading into Manhattan to find out the truth. With its droll humor and bittersweet emotional heft, The Daytrippers announced the arrival of an unassumingly sharp-witted new talent on the 1990s indie film scene. Critics were largely enthusiastic: the Washington Post called it proof that "a great movie isn't a matter of dollars, so much as creativity," while Newsweek noted that "thanks to the superb cast and Mottola's deft touch, this modest-looking comedy proves quite memorable." This season’s BSFI movie screenings are being generously underwritten by the Borrego Valley Endowment Fund (BVEF). See you at the movies!