My friend’s friend told her about Friday night movies at the “Bijou Cinema,” so we decided to check it out. The “Desert Classic Movie Film Society” meets every Friday night, headed by Christopher Perry, whose “Movie Maniacs” bio on the group’s webpage reads “I am a professional pianist, music historian, film historian, and swing enthusiast…” The Bijou is actually Perry’s home in Yucca Valley, where locals gather to watch classic films such as Breakfast at Tiffany’s, The Wizard of Oz, Kiss Me Kate, and Gone with the Wind (the uncensored banned version!). Although it’s a “Film Society,” anyone is welcome. Some screenings are accompanied by a live music performance before or during the movie (especially when they screen silent films). As Perry is a film historian, he will usually give a short lecture on the history of the film before and after the screening. There are also often 3D screenings, in old-fashioned stereoscopic polarized 3D projection.

On my first visit, my GPS led us to a house in a residential part of Yucca Valley, so we were confused and nervous that we’d be subject to two hours shivering in the freezing wind while watching a film projected on a garage door. Walking down the driveway we realized that the theater is inside Perry’s garage. As we stepped inside, the bland suburbia of Yucca Valley melted away and we were transported to a cozy black box theater with thirty-five plush movie seats (which started to hurt my lower back about midway through the movie) and red curtains draped over the walls. There is also a popcorn machine! If you have to go to the bathroom, a local high-schooler escorts you into the main house. While I waited for someone to come out of the bathroom, I asked the high school boy how he likes living in Yucca Valley. In typical moody teenage fashion, he complained that it’s super boring because there’s nothing to do, and his mom doesn’t let him visit his friends in town on his own. It’s true, there isn’t even a mall to hang out in… but at least he gets to learn about classic movies every Friday night.

Back in the garage-theater, I enjoyed Perry’s succinct and informative pre-movie lecture on the history of Charlie Chaplin’s The Great Dictator, in which Chaplin plays a parody of Hitler. The second time I went to the Bijou was for a 3D screening of The Wizard of Oz. A local couple shared wine and cookies with the whole audience to celebrate their 50^th^ wedding anniversary. Unfortunately, my friend and I ended up leaving quite upset after some distressing post-movie joking about munchkins and little people… Sadly this left me skeptical enough that I haven’t gone back, but the Bijou is still worth a visit.

To become a “Movie Maniac” and RSVP for an upcoming screening at the Bijou Cinema, visit www.meetup.com/DESERT-CLASSIC-FILM-SOCIETY. Screenings typically cost $10, sometimes $5.