El Norte, the epic, widely acclaimed masterpiece about the dreams of immigrants from Central America and the promise of America, will return to movie theaters in select markets this September in a special one-day-only 35th anniversary presentation from Fathom Events and global content leader Lionsgate.
Directed by Gregory Nava from a screenplay co-written by Anna Thomas, “El Norte” will play on Sunday, September 15 – the first day of National Hispanic Heritage Month – in more than 200 movie theaters in select markets nationwide. This special one-day-only presentation will include an exclusive introduction by Nava, whose films also include the beloved hits “Selena” and “Mi Familia.” The Fathom Events screenings will also include a brand-new featurette that explores the making of the film and features the film’s stars, Zaide Silvia Gutiérrez and David Villalpando. Nava’s introduction and the behind-the-scenes featurette will be presented in both English and Spanish.
Tickets for “El Norte 35th Anniversary” are available at www.FathomEvents.com and at participating movie theater box offices. All event attendees will also receive a free, two-week trial offer to Pantaya, the first-ever premium streaming destination for world-class movies and series in Spanish.
The Fathom Events presentation of “El Norte” is the film’s first theatrical release since it debuted in U.S. theaters in 1984, and will be shown in an exquisite, state-of-the-art restoration produced by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences and the Getty Foundation. Following this special event, Lionsgate will release “El Norte” on digital formats on September 17.
“Nava’s groundbreaking and achingly humanistic narrative is the quintessential film about immigration,” wrote noted film critic Claudia Puig (USA Today/NPR). “Today, 35 years after its debut, ‘El Norte’ is the film of our time.”
Nominated for an Oscar® for its emotional and compassionate original screenplay, written by Nava and Anna Thomas, “El Norte” was named to the U.S. National Film Registry of “culturally significant films” in 1995, and has now been exquisitely restored by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences. After their family is killed in a government massacre, brother and sister Enrique (Villalpando) and Rosa (Gutiérrez) flee Guatemala and embark on a perilous journey to “El Norte”: the United States. This timeless, visually epic story of Enrique and Rosa’s courageous struggle to make a better life in the U.S. as undocumented immigrants resonates today with remarkable force and remains an unforgettable portrait of the power of the human spirit.
“El Norte” features a cast filled with noted Latin actors, led by Gutiérrez and Villalpando and also including Lupe Ontiveros, Ernesto Gómez Cruz, Enrique Castillo and Tony Plana.
“‘El Norte’ is a special, magical film, a cinematic epic we are proud to showcase, particularly as issues of immigrants and their hopes and dreams fill the headlines,” said Tom Lucas, Fathom Events Vice President of Studio Relations. “Gregory Nava has created a modern American epic, one that resonates as strongly today as it did 35 years ago.”
