THE WASHINGTON POST • FRIDAY, AUGUST 27, 2010
34 Also Playing
Capsule reviews of recent releases play- ing in area theaters. Movies not re- viewed by The Post will be marked “NR” for not rated. For older movies, see the Movie Directory.
BBBAGORA
“Agora” takes place in fourth-century Egypt, where in Alexandria the astrono- mer and philosopher Hypatia (Rachel Weisz) regularly gathers circles of stu-
dents to explore the governing principles of the universe. Although Hypatia is an atheist and her father, Theon (Michael Lonsdale, reliably grave and leonine as al- ways), is pagan like most of their country- men, the nascent faith of Christianity has claimed the hearts and minds of many Egyptians, among them Hypatia’s ser- vant, Davus (Max Minghella), and her stu- dent Synesius (Rupert Evans), who will eventually be named Bishop of Cyrene. As tensions rise, the conflict finally culmi- nates in a brutal attack on the city’s leg- endary library. Hypatia resolutely sides with reason over zealotry — her interest
lies only in preserving the scrolls that hold the institution’s vast stores of hu- man knowledge. (NR, 126 minutes) Con- tains strong violence. At Landmark’s Beth- esda Row.
BBBCAIRO TIME
Patricia Clarkson’s character, Juliette, a Canadian magazine editor, has just land- ed in Egypt, where she plans to join her husband, Mark, a U.N official. At the air- port, Juliette is met by Mark’s old friend Tareq (Alexander Siddig), who informs Ju- liette that her husband has been delayed
— Ann Hornaday
in Gaza. At first Juliette tries to navigate Cairo’s chaotic and noisy streets on her own but quickly learns that she’ll need a guide. She calls on Tareq, and the two ex- plore the city and their own interior land- scapes, which undergo tiny seismic shifts the longer they spend together. As the film unfolds, with Juliette and Tareq tak- ing leisurely ambles through the city or smoking hookah pipes in its coffeehous- es, she begins to exude an unmistakable sense of longing, a feeling that Tareq — a man of courtly restraint and old-fash- ioned decorum — picks up on and re- sponds to in kind. (PG, 88 minutes) In Eng-
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lish and Arabic with English subtitles. Con- tains mild thematic elements and smoking. At Landmark’s Bethesda Row.
— A.H.
B CATS & DOGS: THE REVENGE OF KITTY GALORE
A MAGICAL EXPERIENCE YOU MUST NOT MISS.”
- Rex Reed, THE NEW YORK OBSERVER
Plagued by cheap-looking special effects and a crummy 3-D conversion, this film leans heavily on its only real asset, the cuteness of its fuzzy stars. Kitty is a hair- less feline with the voice of Bette Midler who is bent, natch, on world domination. Opposing her are a team of super-spies: a cat with the voice of Christina Applegate, and two dogs, Butch and Diggs (Nick Nolte and James Marsden, respectively). Butch is the old pro; Diggs is the unreli- able rookie. The three are tasked with protecting a pigeon (voice of Katt Wil- liams) who has gotten hold of secret blue- prints that could endanger Kitty’s plan. Yes, there are references to “The Silence of the Lambs” and “Lethal Weapon.” Yes, there are fire hydrants. Yes, there’s a ball of yarn that’s actually a bomb. The only thing that might surprise you is the wa- terboarding joke, although the surprise is not a pleasant one. (PG, 82 minutes) Con- tains animal action and humor. Area thea- ters.
BTHE CONCERT DIRECTED BY LISA CHOLODENKO
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“ONE OF THE BEST CHILDREN’SMOVIES OF THE YEAR.”
ROGER MOORE, ORLANDO SENTINEL
WRITTEN BY LISA CHOLODENKO & STUART BLUMBERG
FROM THE DIRECTOR OF ‘DRIVING MISS DAISY ’ AND THE PRODUCER OF ‘SHINE’
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Andrei Filipov (Aleksei Guskov) is a down- and-out conductor who works as a janitor at the historic Bolshoi Theatre in Moscow. Andrei intercepts a fax inviting the com- pany to perform at the Theatre du Chate- let in Paris. He decides that he will pre- tend to be the director, accept the invita- tion, reassemble his orchestra from 30 years ago and travel to Paris the concert. Andrei’s scheme gets off the ground, driven by his ambition and hubris. Early on, viewers will suspect that there’s more on the line for Andrei than a trip to Paris. There’s that nervous look his co-conspira- tors get when he wants to play Tchaikov- sky and his odd insistence that violin vir- tuoso Anne-Marie Jacquet (Mélanie Lau- rent) play a solo. We learn that part of the mystery is a 30-year-old scandal when the Communist government forced An- drei out of his conductor’s job for harbor- ing Jews in his orchestra. (NR, 107 minutes) In Russian and French with English subti- tles. Contains much drinking. At AMC Loews Shirlington and Cinema Arts Thea- tre.
BBBDESPICABLE ME
The nasty streak that animates its protag- onist, a hollow-eyed supervillain named Gru (voiced by Steve Carell), is so deep and wide as to seem insurmountable. But the film turns into an improbably heart- warming, not to mention visually delight- ful, diversion. After another evildoer im- presses the world by stealing the Great Pyramid of Giza, Gru looks for his big comeback and hits on the idea of stealing the moon. He adopts three sweet girls from an orphanage run by a sadistic Southern belle (Kristen Wiig), and, along with an army of tiny yellow “minions,” be- gins to bring his plan into action. Carell’s expert timing is in full force as his charac- ter tries mightily to resist the parental tug of his three young charges. The film fea- tures some ace voice talent, including Russell Brand as Gru’s elderly henchman, Dr. Nefario, Jason Segel as Gru rival Vec- tor and Will Arnett as the president of the Bank of Evil. (PG, 95 minutes) Contains rude humor and mild action. Area theaters. — A.H.
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“H!” THE
-Owen Gleiberman, ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY
-Betsy Sharkey, LOS ANGELES TIMES
“H!” THE
-Roger Ebert, CHICAGO SUN-TIMES
WASHINGTON, DC
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“THE BEST MOVIE OF THE SUMMER BY FAR. T HE BEST MOVIE A.O . SCO , ATT T THE MOVIES “O “C
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