ë2001í in 2001 Re-released Film Offers Once-in-a-Lifetime Sensory Experience by Ky N. Nguyen Also in on this page: ï With Love, ëWho Knows?í ï ëAmÈlieí From Montmartre ï Color Neorealism ï One Big Happy Family ï A Quest for Family ï Zorro in China ï Repertory Notes The long anticipated re-release of "2001: A Space Odyssey" finally arrives in Washington, D.C., as the year draws to a close. Iconoclast director Stanley Kubrickís legendary visual interpretation of Arthur C. Clarkeís science fiction story demands to be seen on the big screen, particularly in a restored 70mm print not available since its 1968 release. Rarely used these days, films photographed and projected in 70mm offer IMAX-like clarity for a hyper-realistic experience. Even if youíre a digital video enthusiast whoís content with blurry pictures, judge with your own eyes at the Uptown, one of only four U.S. venues currently booked for a limited engagement. This once-in-a-lifetime expe rience is not to be missed, a benefit of living in Washington available nowhere else on the East Coast. Kubrick propels "2001" with memorable images rather than dialogue. Itís nearly a half hour before a word is spoken. Who can forget the apes brandishing bones as weapons or the first sight of the monolith on the Moon? The models used for 1968ís cutting-edge special effects still hold up 23 years later in the age of computer graphics. Kubrickís meticulous attention to detail creates an authentic world. With so much eye candy, the languid pacing is hypnotic. Straussí music, now indelibly linked to "2001," accompanies the carefully composed frames. The story is concerned with intelligence and survival, starting off with the lengthy visual lesson covering primate evolution. Fast forwarding to the present, an investigative space mission launches when a monolith is discovered sending communications toward Jupiter. Along the way, the astronauts have trouble with HAL, the computer that controls the ship, when its artificial intelligence makes it feel threatened. In the end, voyager Keir Dellea travels through outer and inner space. Meeting the extraterrestrial intelligence, his entire life is reviewed through the famous montage of images. He dies and is reborn again as something new. Then and now, "2001" is an incredibly ambitious work of art, particularly for a mainstream English-language production. Kubrickís legendary perfectionism resulted in a challenging and influential masterpiece that has solidified its reputation after some mixed reviews upon its first release. "2001: A Space Odyssey" (English; 139 min.; 70mm) plays Nov. 2 to Nov. 15 at the Cineplex Odeon Uptown. With Love, ëWho Knows?í "Va Savoir (Who Knows?)" is a delightful romantic comedy from the French New Waveís Jacques Rivette. If youíre unfamiliar with Rivetteís style, donít worry. Itís nothing like Hollywood. While youíre engrossed in "Va Savoir," Julia Roberts in "Americaís Sweethearts" will be the last thing on your mind. Thereís no banal love triangle here: This is an intelligent French movie. The emotional geometry is much more convoluted, involving six players. On his cinematic chessboard, Rivette moves his pieces with the precise strategy of a grandmaster. At times, youíre astonished at what youíre watching. The devil is in the details of the charactersí lives, which are skillfully integrated into the well-scribed story line, adding rich depth and texture. Camille is back in Paris after three years with an Italian theater company to perform a Pirandello play (in Italian) with Ugo, the companyís director with whom she lives. Camille seeks out her ex, Pierre, a philosophy professor now living with Sonia, a dance instructor with a mysterious history. Meanwhile, Ugo digs through libraries in search of a mythical unpublished play. Heís aided by bibliophile Do, whose half-brother Arthur is a cash-strapped, shady character. The six principals are wonderfully fleshed out by the ensemble cast. The opening film at the New York Film Festival, "Va Savoir" has been compared to Rivetteís work at the height of his powers, such as the classic "CÈline and Julie Go Boating" (produced by Barbet Schroeder). "Va Savoir (Who Knows?)" (French and Italian with subtitles; 154 min.) is playing at the Cineplex Odeon Outer Circle and Cineplex Odeon Shirlington. ëAmÈlieí From Montmartre Everybody in France has been talking about AmÈlie (Audrey Tautou), the wide-eyed waitress from Montmartre who receives a revelation to do good deeds for her neighbors. A big crowd-pleaser, "AmÈlie" has become a cultural phenomenon despite angering both the right-wing and the left-wing press. Not being a French intellectual, it beats me why. I missed any potentially infuriating political messages, but I sure had a lot of fun. Director Jean-Pierre Jeunet ("Delicatessen," "The City of Lost Children") returns to French soil after dabbling in Hollywood with "Alien: Resurrection." His films have all been production design masterpieces, but the comparatively light tone of "AmÈlie" showcases a more colorful palette, placing the well-filmed city of Paris in a refreshing light. Jeunet also picks up the pace, zipping AmÈlie and her friends around townóand even the worldóat a whirlwind speed. The whimsical story explains how an apparent sign from God after the death of Princess Diana drives AmÈlie to become a mischievous guardian angel for the people around her. (One neighbor is a painter who repeatedly interprets Pierre Renoirís famous "Luncheon of the Boating Party," which inspired Washington viewers can see at the Phillips Collection.) The socially awkward AmÈlie receives her just rewards by finding Mr. Right (Mathieu Kassovitz), but her shyness keeps them apart while she continues her games to avoid facing reality. "AmÈlie (Le Fabuleux Destin díAmÈlie Poulain)" (French with subtitles; 123 min.; scope) plays at AFIís EU Showcase on Nov. 2, 8:30 p.m. and Nov. 3, 8:15 p.m. It opens Nov. 9 in the Washington, D.C., area. Color Neorealism A passionate ode to working-class labor and family, "The Wide Blue Road" (1957) is a hybrid of conflicting elements. Though strongly grounded in the Italian Neorealistic tradition of Roberto Rosselliniís fishing villages, itís beautifully shot in lush color instead of bleak black-and-white. Like Rosselliniís "Stromboli" (starring Ingrid Bergman), it incorporates a glamorous movie star into its harsh social critique. Yves Montand commands the screen as SquarciÚ, a proud fisherman engaged in illegal and dangerous blast fishing, using dynamite to kill large quantities of fish. The Coast Guard has long wanted to catch SquarciÚ in the act, made more likely with the arrival of their new fast motorboat. His peers are net fisherman who barely survive on the prices paid to them by the greedy wholesaler, whom they plan to bypass by starting a collective. Instead of joining them and giving up dynamite, SquarciÚ chooses to battle the Coast Guard on his own. At the same time, he must face increasing domestic and financial troubles. The message is clear: Itís best to stick with the collective. "The Wide Blue Road (La Grande strada azzura/SquarciÚ)" (Italian with subtitles; 99 min.) opens Nov. 9 at Visions. One Big Happy Family With his debut "Show Me Love," Swedish director Lukas Moodysson demonstrated he could create a poignant, honest character studyófocusing on two teenage girls. With his sophomore effort "Together," Filmfest DC 2001ís closing night film, he expands his circle of characters to the inhabitants of a communal house (and their acquaintances) in 1975 Stockholm. The film is a sentimental comedy-drama thatís provocative and starkly honest. Despite the large cast, every character is vividly developed. Each personís background, beliefs, wants and emotions come to light through illustrative situations mixing comedy and tragedy. Believing in unrestricted freedom, the commune lives without rules, which has been causing conflict. Nobody wants to take responsibilities for collective duties, such as chores. Though Goran claims to believe in free love, his internal jealousy accumulates as his girlfriend Lena sees other people. The tensions are exacerbated when Goranís sister Elizabeth arrives with her two children, fleeing an abusive household. The newcomersí conventionality changes the commune and vice versa. Without wearing rose-colored glasses, Moodysson nostalgically looks back at the idealism of a time when changing the world was a way of life. "Together (Tillsammans)" (Swedish with subtitles; 106 min.) is now playing at Visions. A Quest for Family Directed by Olivier Ducastel and Jacques Martineau ("Jeanne and the Perfect Guy"), "Adventures of Felix" had its recent Washington premiere at Reel Affirmations. It serves as a reflective analysis of todayís French culture, a heterogeneous mixture of cultures and backgrounds. The protagonist is Arab, gay, and HIV-positiveóitems treated relatively matter-of-factly in this engaging, spare road movie about a young manís search for identity. Felix is incredibly cheerful and well adjusted, taking lifeís problems in stride. After losing his mother and his job, he decides to hitchhike from Normandy to Marseilles in search of the father heís never met. As Felix chooses to bypass the major cities, the film provides an insightful roadmap of France outside of Paris. He meets many interesting people. Some are hostile; others are welcoming. Those he befriends are labeled as his surrogate family members. As they talk to Felix, they share information about their own lives. Like him, they have issues that they must face. Theyíre real people with both positive and negative character traits. All this works because of polished writing and acting. Warts and all, members of Felixís "family" become believable and generally likable. By the time he gets to Marseilles and meets up with his significant other, Felix is at peace. Heís learned about himself and about others, figuring out what it means to be family. "Adventures of Felix (DrÙle de FÈlix)" (French with subtitles; 92 min.; scope) is now playing at the Cineplex Odeon Dupont Circle. Zorro in China The 1993 Hong Kong cult classic "Iron Monkey" finally hits American theaters thanks to the recent prominence of director Yuen Wo Ping, now hot in Hollywood as the action choreographer of "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" and "The Matrix." Presented by notorious Hong Kong buff Quentin Tarantino, this belated release serves as an excellent primer to martial arts cinema, aided by Yuenís clearly discerned action sequences (as evident in "Crouching Tiger"). "Iron Monkey" features many classic elements of the genre: a myriad of stances, supernatural powers, evil Shaolin monks, corrupt politicians and martial arts experts who just happen to be women, children, or doctors. The legendary doctor Wong Fei-Hong has been mythologized in Chinese cinema, recently by Tsui Hark in the "Once Upon a Time in China" series. In "Iron Monkey" (produced and co-written by Hark), Fei-Hong is a young boy (played by Tsang Sze Man, a girl) traveling through Zhejing province with his father, Dr. Wong Kei-Ying (Donnie Yen). Theyíre arrested in a sweep of all martial arts experts suspected of being the Iron Monkey, a Robin Hood-like character. By jailing the child, the governor coerces his father to hunt for the Iron Monkey. Kei-Ying meets the kindly Miss Orchid (Jean Wang) and Dr. Yang (Yu Rong Guang), who help both father and son. They also know some martial arts of their own. Though adequate, the story merely serves as a framework for the impressive action. "Iron Monkey (Siunin Wong Fei-Hong Tsi Titmalau)" (Cantonese with subtitles; 86 min.) is now playing widely in the Washington, D.C., area. Repertory Notes The European Union Film Showcase, sponsored by embassies, continues through Nov. 11 at the American Film Institute (http://www.afionline.org/nft, (202) 785-4600). Japanese director Kon Ichikawaís 25-film retrospective runs through December at the National Gallery of Art (http://www.nga.gov/programs/film.htm, (202) 842-6799) and the Freer and Sackler Galleries (http://www.asia.si.edu/programs/film.htm, (202) 357-2700). The African Film Festival takes place Nov. 1, 7, 14, and 27 at the National Geographic Society (http://www.nationalgeographic.com/lectures/2001fall/africa.html#film, (202) 857-7700). The D.C.-wide celebration of Marlene Dietrichís 100th birthday continues with rare screenings of "The Woman Men Yearn For" (Nov. 9) and "Knight Without Armour" (Nov. 10) at 7:30 p.m. at the Capitol Hill Arts Workshop (http://www.filmsonthehill.com, (202) 547-6839). The Washington Jewish Film Festival kicks off Nov. 29, 7 p.m. at the Lincoln Theater with an opening night screening of the German-Swiss film "Gripsholm," with remarks by director Xavier Koller (http://www.wjff.org, (800) 494-TIXS). MicroCineFest, Baltimoreís underground film festival, plays through Nov. 4 (http://www.microcinefest.com, (410) 243-5307) Ky N. Nguyen is the film reviewer for The Washington Diplomat.