Relevant ëIraqí Ghobadi Offers Searing Journey Through War-Torn Kurdistan by Ky N. Nguyen Set in the aftermath of the Persian Gulf War, the timely ìMarooned in Iraqî hits Washington, D.C., screens while talk of current military actions in Iraq fills the air. Kurdish-Iranian filmmaker Bahman Ghobadi follows up The Shooting Galleryís smash hit ìA Time for Drunken Horsesî (Camera díOr winner at Cannes) with another emotionally searing journey through Kurdistan. Kurdish singer Mizra (Shahab Ebrahimi) and his musician sons Barat (Faegh Mohammadi) and Audeh (Allah-Morad Rashtian) travel across the border from Iran to Iraq in search of Mirzaís ex-wife Hanareh (Iran Ghobadi). Along the way, the trio encounters a landscape and people devastated by Saddam Husseinís attacks, often with chemical weapons, against Iraqi and Iranian Kurdistan in retaliation for Kurdish rebellion. Ghobadiís controlled direction is typical of Iranian cinema, as is his use of realistic nonprofessional actors. His poetic camera shots linger on the actorsí wearied expressions, and the omnipresent horrors of the frequently absurd situations are relieved with comic levity, reminiscent of Yugoslavian director Emir Kusturicaís tales of Balkan madness. The beautiful Kurdish music is fundamental to the film, as evidenced by its original title at Cannes: ìSongs From My Motherland.î ìMarooned in Iraq (Gomgashtei dar Aragh)î (Kurdish with subtitles; 108 min.) opens Friday, May 23 in the Washington area, including Landmarkís Bethesda Row. Back in the USSR ìLilya 4-Everî is a skillfully crafted portrait of the life of Lilya (Oksana Akinshina), a 16-year-old dreamer in a poor town in the former Soviet Union. With a bleaker, more depressing movie, Swedish director Lukas Moodysson (ìTogether,î ìShow Me Loveî) departs from his previous idiosyncratic dramatic comedies. After Lilyaís mother abandons her for the United States, Lilyaís life in a monumental public housing project declines from bad to worse. Sheís displaced by her aunt and roams through the town in search of empty pleasures with her younger friend Volodya (Artiom Bogucharskij). When Andrei (Pavel Ponomaryov) offers her a great new life in Sweden, the offer is too good to be true. Moodysson revisits his talent for viewing the world from a childís perspective. The young actors successfully convey the aggressive yet frightened feelings of teenagers at risk. As Lilyaís life goes into turmoil, the diverse soundtrack (including classical, techno and heavy metal) reinforces a dehumanized atmosphere where the change from communism to capitalism leaves behind casualties. ìLilya 4-Ever (Lilja 4-Ever)î (Russian, Swedish, English and German with subtitles; 109 min.) plays Friday, May 2 through Thursday, May 8 at the AFI Silver Theatre. The Shining Path The distinctive American actor John Malkovichís directorial debut, ìThe Dancer Upstairs,î is deliberate and preciseówhat one might expect from Malkovich. Adapted for the screen by British writer Nicholas Shakespeare from his novel, ìThe Dancer Upstairsî is based on the actual hunt for the Shining Path leader Abimael Guzman in Peru. The plot, however, is mostly a tool for character development, the primary focus of the movie. The ensemble cast delivers realistically restrained performances, reflecting the claustrophobia of a society under the threat of martial law. Spanish actor Javier Bardem quietly sparkles as Agustin Rejas, an honest police detective seeking the capture of an elusive guerrilla leader orchestrating terrorist attacks in an unidentified South American country. Meanwhile, heís also dealing with his attraction to Yolanda (expressive Italian actress Laura Morante), a ballet instructor who teaches his daughter. The filmís structure deftly combines elements of crime investigation, budding romance and social-political commentary. Malkovichís assured direction provides the viewer with a detailed feel of the conflicts in Rejasís life, and JosÈ Luis Alcaineís striking images effectively depicts the storyís ominous mood. ìThe Dancer Upstairsî (English and Quechua with subtitles; 133 min.) opens Friday, May 9. It was Filmfest DC 2003ís opening night film, with Malkovich appearing in person. The Meaning of Life ìLawless Heartî has been described as a contender for the best British film of the year. The poignant character study by directors Tom Hunsinger and Neil Hunter (ìBoyfriendsî) resonates with emotional truthfulness, providing no easy answers to lifeís troubling questions. In a small town on Englandís Essex coast, the death of Stuart (David Coffey) impacts three men. Stuartís lover Nick (Tom Hollander), brother-in-law Dan (Bill Nighy), and long-lost friend Tim (Douglas Henshall) each seek to redefine their lives while also figuring out the othersí lives. Their respective but overlapping stories are sequentially depictedóshowing how people and events are unexpectedly connected. The clever ìRashomonî-like structure reveals tidbits that often become meaningful only after a second or third viewing. The three lead characters, as well as the supporting players, are developed with intricate detail reinforced by sophisticated performances. The audience grows to know them but isnít expected to readily fall in love with them, unlike the characters in a typical multiplex movie. Likewise, the ending doesnít tie up all the loose threads. As in life, the possibilities are endless. ìLawless Heartî (English; 99 min.) opens Friday, May 9 at Landmarkís Bethesda Row and Visions Cinema/Bistro/Lounge. Outsider-Insiderís View of Ali American expatriate filmmaker William Klein, who lived in Paris since the 1940s, was honored with a retrospective at the National Gallery of Art in 2000. Not included, however, was the rarely screened ìMuhammad Ali, the Greatest,î an amazingly vivid biography that documents Muhammad Ali's life from 1964 to 1974. Although Klein retains his trademark distance, the subjectís larger-than-life persona shines brightly on camera. Traveling with Ali, former fashion photographer Klein was fortunate to shoot extensive footage of events surrounding the charismatic boxer as they were happening. With this unique feeling of immediacy, Kleinís film therefore distinguishes itself from other films about Ali by giving the viewer the special privilege of witnessing history Klein captures Aliís origins as the former Cassius Clay, an Olympic champion who defeats Sonny Liston in 1964. Aliís career parallels the rise in African American political consciousness, an idea that Malcolm X notes in an interview just two weeks before his assassination. The documentary concludes with the legendary ìrumble in the jungleî in Mobutuís Zaire, where Ali faces the seemingly invincible George Foreman. ìMuhammad Ali, the Greatest (English and French; 120 min.) plays Friday, May 2 through Thursday, May 8 at the AFI Silver Theatre. Repertory Notes The Washington DC International Film Festival, a.k.a. Filmfest DC, continues through May 4. The closing night film at the Lincoln Theatre is ìThe Closing Lives of Dentistsîówith American director Alan Rudolph in personófollowed by a party at 2:K:9 ((202) 628-FILM, www.filmfestdc.org). Following a grand opening gala presenting the first American Film Institute (AFI) Silver Legacy award to Clint Eastwood, the AFI Silver Theatreís May programs include Iranian auteur Abbas Kiarostamiís earthquake trilogy, Indian filmmaker Satyajit Rayís Apu trilogy, and French director Marcel Pagnolís Fanny trilogy ((301) 495-6700, www.afi.com/Silver). The National Gallery of Art presents a retrospective of meditative Soviet director Andrei Tarkovsky along with several German films in conjunction with the Ernst Ludwig Kirchner exhibit ((202) 842-6799, www.nga.gov/programs/film.htm). Japanese actress Shirley Yamaguchi is featured in a series at the Freer Gallery of Art ((202) 357-2700, www.asia.si.edu/events/films.asp). German writer-director-actor Karl Valentinís best films from 1913 to 1936 continue on May 5, 12 and 19 at the Goethe-Forum ((202) 289-1200, www.goethe.de/uk/was/enindex.htm). The International Jewish Film Festival of Northern Virginia plays through May 15 at Cinema Arts Theatre in Fairfax ((703) 978-6991, www.cinemaartstheatre.com). The Maryland Film Festival runs May 1 to 4 in Baltimore, Md., primarily at the Charles T heater. Baltimore filmmaker John Waters presents provocative French director Gaspar NoÈís ìI Stand Aloneîóthe shocking predecessor to ìIrreversibleî ((410) 752-8083, www.mdfilmfest.com/2003). Ky N. Nguyen is the film reviewer for The Washington Diplomat.