The Oscars might be well and truly over (along with one out of the 100 dimensions of James Franco’s career), but that doesn’t mean you can’t still catch up on any of the movies you might have missed. The Avalon Theatre is screening 127 Hours, The Fighter, True Grit, Winter’s Bone, and the nominated live-action and animated shorts through Thursday. The AFI Silver Theatre has The Social Network, Black Swan, and The Fighter until March 10, plus Blue Valentine through Friday. And there’s still a chance to catch the best-picture winner: Landmark Theatres at E Street and Bethesda are screening The King’s Speech through Thursday.
But if your enthusiasm for the Academy Awards peaked with Morgan Freeman’s cameo and waned somewhere around Anne Hathaway’s third wardrobe change, fear not—dozens of new movies are opening this week, from big budget (The Adjustment Bureau) to minuscule (Putty Hill, which wrapped at a total cost of around $40,000).
Tuesday, March 1
Director Gregg Araki (The Living End, Mysterious Skin) returns to the big screen with his 2010 movie, Kaboom, a sci-fi thriller/comedy about a bisexual college student whose drug-fueled hallucinations start to mesh with real life. Kaboom is at West End Cinema through Thursday: buy tickets ($11) at West End’s Web site.
Wednesday, March 2
Even the Rain, the Icíar Bollaín-directed Spanish drama about a film crew (helmed by Gael García Bernal) working on a movie in water-starved Bolivia, is at Landmark E Street through Thursday. The Washington Post’s Ann Hornaday described the movie as “graced by a lushly evocative natural setting, gritty, documentary-like urban scenes, and fantastic performances from its gifted cast.” Get tickets ($10) at Landmark’s Web site.
Thursday, March 3
It’s long been one of the music world’s most legendary breakups (no, we’re not talking about Nick and Jessica), and now the story behind Simon and Garfunkel’s last album, Bridge Over Troubled Water, is the subject of a new documentary. The Harmony Game, at West End Cinema tonight at 7, features interviews with and archival footage of several of the duo’s collaborators as well as segments with Simon and Garfunkel themselves. Buy tickets ($11) at West End Cinema’s Web site.
Friday, March 4
Two new—and very different—movies open today. The Adjustment Bureau, at the Avalon Theatre, is director/writer George Nolfi’s adaptation of a short story by Philip K. Dick starring Matt Damon as a congressman who meets a ballet dancer (Emily Blunt) and discovers that mysterious forces are trying to keep them apart. Get tickets ($11) at the Avalon’s Web site.
Baltimore native Matthew Porterfield returns to his hometown—the subject of his 2006 feature debut, Hamilton—with Putty Hill, the story of a community grieving the loss of one of their own. The film, put together on a shoestring budget and starring mostly amateur locals, was called “extraordinary” by the New Yorker. Buy tickets ($11) at West End Cinema’s Web site.
Saturday, March 5
A Somewhat Gentle Man, Hans Petter Moland’s black comedy starring Stellan Skarsgard as an ex-con released after 12 years in prison, opens at Landmark E Street Friday. Salon’s Andrew O’Hehir called it “a pitch-perfect blend of darkness and sweetness, built around a masterful performance by a great actor.” Get tickets ($10) at Landmark’s Web site.
The National Gallery of Art hosts an afternoon event dedicated to criticism, with a screening of Gerald Peary’s 2009 documentary, For the Love of Movies: The Story of American Film Criticism. Peary, who interviews critics including Roger Ebert and Time’s Richard Corliss for the movie, is hosting a discussion with film writers Jonathan Rosenbaum and David Sterritt after the screening. Free. More information at the National Gallery’s Web site.
Sunday, March 6
The DC Independent Film Festival opens this week and runs through March 13. Today, Artisphere is screening short and full-length films from three categories: immigration, money, and music. For tickets ($10) and more information, visit the DC Independent Film Festival Web site.
Monday, March 7
West End Cinema’s Opera series continues with a screening of Verdi’s Rigoletto, filmed in Mantua and starring Washington National Opera artistic director Plácido Domingo. Buy tickets ($20) through the West End’s Web site.
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