United Artists Retrospective

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SIFF Cinema Daily from Wed., April 30 until Wed., May 21, 7:30pm

Through May 21, repertory series honors the studio founded in 1919 by icons of the silent movie era (Chaplin and Pickford among them). This week's titles include The Night of the Hunter (Wed.), a Billy Wilder double-feature of Some Like It Hot and The Apartment (Sun.), and Scorsese's love letter to The Band, The Last Waltz (Tues.). See SIFF Web site for full schedule and details. (NR) SIFF Cinema, 321 Mercer St. (McCaw Hall), 448-2186, www.siff.net. $85-$100 (series), $5-$10 (individual). BRIAN MILLER

Akeelah and the Bee

Eleven-year-old Akeelah (Keke Palmer) talks all “ain’t” and “giiiiiiiiiirl, please” on the scrappy streets of south L.A., but she progresses up the Scripps National Spelling Bee with mixed feelings. Her deceased father inspired her fascination with words, but her eternally hardworking mother (Angela Bassett) doesn’t see any use in the competition. The plot of this Starbucks-endorsed 2006 movie is as recycled as the cardboard cup holding my grande non-fat chai latte. Yet I found myself waiting impatiently for the seasoned Laurence Fishburne, playing her tutor, to run through his maudlin lines so Palmer could get back to doing her sassy, sweet spelling thing. (Note: Saturday show at 4 p.m.) (PG) SARA NIEGOWSKI.

Central Cinema

$5. Daily from Thu., May 15 until Sun., May 18, 7:00pm

Barton Fink

Meh. The Coen brothers' 1991 hotel of Hollywood horrors has always left us cold. All clogged drain pipes and claustrophobia, the film stars John Turturro as an eggheaded playwright (similar to Clifford Odets), who's not too proud to decline a lucrative screenwriting job. John Goodman is the mysterious, cheerful stranger who befriends him. There's a lot of venom directed toward Tinsel Town (where the Coens have generally disdained to work), made bearable by occasional moments of slapstick. (R). BRIAN MILLER.

Central Cinema

Daily from Wed., May 14 until Sun., May 18, 9:45pm

Black Panthers Film Series

Films document the Black Panther movement, connected to the current exhibit of photographs by Stephen Shames. (NR) Odegaard Library, Room 220. Free. Mon.-Sun. Ends May 19.

Odegaard Undergraduate Library, UW campus

Daily from Mon., April 7 until Mon., May 19, 12:00pm-1:00pm

Dune

Starring Yakima boy Kyle MacLachlan in an adaptation of local novelist Frank Herbert's sci-fi classic, David Lynch's 1984 movie isn't a complete mess, but it's close. The first novel in a long series of of spin-offs, Dune would seem today ideally suited for episodic TV on the Sci-Fi Channel, like Battlestar Galactica. They could even bring back MacLachlan for a recurring role. Though I doubt Sting would interrupt his yoga for a cameo. (PG-13) BRIAN MILLER.

Egyptian

$6.75-$9.25. Fri., May 16, 11:59pmSat., May 17, 11:59pm

The Savage Streets

Made in Olympia (words that always inspire confidence), Evergreen student Bryan Connolly's cop spoof promises action, oversized cowboy hats, and Santa Claus. (NR).

Grand Illusion

$5-$8. Fri., May 16, 11:00pmSat., May 17, 11:00pm

To Do List

Friday, May 16

Bike to Work Day
We need Bike to Work Day for the same reason we need Mother’s Day, or ... More>>
City Hall, Fri., May 16, 7:30am

Clinic, Shearwater
Clinic bears an unfortunate, much-mentioned resemblance to the Beatles—... More>>
Neumo's, Fri., May 16, 8:00pm, $13 adv

Nas, D. Black, Grynch, DJ Nphared
How will Nas top his declaration that a nuclear winter had smothered hip-ho... More>>
Showbox SODO, Fri., May 16, 8:30pm, $37.40 adv./$40

164 more things to do today>>