Local & Repertory

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Chinese Puzzle In three agreeable films covering about a dozen years for his main quartet of characters, now 40-ish, Cedric Klapisch has also grown up as a director. He still embraces the messy, multilingual, bed-hopping, city-jumping complexity of life, which began in Barcelona with 2002’s L’Auberge Espagnole and continued to St. Petersburg and beyond with 2005’s Russian Dolls. Here Klapisch keeps the comedy, street chases, and indecisiveness that plague his novelist hero Xavier (Romain Duris), but I think Chinese Puzzle is the best of the three pictures—largely because it rests on the foundation of the prior two, much like Richard Linklater’s Before Sunrise trilogy. Xavier is forced to decamp from Paris to New York, following his ex, Wendy (Kelly Reilly), mother of their two children, now in the Big Apple. (Also on hand are series veterans Cecile de France and Audrey Tautou.) Our heroes seem equally unmoored from any country or ideology beyond shared experience. That sense of community—including infidelities and rivalries—is what keeps our foursome connected despite their travels. (NR) BRIAN MILLER SIFF Film Center (Seattle Center), 324-9996, siff.net. $6-$11. 7 p.m. Mon.

The Dance of Reality Alejandro Jodorowsky was already a veteran of wigged-out experimental theater when he devised El Topo (1970) and The Holy Mountain (1973), films that crammed together intense violence, spiritual searching, and preposterous grotesquerie. His latest is an autobiographical look at the filmmaker’s youth in small-town Chile. There’s something almost heartwarming about the fact that this movie is—for all its zaniness—almost a normal film. Jodorowsky himself appears as the narrator, a dapper man given to trailing aphorisms in his wake. His youthful self (Jeremias Herskovitz) is a sensitive lad, coddled by a Rubensesque mother (Pamela Flores, whose dialogue is entirely sung) and bullied by a hard-backed Communist father (Brontis Jodorowsky, the director’s son). Around this curved spine of plot, Jodorowsky brings in a carnival sideshow, sharp childhood observations, and frequent bouts of on-camera urination. But the overall impression is energetic and imaginative, suggesting that all his past insanity had done wonders for this octogenarian’s creative process. (NR) ROBERT HORTON Grand Illusion, 1403 N.E. 50th St., 523-3935, grandillusioncinema.org. $5-$8. 8:45 p.m. Sun.-Weds.

Deep Blue Sea Before he battled snakes on a plane, Samuel L. Jackson joined Stellan Skarsgård, LL Cool J, Saffron Burrows, and Thomas Jane in battling intelligent sharks at a marine research base in this 1999 thriller, capably directed by Renny Harlin. This is a special “hecklevision” screening, so you can send your snarky texts up on screen. (R)

Central Cinema, 1411 21st Ave., 686-6684, central-cinema.com. $8-$10. 8 p.m. Thurs.

For Laughing Out Loud From 1940, the bigamy comedy Too Many Husbands stars Jean Arthur as a young widow who marries the BFF (Melvyn Douglas) of her dead husband (Fred MacMurray), presumed lost at sea. You can see where this is going. (NR)

Seattle Art Museum, 1300 First Ave., 654-3121, seattleartmuseum.org. $8 individual, $42-$45 series. 7:30 p.m. Thurs. Ends. Aug. 14.

Fremont Outdoor Cinema Sure, it’s nice that the actors sing their own numbers in 2008’s Mamma Mia!—Meryl Streep has a fab set of pipes, and the fact that Pierce Brosnan sings like a bullfrog in heat is used to adorable effect. But without the originals’ multiply dubbed wall of sound, these ABBA tunes only get their due in the all-too-rare big production numbers, when Mamma Mia! finally rocks as a tirelessly nostalgic pub crawl through a narrow street of 1970s pop history. Otherwise, it’s little more than droopy ditties draped around a threadbare plot about the daughter (Amanda Seyfried) of a single mom (Streep) who secretly invites three men (Brosnan, Colin Firth, Stellan Skarsgård)—each of whom might be her father—to her Greek island wedding. (PG-13) ELLA TAYLOR 3501 Phinney Ave. N., 781-4230, fremontoutdoormovies.com. $30 series, $5 individual. Movies start at dusk. Sat.

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban In the third Harry Potter movie, released in 2004, the bespectacled wizard boy (Daniel Radcliffe) learns that Sirius Black (Gary Oldman), escaped from prison and somehow tied to the death of Harry’s parents, is hunting him down. The kid can’t catch a break as we watch him dodging werewolves, flying with llama-bird-like creatures (reminiscent of The Never-Ending Story), and coping with a screaming shrunken head and a monstrous self-devouring book. All this is conveyed via the seamless visual effects, expert cinematography, and first-rate casting that have helped make the series such a phenomenon. Director Alfonso Cuaron creates a darker, more sinister atmosphere that aptly represents both the struggle between good and evil in the magic world and the struggles of adolescence for Harry, Ron, and Hermione. (PG) HEATHER LOGUE Central Cinema, $6-$8. 7 p.m. Fri.-Tues. & 3 p.m. Sat. & Sun.

Keaton as Film Local curator Robert Spector screens three classic silent comedies including Sherlock, Jr., with live musical from Jen Gilleran and Christian Pincock GRID. (NR)

Northwest Film Forum, 1515 12th Ave., 267-5380, nwfilmforum.org. $6-$11. 8 p.m. Fri.

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Moonlight Cinema The Coen brothers’ 1998 stoner-noir The Big Lebowski is Raymond Chandler filtered through dirty bong water, where almost every line of dialogue is a hazy, hilarious non sequitur. My favorite is when accidental P.I. Jeff Bridges (forever the Dude) is ambushed in his tub by nihilists bearing a ferret. “Hey, nice marmot,” he greets them, with his usual unflustered amiability. Nothing rattles Bridges’ Dude, not a lost rug, not a leering Tara Reid, not a lisping John Turturro, not a raving John Goodman, not a simpering Steve Buscemi, and not even shrieking performance artist Julianne Moore, who joins Bridges in a Busby Berkeley-style bowling fantasy that sums up the movie’s sweet, silly spirit. (R) B.R.M. Redhook Ale Brewery, 14300 N.E. 145th St., Woodinville, 425-420-1113. $5. Outdoor movie screens at dusk. Thursdays through Aug. 14.

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Movies at Magnuson Park Author of Jurassic Park, the late writer Michael Crichton famously tutored President George W. Bush on the fallacy of global warming. He was no scientist, but the doctor-turned-novelist, from The Andromeda Strain forward, knew how to mix popular science into exceptionally good potboiler fiction. Steven Spielberg’s 1993 adaptation benefits from equally from the then-new magic of CGI and our old love of dinosaurs running amok. While Crichton warns us about the dangers of genetic engineering—in rather static debates among scientists Sam Neill, Laura Dern, and Jeff Goldblum—Spielberg keeps things moving at a wonderful pace. (PG-13) B.R.M. Magnuson Park, 7400 Sand Point Way N.E., moviesatmagnuson.com. $5. Thursdays. 7 p.m.

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Movies at the Mural John Hughes’ often-quoted 1986 teen comedy makes excellent use of Matthew Broderick’s slightly corrupt charm (and a certain 1961 Ferrari 250GT California). Without rising to the ’80s-defining level of Sixteen Candles, this is the thoroughly enjoyable Hughes flick that also made Ben Stein’s career. “Anyone? Anyone?” (PG-13) B.R.M. Seattle Center Mural Amphitheater, 684-7200, seattlecenter.com. Free. Movies begin at dusk. Saturdays through Aug. 23.

Rye Coalition: The Story of the Hard Luck 5 Director Jenni Matz will introduce selected screenings of her fond documentary profile of the ’90s New Jersey band Rye Coalition. (NR)

Grand Illusion, $5-$8. 9 p.m. Fri.

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Stop Making Sense Jonathan Demme’s 1984 Talking Heads concert movie isn’t just a live recording of memorable performances by a trailblazing American band then hitting its stride. It is an unparalleled film experience, thanks to Demme (The Silence of the Lambs, Philadelphia, etc.). The film—being shown in celebration of its 30th anniversary—can be viewed as a sort of musical evolution, starting with David Byrne famously playing “Psycho Killer” to the sole accompaniment of a boombox. The concert progresses and the band, literally, builds behind Byrne as they play songs from Speaking in Tongues, the album that broke Talking Heads into the mainstream with “Burning Down the House.” And yes, you get to see Byrne in that big white suit, even bigger on the big screen. (NR) MARK BAUMGARTEN SIFF Cinema Uptown, 511 Queen Anne Ave. N., 324-9996, siff.net. $6-$11. 9:15 p.m. Fri.-Thurs.

Ongoing

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Boyhood Richard Linklater’s Boyhood was shot in his native Texas in short bursts over a 12-year period—Linklater knew the shape of the film, but would tweak its script as time marched on, incorporating topical issues and reacting to his performers. This means that unlike most movies, which remake the world and impose an order on it, Boyhood reacts to the world. Protagonist Mason (Ellar Coltrane), tracked from first grade to high-school graduation, is learning that life does not fit into the pleasing rise and fall of a three-act structure, but is doled out in unpredictable fits and starts. Linklater doesn’t reject melodrama so much as politely declines it, opting instead for little grace notes and revealing encounters. Patricia Arquette and Ethan Hawke are terrific as the parents, and Linklater’s daughter Lorelei is distinctive as Mason’s older sister. Other folks come and go, like people do. As we reach the final stages, there’s definitely a sense of rounding off the story, and a few appropriate nods toward lessons learned—the movie’s not as shapeless as it might seem. (R) R.H. Harvard Exit, Sundance, Lincoln Square

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Guardians of the Galaxy Give thanks to the Marvel gods for Guardians of the Galaxy. If you’ve ever had to suppress a giggle at the sight of Thor’s mighty hammer, this movie will provide a refreshing palate-cleanser. First, understand that the Guardians of the Galaxy tag is something of a joke here; this is a painfully fallible batch of outer-space quasi-heroes. Their leader is an Earthling, Peter Quill (Lake Stevens native Chris Pratt, from Parks and Recreation, an inspired choice), who calls himself “Star-Lord” even though nobody else does. In order to retrieve a powerful matter-dissolving gizmo, he has to align himself with a selection of Marvel Comics castoffs, who will—in their own zany way—end up guarding the galaxy. (His costars, some voicing CGI creatures, are Zoe Saldana, Bradley Cooper, Vin Diesel, and the pro wrestler Dave Bautista.) Director James Gunn (Super) understands that getting character right—and keeping the story’s goals simple—can create a momentum machine, the kind of movie in which one scene keeps tipping giddily over into the next. (PG-13) R.H. Majestic Bay, Sundance, Bainbridge, Kirkland Parkplace, Ark Lodge, Lincoln Square, Big Picture, others

A Most Wanted Man Directed by Anton Corbijn, this this adaptation of a lesser 2008 John le Carre novel will, I think, be remembered as the best among Philip Seymour Hoffman’s posthumous releases. His rumpled Hamburg cop, Bachmann, is charged with the dirty work of counter-terrorism. He and his squad (including Daniel Bruhl and Nina Hoss) follow a Russian-Chechen migrant named Karpov without arresting him, hoping he’ll lead to bigger fish. His bosses are dubious; and he’s got to negotiate with the CIA to allow Karpov room to roam. Will Karpov plant a bomb in the rush-hour subway or lead Bachmann to an important al-Qaida funding link? (R) B.R.M. Seven Gables, Kirkland Parkplace, Lynwood (Bainbridge), others