Agora

Summary: In this historical fiction drama, Rachael Weisz, plays Hypatia, a female philosopher, mathematician, and astronomer in Alexandria during 4th century A.D. of the Roman Empire. She is caught between the times as Christianity is gaining traction in the declining Roman Empire. She is also the professor at an elite school and the pupils and a slave eventually gain position in different sectors of colliding divisions. Hypatia is an atheist and this will prove to be her downfall while the city struggles through religious tensions after science is annihilated with the pillage of the library.

Review: The movie certainly was a good one in the bigger themes of religion and science, but it lacked a personal touch to it. It might have also tried too hard and much to make the point of a woman being special for the time for her being something other than objectified as a sexual creature as Weisz is pretty damn sexy. The film tried to create sexual tension between Hypatia and her pupils it sought to do and Rachael Weisz wanted that to be the focus along with the relationships between the students: it just never materialized and I barely realized any of the connections. The movies setting was awesome as it was a big budget in recreating the ancient setting, but it ultimately failed to have any epic cinematographic shots minus the final one.

Further Question/Philosophy/Theme: I'm certainly going to look up the conic sections that is described by Apollonius. The movie also brings up the point that people have always been divided by religion and the fundamentalists of certain religions can't accept science. There is also the scene on the ship with the Prefect that stood out to me when a stone was dropped on a moving ship proving the Earth is moving? inertia?

Power Rating (Out of 5): 4, It was certainly well worth watching and intriguing, but it lacked moments of genius and some comedic moments that even the best dramas have. I felt the movie was missing that final touch, but it had the bases of a great film in it.