Agora (2009)
By: Alejandro Amenábar (director, writer), Mateo Gil (writer)
Starring: Rachel Weisz, Max Minghella, Oscar Isaac, Ashraf Barhom, Michael Lonsdale, Rupert Evans, Sami Samir
A historical drama set in Roman Egypt, concerning a slave who turns to the rising tide of Christianity in the hopes of pursuing freedom while also falling in love with his master, the famous female philosophy professor and atheist Hypatia of Alexandria.
Regardless of what we think about Agora, I think it’s fair to assume that if you’re here, voluntarily reading my rambling, we can agree that Hypatia of Alexandria was awesome. This was my first time having her story related to me, and while there was a good deal of artistic license taken in the process, I love the idea that people are still telling her story and still inspiring people like me to learn more about her legacy.
Agora was the highest grossing film in 2009 in Spain, and I suppose I can see why. It’s an engaging, extremely tragic story, not only in regards to Hypatia herself but the political and religious turmoil of Alexandria at that time. The film was accused of “reinforcing false clichés about the Catholic Church” by the Religious Anti-Defamation Observatory, but I personally thought that the overall tone was very well-balanced. One of the aspects of the film that struck me so soundly was the moral implication that none of the major active religious factions at that time were in the right. There’s naturally going to be a lot of conjecture in any work based on ancient history, but I didn’t feel any of it was unfair.
Rachel Weisz is absolutely stunning in this role, possibly the best I’ve ever seen her, and it’s a bit of a shame that the movie itself isn’t a bit stronger to better promote her. More than anything else, the film suffers from choppy editing, but the story remains interesting, if only because Hypatia herself was and is interesting. Normally I might be annoyed at the insertion of a romantic element, but it was handled very well and I don’t think it was at any detriment to either the film or Hypatia’s virtuous legacy.
If you enjoy historical drama, it’s worth you giving it a try.
