Agora (2009)

A historical drama set in Roman Egypt, concerning a slave who turns to the rising tide of Christianity in the hope of pursuing freedom while falling in love with his mistress, the philosophy and mathematics professor Hypatia of Alexandria.

Director:

Alejandro Amenábar

Writers:

Alejandro Amenábar, Mateo Gil

Stars:

Rachel Weisz, Max Minghella, Oscar Isaac

11 wins & 15 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Rachel Weisz	...	Hypatia
Max Minghella	...	Davus
Oscar Isaac	...	Orestes
Ashraf Barhom	...	Ammonius
Michael Lonsdale	...	Theon
Rupert Evans	...	Synesius
Homayoun Ershadi	...	Aspasius
Sami Samir	...	Cyril (as Sammy Samir)
Richard Durden	...	Olympius
Omar Mostafa	...	Isidorus
Manuel Cauchi	...	Theophilus
Oshri Cohen	...	Medorus
Charles Thake	...	Hesiquius
Harry Borg	...	Prefect Evragius
Yousef 'Joe' Sweid	...	Peter (as Yousef Sweid)

Storyline

Alexandria, 391 AD: Hypatia teaches astronomy, mathematics, and philosophy. Her student Orestes is in love with her, as is Davus, her personal slave. As the city's Christians, led by Ammonius and Cyril, gain political power, the institutions of learning may crumble along with the governance of slavery. Jump ahead 20 years: Orestes, the city's prefect, has an uneasy peace with the Christians, led by Cyril. A group from the newly empowered Christians has now taken to enforce their cultural hegemony zealously; first they see the Jews as their obstacle, then nonbelievers. Hypatia has no interest in faith; she's concerned about the movement of celestial bodies and "the brotherhood of all". Although her former slave doesn't see it that way.

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Plot Keywords:

roman empire | 5th century | 4th century | ancient egypt | slave | 

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Taglines:

Alexandria, Egypt. 391 A.D. The World Changed Forever

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Genres:

Adventure | Biography | Drama | History | Romance

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for some violence

Details

Official Sites:

Official site Official site [Spain]

Country:

Spain Malta Bulgaria

Language:

English

Release Date:

9 October 2009 (Spain)

Also Known As:

Агора

Filming Locations:

Delimara, Malta

Box Office

Budget:

$70,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

$7,907,189 (Spain), 9 October 2009, Limited Release

Opening Weekend USA:

$44,313, 30 May 2010, Limited Release

Gross USA:

$617,840, 17 October 2010

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$38,422,082, 31 December 2010

Company Credits

Production Co:

Mod Producciones, Himenóptero, Telecinco Cinema

Technical Specs

Runtime:

127 min 141 min

Sound Mix:

SDDS Dolby Digital DTS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The reunions of Hypatia and her pupils are clearly inspired by the paintings of British painter Sir Lawrence Alma-Tadema.

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Goofs

In the opening scene, Hypatia teaches students at the library and throws a handkerchief in the air. its edges are sewn with an overlock sewing machine.

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Quotes

Hypatia: Synesius, you don't question what you believe, or cannot. I must.

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Connections

Featured in At the Movies: Summer Special 2010/11 (2010)

User Reviews

A very courageous view of the battle between rational science and "free thinkers" versus religious doctrine

I highly recommend the film AGORA by Alejandro Amenábar (who also directed the Others) now out on DVD.

It's not a perfect film (the acting and dialogue is a bit clunky at times) but it is a very courageous view of the battle between rational science and "free thinkers" versus religious doctrine. And even if it takes place 1600 years ago, the frightening conflicts are still here today and the questions the film raises are, unfortunately, still very relevant.

The sets, photography, costumes etc are great, the use of shots of the earth from space give the film a slight "Kubrick" feel (not because of a parallel with 2001) but because down below, humans in their folly, are murdering each other over "my God is better than your God" fairy tales, meanwhile the universe, that we are slowly starting to understand through SCIENCE, remains there with many secrets waiting to be discovered.

The film is unbelievably sad in it's depiction of mobs of religious extremists destroying accumulated knowledge, a fact that has happen many times throughout history, delaying our progress in so many ways.

This is a truly a horror film for those whose value science, rationality, free thinking and feminism.

Unfortunately, this film got only a very limited theatrical release in North America.

I give it plenty of kudos and 8.5/10