03-19-2011, 06:42 AM
Quote:Finally saw Agora.
Liked it a lot. I know, it is not historically accurate and feeds into the Hypatia = martyr for reason legend, but from a dramatic point of view, I found it gripping. The sets are very cool, the acting is good to very good, the characters are nuanced (especially Davus the Slave, Orestes etc.).
It's refreshing to see a movie that emphasizes the power of reason, intellect and all that and doesn't expect its audience to be completely dumb.
Of course, there were only 5 other people in the theater when I watched it. "Jackass 3" is No. 1 in the U.S. right now. Signs of the times?
I can't share the enthusiasm for Agora. It was pretty to look at (especially since it has Rachel Weisz in it), but I found it preachy, a bit pompous and didactic. And Amenábar distorts history to make his points and reinforces several hoary old myths. There was no library in the Serapeum, Hypatia was not an atheist and she was not killed because of her learning.
Dr Serafina Cuomo of the University of London, author of Ancient Mathematics and historian of early science and learning, has written a condemnation of the distortions of history in Alejandro Amenábar's movie about Hypatia of Alexandria, Agora. I've reproduced her comments on my blog: Hypatia and "Agora" Redux, Again. My post also has links to my two previous articles on Agora, the myths it peddles and the real historical evidence.
