Looking for something to do this weekend? Jared Bowen shares his picks from the art scene this week, and there’s something for everyone from theater buffs to comedy mavens.
Presented by Company One, playing at Boston Center for the Arts through Feb. 16.
“You For Me For You” takes place in North Korea and follows two sisters who hope to leave the country. Playwright Mia Chung has South Korean parents, and discussions about North Korea were a backdrop to her childhood. As an adult, Chung began to play with a question — if North Korea was a country on the verge of collapse, what kept it from falling apart?
“When I started to view the situation through the paradigm of Stockholm syndrome — the idea that the citizens have really been kidnapped by their government to some degree, the question became will it ever fall apart, and what the conditions would be for that to happen,” Chung said. “Because I think that mental hold that the government has on its people is extremely strong.”
The plot finds one of the sisters able to escape North Korea and come to the United States, where she tries to integrate herself into Western culture — an acclamation process that provides much-needed comic relief. But for the sister who remains in North Korea, her sibling’s departure is nothing to celebrate. Instead, it heralds her induction into the low morals of the Western world. This fascinating and beautiful piece covers territory not often explored in theater with a subtle eye.
In theaters Feb. 8.
If you believe the hype, “Side Effects” will be filmmaker Steven Soderbergh’s last hurrah — with the exception of a film premiering on HBO later this year. While the acclaimed director hasn’t announced retirement, he has said that this film will be his final project for a long time. Luckily for Soderbergh fans, it’s a very good one.
The film follows a New York psychologist, played by Jude Law, who is treating a young women crippled by depression. When we first meet the patient, played by Rooney Mara, she’s elated that her husband (Channing Tatum) is being released from jail, where he has been serving time for insider training. But her happiness soon fades — the restoration of her old life cannot live up to her expectations.
The film plays with themes of corruption in the medical and pharmaceutical industries, and contains terrific plot twists that turn this dark portrait into a Hitchcock-ian thriller. The film wraps up a little too neatly, but not before it grabs your attention and steals your focus.
In theaters Feb. 8.
In this terrific comedic romp, Melissa McCarthy — the Academy Award nominee from “Bridesmaids” — has stolen Jason Bateman’s identity. Bateman can’t afford to have his identity stolen, so he heads to Florida with a mission: track McCarthy down.
The film is what it is — an outrageous comedy. But it succeeds at its task, and the final product is reminiscent of 80s adventure comedies like “Outrageous Fortune” and “Planes, Trains, and Automobiles.” Melissa McCarthy steals the show — she’s likeable, funny, and willing to go to any lengths to further her comedy.
