Robert Bresson’s most famous movie that is not about a donkey is a thing of minimal pretense and maximal refinement. In it, there are
acts of petty crime spelled out with thrilling precision. There
is a bare Parisian garret. There is a girl so perfect and serene you
expect her to pop out a second Son of God any minute. But the
component parts add up to something far more basic and bracing,
something like cold water, or a punch to the gut. (Metro
Cinemas, 4500 Ninth Ave NE, 781-5755. 7 and
9
pm, $10.)

Annie Wagner is The Stranger's former film editor. She was born and raised in Capitol Hill, but has since lived in such far-flung locales as Phoenix, AZ, Charlottesville, VA, and Wedgwood. After graduating...