Threeยs certainly a crowd in Opera Jawa, the acclaimed Indonesian film. Based on The Abduction of Sita, Opera is a musical portrayal of a couple shaken by marital infidelity living in a country rocked by racial turmoil. Husband and wife Setyo and Siti live a quiet life in Java until Siti succumbs to the sexual wiles of the local butcher Ludiro (played by Eko Supriyanto, a former backup dancer for Madonna who, critics say, makes the film shimmer). Meanwhile, the seaside city of Java is riddled with domestic uprisings and natural disasters. Subtitles are nearly superfluous in the Indonesian-language film because the emotion-ridden songs speak for themselves. Catch this last installment in the Global Lens Film Series at 8 p.m. today and tomorrow. Rice Cinema, Rice University Media Center, 6100 Main. For more information, call 713-348-4882 or visit www.ricecinema.rice.edu. $6.
Sat., Sept. 6, 8 p.m.; Sun., Sept. 7, 8 p.m., 2008
This article appears in Sep 4-10, 2008.