readings

DAVID BROCK. The formerly conservative writer, most famous for blasting Anita Hill during the Clarence Thomas confirmation hearings, will be reading from his new-in-paperback autobiography “Blinded by the Right: The Conscience of an Ex-Conservative.” Tuesday, Mar. 11 at 7 p.m. WordsWorth Books, 30 Brattle St., (617) 354-5201. (BJS)

SUZAN-LORI PARKS. Parks, whose play Topdog/Underdog won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama last year, will be reading from her work in an event sponsored by the Du Bois Institute. Writer Elizabeth Alexander will also be reading at the event. Wednesday, Mar. 12 at 4 p.m. Free. Room B-04, Carpenter Center, 24 Quincy St. (BJS)

visuals

STEVEN HOLL: LIGHT, MATERIAL AND DETAIL. The highly celebrated American architect enjoys a double exhibition across MIT’s campus. Works examined include the Helsinki Museum of Contemporary Art, Holl’s expansion to the Nelson Atkins Museum of Art in Kansas City and MIT’s very own Simmons Hall dormitory. Through April 16. Free. Hours: Mondays through Fridays 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Wolk Gallery, MIT School of Architecture and Planning. Mondays to Fridays 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m, Compton Gallery, MIT Museum. (RJK)

IMAGE AND EMPIRE: PICTURING INDIA DURING THE COLONIAL ERA. The exhibit features about 50 different works of art that capture different views of colonial India. See full story in the Feb. 7 Arts section. Through May 25. Hours: Mondays through Saturdays, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Sundays, 1 to 5 p.m. $6.50, $5 students/seniors, free for Harvard ID holders, Cambridge Public Library card holders and to people under 18. Group rates available. Sackler Museum, 485 Broadway, (617) 495-9400. (CWP)

BUDDHIST ART: THE LATER TRADITION. This comprehensive exhibit at the Sackler of Buddhist art from China, Korea, Japan, Tibet and India spans more than 1000 years. See full story in the Feb. 14 Arts section. Through Sept. 7. Hours: Mondays through Saturdays, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Sundays, 1 to 5 p.m. $6.50, $5 students/seniors, free for Harvard ID holders, Cambridge Public Library card holders and to people under 18. Group rates available. Sackler Museum, 485 Broadway, (617) 495-9400. (CWP)

THE COLOR YELLOW: BEAUFORD DELANEY. The exhibit, which is the first retrospective of an African-American artist at a Harvard University museum, is also Delaney’s first retrospective since he passed away in 1979. It features 26 highly textured, vibrant paintings by the underappreciated 20th-century African-American expatriate artist, most of which are dominated by warm, vivid shades of yellow See full story in the Feb. 28 Arts section. Through May 4. Hours: Mondays through Saturdays, 10 to 5 p.m.; Sundays 1 to 5 p.m. Free. Sert Gallery, Carpenter Center, 24 Quincy St., (617) 495-9400. (CWP)

film

HARVARD SQUARE LOEWS

10 CHURCH ST., (617) 864-4580

ABOUT SCHMIDT. About Schmidt, in a bizarrely somber, comedic fashion, is possibly the most depressing film of Jack Nicholson’s long career. His performance as a retired insurance executive is a deeply complex and hilariously tragic portrayal of the most banal aspects of one man’s post-mid-life crisis. Director Alexander Payne, famous for his digressions on suburban angst in films such as Election and Citizen Ruth, keeps the tone light and the characters archetypally and delicously bizarre. About Schmidt screens at 12:15, 3:15, 7 and 10 p.m. (CJF)

ADAPTATION. At its core, Adaptation is an analysis of the intellectual diseases that plague every writer, from editorial pressure to sibling rivalry to unrequited love. But its narrative edges make it a unique experience. Nicolas Cage plays writer Charlie Kaufman (the real-life writer of the film), who becomes consumed by his assignment to adapt Susan Orlean’s meditative nonfiction novel The Orchid Thief and his own personal eccentricities. Like Kaufman and director Spike Jonze’s previous film Being John Malkovich, several plots overlap and intertwine with surprising at dramatic twists, creating a frustrating, complex film that is infinitely insightful and weirdly moving. Adaptation screens at 12:30, 3:30, 6:15 and 9:15 p.m. (CJF)

CHICAGO. The potential revival of the Hollywood musical is upon us with Chicago—for better or worse. Ignoring its politicized ramifications as a genre revival, Chicago on its own is a pretty wild ride, showcasing once and for all that the new school of glitzy film stars can sing better than Jennifer Lopez. Catherine Zeta-Jones, Renee Zellweger, and especially John C. Reilly are surprisingly watchable in this furiously edited, expensive adaptation of the murderous Broadway classic. Chicago screens at 1, 4, 7:30 and 10:10 p.m. (CJF)

THE HOURS. This adaptation of Michael Cunningham’s Pulitzer-winning novel is unapologetically Oscar bait, backed by a triumvirate of A-list actresses (Meryl Streep, Nicole Kidman, Julianne Moore). Yet for a film of its ostensible weight, The Hours certainly takes easy shots at its lead trio—three colossally boring straw women who rediscover their lost vitality in drearily obvious ways as the picture progresses. Perhaps The Hours’ greatest value rests in its side-by-side comparison of Moore, the greatest actress of her generation, and Streep, the most acclaimed actress of hers; when judged head-to-head, Moore ends up easily topping Streep, if for no other reason than that Streep persists in being an actress onscreen while Moore is content to be a person. The Hours screens at 12:45, 3:45, 6:45 and 9:45 p.m. (BJS)