Allegro starts off as a pretty conventional love story between an ambitious pianist and a woman he meets after he locks himself out of his apartment. But within 20 minutes, director Christoffer Boe’s terrific film takes a wide turn. The woman leaves the brilliant but emotionally detached musician during a recital. Soon after, their Copenhagen neighborhood becomes mysteriously surrounded by an impenetrable force field, sealing it off from the rest of the world. He relocates to New York, but returns to Denmark 10 years later for a concert. Upon arrival, he receives a letter instructing him to visit the enigmatic “Zone.” Boe’s sci-fi parable probes such deep themes as memory, love, and isolation. His remote protagonist eventually loses all connection with his past. At one point, a music critic calls him a genius, but says he lacks passion. That’s the key to this existential tour de force. It’s a mind-fuck on the scale of Kubrick’s best.
Fri., Aug. 3, 9:15 p.m.; Sun., Aug. 5, 8:45 p.m.

This article appears in Aug 1-7, 2007.