During Communist China's Cultural Revolution, two teen boys from accomplished families are dispatched from the city to a remote mountain village to be reeducated. How they cope, and continue to read banned literature covertly, makes for an engaging drama based on director Dai Sijie's own semiautobiographical novel. (Not rated)
The Aristocrats
In a documentary, nearly 100 comics tell, embellish and dissect a single colossally dirty joke. It's the equivalent of hearing multiple jazz musicians riffing on a tune. Aristocrats gets repetitive, but much of it is darn funny, especially versions of the joke told or analyzed by Drew Carey, Robin Williams, Paul Reiser and Wendy Liebman. Bob Saget offers, hands down, the most repellent take. (Not rated)
November
In a moody suspense thriller, a photographer (Courteney Cox Arquette) replays and broods over the circumstances that led to the tragic death of her longtime boyfriend (James Le Gros) in a convenience store holdup. Lightweight but intriguing. (R)
