ongoing -Wed. May 30

The A.R.T. opened Harold Pinter's (in photo) surreal, existentialist "No Man's Land" May 12. (We saw it press night on Wedensday; our take plus an interview with the Wheelers, the director, David,  and his actor-son, Louis,  will be up on the site by Friday.) Anyway, that makes the timing perfect for Harvard Film Archive's program, "Harold Pinter: Stage to Screen." For the record, we'll say "Betrayal," with Jeremy Irons and Ben Kingsley, was about the most devastating story we've ever seen on screen about a doomed relationship. It started at the end and ended at the beginning, and it broke your heart to see the reverse downward spiral. And, it surely had a lot of resonance. HFA started  its series of Pinter (the screenwriter) films a week ago Sunday. The lineup includes  "Prime People," "The Homecoming," "The Go-Between," "The Servant," "Accident," "The Last Tycoon," "The French Lieutenant's Woman,""The Comfort of Strangers," and, of course, "Betrayal." Pinter may not make you feel better about the human condition, but he will make you feel part of it. Side note: We were in London in 2003, before the Iraqi war, and saw Pinter speak on stage with Jesse Jackson, Damon Albarn and many other celeb-activists. He was devastating in his scathing critique of Tony Blair and George Bush. Never did it feel so good to be so part of a huge crowd. Even as a Yank. Check the HFA website for the schedule. All shows $8. It ends on Wednesday May 30.

24 Quincy St., Cambridge, 617-495-400 harvard.edu/hfa