Cries and Whispers. Bergman's latest, filmed with a crimson colored Gothic expressionism reminiscent of Edvard Munch. Set in a turn of the century manor house, two sisters (Liv Ullmann and Ingrid Thulin) along with a peasant servant (Kari Sylwun) attend their dying sister (Harriet Andersson). Bergman uses the women schematically -- the Woman as Other -- to play out his 'nothingness' theme: the ultimate isolation of every human being, the tissue of lies that passes for communication between men, the meaningless of extra-human faith, the nothingness at the heart of it. Central II. 6, 9:35.

The Harder They Come. Starring Jimmy Cliff. The movie is already something of a cult phenomenon. And why shouldn't it be? It's got everything: Set in a Jamaican ghetto under sunny blue skies, the movie looks like a rough etching for a travelogue; a reggae singer on the up and up is bullied and spat down by the local fat king of the record business; he falls for a young sweet 'n innocent ward of the neighborhood preacher, and then shows up the preacher's God-stricken ranting and moaning and raving and groaning as simple lechery; his ambition as a rock star thwarted, he joins the genga trade -- shots of blitz-eyed traders; wearing sunglasses and a leopard skin vest he twirls two pistols in parody -- the old Hollywood style Western hero has become the outcast; on the run, a wanted man, his record becomes a super hit; a doomed man, he reaps a martyr's glory -- at this point the movie gets boring -- he makes fools out of the cops a bit longer and then gets shot up on the beach. Orson Welles. Midnight.

King of Hearts. The only reason for writing this clip is to tell you -- if you are still debating whether you want to find out what all the fuss in Central Square has been about every Saturday night for who knows how long -- not to bother. Central Cinema I. 6:30, 9:45.

State of Siege. Costa-Gavras' latest political drama (following Z and The Confession) written by Franco Solinas who scripted The Battle of Algiers. Yves Montand has the sort of impeccably cool, unimpeachable face which is perfect for the part he plays. His role is recognizably based on the life and death of assassinated AID official Dan Mitrione, who was trained in the U.S. to operate in close undercover conjunction with the repressive police in Brazil and Uruguay. Montand is perfect because this dream of a family man, whose actions are propelled by a pure form of bourgeois liberalism, is so unconscious an oppressor. Charles West. 2:30, 5, 7:45, 10.

The Friends of Eddie Coyle. With Robert Mitchum. This is the best movie of the season. It's a story of the low level gangster's underworld of Boston -- of petty crooks beating out colleagues for petty cash, of 'friends' betraying 'friends' for survival in this dog-eat-dog gangster's game. It's an honest movie, true throughout to the crooked tale it tells. Paramount. 9:30-9:30 every 2 hours. --E.A.F.

Millhouse: a White Comedy. A brace of embarrassing Richard Nixon film clips, put together by Emile de Antonio, the man who did Point of Order, the fine documentary film of the McCarthy hearings. Although the Nixon appearances are amusing and sometimes hilarious, de Antonio fails to find a toehold on the personality of this slipperiest of politicians. The film becomes nothing more than a disconnected sequence of Nixon statements, and some of Antonio's forays -- like cutting from a determined Nixon campaign speech directly to Pat O'Brien's famous "win one for the Gipper" speech in the Notre Dame locker room, simply fall flat. Antonio has all the material to finish off Nixon, but he is unable to put it together. See the film if you're prepared to edit it in your head, or if you have a sudden urge to see the Checkers speech. At the Video Theatre. 8, 9:30.

A Touch of Class. Sometimes fun. Glenda Jackson and George Segal in a film that can't decide whether to place itself in the thirties or the seventies, as far as sex roles are concerned. Jackson is a divorced English dress designer, and Segal is a confused American (aren't we all?). Charles. 2-10, every 2 hours.

Jesus Christ Superstar. A hack neyed film, based on the Broadway musical that tagged along with the Jesus revival. Director Norman Jewison sets to film the rock cantatas of Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice. Beacon Hill Theatre. 10-10 every 2 hours.

Last of Sheila. Slick but interesting. A murder mystery on a yacht. Don't even try to figure out the plot, which is convoluted almost beyond the limits of credibility. Most of the fun comes from watching James Coburn, Richard Benjamin, Dyan Cannon, James Mason, and Raquel Welch play themselves, with plenty of witty Hollywood quips and elaborate sets. Paris. 1:45-9:45, every 2 hours.

Heavy Traffic. This is the new X-rated animated cartoon by Ralph Bakshi, the maker of the celebrated Fritz the Cat. It is usually vulgar, sometimes disgusting, and guaranteed to offend you in one way or another -- either through its occasional perversions or its ethnic stereotypes. But Heavy Traffic is good. Bakshi has discovered freedom in the cartoon form, and this is a film of poignancy and some depth. Cheri. 4, 5:30, 7, 8:30, 10.

The Man Who Loved Cat Dancing. An all-around bad film. Burt Reynolds and Sarah Miles perform poorly in a flick that tries to prove that male chauvinism ruled the Western plains. Symphony I.

The Manchurian Candidate. Frank Sinatra in a thriller about a Communist secret agent who was brainwashed by the Chinese after his capture in the Korean War. Brattle. 5:15, 9:35.   --L.R.C.

Memories of Under development. The first feature from socialist Cuba to reach the United States; it arrived only after Nixon administration attempts to stop the film's importation failed. Director Tomas Alea's work examines the reaction of a bourgeois intellectual to the revolutionizing of Cuba and its culture. Allston. 7, 9:20.