The Hawk Is Dying will screen at the Somerville Theatre tonight, Thursday, May 24, at the Somerville Theatre at 7:30 pm. Tickets are $8.

Occasionally we wonder if Paul Giamatti is tired of his nebbish routine. Does he ever bark on the phone to his agent, screaming that he'd like to be the ladykiller for once?

Well, it's not likely that he'll be the next James Bond, so we'll appreciate him the way he is. And it's hard to imagine anyone else playing an ordinary fella whose trials and tribulations plunge him into an unhealthy obsession with falconry, not to mention starvation.

The Hawk Is Dying is based on a book by Harry Crews and also stars Michelle Williams as a waif who occasionally sleeps with Giamatti's character. It doesn't get much more indie than that, so it's only natural that IFF Boston is sponsoring the screening.

Critics are underwhelmed by the weird factor, but Giamatti often earns praise in the review. Plus, there are very few movies about falconry out there, so this has the potential to be really good, really bad, really pretentious, or all three.