FILM LIST
o This section aims to provide a review of every film to be seen in central Scotland over the next fortnight. For programme times see individual cinema listings.
(U)—Universal, suitable lorall ages. (PG) — Parental Guidance suggested as some scenes may be unsuitable for youngerchildren.
(15) — No one under the age of 15 admitted.
(18) - No one under the-age of 18 admitted.
s‘I—NBW Release.
0 After Hourst 15) ( Martin Scorsese. 1'5. 198.5 l ( irittm Dunne. Rosanne Arqttcltc. .lohn l leard. 0" mins. Conventional vvoi d-processor Dunne spends an unforgettany nightmarish itight on the tovv ii iii this last. furious and extremely ltmny cyploration of urban paranoia. l'dmbuigh; ('amco 0 All Of Mel l5)((‘arl Remcr. l'S. 198-1) Steve Martin. l.in 'l'omlm. Victoria lcnnant. ‘)l mins. A frequently engaging and hilariously silly madcap farce vvith a [)L'l‘ltll mance of dextcrous physicalin from Martin that combines elementsof (ary (iiant..lohn ('lecsc and Jerry [.cvvis. l'tiev en btit exuberant nonsense. lzdmburgh; l'ilmhousc o AlmostYOUt l5llAdam Brooks. [‘5. l‘lSJl Brooke Adams. (iriffin Dunne. Karen Young. l)" mins. Mild. mttddlcd yuppie romantic comedy vvith Dunne using his vv ite‘s hospitalization to sort out his priorities. both romantic and business. Rather undervv helming. (ilasgovv : (if-'1‘ 0 American Graffiti ( 15) (George Lucas. 1S. 1973) Richard Dreyfus. Charles Martin Smith. Candy Clark. 11(lmins. California. 1963 and an eveningof girl-ehasingand police-baiting for four college kids. Crrandlyentertaining nostalgia trip vvith a nifty rock 'n' roll soundtrack. (ilasgovv; (irosvenor 0 Baby. It‘s Yout 15 i (John Sayles. L'S. 1953 ) Vincent Spano. Rosanna Arquette. By turns strcetvvise and romantic vv ithout being slushy. the strength of Say les' acutely observant vvriting lifts the mate rial abov e the standard tecnager-in-love fare. (ilasgovv '. (il’l' 0 Beverly Hills Cop ( 15) (Martin Brest. US. 1985) Iiddic Murphy. Judge Reinhold. Steven Berkoff. 105 mins. Chicago cop Murphy is out of his depth on the casein l.A. Well-tailored star vehicle with sequel clone due imminently. Glasgow:
drop of alcohol touch the lips of the
beautiful Basingcr the first thing he doesis
to ply her vv ith champagne. predictable tnav hem ensues including a psychotic ev-boy friend. large-scale destruction and \UClili c‘llil‘ttl’l‘nsslilctil. Scc lllls. \CL‘ Something lit/if arid vs eep at the difference and the sad continuingdecline of Blake fidvvards. \cugh. lidinburgh; ()deon
0 Blue Velvett 1st (David l,ynch.l'S. l‘lh‘b) Ky lc Macl .achlan. Isabella Rossellini. Dennis l lopper. llflmins. Lumberton. niiddlc—America. \Vould-be boy detective .letlrcy Beaumont lindsa scv cred car on some vv aste ground and
vv hen the police shoo him avv ay he decides
to do some inv estigating of hisovv n. A niust.
lidinburgh‘. ( hmco
o Bride of Frankenstein (PU ) (James Whale. CS. 1935) Boris Karloff. Colin Clive. Iirnest 'I‘hes‘iger. lilsa Lanchester. 75 mins. Cunning Dr Praetoriuspersuades the good Baron f“. to revive his creature
The Magic Toyshop (15) (David Wheatley. UK. 1986) Tom Bell. Caroline Milmoe. Killian McKenna. 187 mins. Atimeless adult fairytale about the disturbing aspects of growing up in an emotional environment of repression. fear. loathing and patriarchal dominance. Caroline Milmoe plays ayoung girl whose passage into adulthood comes underthe tyrannical auspices of herUncle Philip (Torn Bell). a toysh0p owner with an obsessive interest in marionettes and the manipulation of real lives. A stylish and ambitious exercise in the surreal and fantastical it has been faithfully crafted from the pen of writer Angela Carterwhose Company Of Wolves was one of the major successes of the 1984 Edinburgh Film FeshvaL
‘In spite of myself I seem to have become an expert in female pubescentsexuality.‘ she reflects. ‘There are times when I feel as if I‘m going to grow into Colette as lbecome older and I just have the same expert eyes as any otherwoman. The film is aboutgrowing up. not sexual awakening despite whatthey say on the poster. There is a certain British obsession with female adolescence and that seems to me why this novel and Companny Wolves were chosen to be filmed.‘
Carter was teaching creative writing in America when she was approached and asked to write a screenplay from hersecond novel which had won the John Llewellyn Rhys Prize in 1967. ‘Twenty years seemsa long time ago. I know it‘s a lot ofpeople‘s favourite novel of mine but I do associate it with being very young and lam embarrassed by the novel in many ways. l'm embarrassed bythe language; I was very young andjuicy and exuberant. This was an opportunityto rewrite it in some way. I re-read it and lwas
and provide him with a mate. Elegant black comedy-horror crammed with perfectly judged performances and memorable scenes. Highlight: Thesiger teaches Karloff the joys ofgin and ciggies. One ofthe all-time greats. Glasgovv; OFF 0 Simon Callow Lecture Actor. vvritcr. director Simon Callovv vvill be at the Gf’l' on 3 Sept to give art illustrated lecture on his latest book ('lutrlev Laughton: A Difficult Actor vv hich is published that day by Methuen. He will sign copiesot the book aftcrvv aids and the (if-'1‘ is shovvinga number of laughton films in Sept. including Rembrandt. l‘lic Hunchback of .Votrc Dame and ll'ttness fort/re Prosecution. The lecture begins at 3. 15pm and tickets are available novv.
0 Cat People t lsi ( Paul Schrader. l‘S‘. 1083) Nastassja Kittski. Malcolm
McDovv ell. .lohn Heard. llh‘niins. Visceral. obsessive. unsubtle remake of the famed I‘Hlls' horror classic. (ilasgovv; (if’f'
O The Chosen ( l’( i ) (.lcremy Paul Kagan. l'S. 1981)) Rod Steiger. Maximilian Schell. Robby Benson. lflh‘mms. Brooklyn in the W4le isthe setting forthis soberadaptation of the (’haini l’orok novel contrasting l lassidic and Zionist perspectiv es on the levy ish faith. lidinburgh: f’ilmhouse
o The Colorof Moneyt l5llMartin Scorsese. l'S. Wool Paul New manfl‘om Cruise. Mary l-.|i/,abeth .‘vlastrantonio. 11‘) mins. (icnerally satisfactory iftardy sequel to l'lic llust/ervvith\evvman's immaculately play cd l-ast Iiddie l’elson finding redemption through his cynical involvement vv ith young pool hotshot ('t'uisc. (ilasgovv '. ( il’l
THE MAGIC TDYSVHDP
suppose. I didn‘twantthe film to beheld together by this. I wanted it to cohere properly. So. I was able to tidy up one ortwo things.‘
Carter readily concedes that the influences on her novelist‘s imagination have been both literate and cinematic: she is a great movie buff. recently served on the jury ofthe
Taormina Film Festival and is currently
working on the script of a western forthe BBC. Despite her reservations aboutthe ‘enormous artistic crisis' in contemporary
film she is a fan of African cinema andfeels
herselfto have been particularly well-served by the celluloid adaptations of herwork. ‘When you‘re writing fiction. curiously enough. you have complete control because
0 Comrades ( l5) :2 (Bill Douglas. CK. 1986) Robin Soans. Michael 1 fordern. Robert Stephens. Vanessa Redgrave. 181) thins. See panel. Edinburgh; Filmhousc O The Cotton Club ( 15) (Francis Coppolla. CS. 1984) Richard (ierc. Gregoryllines. Boblloskins. llh‘mins. Movie stars.mol|s and murderers interact in this expensive and loving re-creation of the famous club of Prohibition. (iere contributesanother lifeless performance but. although confined to the sidelines. Hines shines. Edinburgh: l-‘ilmhouse o DeSperately Seeking Susan ( IS) (Stisan Seidelman. CS. 1985) Rosanna Arqtictte. Madonna. Aidan ()uinn. ill-1 mitts. Run and tiny. role-svv apping feminist comedy set in the Big Apple. (ilasgovv :(il-‘l‘ 0 Double Take Meet the Astra Zombies'l'ed V. Mikel's 10(17' mad doctor turkL‘} “ith indestructible ol‘ John (‘arradinc. getsa hilarious overhaul with an 'improved' script ov cr-dubbed by a cast ofderangcd Australians lurking at the back ofthe auditorium. It ran for YIiA RS in Sydney. so vve just dare you to miss it. lidinburgh; Cameo (late-night ). o 84 Charing Cross Road ( t ' l ( David Jones. l'S. 1986) Anne Bancroft. Anthony Hopkins. Judi Dcnch. W mins. Mild-mannered btit effective depiction of the tvventy-year affectionate correspondence bctyyccn garrulous American Anglophilc lfelene f lanff and the stiff-upper-lip linglish bookseller Frank Doell. A fragile. rarified creature btit quite a little charmer. Hopkins vvon the Best Actor l’ri/c at the recent Moscovv- f‘ilm l’estival. lidinburgh; Fifnthouse o The Europeans ( t ‘ ) (.lamcs Ivory . L'K. W79) lce Remick. Robin lillisfl'im \Voodvvard. 92 mins. f-‘astidious.
Both Neil Jordan and David Wheatley. the director of The Magic Toyshop. have remained faithful to the spiritand the letter of Carter‘s work and if there is any confusion over the subtle eroticism of her writingthen it stems from otherpeople‘s misinterpretations and not herdirector's insensitivity. ‘People watched Company Of Wolves and there was nothing in it they could put their finger on except they knew itwas filthy. There‘s a bit of marital humping. fully-dressed. and one naked lady with a lot of hair butthis doesn't alterthe factthat some people thought it was the most disgusting film they‘d ever seen intheir lives. And one is presented with something of the same problem in The Magic Toyshop where. in fact. the young lovers onlytouch
you're handing over the idea to the person who reads the book. When you're writing for the cinema you do a script and it‘sfiltered through somebody else's sensibility. I've been very lucky in the two films I've been involved with because I've not had any ofthe problems people write about and. besides. once you've written the script it's the director‘s anyway.‘
('annon Clarkston Road
0 Blind Date ( l5) (Blake lidvvards. l'S. IDS") Bruce \Villis. Kim Basinger. (iraham Stark. Dumb. excruciatingly contriv ed asininer archaic screvvball comedy (1’ ) vv ith \Villis as art angst-ridden junior executive vvho accepts the title blind date vvhcn he desperately needs a companion for an important business function. \Varned repeatedly not to let a
horrified to discover it didn't have a structure. One of the things about narrative in movies is that it really does have to havea very coherent logic even if it's nota conventional beginning. middle and end. So. I had to supply one and at this point lrealised the novel comes in on a wing and a prayer: it‘s held together by a kind of madness.l
once and I still think there are some people who are going to find it extremely disgusting. We do start off with a naked lady. Then there‘s the incest. But there is nothing in it you could putyourfinger on. it is very tasteful nudity. It's just like a dream but ldo still think some people will find itobscurely disturbing. I could be wrong.‘
54 The List 21 Aug— 3 Sept