FILM LIST
INDEX
I 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 for all ages.
(PG) - Parental Guidance suggested as some scenes may be unsuitable for younger children.
(15)— No one underthe age of 15admitted. (18)- No one underthe age of toadmitted.
a — New Release.
I Alexander Nevsky (PG) (Sergei Eistenstein. USSR. I938) Nikolai (‘herkassow Nikolai Okhlopov. 112 mins. In 1242 Prince Alexander Nevsky meets the invading Knights of the'l‘eutonic
Barfly(18)(Barbet Schroeder, US, l987) Mickey Rourke, Faye Dunaway, Alice Krige. 99 mins. Mickey Rourke, the De Niro of the designer stubble era, has never been the type to protect his star status by playing safe. In Barfly he once again cavalierly disregards any image he may have to fully immerse himself in the tiniest detail of his initially unsavoury character.
Henry Chinaski is a gruff, brawling bar-room bum who has an equally large capacity for alcohol and the physical punishment wrought by his inveterate desire to better muscular bartender Eddie (Frank Stallone). A lonely, unkempt figure he appears to be no more than a shambling wretch; unloved and unloving, staggering around in the lower depths. However, there is more to him than meets the eye; Henry has a sensitive soul, a perceptive eye and an integrity of his own that are visible in the wondrous insights he describes when the booze inspires him to put pen to paper. Then, he writes from the heart pouring out a
Order in battle on the frozen Lake Pepius. Spectaular. patriotic historical epic in the director's later manner. notable for the remarkable combat scenes and the stirring Prokofiev score (recently recorded by the SNO in digital stereo). Glasgow; GFT. Edinburgh; Filmhouse
IAlien(18) (Ridley Scott. US. 1979) Sigourney Weaver. lan Holm. John Hurt. 116 mins. Agatha Christie in outer space as a freighter lands on a mysterious planet and is ingeniously invaded by a ravenous intruder which proceeds to chomp its way through the cast list. Edinburgh; Cameo I Aliens (18) (James Cameron. US. 1986) Sigourney Weaver. Michael Biehn. 137 mins. Revived from a 57-year snooze in deep space. Warrant Officer Weaver is cajoled into joining a marine rescue mission to the planet that is home forthe original alien. Unrelentingly paced with a
terrific performance from Weaver. this nerve-shredding sequel not only matches its predecessor but cannily surpasses it. An Oscar winner for special effects. Edinburgh; Cameo I Angel Dust ( 15) (Edouard Niermans. France. 1987) Bernard Giraudeau. Fanny Bastien. Fanny (‘ottencon 94 mins. Distinctive Gallic thriller in which the unkempt Inspector Blount. desolated by his wife‘s departure. becomes involved with a mysterious and alluring girl wreaking havoc on those responsible for the long-ago death of her prostitute mother. Eschewing the flashierstylistics of recent French policiers. Niermans creates his own claustrophobic sense of repressed violence and all-pervading corruption whilst retaining a certain wry humour and is admirably assisted by the convincing red-rimmed peepers and shamble of M. Giraudeau. Glasgow: GFT. Edinburgh; Filmhouse I Bambi (U) (David Hand. US. 1942) 72 mins. A simple story of a young forest deer and his growth through the changing seasons. An evergreen charmer complete with memorable songs and Thumper. Glasgow; ()deon. Strathclyde; ()deon Ayr I Barfly ( 18) fi (Barbet Schroeder. US. 1987) Mickey Rourke. Faye Dunaway. Alice Krige. 90 mins. See panel. Glasgow; Cannon Sauchiehall Street I The Beekeeper(18) a (Theo Angeloupoulos. Greece» France. 1986) Marcello Mastroianni. Nadia Mourouzi. 122 mins. A retired schoolteacher takes leave of his family to make hisannual excursion around the various sites ofthe
beehives he owns. On the road he becomes infatuated with a young girl who hitches a lift with him. and pays a visit to a terminally ill friend.
Measured. elegaic European road movie which makes haunting use ofGreek locations and features another excellent performance from Mastroianni in the title role. as a man attempting to vainly re-create the energies of his youth while bearing up to the possibility that death is near. Iidinburgh; Filmhouse I Bigfoot and the Hendersons ( PG) (William Dear. US. 1987) John Lithgow. Melinda Dillon. Don Ameche. 11 1 mins. Disneyesque family adventure in which the all-American Henderson family crash into the legendary Bigfoot and adopt the surprisingly genial beastie as a domestic pet with predictable complications from the neighbours and blood-hungry hunters. Strathclyde; ()deon Ayr. Odeon Hamilton I Blade Bunner( 15) (Ridley Scott. [18. 1982) Harrison Ford. Sean Young. Rutger llauer. 117 mins. A tough cop tracksdown a group of malfunctioning androids in this imaginatively gritty, futuristic hi-tech retread of Raymond (.‘handler. Edinburgh; Filmhouse
I Blood Red Hoses ( 15) (John McGrath. UK. 1986) Elizabeth Macl.ennan. James Grant. Gregor Fisher. 140 mins. Rousing celluloid version of the 7:84 success charting the vicissitudes in the life ofan industrial militant. Edinburgh; Filmhouse I Blood Simple ( 18) (Joel Coen. US. 1984) Dan Hedeya. M. Emmet Walsh. 98mins. A Texan bar-owner hires a private eye to
BARFLY
brutal feeling with the poetry of the streets coursing through his veins.
Then, Henry meets Wanda Wilcox (Dunaway), another bruised but durable soul, who survives through the comforts of the bottle. Although they fear commitment and hurt, a relationship develops that is threatened when Henry’s writing is discovered by a prestigious literary magazine and he laces the many temptations of wealth, conventionality and the very available charms of the editor Tully (Krige).
Barfly is a seedy romantic fairytale that juxtaposes the grimness oi the setting with the spirit of the participants. Dunaway has her most human role in some years and consequently brings forth her best performance in ages; deglamourised, looking her age, vulnerable, insecure, tough but in need oi tenderness. Bourke plays Henry without any perceptible compromise. This is a performance of mammoth proportions that calls to mind the work of Michel
Simon and Emil Jannings. A broken—backed lowliler, with a Neanderthal appearance and the intonation of we Fields-character acting with a vengeance.
Described as a ‘contemporary noiresque comedy with a gritty edge', Barfly is based on several nights in the life of writer Charles Bukoski as a young man. A literary reinvention of
some form of reality, there seems an essential phoniness and calculation that cannot be overcome despite a concerted attempt to place the story in a specially created world of its own. However, as an exercise in existentialist style and choice acting it has its memorable moments.
(Allan Hunter)
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The List 4— 17 March 198811