FILM LIST
sentimentality to set in. Glasgow: GET. I Subway ( 15) (Luc Besson. France. 1985) Christophe Lambert. Isabelle Adjani. Richard Bohringer. Ill-1 mins. Would-be stylish thriller set in the Paris Metro with jewel thief Lambert courting the attractive Ms Adjani while trying to stay out ofthe way ofcop Bohringer. Far too pleased with itself. this is plain irritating. Edinburgh: Cameo.
IThe Tall Guy(15) (Mel Smith. UK. 1989) Jeff Goldblum. Emma Thompson. Rowan Atkinson. 9(1mins. Goldeum plays Dexter King. American actor in London. stuck as a straightman to Rowan Atkinson‘s obnoxious bastard comedian. but whose life and career are tochange forever when he becomes heavily smitten with nurse Thompson. Reasonably straight but slight love story needs a lot of comic business to keep it going. but amaiable performances all round makes this a likeable debut as director for Mel Smith. Edinburgh: Cameo.
I Taxi Driver( 18) (Martin Scorsese. US. 1976) Robert de Niro. Cybill Shepherd. Jodie Foster. 114 mins. An alienated taxi driver in New York is so repelled by the squalor and the moral decay around him that he is driven to terrible violence. ()ne ofthe key films ofthe ‘70s with the Scorsese-dc Niro partnership at its peak. Strathclyde: AMC Clydebank If).
I Tequila Sunrise ( 15) (Robert Towne. US. 1988) Mel Gibson. Kurt Russell. Michelle Pfeiffer. 100 mins. Would-be ex-dope dealer Gibson finds that he can‘t quite shift his dark past. and his childhood friend Russell. now a narcotics cop becomes involved in trying to track him down. Meanwhile. Pfeiffer isthe glamorous restaurant owner romantically caught between the two ofthem. Disappointing second effort as director from renowned screenwriter Towne (Chinatown). which fails to surmount well-used narrative ingredients and winds
HOME STREET TOLLCROSS -TEL.O31 228 4141
Must finish Thursday 3 August Charlotte Rampling in
PARIS BY NIGHT (15)
A film by David Hare
2(nof Sun), 4.30, 6.40, 8.50pm
Fri 4 - Mon 7 August:
Spike Lee double bill
DO THE RIGHT THING (18) 5, 9pm 8 SHE'S GOTTA HAVE IT (18) 3, 7.15pm
Tue 8: THE TALL GUY (15) 5, 9pm & WITHNAIL 8: I (15) 3, 7pm Wed 9 - Fri 11: DANGEROUS UAISONS (15) 2, 4.15, 6.30, 9pm
0 Late Nights
at 11.15pm
Fri 28: MIDNIGHT RUN (15) 8 48 HOURS (18)
Sat 29: SUBWAY (15) 8. REPO MAN (18)
Fri 4: DO THE RIGHT THING(18) 8. SHE'S GOTTA HAVE IT (18) SatS: BLOOD SIMPLE (18) 8 RIVERS EDGE
I Matinees
Sun 30 at 1.45pm WEST SIDE STORY (15)
Sun 6 at 2.30pm WINGS OF DESIRE (15)
1.-
I
Pelle, The Conqueror (15) (Bille August, Denmark/Sweden, 1988) Max Von Sydow. Pelle Hvenegaard, Erik Paaske.150 mins. Winner of the 1988 Paime d'Dr, recipient of the 1989 Oscar as Best Foreign Language Film and collator of sundry international soubriquets, Bille August’s marathon is the kind of consummater crafted quality production without which the arthouse circuit would wither and die. Adapted from one volume of Martin Anderson Nex’s classic novel, it is set at the turn oi the century when Swedish emigrants looked to Denmark as the promised land of prosperity and plenty. Two such starry-eyed voyagers are the young Pelle (Hvengaard) and his father Lasse (a magnificent Von Sydow) who inspired him with the advice ‘if you want, you can conquer the world'. Reality proves far less reassuring; either too old ortoo young to figure in the desirable section of the Danish labour force, they appear lucky to gain employment at the Stone Farm. Here, amidst the beautifully observed changing of the seasons, they endure a life of near servitude as the weak, blustering Lasse settles into a maudlln rut of obsequious stoicism whilst Pelle
down to a positively limp climax. Some good dialogue remains. but it‘s not enough. Edinburgh: Filmhouse. Central: MacRobert Arts Centre.
I Torch Song Trilogy ( 15) (Paul Bogart.
. US. 1988). Harvey Fierstein.Annc ' Bancroft. Matthew Bmderick. 119mins.
The story of Arnold a New York drag queen's search for acceptance of his sexual orientation from his mother (Anne Bancroft) and a steady relationship with his lover (Matthew Broderick). Adapted from the hit stage show with writer liierstein taking the lead role. it‘s theatrical roots lead to a succession of sharp one liners and knock ‘em dead musical numbers. The result is a heady mixture of laughter and tears. lidinburgh: Filmliouse. ITWinS(15)(lvan Reitman.US.1988) Danny De Vito. Arnold Schwarzenegger. Kelly Preston. Chloe Webb. 1117 mins. In an effort to create the perfect human (male. natcb) scientists impregnate a beautiful woman artist with the sperm of six diversely distinguished men. and the resulting offspring grows up in an isolated research station to be our man Arnie. However. an unexpected side-effect is runty brother De Vito. and when the two finally meet up many years later. their search to find their mother is the catalyst
— PELLE THE CONOUEBOR
survives the hunger, chill, and the taunts of his classmates to nurture fresh dreams of a new life and a new Eden called America.
Teeming with incident and vividly etched characters from both the working-class Iarmhands and the tyrannical farm-managing classes, Pelle has the sweep and density of a Dickens text.
It may amble along at a tortoise pace and lack a leavening of humourto lighten the unremitting gloom, but it absorbs throughout with the richness of its observation and the quality of its performances, particularly that of Von Sydow.
The actor has rarely received such a challening or substantial role in recent memory; weather-beaten and careworn by the passage of time, he presents a sympathetic account of a good father bowed by the cruel hand of fate and years of struggling to do better than his inadequate best. Frustrated, embittered, shouting against the wind but forever loving, his towering performance is the icing on the cake of an always impressive exercise in grand scale storytelling. (Allan Hunter)
From Thurs 27. Edinburgh: Filmhouse.
for an unlikely family relationship. Even if the plot does bear a strong resemblance to Rain Man. this is an amiably silly farce with Schwarzenegger proving quite adept at handling the comedy material. Central: MacRobert Arts Centre.
I The Unfaithful (PG) (Vincent Sherman. US. 1948) Ann Sheridan. Zachary Scott. Lew Ayres. 109 mins. Unacknowledged version of Somerset Maugham‘s The Letter has Sheridan as a housewife determined to hide a guilty secret from her new hubby Scott. Acidic dialogue in what is novelist David (ioodis's only fully realised Hollywood screenplay. Glasgow: Gl’l‘.
I The Untouchables (PG) (Brian DePalma. L'S. 1987) Kevin Costner. Sean Connery. Robert de Niro. Charles Martin Smith. Patricia Clarkson. 119 mins. David Mamet‘s highly entertaining update ofthe old TV series. Eliot Ness learns the hard way how to deal with underworld crime and police corruption in Chicago during the Prohibition years. An ()scar winning performance from Connery as a seasoned lrish Cop with a Scots accent. de Niro also turns in a grandiose Capone. Strathclyde: Paisley Arts Centre.
I La Vie Est Belle ( PG) (Ngangura Mweze 8; Benoit Lamy. Zaire/Belgium/France. 1987) Papa Wemba. Bibi Krubwa. 83
mins. Zairean star Wemba more or less plays himself in this high-spirited comedy that looks at an ambitious artist‘s game attempts to break into Kinshasa's music biz. Engaging frolics with a winning soundtrack: rather different in tone tothe serious artistry of African film-makers like Oussama Sembene or Med Hondo. but the naivety and genuine charm are welcome all the same. Edinburgh: Filmhouse. I West Side Story (PG) (Robert Wise & Jerome Robbins. US. 1961 ) Nathalie Wood. Richard Beymer. Russ Tamblyn. Rita Moreno. 155 mins. Romeo andJuliet revisited. against a background ofNew York gangs. Great songs of course. but the playing of the stylised dancing against a realistic background contrives to make it all look rather camp these days. Edinburgh: Cameo. I Who Framed Roger Rabbit? (PG) (Robert Zemeckis. US. 1988) Bob Hoskins. Joanna Cassidy. Christopher Lloyd. 92 mins. Los Angeles. 1949. and side by side with the human population live the Toons. the cartoon characters working in the movie business. Animated star Roger Rabbit is worried about his wife Jessica‘s faithfulness and hires private dick Eddie Valiant (Bob Hoskins) to keep tabs on her. but he uncovers a conspiracy that threatens the very future ofToontown itself. An amazingtechnical achievement for the credibility with which the cartoons interact with the human cast. this surefire box office winner efficiently spoofs the film noir genre while milkingits Tex Avery-styled highly physical sense of black comedy for all it's worth. Strathclyde: Odeon Ayr. I Willow (PG) (Ron Howard. US. 1988) Warwick Davis. Val Kilmer. Joanne Whalley. Jean Marsh. 126 mins. A mystery baby turns up in the land ofthe little Nelwyn people. and one oftheir number has to return it to the adult-sized land ofthe Daikini. However. the kid turns out to be the little princess. who will save the country from the clutches ofthe wicked Queen. Would-be blockbusting fairtytale epic offers producer George Lucas another opportunity to refashion the Star Wars narrative in a setting straight out ofTolkien. The result is not unentertaining. but we‘ve all been here too many times before. Central: MacRobert Arts Centre. I Wings Of Desire ( 15) (Wim Wenders. W. Germany .1987) Bruno Ganz. Otto Sander. Solveig Dommartin. Peter Falk. 127 mins. Restless angel Ganz on duty over Berlin takes a tip from American movie star and former angel Peter Falk on the possibilities of crossing over. and follows his mentor‘s path to consumate his relationship with beautiful circus acrobat Dommartin. Gorgeous black-and-white. and an attractively sensitive feel forthe people and places of Berlin grace this thematically rich and uncharacteristically optimistic slice of Wende rs movie enchantment. Highly recommended. Edinburgh: Cameo. I Withnail And I ( 15) (Bruce Robinson. UK. 1987) Paul McGann. Richard E. Grant. Richard Griffiths. 107 mins. 1969. Two out of work actors surviving through London giro squalor take a break in a picturesque Lake District cottage. where one of them suffers the attentions ofthe ageing homosexual owner. Reasonably entertaining British comedy with a tendency to rely on the all-too-easy targets of drug-taking and gay stereotyping for much of its humour. Edinburgh: Cameo. I Year Of The Dragon ( 18) (Michael Cimino. US. 1985) Mickey Rourke.John Lone. Ariane. 136 mins. Cimino‘s brutally violent thriller casts Rourke as Polish New York cop Stanley White. a man who extends the conflict in Vietnam ontothe city streets. An interesting ifgratuitously vicious examination of racism, which is too convoluted to generate suspense. Glasgow: OFT.
18 The List 28 July — 11) August 1989