FILM

dialogue in favour ofa cartoonish visual style that takes advantage of convincing production design. and some quirky humour. Edinburgh: Cameo.

I Life and Nothing But (PG) ( Bertrand Tavernier. France. 1988) Philippe Noiret. Sabine Azema. Pascale Vignal. 134 mins. France 1918. and Major Dellaplanc (Noirct) has the grisly task ofidentifying unknown soldiers‘ corpses. Among the relatives who come to seek their loved ones are lrene (Azema) and Alice (Vignal). The sense of a bruised and battered people quietly coming to terms with life‘s continuity despite their grief is splendidly evoked. though the central romance. all suppressed passion and meaningful glances. is mini-series stuff and the humour may have lost something in translation. Glasgow: GFT.

I The Little Mermaid (U) (John Musker and Ron Clements. US. 1990) With the voices of Rene Aubcrjonois. Buddy llackett. Kenneth Mars. 83 mins. Based on a Hans Christian Andersen fairytale. the latest Disney animated feature may not quite rank with the glories ofWalt‘s distant past but displays an impressive attention to detail. bags of humour anda set of truly tacky songs. Our bikini-clad heroine might be a little too eager to fulfil her Barbie-doll destiny. but by and large it‘s embarrassingly enjoyable stuff. Glasgow: Cannon The Forge. Odeon. Grosvenor. Edinburgh: Dominion. UCl. Central: Allanpark. Calcdonian. Cannon. Strathclyde: Cannon. Kelburne. Odeon Ayr. Odeon Hamilton. UCl Clydebank. UCI East Kilbride.

I Love At Large ( 15) (Alan Rudolph. US. 1990) Tom Berenger. Elizabeth Perkins. Kate Capshaw. Anne Archer. Neil Young. 97 mins. Rudolph‘s latest isa bizarre kind of noir pastiche. in which private dick Berenger is hired to keep tabs on Archer's errant husband. and is in turn tailed by a female dick (Perkins) hired by his jealous girlfriend (Capshaw). Eccentrically humourous and sumptuously filmed. it fails to gel intoa satisfying whole. but should not disappoint Rudolph‘s followers. Edinburgh: Filmhouse.

I Madhouse (15) (Tom Ropelewski. US. 1990) Kirstie Alley. John Laroquettc. John Deihl. Jessica Lundy. Robert Ginty. 90mins. See review. Glasgow: Cannon The Forge.

I Manhunter(18) (Michael Mann. US. 1987) William L. Petersen. Tom Noonan. Brian Cox. Kim Griest. 119 mins. FBI agent Petersen returns from psychiatric treatment to face another case. using his customary technique for tracking down serial killers by recreating their train of thought. In the past this has proved all too wearing on his own mental state.and when faced with evidence of a killer who slays whole families every lunar cycle. he finds himself back on the brink. Convincing and disturbing adult thriller with effortlessly stylish use of the wide screen. Edinburgh: Cameo.

I Manon Des Sources (PG) (Claude Berri. France/italy. 1986) Yves Montand. Daniel Auteuil. Emmanuelle Beart. 114 mins. Ten years after the demise ofJean de Florettc. the Soubeyrans run a prosperous carnation farm. Jean's daughter has grown into an alluring young woman and sets out to wreak her revenge. Steering this epic rural saga towards the realms of Greek tragedy. this is a full and satisfying second half that explores the suffering of the guilty as they pay a crippling penance for man's greed and envy. The production values are as high as ever and Auteuil assumes Depardieu‘s mantle in his development from glaikit idiot to broken-hearted suitor. Glasgow: GFT.

I The Modems ( 15) (Alan Rudolph. US. 1988) Keith Carradine. Linda Firoentino. John Lone. Genevieve Bujold. 126 mins. 1926 Paris is the setting for Rudolph's latest triumph. a playful exploration ofthe

" NY ‘5‘

Madhouse (15) (Tom Hopelewskl, US, 1990) Kirstie Alley, John Larroquette, John Deihl. Jessica Lundy, Robert Glnty. 90 mins. A younglsh couple, a new house and an endless supply of long-staying guests to make their life a misery: Madhouse takes this simple situation and plays it for all it’s worth. Alley and Larroquette are the victims in question who think they’ve put a strong claim on their share of domestic bliss only to find that his cousin, her sister, the guy next door, assorted obnoxious kids and a cat with literally nine lives simply won't go away.

Movie comedies that begin with jokey cartoon credits are notoriously uniunny, but this confounds video fodder expectations with a tightly written screenplay which makes sure that there’s at least the semblance of a good laugh in every one of its 90 minutes. A moggy that manages to poke up in the car, hyperactiver expires alter snorting cocaine and then keeps coming back for yet more punishment is one effective running gag which binds the story together;

MADHOUSE

another is Alley’s day job as the

‘Duestion Girl‘ for a local TV station; her bland vox pop interviews (“What's your secret summer fantasy?) gradually giving way to an on-alr breakdown and a desperate plea for help against her ‘house guests from hell’.

Alley and Larroquette are more than line as the exasperated hosts; their various near-permanent human problems, despite the extreme situations, never lose a resemblance to folks we can all recognise and the film has a gleeful soumess when it comes to dealing with children and animals that most other American comedies sadly lack. Above all though, Madhouse is a great advert for strong scripting. It works mainly because it was written well enough to work. Structurally sound and consistently funny, it's a blueprint which puts most bigger projects to shame. (Tom Tunney)

From Fri 16 Nov. Glasgow: Cannon, The Forge.

fake and the genuine in art and love. Against the background of the expatriate American artistic circle of Hemingway and Stein. it examines a series oftangled relationships whose effects reverberate around the boho art world. Excellent Altman/Rudolph rep company performances. an unpredictable directorial flair. and the dramatic shaping of complex themes into a delirious drama. Edinburgh University Film Society.

I Monsieur Hire ( 15) (Patrice Leconte. France. 1989) Michel Blane. Sandrine Bonnaire. 82 mins. An elusive neighbourhood recluse (Blane), whiles away his evenings spying on his alluring neighbour Alice (Bonnaire). Gradually. he becomes entangled in an unsolved murder and a passionate romance. Based on a Simenon novel this sensitive and enthralling film. which was almost overlooked in Britain. Glasgow: Grosvenor.

I Music Box ( 15) (Costa-Gavras. US. 1990) Jessica Lange. Armin Mueller Stahl. Frederic Forrest. 126 mins. Lange plays a successful Chicago lawyer whose Hungarian immigrant father (Armin Mueller Stahl) is threatened with the loss of his American citizenship when he is suspected of collaborating in wartime atrocities against Budapest Jews.

Believing unswervingly in her dad‘s innocence she takes on the task of defending him herself. yet as the courtroom testimonies pile up heinous accusations, the jury's growing doubts are matched only by her own fears. Stimulating and finally moving combination of Hollywood family drama and the director‘s customary politicised grit. Strathclyde: Odeon Ayr.

I My Blue Heaven (PG) (Herbert Ross. UK, 1990) Steve Martin, Rick Moranis, Joan Cusack. 96 mins. See review. Glasgow: Cannon Clarkston Road, Cannon The Forge. Cannon Sauchiehall Street. Edinburgh: Cannon, UCl. Central: Cannon, Regal. Strathclyde: Cannon. Odeon Ayr,UC1Clydebank. UCl East Kilbride. WMR Film Centre. I My Left Foot (15) (Jim Sheridan, Eire/UK, 1989) Daniel Day Lewis. Ray McAnally. Brenda Fricker. 90 mins. The life story of paralysed painter and writer Christy Brown, lovingly adapted from his autobiography of the same name. Sheridan and screenplay writer Shane Connaughton have portrayed Brown warts and all to create a funny. touching and thoroughly absorbing movie with four quite excellent central performances. and a celebration of a remarkable person. Edinburgh: Broughton Film Society.

I The New Morning 01 Billy The Kid ( 18) (Naota Yamakawa. Japan. 1986) 109 mins. Satire on several levels. asthe heroes of numerous cultures come together in a beseiged saloon bar. where anything can happen. and rock ‘n‘ roll is the governing influence. Glasgow: OFT. I Night 01 The Living Dead (18) (George A. Romero. US. 1968) Duane Jones.Judith O‘Dea. Russell Streiner. 96 mins. Seminal black comedy shocker which spawned two increasingly nasty sequels and countless unauthorised imitations. A group of people barricade themselves into a farmhouse to seek refuge from the hordes of flesh-crazy undead. created by misfiring military experiments. Filmed on a shoestring in Pittsburgh. with real gore supplied by a local butcher. Though it now seems dated. the rough and grainy qualities of the film only serve to make it more horribly convincing. Edinburgh University Film Society.

I Nikita (18) (Luc Besson. France. 1990) Anne Parillaud. Tcheky Karyo. Jean-Hughes Anglade. Jeanne Moreau.

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The List 9 - 22 November 199021