FILM
he's suddenly possessed of the devil's luck. Eventually he discovers he‘s not dying after all. but not before he’s taken the chance to tell his wife and son how much he Iovesthem. . .aaah. Edinburgh; UCI. Strathclyde: UCI East Kilbride.
I Silent Scream (18) (David Hayman. UK. 1990) Iain Glen. Anne Kirsten.Tom Watson. John Murtagh. 86 mins. Based on the writings of Barlinnie Special Unit inmate and convicted murderer. Larry Winters. David Hayman's impressive feature debut as director is an audacious and passionate attempt to get inside the head ofa very complex individual. With an electric. award-winning performance by Iain Glen at its core. the film‘sformal clan and unfussy emotional poignancy demonstrate that huge financial resources are no substitute for a clear conception of the material at hand and the artistry to know how to best present it. A massive boost for film production in Scotland. Glasgow: GFT.
I The Singing Ringing Tree (U) (Francesco Stefani. East Germany. 1973) 73 mins. Imaginative adaptation of the Grimm Brothers‘ tale. in which Princess Thousandbeauty's suitor prince has the unenviable task of supplying her with said vegetation in order to win her hand. Central: MacRobert Arts Centre.
I Society ( 18) (Brian Yuzna. US. 1989) Billy Warlock. Devin Devasquez. Evan Richards. 90 mins. Extraordinary and shocking fantasy as high school kid Warlock develops suspicions about his friends, family and shrink. all ofwhom exhibit anatomical and behavioural peculiarities. But could it all be adolescent paranoia? Special effects - strictly for enthusiasts of human mozarella — come courtesy ofa gentleman named Screaming Mad George. Glasgow: GFT.
I Teenage Mutant Ninla Turtles (PG) (Steve Barron. US. 1990) Judith Hoag. Elias Koteas. Josh Pais. Michelan Sisti. LeifTilden. David Forman. 93 mins. You‘ve read the hype. played the video game. seen the trailers. used the toothpaste. played with the toys. eaten the pizza. What the hell — go treat yourselfto the real garbage. Made cheaply. made millions. Glasgow: Cannon The Forge. Edinburgh: UCI. Strathclyde: Odeon Ayr. UCI Clydebank.
I The Terminator ( 18) (James Cameron. US. 1984) Arnold Schwarzenegger. Michael Biehn. Linda Hamilton. 107 mins. In 2029 machines have all but conquered the planet but a saviour is at hand in the form ofa new human leader. The machines respond by sending Schwarzenegger‘s cyborg back in time to 1984 on a mission to kill the future leader‘s mother. Inventive. excitingly-paced science-fiction adventure with a notable performance from Arnie in his first villainous role. Edinburgh: Cameo.
I Theme (PG) (Gleb Panfilov. USSR. 1979) Inna Kurikova. Mikhail Uljanov. 98 mins. Penetrating analysis ofstagnation in Soviet cultural life. A famous writer dramatising a traditional epic begins to realise that he and others have sacrificed their creativity to the fame and privilege ensured by toeing the Party line. TaIky but absorbing stuff. with a long and particularly well handled sequence of denunciation over the dinner table. Glasgow: GET.
I Three Men and a Little Lady (PG) (Emile Ardolino. US. 1990) Tom Selleck. Steve Guttenberg. Ted Danson. Nancy Travis. Robin Weisman. 104 mins. Sequel to the dispensable but hugely popular Three Men and a Baby brings back our hunky trio and the child's mother Travis. together with Weisman as the horrid child. now five years of age. Family crises like which trendy primary school to attend and whether Selleck should marry Travis keep the action ticking along at a reasonable rate. and it‘s actually a lot of fun. Ifyou like that sort of thing. Glasgow: Cannon Clarkston Road. Cannon The Forge.
22 The List 22 February— 7 March 1991
.8. !
The Unbelievable Truth (15) (Hal Hartley, US, 1989) Adrienne Shelly, Robert Burke, Christopher Cooke, Julia McNeal. 89 mins. Hal Hartley’s no-budget epistemological romance plays like a cross between prime time Jim Jarmusch and 603 Jean-Luc Godard. Everyone tells tall, dark and handsome Josh (Robert Burke) that he looks like a priest, but, whaddaya know, he’s just out of prison. They say he killed a man. And the man’s daughter. And there are rumours too that he shot his own iather for good measure. Anyway, his arrival back home in Lindenhurst, Long Island, sure shakes up troubled teen Audry (Adrienne Shellevl, whose mind soon turns away irom the overwhelming notion oi nuclear apocalypse to thoughts of lurve instead.
Not that the path of true passion is to run smoothly, however, for as well as grasping dad Vic (Christopher Cooke) and boorish nominal ‘boyiriend’ Emmett (Gary Sauer) to contend with, there's also the hovering presence of unfortunate friend Pearl (Julia McNeal), whose family has apparently been decimated by the seemingly gentle Josh, acting as a continual reminder of a mysterious, tragedy-strewn past.
It’s the gradual revelation of what really happened to put Josh behind bars and the unlikely course of Audry’s lucrative career as a iashion model that
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THE UNBELIEVABLE TRUTH
marks out the action. The terrain is the slow-burning small town quirkiness oi Mystery Train or (the inevitable comparison) David Lynch, but Hartley's concerns appear more broadly enmeshed in a working out of dare one say ‘philosophical' issues. While the deliberate camerawork, dashing use of colour and delirously studied on-screen grouping of actors recalls Jean-Luc’s heyday, there's something distinctly European about the comedy-meets-art texture of the thing.
Amidst a web of small-talk, gossip, attitudes and platitudes, Hartley’s about exploring the ambiguity oi his lllm's title. The truth here is, in one sense, merely absurd (yes, Audry does get paid a vast amount to have her loot photographed), but, on a deeper level, so surrounded by the many perspectives of modern social experience that it becomes untrustworthy— in the case of the enigmatic Josh (priest? killer? mechanic7), literally unbelievable.
Smart, engagingly expressed and charismatically performed by a minor-league cast, Hartley’s film is yet another modest gem irom the
American independent sector and notice of a iurther talent to look out ior. (TrevorJohnston)
Glasgow Film Theatre Mon 4-Wed 6 Mar.
Odeon. Salon. Edinburgh: Dominion. Odeon. UCI. Central: Allanpark. Caledonian. Cannon. Regal. Strathclyde: Cannon. Kelburne. Odeon Ayr. Odeon Hamilton. La Scala. L'CI (‘lydebank. UCI East Kilbride. WMR Film Centre.
I Three Sisters ( 12) (Margarethc Von Trotta. Italy/France/West Germany. 1988) Greta Scacchi. Fanny Ardant. Valeria Golino. 112 mins. In the north Italian town of Pavia in the late 1970s. three sisters seek emotional and professional fulfilment. in a starry soap opera with (‘hckhovian overtones. Glasgow: (il’l’.
I Tie Me Up! Tie Me Downl(18)(l’edro Almodovar. Spain. 1990) Antonio Banderas. Victoria Abril. Francisco Rabal. 101 mins. It‘s women on the verge ofcxploitation time as Almodovar reveals
his most provocative confection to date with a bare outline that reads like sexist trash: male loony Banderas kidnaps porno queen Abril. ties her to the bed. pumps her full ofdrugs and. lo. they fall in love. Look beyond the sordid details. however. and the film creates its own moral logic based on mutual need between two very damaged characters. In the end. Almodovar manages creditably to wring moments ofemotional resonance out of the most unpromising material. Central: MacRobert Arts Centre.
I Tilai(PG) (ldrissa ()uedraogo. Burkina Faso/Switzerland’Francc. I990) Rasmane ()uedraogo. Ina Cisse. Roukictou Barry. 81 mins. See review. Edinburgh: Filmhouse.
I To Sleep With Anger( 12) (Charles Burnett. LS. 1990) Danny Glover. Paul
Butler; Mary Alice. Carl Lumbly. Richard ‘ Brooks. 101 mins. An ambitiousand charming attempt by black director Burnett to confront racial tensions in the US. Based on an old Georgian legend. it tells the story of traditionalistshit-stirrer Trickster. who visits friends in LA and causes everyone a lot of bother. Keenly political yet warm-hearted. this is a kind of Southern West Coast response to Spike Lee's [)0 the Right Thing. Edinburgh: Filmhouse. I Top Secret! ( 15) (Jim Abrahams. David Zucher & Jerry Zuckcr. I'S. 198-1) \'a| Kilmcr. Lucy Gutteridge. Peter Cushing. Michael Gough. ()mar Sharif. 90mins. This high-spirited follow-up to the tnorc successful Airplane! has the usual clothesline plot. with gags pegged on wherever imagination will allow. but suffers somewhat from being parodic without any particular genre to parody. As Kilmer's Western rock star roams repressed East Germany. however. there is no shortage ofbelly laughs. Good fun. It it's your kind of thing. Edinburgh University Film Society. I Total Recall ( l8) ( l’aul Verhoeycn. ['S. 1990) Arnold Schwarzenegger. Sharon Stone. Michael Ironside. 109 mins. In Vcrhoevcn's hugely expensive rollercoaster ofviolence Arnie plays an ordinary construction worker whose trip to vacational fantasy implant service Rekall Incorporated is to pitch him intoan unpredictable netherworld of ITlUI'dL‘rOUs assassins and femtncs fatalcs before unleashing the full truth about his nightmarcsof life on Mars. The crazy Dutchman's Martian chronicle. teeming with sicko incident. is powered along by burstsofgee-am't-this-fun-brutality but scores points for the playful ingenuity of the plotting. and Arnie looks like he's enjoying himself. Edinburgh: Cameo. I Tremors ( 18) ( Ron Underwood. cs. 1990) Kevin Bacon. Fred Ward. Finn Carter. 96 mins. In this spirited homage to Fifties monster movies. the remote Nevada town of Perfection is menaced by huge burrowing worms that gobble up anyone unfortunate to cross their path. It's left to handyan Bacon and Ward plus assorted townsfolk to save the day and get through the plot exposition without cracking up at the agreeably knowing dialogue in this splendid blend ofstraight faces and off-the Richter-scale daftness. Edinburgh: Cameo. I Trouble in Mind ( 15) (Alan Rudolph. US. 1985) Kris Kristoffcrson. Keith Carradine. Genevieve Bujold. 112 mins. Rudolph's phantasmagorical blend of gangster movie. fantasy melodrama and modern day western with desperate characters trying to go straight in the moral playground of Rain ("ity. Edinburgh L'niversity Film Society. I The Unbelievable Truth( 15) (Hal Hartley. CS. 1989) Adrienne Shelly. Robert Burke. 98 mins. See review. Glasgow: (317T. I Under Satan's Sun ( 15) (Maurice I’ialat. France. 1987) Gerard Depardieu. Sandrine Bonnairc. Maurice Pialat. 98 mins. Adaptation from French novelist George Bernanos has Depardieu as Father Donissan. testing his faith against teenage murderess Bonnairc after a chance meeting with a horse dealer who may be the Devil. Donissan's superior (I’ialat) cannot decide whether the troubled priest is spurred on by mortal pride or divine inspiration. Atheist I’ialat's intrigued and convincingly performed work contrasts interestingly with the spiritually committed Brcsson's Bernanos adaptations (.WUUC/lt’llt’. Diary ()fxl ('mmlry Priest). but the result isa convincingly performed work. Glasgow: GET. ; I Violent Streets ( lb’) (Michael Mann. l'S. 1981 ) James Carin. Tuesday Weld. 122 mins. Morosc safecracker ('aan secksto better his life by starting a family. and takingon one last lucrative job. but the
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