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iconoclastic humour of Picazo's countryman Pedro Almodovar. Glasgow: GFT.
I Faniaaia (U) (Ben Sharpsteen, US, 1940) The voice of Deems Taylor; music played by the Philadelphia Orchestra, conducted by Leopold Stokowski. 135 mins. Fully restored to mark its 50th anniversary, Walt Disney’s semi-abstract feature remains a unique and astonishing achievement. Almost equally lauded and
material as well as some rather embarrassing kitsch, but surely the most memorable sequence is The Sorcerer’s Apprentice starring Mickey Mouse (endowed for the first time with pupils instead of button eyes). Glasgow: Grosvenor.
I Fire Festival Himatsuri (18) (Mitsuo Yanagimachi, Japan, 1984) Kinya Kitaoji, Kiwako Taichi, Ryota Nakamoto. 120 mins. Centring on a burly, pantheist lumberjack at union with nature, this portentous film explores the relationship between humanity and the environment, without bowdlerising the sex and violence of the natural world, and culminating in an extraordinary climax. Stunningly filmed among coastal mountains in an idyllic location, it is an eloquent expression of social, environmental and personal aspects of Shintoism. Edinburgh: Filmhouse.
I The Freshman (PG) (Andrew Bergman, US, 1990) Matthew Broderick, Bruno Kirby, Marlon Brando, Maximilian Schell. 102 mins. The youthful-looking Broderick arrives in New York to begin a course in film studies, and immediately falls prey to Kirby's hustler. Worse is to come, though, when Kirby makes amends by introducing him to Uncle Brando, a wealthy but shady figure, who makes him an offer he can’t readily refuse. The Godfather parodies are of course deliberate (Broderick‘s course even includes a seminar on the film) and the movie’s knowing humour, spot-on casting and escalating suspense give it an irresistible charm. Glasgow: GFT.
I Ghost(12) (Gerry Zucker, US, 1990) Patrick Swayze, Demi Moore, Whoopi Goldberg, Tony Goldwyn. 126 mins. Death doth part happy couple Swayze and Moore when the former falls victim to a late-night mugging. Not content merely to pass on, however, he returns to try and get back in touch with his wife via medium Goldberg (who won an Oscar for her
about financial and other dangers. Amiable supernatural comedy-drama , which spawned a few inferior imitations. Strathclyde: WMR Film Centre. I Gigi (PG) (Vincente Minnelli, US, 1958) Leslie Caron, Louis Jourdan, Maurice Chevalier. 119 mins. Caron is the cocotte allied to J ourdan’s rake; they are watched over by an extravagantly French Chevalier and the rest of tum~of~the-eentury Paris. This is a lavish musical from the golden days of MGM , adapted from the late Colette‘s novel by Lerner and Loewe. An Oscar winner in its day, now best remembered for songs like Thank Heavens For Little Girls. Glasgow: Grosvenor. I The Glenn Miller Story (U) (Anthony Mann, US, 1954) James Stewart, June Allyson, Harry Morgan, George Tobias. 116 mins. Stewart is the unfailingly chummy band leader with the relentlessly practical wife, who makes it to the top and then takes one plane ride too many. A must-see for fans of the big band sound of the late Mr Miller. Glasgow: Grosvenor. I Golden Braid (15) (Paul Cox, Australia. 1990) Chris Haywood, Gosia Dobrowolska, Paul Chubb. 91 mins. Romantic tragi-comedy, in which Haywood’s antique-collector discovers a braid of golden hair in an 18th-century cabinet. His developing obession with it leads to alienation and worse, but luckily his lover (Dobrowolska) is on hand to
loathed, it contains some visually stunning ;
supporting role), in an attempt to warn her
In The Realm OlThe Senses (18) (Nagisa Oshima, France/Japan, 1976) Tatsuya Fuji, Eiko Matsuda, Aoi Nakajima. 108 mins. It’s appropriate that in the wake ol the Channel 4
Banned season which aimed to refocus é
attention on censorship issues, the certilicated British release at Nagisa Oshima's long-suppressed study at erotic obsession shoud prove the lirst major censorship milestone ol the decade, challenging our perception at what is and is not permissible on UK cinema screens. Available lor some years on the lilm society circuit under its Japanese title, Ai No Corrida, this uncut reissue is a welcome indication lrom the British Board ol Film Classilicatlon that they are prepared to extend the parameters at visual acceptability provided that the context ol the material otters iustilication lor such treatment.
Certainly the depiction ol unsimulated intercourse between the two protagonists in the kind ol detail normally the province ol hardcore pornography makes the film an instant
watershed, but despite the explicitness
on view (which may shock or attend less open-minded patrons) the lilm’s seriousness of intent makes it to these eyes much less ollenslve or exploitative than the glossy mainstream pap ol 91/2 Weeks or Wild Orchid. Oshima’s aim is to examine how the lorce of sexuality can disrupt the set values and power structures at the most rigidly-delined society, and it’s obvious lrom the outset that his lorrnal and thematic approach is out to challenge, but also to create a work of genuine artistic worth.
Based on a real incident in 1936 Tokyo when a woman was lound wandering the streets with her
partner’s recently-severed genitals in her pocket, the lilm traces the rapidly-intensifying relationship between former prostitute Sada and inn-keeper Toku, whose mutual passion is such that he is prepared to leave his wile to be with his lover. By shacking up together to constantly make love they rupture the traditional Japanese social ritual separating married respectability lrom the institutionalised sexual conduit ol the geisha house, a situation created to maintain an ossilied patriarchy. Here, though, it's Sada's lemale desire that is eventually to prove the dominant element in a tussle ol sexual wills as her desire for more ecstatic lullllment drives herto brush with death itsell in the search lor the ultimate sexual high. Through the piece the two lovers are intent on conlronting others with their sexuality in a way that mirrors the combative stance ol the lilm as a whole, deliberately disporting themselves in lront at others to shatter the etiquette at Japanese modesty that still lorbids the display ol pubic hair on lilm ortelevlsion. Oshima’s deliberate attack on the hypocrisies of Japanese censorship has a certain relevance to the British situation where, until the release at this very lilm, the screen portrayal of erect male member was delinitively outlawed, but in a wider context it’s about the inherently subversive political lorce ol sexuality and how the various social forms of sublimating and controlling it are born out ol a repressive patriarchal establishment’s deep-rooted anxiety. And anxiety at the very least, is what most males will leel at the linal dismemberment. (TrevorJohnston)
Edinburgh Filmhouse Sun 5—Tde 14 May.
restore his delicate soul to health. A dated-looking but intelligent and life-affirming movie from the land that
' brought you Crocodile Dundee. Glasgow:
GFT.
I GoodFellas ( 18) (Martin Scorsese. US. 1990) Robert De Niro. Ray Liotta.Joe Pesci. Lorraine Braco. Paul Sorvino. 145 mins. A return for Scorsese and De Niro to the creed of amoral violence seen in
Mean Streets and Taxi Driver. Liotta plays '
Henry Hill, a real-life mafioso. while De Niro is his mentor in crime. And while the bullets, fists and carving knives fly. Scorsese brings us back to that
38The List3—16Mayl991
unavoidable question — yes. it‘s glamorous and lucrative to live this way. but can anyone really live with the consequences? Winner of BAFTA awards for best film director and screenplay. and a Best Supporting Actor Oscar for Joe Pesci. Edinburgh: Filmhouse. Central: MacRobert Arts Centre.
I Gorillas In The Mist ( 15) (Michael Apted. US. 1988) Sigourney Weaver, Bryan Brown. John Omirah Miluwi. 129 mins. The story of Dian Fosscy. an American naturalist who went to central Africa in 1966 with no experience. but devoted two decades of her life to studying
the mountain gorilla, and became ruthlessly determined to protect the species from poachers. Her uncompromising attitude to the gorillas‘ welfare made her many enemies. and her murder in 1985 has still not been adequately explained. Priceless wildlife footage, shot in the Rwandan jungle, and Weaver's rapport with the gorillas make for a unique and absorbing movie. Edinburgh: Filmhouse.
I Grease (PG) (Randal Kleiser. US. 1978) John Travolta, Stockard Channing. Olivia Newton John. 110 mins. The long-running broadway show arrives on
; screen dripping with Fifties‘ nostalgia.
cheery tunes. a high camp value and the winsome charms of the plastic Newton-John and the toothy Travolta. A
nice collection of old timers enhance the
cast. Glasgow: Grosvenor. I Green Card (12).(Peter Weir, US. 1991) Gerard Depardieu. Andie MacDowell. Bebe Neuwirth. Gregg Edelman. 107 mins. The hugely amiable figure of Depardieu dominates this, his Hollywood debut. He plays a French composer living illegally in New York and in desperate need of a work permit. MacDowell‘s horticulturalist is in love with a conservatory apartment. but needs a husband to get the lease. A marriage of convenience is arranged. but the authorities are not convinced. so the mismatched couple are forced to invent a history for themselves. In doing so. of course, they fall for each other. Funny. charming, and not without profundity. but sus nd our disbelief for the denoumenl. I emle (U) (Franco Zeffirelli. US, 1990) Mel Gibson, Alan Bates, Glenn Close, Paul Scofield, Helena Bonham-Carter, lan Holm. 135 mins. A young man returns home from university to find his father dead and his mother marrying his uncle. Then Hamlet senior‘s ghost shows up, whispering to him of murder most foul, and it‘s all downhill after that. More than twenty years after Zeffirelli’s Romeo AndJuliet comes this colourful and lively production of Shakespeare’s greatest play, with a very strong, mostly British cast and the best performance in years from Gibson in the title role. Glasgow: Odeon. Edinburgh: Odeon. Strathclyde: UCl Clydebank. I The Hard Way ( 15) (John Badham. US. 1990) Michael J. Fox, James Woods, Stephen Lang, Annabella Sciorra, L. L. Cool J. 111 mins. See review. Glasgow: Cannon Clarkston Road, Cannon The Forge, Cannon Sauchiehall Street. Edinburgh: Cannon. UCl. Central: Cannon. Strathclyde: UCl Clydebank. UCl East Kilbride. I Heathers ( 15) (Michael Lehman. US. 1989) Winona Ryder. Christian Slater, Lisanne Falk. 102 mins. An ultrablackx parody of the high school teenflick, Lehman‘s first feature film managesto combine box office success with artistic merit. This cult hip hit of the year has Slater and Ryder starting a suicide craze to muscle in on the cliqucy Heathers running the joint. Tune in, turn on, dropdcad. Edinburgh: Cameo. I Heavy Metal ( 18) (Gerald Pottcrton, US. 1981) With the voices ofDon Francks, Richard Romanus. John Candy, John Vernon. 90 mins. Exploitative and rather tiresome animated machismo, with rape, violence and killing prominently displayed among a welter ofcartoon fantasy garbage. Strictly for adolescents (overgrown and otherwise). Edinburgh: Cameo. I Highlander (15) (Russell Mulcahy, UK. 1986) Christopher Lambert, Beatie Edney, Sean Connery. 111 mins. A handful of immortals battle through the centuries to win a mythical prize. A curious mixture of romance in 16th century heather and car chases in present day New York, the film is an inelegant. often ludicrous, but enjoyany daffy adventure. Lambert seems more at home