INDEX FILM
FILM moz-
Films screening this lortnight are listed below. with certificate, credits. hriet review and venue details. Full-length reviews of selected new releases can he found close to the appropriate entry. Programme details appear in the Listings section which iollows. Film index compiled by Alan Morrison.
I The Abyss ( 15) (James Cameron. US. 1989) Ed Harris. Michael Biehn. Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio. 140 mins. An estranged couple get caught up in a tense drama on the sea floor in this movie made almost entirely underwater. Though Cameron has opted for a more contemplative exercise in tension. the intertwining of plots leads one to feel that he‘s crammed too much into the film‘s length. It may not go down as agreat artistic achievement. but it does push back a few boundaries of the possible in movie-making. so it won't sink without trace. Edinburgh: Cameo.
I The Accidental Tourist ( 15) ( Lawrence Kasdan. US. 1988) William Hurt. Geena Davis. Kathleen Turner. Amy Wright. 121 mins. Hurt plays a successful writerof mollycoddling travel guides. whose placid life. scarred by the death of his youngson. is shattered when his wife (Turner) walks out. Left to his own devices. he fallsfor kooky dog trainer Davis. and finally sees that even the best prepared traveller must be ready for unexpected detours. Hurt's impressive performance is at the centre of the film‘s quiet strengths and itsabsorbing depiction of everyday lives. Glasgow: GFT.
I An Angel At My Table (PG) (Jane Campion.Nchea1and. 1990) Kerry Fox Alexia Keogh. Karen Fergussson. 158 mins. Campion's follow-up to her remarkable debut Sweetie is a lengthy treatment of her compatriot Janet Framc‘s autobiographical trilogy of novels. originally made for television. Following Frame's life from awkward childhood and teenage years. through university (where she was diagnosed as schizophrenic) and bohemian travels in Europe. to heradult achievements as a writer. the film offers a more subtle depiction of mental illness than Sweetie. and is superbly conceived and acted throughout. Edinburgh: Filmhouse. IAnnie (U) (John Huston. US. 1981) Albert Finney. Aileen Quinn. Carol Burnett. Tim Curry. 128 mins. Nauseatingly sweet screen version ofthe unprepossessing stage musical tale ofa plucky orphan who wins the heart ofa mean millionaire. Staid and wholly unimpressive. Edinburgh: Filmhouse.
I Another Woman (PG) (Woody Allen. US. 1988) Gena Rowlands. Mia Farrow. Ian Holm. Gene Hackman. 81 mins. Woody Allen continues in the serious vein of his last picture September. with another probing exploration of emotional and familial relationships. Here. successful scholar Rowlands is forced to confront the emotional vacuum of her life when she hears the revelations of another woman (Farrow) unburdening her anxieties in the psychiatrist's office next door. Edinburgh: Cameo.
I Au nevoir Les Entants (PG) (Louis Malle. France/W. Germany. 1987) Gaspard Manesse. Raphael Fejito. Philippe Morier-Genoud. 113 mins. Low-key. cinema-verire influenced portrayal of incidents from Malle‘s own boyhood. Set during the German occupation. the film follows the developing friendship between two boys at a small school run by monks. one of whose secret Jewish identity proves
dangerous to both boys as the Nazi presence looms. Simple. subtle. and very moving film. which avoids the cliches of the coming-of-age genre. and makes its larger political points firmly but unobtrusively. Glasgow: GFT.
I Aunt Julia and the Scriptwriter ( 12) (Jon Amiel. US. 1991) Barbara Hershey. Peter Falk. Keanu Reeves. The wierd and erotic world of Maria Vargos Llosa's novel is brought to the screen by Scots-born scriptwritcr William Boyd and Singing Detective director Jon Amiel. Pedro Carmichael (Falk) comes to local New Orleans radio station WXBU to breathe life into its flagging soap opera. and ends up borrowing from the real romance of aspiring scriptwritcr Reeves and his vivacious aunt (Hershey). The charismatic Falk shows an effortless display of flamboyand comic invention. Edinburgh: Cameo.
I 8acirdratt(15) (Ron Howard. US. 1991) William Baldwin. Kurt Russell. Scott Glenn. Robert De Niro. Donald Sutherland. 136 mins. Chicago‘s finest firefighting men receive the Hollywood treatment in the film that burned upthc US box office charts. Baldwin and Russell's sibling rivalry plays against a backdrop of stunning fire effects and big screen action as the Fire Department and De Niro‘s arson investigator search for clues amongst the charred remains of several victims with links to the forthcoming civic elections. Edinburgh: UCl. Central: Regal.
I Beetlejuice (15) (Tim Burton. US. 1988) Geena Davis. Alec Baldwin. Michael Keaton. 92 mins. Recently deceased and very charming New England couple have difficulty in adjusting to the afterlife. Not the least of their worries is the tasteless refurbishment of their old home by a nasty New York yuppie family. and they eventually call on freelance bio-exorcist
Betelgeuse (pronounced ‘Beetle-juice‘) to
deal with the problem in his own inimitable fashion. A movie of exuberantly eccentric cartoonish capers. which creates its own comic cosmos where the unexpected is the norm. Great fun it all is too. Glasgow: GFT.
I The Big Blue (15)(Luc Besson. France. 1988) Rosanna Arquctte. Jean-Marc Barr.Jean Reno. 120 mins. Barrand Reno. friends since they were children. are divers competing to reach the greatest depths without the aid ofbreathing equipment. and also rivals for the romantic attentions of Ms Arquctte. A commercial smash in its native France. Besson‘s film is a stunningly photographed visual experience in varying shades of blue. Even ifthc plot is a load of tosh. the dolphins are nice. Edinburgh: Cameo.
I Blanche Fury (U) (Marc Allegret. UK. 1948) Valerie Hobson. Stewart Granger. Walter Fitzgerald. Michael Gough. A penniless governess (Hobson) marries her widowed cousin. but falls in love with the nasty bailiff of the estate. who is the illegitimate son of the manor‘s previous owner. Full-blooded Victorian melodrama (as ifyou hadn't guessed already) that doesn't quite live up to its opening promise. Edinburgh: Filmhouse. I Blonde Fist ( 15) (Frank Clarke. UK, 1991) Margi Clarke. Carroll Baker. Ken Hutchison. lots of other Clarkes. 99 mins.
Working-class housewife Ronnie O‘Dowd :
(Margi C.) escapes from a women's open prison and goes to New York to find her alcoholic father. In order to win enough money to bring them all home again. she must enter the boxing ring as the peroxide pugilist of the title. Brother Frank‘s low-budget comedy comes at you without pulling any punches. but unfortunately too many of them are wide of the mark. Glasgow: Odeon. Edinburgh: Odeon.
I Blue Velvet ( 18) (David Lynch. US. 1986) Kyle MacLachlan. Dennis Hopper. Isabella Rossellini. 120 mins. 1n small-town Middle America. would-be
_ boy detective MacLachlan finds a severed
car on some waste ground. When the police shoo him away he decides to do some investigating of his own. A singular fusion of the cosy and the terrifying which blends kitsch and nightmare. B-movie detection and brutal sex to deconstruct our complacent vision of normal society. This is film-making of remarkable imagination and skill. Glasgow: Grosvenor. I Boyz N The Hood (15) (John Singleton. US. 1991)Cuba GOOdii‘ngT. Larry Fishburne. Ice Cube. Morris Chestnut. 112 mins. A poignant depiction oflife in the rundown suburbia of South Central Los Angeles by debut director Singleton. A group of teenage friends try to keep their heads above the never-ending flood of reprisal killings. but find that it is alltoo easy to get sucked into the violence. Ultimately moving and emotionally harrowing. See preview. Glasgow: Cannon The Forge. Odeon. Edinburgh: Odeon.UC1.Strathcly'derCl Clydebank. UCI East Kilbride. I Burial at Potatoes ( 15) (Jan Jacob Kolsky. Poland. 1991 ) 97 mins. An old' saddler returns to his native village in 1946. having spent the end of the war ina concentration camp. His attempts to begin life anew are thwarted by the hostility of the villagers who feel guilty of their part in the death of his son. The depiction ofdeep rooted anti-semitism in post-war Poland is just as relevant and powerful today. Glasgow: GF'T. I Citizen Kane (PG) (Orson Welles. US. 1941 ) Orson Welles. Joseph Cotten. Agnes Moorehead. 119 mins. Stunnineg successful biographical mosaic centring on a Hearst-like media tycoon. Welles‘ first film remains scintillating viewing for its sheer technical verve. narrative confidence and spellbinding performances. The best film ever made? Who‘s arguing? Edinburgh: Filmhouse. I City Slickers ( 12) (Ron Underwood. US. 1991) Billy Crystal. Daniel Stern. Bruno Kirby. Helen Slater. Jack Palance. 114 mins. See review. Glasgow: Cannon The Forge. Odeon. Salon. Edinburgh: Odeon. UCl. Central: Allanpark. Cannon. Strathclyde: Kelburne. Odeon Ayr. UCl Clydebank. UCl East Kilbride. WMR Film Centre. I The Commitments (15) (Alan Parker. UK. 1991) Robert Arkins. Michael Aherne. Angeline Ball. Maria Doyle. 118 mins. Sod U2 — when would-be manager Jimmy Rabbitte (Arkins) puts together The Commitments. soul comes to Dublin and the band become the force to really put lrish music on the map. Alan Parker delivers a hilarious. down-to-earth. close-to-home movie. stuffed full ofgood music and with some relevent social comment to boot. Easily one of the films ofthe year. Glasgow: Cannon Clarkston Road. Cannon The Forge. Grosvenor. Odeon. Edinburgh: Dominion. Odeon, UCl. Central: Allanpark. Cannon. Strathclyde: Cannon. Kelburne. Odeon Ayr. Odeon Hamilton. La Scala.UC1 Clydebank. UCl East Kilbride. WMR Film Centre. I Compromising Positions (15) (Frank Perry. US. 1985) Susan Sarandon. Raul Julia. Edward Herrmann. Mary Beth Hurt. 98 mins. In a witty twist to the usual murder-scandal fare. ex-reporter Sarandon finds herself in the middle ofan investigation into the demise ofa sleazy dentist who had been giving his female patients a filling in more than one sense. Humourous whodunnit with a slightly dirty underside. Glasgow: GFT. I Crimes and Misdemeanours (15) (Woody Allen. US. 1989) Martin Landau. Anjelica Huston. Woody Allen. Alan Alda. 104 mins. Two stories are interwoven in this accomplished Allen offering which effortlessly blends the Big Questions side of his art with the one-line wit we've taken for granted from him. in the first strand. opthalmologist Martin Landau has a hit man bump offhis
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I Fringe Film and Video Festival Edinburgh's Filmhouse is the setting for four days of some of the best experimental shorts and documentaries from Britain and abroad. arranged in seventeen accessible but challenging programmes. See preview.
I Homicide ( 15) Joe Mantegna stars as cop Bobby Gold. who finds himself questioning his cultural loyalties when he gets caught up in the seemingly straightforward murder of an elderly Jewish shopkeeper. See review.
I I. The Worst otAll(15) Maria Luisa Bemberg. Argentina‘s leading feminist director. turns her hand to this portrait of 17th century Mexican nun. poet and playwright Juana lnes de la Cruz. whose privileged life is threatened by a powerful Jesuit archbishop.
I Jewish Film Festival The Seventh Jewish Film Festival comes on tour to Glasgow Film Theatre. with sexy teen movie March Carresses. portrait of post-war anti-semitism Burial of Potatoes and a programme of three British shorts screening this fortnight.
3 Alan Rudolph directs Demi Moore and hubby Bruce Willis in a dark portrait of violent marriage. No happy Ghost fodder this. as Ms Moore is caught in a world of brutality and murder. See review.
I Twenty-One (15) Patsy Kensit revels in her first decent role as kiss-and-tell modern woman coping with love and sex in the 19905. who spills all the intimate details of her daily life to the omnipresent camera.
The List 25 October— 7 November 1991 '15