INDEX Fllfl
FILM .m-
Films screening this fortnight are listed
,balow, with certificate. credits. hrlelrevlew and vanue details. Full-length reviews of saiacted new releases can he found closeto the appropriate entry. Programme details appear in the Listings section which lollows. Film index compiled by Alan Morrison.
IThe Addams Family (PG) (Barry Sonnenfeld, US, 1991) Anjclica Huston. Raul Julia. Christopher Lloyd, Dan Hedaya. 100 mins. When long-lost Uncle Fester returns from 25 years in the Bermuda Triangle. it disrupts the idyllic lifestyle of the Addams clan. But isthis Fester a fortune-grabbing imposter? Big budget movie has all of the macabre sense of fun ofthe TV series and the original New Yorker cartoons. as well as sets and design that any self-respecting ghoulish household would die for. Literally. See feature. General release (Week 2).
I After Hours (18) (Martin Scorsese. US. 1985) Griffin Dunne. Rosanna Arquette. Verna Bloom, Teri Garr. 97mins. Screwball comedy with a nightmare twist has a computer programmer (Dunne) caught in an increasingly menacing downtown New York after he loses histaxi fare on the way to a date. Energetic comedy with an edge Ofinsanity. Edinburgh: Cameo.
I Altlra (12) (Otomo Katsuhiro. Japan, 1989) Animated by Nakamura Takashi. with the voices of lwata Mitsue, Sasaki Nozomu. Koyama Mami. Ishida Taro. 124 mins. Based on the multi-volumc graphic novel by Otomo. Akira is a mythical. futuristic tale Ofpost-holocaust Tokyo, where pill-popping biker kids begin to unearth a government project designed to exploit the psychic and telekinetic powers Of a group Of laboratory-bound children. Superny animated. with a fantastic visual and narrative imagination, but you‘d be well advised to know something of the plot before you see it. Edinburgh: Filmhouse. I Alice (12) (Woody Allen, US, 1990) Mia Farrow. Joe Mantegna, William Hurt, Keye Luke. 105 mins. Despite living in a designer paradise. Alice (Farrow) has an eye for a fellow parent at herchildren's school and a backache her therapists are at a loss to case. Cue Doctor Chang’s mystical, medical herbs and hidden aspects Of her personality shine through. Another gem from Mr Allen. Glasgow: GFT. Edinburgh: Filmhouse. Central: MacRobert Arts Centre.
I All I Want For Christmas ( U) l Robert Lieberman, US. 1991) HarleyJane Kozak. Jamey Sheridan. Leslie Nielsen. Lauren Bacall. 94 mins. Not contentwith Barbie dolls and Nintendo games, New York kiddies Ethan and Hallie devise a plan to get what they really want forthe holiday season — a family Christmas that will bring their divorced parents together again. Heartwarming yuletide comedy or sentimental American crap. depending on how you look at it. although we tend towards the latter view. General release. I An American Tail 2: Fievei Goes West(U) (Phil Nibbelink/Simon Wells. US, 1991) With the voices of Phillip Glasser. Dom DeLuise. James Stewart. John Cleese. 75 mins. See review. General release (Week 2). I Asterlx and Cleopatra (U) (France, 1968) 73 mins. The diminutive Gaul and his powerful potion meet the lady with the asp and the ‘rather attractive' nose. His rotound chum Obelix pulls the nose Off the Sphynx, sulks a bit and then the two build a new palace in record time. Edinburgh: Filmhouse.
I Beetlelulce (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 Bételgeuse (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. Edinburgh: Cameo.
I La aete Humaine (PG) (Jean Renoir, France, 1938) Jean Gabin, Simone Simon, J ulien Carette, Femand Ledoux. 99mins. A classic example Of pre-war French poetic realism, Renoir’s updating Of Zola’s novel captures all Of its naturalistic spirit. Jacques Lantier (Gabin) is atrain driver who falls in love with the beautiful wife of his stationmaster, who has already killed her former lover. A wonderful melodrama. shot against the smoke and steam of the Paris-Le Havre railway. Glasgow: GFT.
I the DPS (U) (Brian Cosgrove, UK, 1989) 105 mins. Animated version ofthe Roald Dahl favourite has young Sophie battling against evil. aided and abetted by the Big Friendly Giant. Glasgow: GFT.
I Le Chateau De Me Here (U) (Yves Robert. France, 1990) Philippe Caubere, Nathalie Roussel. Didier Pain, Therese Liotard. 98 mins. The second instalment of Marcel Pagnol’s Memories of Childhood picks up from where La Gloire de mon Pére left off. The plot, if that's what it is. concerns a key the familyis given to allow a short cut to their mountain holiday home, but which a jobsworth type confiscates. claiming they are trespassing. For the most part, it has all the emotional resonance of a picture postcard. Edinburgh: Cameo, Filmhouse.
I Chinatown (Roman Polanski, US, 1974) Jack Nicholson, Faye Dunaway, John Huston. 131 mins. Private eye Jake Gittes takes on a routine casein 1937 LA and ends up uncovering more than he bargained for. Splendid conspiracy thriller with a handsome period look and a quite superlative cast. Despite rumours spread by Nicholson and Polanski, though. the nose-slitting scene was faked. Edinburgh: Cameo.
I Cinderella (U) (Wilfred
J ackson/Hamilton Luske/ Clyde Geronimi, USA. 1949) With the voices of Ilene Woods, Eleanor Audley, Verna Felton. William Phipps. 75 mins. The classic Disney version Of one of the world's most popular fairy tales makes for a welcome school holidays re-release. Treated as little more than a slave by her cruel stepmother and stepsisters, Cinderella‘s life is transformed when her Fairy Godmother grants her three wishes. Magical animation and fun songs make for a film to be enjoyed over and over again. Edinburgh: Filmhouse.
I City Of Hope (15) (John Sayles, US, 1991 ) Vincent Spano, Tony LO Bianco, Joe Morton. 129 mins. Eleven years after The Return of the Secaucus Seven , John Sayles is still at the forefront ofthe American independent film movement. His latest work examines the urban dynamics of a 19905 working-class community. centring on the civic corruption and old-style blue-collar honesty that surrounds the construction industry. Glasgow: GFT.
I City Stickers ( 12) (Ron Underwood, US. 1991) Billy Crystal, Daniel Stern, Bruno Kirby. Helen Slater, Jack Palance. 114 mins. Funny man Crystal stars as a fortysomething advertising salesman who faces up to the mid-life crisis by joininga two-week cattle drive with his pals. Moderately amusing second feature from the director of Tremors. Glasgow: Cannon The Forge. Edinburgh: Odeon. All UCIs.
ESCAPING FROM WINTER IN LONDON, THEY PLANNED A HOLIDAY IN PARADISE. ...EVERYTHING WAS GOING PERFECTLY. UNTIL THE MEN ARRIVED.
.m.-
“A DELICIOUS COMEDY. .”
“A distinct rarity: a completely happy film. . .”
“A cast so expert. . . they all play their part
with grace and precision” GEOFF BROWN, THE TIMES
“Witty, funny, touching” THESTANDARD
“Joan Plowright is a total joy” DEREK MALCOLM, THE GUARDIAN
“Delightful”
SHAUN USHER, DAILY MAIL
“Amusing. .. beautiful to look at” DAILY MIRROR
“Beautifully shot, consummately acted” TODAY
Ajay. . . hilarious and distinctly touching” WHAT’S ON
STARRING MIRANDA RICHARDSON JOSlE LAWRENCE POLLY WALKERmn JOAN PLOWRIGHT ALFRED MOLINA MICHAEL KITCHEN JIM BROADBENT
J The List6— 19 December 1991 17