FILM INDEX
FILM -mr3.:—
Filrns screening this fortnight are listed below with certificate, credits. brief review and venue details. Full length reviews of new releases can be found in the listings section wicb follows. Filrn index compiled by Alan Morrison.
I W llere (15) (Stephen Frears. US. 1992) Dustin Hoffman. Geena Davis. Andy Garcia. 117 mins. Professional loser Bernie LaPlante (Hoffman) becomes a national hero when his fuzzy image is captured on TV while saving lives (and picking pockets) after a plane crash. But it's fellow bum John Bubber (Garcia) who finds fame. fortune and a guilty conscience. Consistently funny satire on heroism with a stand-out performance by Hoffman. Central: MacRobert.
I W m (15) (Nestor Patemostro. Argentina. 1992) Dora Baret. Arturo Bonin. Emilio Alfaro. 100 mins. A young architect throws himself into his work following the deaths of his two brothers. but also finds himself dragged into a nightmare of drink and dnrgs. Latin American Film Festival. Glasgow: GFT. I m of FIG (18) (Dana Rotberg. Mexico. 1992) Evangelina Sosa. Lilia Aragon. Roberto Sosa. 90 mins. A young trapeze artist is thrown out of her third rate circus when she refuses to abort the child of her now-dead father. Instead. she takes up with a troupe of evangalist puppeteers. Visually impressive. socially relevant filmmaking from one of Mexico's leading new talents. Latin American Film Festival. Glasgow: GFT. I Agree III-II (15) (Diane Kurys. France. 1992) Isabelle Huppert. Bernard Giradeau. Hippolyte Giradot. 104 mins. A novelist shares her live-in lover with his previous partner until she meets a groovy guitarist. A neatly observed and emotionally tangled tale of screwed up thirtysomethings from the first name in intelli ent slush. See review. Glasgow: GFT. I M Ell.” From The Island (PG) (Mike Alexander. Scotland. 1993) Ken Hutchison. lain
Directed by STEPHEN FREARS Screenplay by RODDY DOYLE Starring_COLM MEANY TINA KELLEGHER RUTH McCABE
OPENS OIO
27 AUG EDINBURGH 0316682101
F. Macleod. Wilma Kennedy. 100 mins. The first ever Gaelic language feature raises questions of language and communication between human beings as it merges two stories by Iain Crichton Smith. A widowed headmaster is intrigued by both the local nurse and a stranger whose presence uncovers resentments in an island village. See Screen Test. Glasgow: GFT. Edinburgh: Filmhouse.
I The W (18) (John Badham. US. 1993) Bridget Fonda. Gabriel Byme. Dermot Mulroney. 108 mins. Scene-for-scene remake of 1990's Nikita. with emphasis on the action rather than moody contemplation. Fonda brings depth to her character (a teenage drug addict turned government killer). making this a Hollywood thriller with more emotional sympathy than most. In its own terms. easily as good a movie as the original: it‘s a case of same song. different singers. Edinburgh: MGM. UCl. Fife: Adam Smith. Strathcl de: Magnum. UCI.
I Back to the Future Trilogy (PG) (Robert Zemeckis. US. 1985/89/90) Michael J. Fox. Christopher Lloyd. 116/ 108/ 1 19 mins. Time- travelling fantasy adventures with street-smart 80s teenager whisked back in time for a little chicanery with his future parean and even a trip to the Wild West. Glasgow: Odeon.
I 3“ Behavior: (15) (Les Blair. UK. 1993) Stephen Rea. Sinead Cusack. Philip Jackson. 104 mins. North London life for an Irish family and their friends is not exactly domestic bliss. but it brings to the surface gentle humour and genuine intimacy. An improvised drama with an intelligent eye for detail and a refreshingly relaxed viewpoint on the chaos of real life. Glasgow: Grosvenor.
I Ml (U) (David D. Hand. US. 1942) 69 mins. Difiey at his cutest. purest best. A baby fawn enjoys life in the forest with his friends (Thumper the rabbit is surely one of Disney‘s most memorable creations). grows up. has a run- in with Man. and becomes Great Prince of the Forest. Nice animation. with touches of extreme tweeness. and a massive hankie count when Bambi's mum dies. General release.
I am (PG) (Ron Fricke. US. 1992) 96 mins. Environmentally aware eco-doc in the style of Koyaanisqatsi has the major advantage of having been shot in 70mm. which makes the stunning cinematography the star of the show. Beautiful footage of Planet Earth is juxtaposed with man's hamtful relation to it. with the Big Statement being pushed forwards by a series of powerful images. A genuine spectacle. Glasgow:
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MGM Film Centre.
I II!!! II Jean (12) (Jeremiah Chechick. US.
1993) Johnny Depp. Mary Stuart Masterson. Aidan Quinn. 98 mins. This off-centre romance between a mentally ill young woman and an eccentric who thinks he's wandered out of a silent comedy would have us believing that anyone with mental problems is a ‘loveable Ioony'. At times the film seems little more than an excuse to show off Depp's mime versitility. but by stressing kookiness instead of genuine confusion. it's patronising and misleading. Glasgow: MGM Film Centre. Strathclyde: Magnum.
I Boxcar Bertha (18) (Martin Scorsese. US. 1972) Barbara Hershey. David Carradine. Barry Primus. 97 mins. Tyro directorial effort has small town girl Hershey getting up to no good with Carradine and his gang of desperadoes. Fairly standard Roger Corman gangster pic. One is advised not to expect too much. Edinburgh: Filmhouse.
I Bram Stoker's Dracula (18) (Francis Ford Coppola. US. 1992) Gary Oldman. Winona Ryder. Anthony Hopkins. 128 mins. More gothic love story than out-and-out horror. Coppola’s version is not the strict Stoker adaptation that many had hoped for. but is a visual feast nonetheless. Oldrnan taps his own dark. sexy. stormy self to create a powerful but sympathetic monster. while the rest of the cast range from the ineffectual to the overbearing. A rich and substantial vampire movie for our times. Edinburgh: Filmhouse.
I By You Own Will (15) (Alejandro Lipkies. Mexico. 1993) Claudio Brook. Alonso Echanove. Edward George. 95 mins. Based on the true story of an English photojournalist who travels to Mexico at the height of the revolution to cover the murder of a British landowner. only to find varying versions of the truth at the camp of Pancho Villa. Latin American Film Festival. Glasgow: GFT.
I Casablanca (PG) (Michael Curtiz. US. 1942) Humphrey Bogart. Ingrid Bergman. Dooley Wilson. 102 mins. You must remember this . . . Bogart being impossibly noble. Bergman torn between two lovers. Claude Rains playing both ends against the middle. devious Nazis. a fogbound airport. a piano-player tinkling that tune . . . A wonderful hill of beans. Glasgow: GFI'.
I M1008 (PG) (Stephen Herek. US. 1992) Emilio Estevez. Joss Ackland. Lane Smith. 104 mins. Under the title The Mighty Ducks. this lame flick took over $50 million at the US box office. It's hard to fathom why. A lawyer on community service after a drunk driving conviction helps a little league ice hockey team to victory. The worst level of moviemaking by numbers. Borders: Roxy. Central: Regal.
I 011W (18) (Renny Harlin. US. 1993) Sylvester Stallone. John Lithgow. Michael Rooker. Stallone returns to top form as a guilt- ridden mountain rescue pro battling it out amongst the peaks in Colorado with a gang of hijackers. Spectacular vistas and stunt sequences ensure a white-knuckle. vertiginous experience from the comfort of your cinema seat. Glasgow: ODeon. MGM Parkhead. Edinburgh: Odeon. Fire: Glenrothes. All UCls.
I "it Boeur En iliver A Heart In Winter (12) (Claude Sautet. France. 1992) Daniel Auteuil. Emmanuelle Beart. Andre Dussolier. 105 mins. A withdrawn violin maker becomes the object of desire for a young violinist who herself is the amour of the former's business partner. An elegantly trenchant chronicle of triangular relationships which moves with such graceful fluidity that it's easy to miss the toughness at its core. Fife: Adam Smith.
I Crazy “3 (18) (Jonathan Demme. US. 1975) Cloris Leachman. Stuart Whitman. Jim Backus. 82 mins. Silence of the Lambs Oscar- winner Demme got his big break with this Connan produced black comedy. An over-the- top mum leads her family to Bonnie and Clyde style glory on a gangster road trip during the 1950s. Bursting with rock 'n‘ roll energy. Edinburgh: Filmhouse.
I Denis (PG) (Nick Castle. US. 1993) Mason Gamble. Walter Matthau. Joan Plowright. 98 mins. He's blond. he's cute. he's American. his dog isn‘t a fluffball with teeth. At least the stripey jumper remains the same. But. then again. the Dennis of the US cartoon strip never was related to The Beano's arch-menace. When Dennis's folks go off on business. the mischevious little brat is left in the hands of his elderly neighbours: Home Alone scenario from the John Hughes stable. General release.
I Dream mi (15) (Amber Collective. UK. 1991) Maureen Harold. Amber Styles. Anne-Marie Gascoigne. 115 mins. Gritty and authentic depiction of what it is like to be a woman living on an unemployment-hit housing estate in the north of England. Produced by Newcastle’s non- profit-making Amber Collective. it manages to get beyond the constraints of similar TV drama- documentaries. Edinburgh: Filmhouse.
I Doctor lhlvago (PG) (David Lean. US/UK. 1965) Omar Sharif. Julie Christie. Geraldine Chaplin. 193 mins. Big screen romance in the Gone With The Wind style. rather than a genuine adaptation of the Pasternak novel. with Sharif and Christie as lovers caught up in World War One and the Russian Revolution. Notable mainly for its lush. picture postcard photography. which looks glorious. Edinburgh: UCI. I Drugstore Cowboy (l8) (Gus Van Sant Jr.. US. 1989) Matt Dillon. Kelly Lynch. James Remar. William S. Burroughs. 100 mins. A gang of dope fiends. headed by our Matt. blithely rip off a series of drugstores in Gus Van Sant's recreation of 1971 Oregon. Complete with its halucinatory visions of flying cows. the film created a stir stateside for presenting the theft and use of narcotics as an alluring pastime. It marks a new and more creditable milestone in Hollywood drug movies. Edinburgh: Cameo. I W (18) (David Lynch. US. 1976) John Nance. 90 mins. You may never eat jelly babies again after the repellent but compelling tale of Henry. his haircut. his girlfriend. his strange offspring and a sizeable quantity of pus. Disturbing stuff. mercifully filmed in black and white. Edinburgh: Cameo. I Falling Down (18) (Joel Schumacher. US. 1992) Michael Douglas. Robert Duvall. Barbara Hershey. 112 mins. A sacked defence worker abandons his car in a traffic jam and goes on an escalating rampage across Los Angeles. No mere vigilante movie this. but the zeitgeist movie of the 90s. drinking deep of White Middle-Class America's fears about its future. Actor Douglas and director Schumacher deliver their finest work to date. Glasgow: MGM Film Centre. Strathclyde: Magnum. I The Fencing Raster (12) (Pedro Oleo. Spain. 1993) Assumpta Sema. Omero Antonutti. Joaquim de Alrneida. 88 mins. Madrid in the 1860s. and life is turbulent under the decadent Queen Isabella. particularly for swordsman Don Jaime de Astarloa. who is asked by the sultry Adela to be her teacher. A fully~fledged political thriller. with its romance and melodrama restrained by more elevated concerns. Highly recommended. Glasgow: GFT. I For Elise ( l 8) (Paulo Thiago. Brazil. 1993) Norma Bengell. Maria Zilda Bethlem. Lucelia Santos. 95 mins. An elderly piano teacher treats her two young lodgers like daughters in this affectionate parody of middle-class manners. Latin American Film Festival. Glasgow: GFT. I W Day (PG) (Harold Ramis. US. 1993) Bill Murray. Andie MacDowell. Chris Elliot. TV weatherman Phil Conners (Murray) finds himself in the back of beyond. trapped in an ever-repeating single day. Partying and babe- chasing leads to serious romancing as he goes after his producer (MacDowell). Murray's cuddly sarcasm stops the movie from becoming the kind of moralising mush that surrounds so many of his contemporaries. At last. a Hollywood comedy that is really funny. Central: MacRobert. I Ilenry V (PG) (Kenneth Branagh. UK. 1989) Kenneth Branagh. Derek Jacobi. Paul Scofield. Judi Dench. 137 mins. There are inevitable associations with Olivier in K.B.'s choice of first feature. but he emerges with some credit as both director and performer. This is a much muddier version than its predecessor. both in the scrappy turmoil of the battle scenes and in the tempering of zesty jingoism with an appreciation of the human cost of conflict. Portraying the young king as a carewom. rather sullen warrior. the film seems to offer a more complex reading of the text. even if Branagh‘s budgetary resources stint somewhat on the grandeur of Olivier's charging horses. Edinburgh: Cameo. I lllfli lleels (15) (Pedro Almodovar. Spain. 1991) Victoria Abril. Miguel Bose. Marisa Paredes. 115 mins. More melodramatic frolics from Spain's finest. this time in the shape ofa murderous triangle between a mother. her daughter and the latter's husband. While Almodovar isn't quite at his best. Abril excels as the TV news presenter who admits on air to her 3 hubby's killing. Edinburgh: Cameo. I lief Shots M lien (12) (Jim Abraharns. US. 1993) Charlie Sheen. Lloyd Bridges. Valeria Golino. 87 mins. More cinema parody than Cinema Paradiso. this time it's boys' own action movies that are in the sights. as Charlie Sheen tries to rescue the POWs from the Gulf. The jokes race past so quickly that if one stumbles and falls. another hurdles it immediately. If you're familiar with the targets. it's a satisfying enough sitting. General release. I I I I'll. line 01 Fire (15) (Wolfgang Petersen. US. 1993) Clint Eastwood. John Malkovich. Rene Russo. 128 mins. A Secret Service veteran in the twilight of his career is haunted by the Kennedy assassination. so when a former government killer threatens the life of the current President. he vows now ensure history won't repeat itself. Lavish action scenes don't deu'act from the film's crucial emotional core as I Petersen delivers the best mainstream '
88 The List 27 August—9 September 1993