FILM INDEX
style and kookiness rarely comes our way. The two loosely overlapping stories are set around a fast food stall in llong Kong. with mismatched romance and indulgent heartache the menu for today. The second segment is by far the stronger. but the film is so fresh and unusual that it more than survives this slight imbalance. A Bout De Soufl'le for our times. See preview. Edinburgh: Filmhouse.
I Citizen Kane (PG) (Orson Welles. L75. I941) Orson Welles. Joseph Cotten. Agnes Moorehead. I I9 mins. Stunningly 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? Glasgow: GET.
I The City 0t lost Children ~( I5) (Jean-Pierre Jeunet/Marc Caro. France. I995) Ron Perlman. Daniel Ernilfork. Judith Vittet. I I2 mitts. On a mist-shrouded oil rig. mad scientist Krank ages prematurely because he cannot dream. and so he
kidnaps children from the local port and steals into their sleeping hours. A visually wonderful. wacky fairytale frorn the makers of Delicatessen. that brims over with cinematic imagination. Edinburgh: Cameo.
I City On Fire (l8) (Ringo Lam. llong Kong. I987) Chow Yun-Fat. Danny Lee. Sun Yeuh. l()l mins. The bit that Tarantino ripped off for Reservoir Dogs - a botched heist and subsequent stand-off in a warehouse - occurs at the very end of this movie. which is more concerned with the individual than the ensemble. A maverick undercover cop is forced to infiltrate a gang of jewel thieves. but becomes caught up in a personal battle of loyalty and betrayal. ()ne of the finest Hong Kong action movies. this is a great cult item in its own right. See review. Edinburgh: Filmhouse.
I Clerks (I8) (Kevin Smith. US. 1993) Brian O’llalloran. Jeff Anderson. Marilyn Ghigliotti. 90 mins. Just when you were sick of the very sight of the word ‘slacker'. along comes Clerks and gives the whole commercialisation of the Gen X lifestyle a good hard kick up the backside. Kevin Smith‘s hilariously foul dialogue peps up the exchanges on life. sex and everyday living between bored convenience store check-out assistant Dante and equally bored video store manager Randal. Edinburgh: Filmhouse.
I The Crow ( 18) (Alex Proyas. US. I994) Brandon Lee. Ernie Iludson. Richelle Davis. 101
mins. Infamous as the film on which martial arts star Brtrcc Lee’s son Brandon was killed by a defective stunt gun. this is the most consistent attempt yet to create on film the distinctive feel of the graphic novel. The characterisation and plot development may be slight — a rock star comes back from the dead to wrech revenge on the gang who killed him and his girlfriend — bttt stylistically. it's a gem. Life: New Picture Ilouse. I D'Artagnan's Daughter r IS) (Bertrand 'I‘aver'nier. lirancc. l99-l) Sophie Marceau. Philippe Noiret. (‘Iaude Rich. IN) mins. Originally a project for director Riccardo Freda (who then fell ill). this lacklustre swashbuckler was picked tip by 'I‘avernier. btrt his approach lacks pizzazz and good old cut-and-thrust. When a dastardly duke attacks her convent. young nun Marceau is forced into action. and so she drags dad D'Artagnan and his musketeer mates out of retirement. A few diverting flourishes aside. Dick Lester probably did it better. Edinburgh: Cameo. Strathclyde: East Kilbiide Arts Centre. I Death And The Maiden ( IS) (Roman Polanski. liK/l'S/lirancc. I994) Sigourney Weaver. Bert Kingsley. Stuart Wilson. l()i mitts. A former torture victim believes the man who helped her husband when his car had a flat is the doctor who abused her years before. Polanski thinks he's doing a IIitclrcockian thriller (which trivialises Ariel Dorfman's source material). while Weaver waves a gun around like there's something creepy. crawa and extraterrestrial under the bed. Glasgow: Grosvenor.
I Delicatessen ( l5) (Jean-Pierre Jeunet/Marc Caro. France. 1991 ) Dominique Pinon. Marie- l..aurc Dougnac. Jean-Claude Dreyfus. 99 mins. In a sepia wasteland somewhere in the future. a butcher feeds his neighbours with the jtricyjoints of his lodgers. But when former clown Louison (Pinon) arrives and falls for his datrghter. an underground vegetarian resistance group come to the rescue. Hilarious blend of bizarre characters. slapstick and comic tension makes for the first true ctrlt item of the '90s. Glasgow: GI-T.
I Die Hard With A Vengeance ( I5) (John Mc'l'iernan. I’S. I995) Bruce Willis. Jeremy Irons. Samuel L. Jackson. 128 mins. Basically an extended cat anti mouse game. Mc'l'iernan's scqtrel to his own original has washed-up anti- hero Willis and pissed-off. gtxxI-hearted
sidekick Samuel L. Jackson dashing across New York City from pay-phone to pay-phone. solving childish riddles in time to deactivate a stash of
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hidden bombs. Imagine Speed with a hangover. with plenty of comedy. the best buddy pairing in years. btrt a curious lack of satisfying set pieces. Glasgow: Odeon. Edinburgh: Odeon. UCI. Strathclyde: UCIs.
I Distant Voices. Still lives ( IS) (Terence Davies. I7K. I988) Freda Dowie. I’ete Postlethwaite. Angela Walsh. Dean Williams. 85 mins. In the Liverpool of the late Forties and early Fifties. a working class household perseveres through domestic violence. death and
marriage. A brilliantly made tribute to the
Davies family's experience. and a requiem for a way of life now past. by one of the most gifted cinematic artists this country now possesses. Glasgow; (ii-T. I Dolores Claiborne ( l8) ('I‘aylor IIackford. US. I995) Kathy Bates. Jennifer Jason Leigh. Christopher l’ltrmmer‘. Lil mins. This is about as un-Stcphen-King-like a story as you could get. more consistently meltxlramatic than horrific. .lliserv's Kathy Bates stars as a helper-maid working for an elderly society queen. bttt when she's discovered one day murdering her employer. it rekindles thoughts on a related murder two decades before. Poignant and thought-provoking. with sotne fine performances to enjoy. Glasgow: ()deon. Edinburgh: Odeon. I East (It Eden (PG) (Elia Kazan. US. I954) James Dean. Raymond Massey. Jo Van Fleet.
1 l5 mins. In a I913 Californian fartning valley. a wild adolescent boy rebels against his father and discovers a dark secret about the mother he thought was dead. Self-consciously meaningful famin histrionics: a film always far too pleased with itself and rampantly over-acted with it. Edinburgh: Iiilmbouse.
I Ed Wood (15) (Tim Burton. US. I994) Johnny Depp. Martin Landau. Patricia Arquette. l23 mins. Burton‘s fondly atmospheric homage to the so-called ‘worst director of all time‘ is his best film to date. It's more than a biopic pastiche. however: the emotional heart of the film is found in the genuiner caring relationship between Wood and the dying. drug-addicted Bela Lugosi (a marvellous Martin Landau). Depp plays Wood as a bundle of energy and innocent romanticism. capturing the spirit of dogged determination that makes the subject such an appealing character. Glasgow: Grosvenor.
I ET (U) (Steven Spielberg. US. 1982). Dec Wallace. Henry Thomas. Peter Coyote. I IS mins. An alien creature gets stranded on earth (the opening sequence of threatening legs and flashing torches is beautifully done). where he is adopted by some kids. who help him construct a communication device to summon back his spaceship. All the little guy wanted to do was go home. btrt Spielberg made strre he had lots of cute and agreeable adventures first. and slipped in the most tear-jerking psnedo-death since Baloo the Bear in The Jungle Book for good measure. Glasgow: MGM Parkhead. Edinburgh: l-‘ilmhouse.
I The Exorcist (I8) (Williatn Friedkin. US. I973) Linda Blair. Ellen Burstyn. Max Von Sydow. l 10 mins. Earnest priest Von Sydow steps in to save poor little possessed girl in this hugely effective scarefest. Dead good. dead scary. dead priest. Glasgow: Odeon.
I Far From Home (PG ) (Phillip BOI'SOS. es. I994) Mimi Rogers. Brrrce Davison. Jesse Bradford. Fourteen-year-old Angus is washed up on the shores of the Pacific Northwest and. separated from his family. relies on The Yellow Dog for help. A live action kids‘ movie in the ‘one boy and his dog' mould. with ingenuity under pressure shown by the young teen hero and canine courage from the four-legged co-star. Central: MacRobert.
I Forget Paris ( l2) (Billy Crystal. IFS. I995) Billy Crystal. Debra Winger. Joe Mantegna. l()l mins. When his dad‘s corpse is lost on a funeral flight to France. Mickey (Crystal) meets and falls in love with apologetic airline employee Ellen (Winger). The intriguing aspect here is that the story goes beyond the honeymoon period to the times when the relationship has to be worked at. Told via dinner table reminiscences. Crystal's second movie as director is an unashamedly old- fashioned romantic comedy that treads a fine line between captivating shaggy dog story and indulgent ramble. See review. Glasgow: Odeon. MGM Parkhead. Edinburgh: Odeon. UCI. Strathclyde: Odeon Ayr. UCIs.
I The Fox and the Hound (U) (Frank Thomas. Ollie Johnston. Cliff Nordberg. US. I98] ) With the voices of Mickey Rooney. Kurt Russell and Pearl Bailey. 83 mins. Sluggish. unimaginative Disney cartoon in which an orphaned fox cub and a loveable hunting hound puppy spend an idyllic childhood together until their traditional roles and enmity are reawakened. Cute in a very familiar fashion. General release.
I Free Willy 2 (PG) (Dwight Little. US. I995) Jason James Richter. Michael Madsen. Jayne Atkinson. When his real mother dies. Jesse (Richter) discovers that he has a half-brother. who then joins him and Jesse's foster parents on an island holiday. Killer whale Willy's also there
l H I T I. l S T I Catch the best Film this fortnight.
FIRST RUN
I Chungklng Express A hip. stylish. idiosyncratic look at restless youth. Hong Kong style. from director Wong Kar-Wai — definitely a name to watch out for. Edinburgh: film/rouse. I City On Fire More from Hong Kong. but high octane action this time in the long-awaited big screen release of the film that Tarantino ripped off (and he's the first to admit it) for Reservoir Dogs. Edinburgh: Film/rouse.
I The Bridges Di Madison County Clint Eastwood slows down the pace alongside Meryl Streep in this mature and finely textured love story. proving again that he’s also a director of note. General release.
I Draveheart Mel Gibson dons the facepaint and takes to the field against the English as Hollywood turns the life of William Wallace into an action spectacular. General release.
I The Young Poisoner’s Handbook Toxicology escalates from schoolboy hobby to means for murder in Benjamin Ross‘s disturbingly funny British black comedy. General release.
I The Usual Suspects A teasing. twisting. turning modem noir that boasts strong and varied characters and bucketloads of style. General release.
BEPEHTORY
I Distant Voices, Still Lives/T he long Day Closes A double bill of Terence Davies' deeply personal and moving films. based on his experiences growing up in Liverpool. Glasgow: CF]:
I Natural Born Killers More Stone than Tarantino in the final telling. but this whirlwind odyssey of killers-on- the-loose is a dazzling example of MTV-inspired cinema. Edinburgh: Film/rouse.
with his family. as is an oil slick (and. ofcourse. a convenient eco-message). A tad too anodyne and uninventive to really justify its existence. the movie does have its familiar charms. Glasgow: Odeon. MGM Parkhead. Edinburgh: ()deon. UCI. Strathclyde: Odeon Ayr. L'Cls.
I Fresh ( I8) (Boaz Yakin. US. 1994) Sean Nelson. Giancarlo Esposito. Samuel L. Jackson. I IS mins. Twelve-year-old Fresh (Nelson) is reckoned by all-and-sundry to be the neighbourhood gopher: he'll run heroin and crack for local drug-dealers. btrt he’ll also make sure he gets to school on time. Because I‘dCSIl has a maturity beyond his years. coupled with a necessary detachment for life around him. and that's what‘s going to get him clear of trouble before he‘s dragged in further. An excellent debut by Yakin. with an extremely moving performance by Nelson. Central: MacRobert. Strathclyde: UCI Clydebank.
I Friday ( l5) (Gary Gray. US. I995) Ice Cube. Chris Tucker. Bernie Mac. 92 mins. Don‘t expect the frowning. gun-tottin‘ Cube here: this
24 The List 22 Sept-5 Oct I995 I