FILM INDEX
FILM mm}:-
Films screening this fortnight are listed below with certificate, credits, brief review and venue details. Film index compiled by Alan Morrison.
I Babe (U) (Chris Noonan. Australia. I995) James Cromwell. with the voices of Christine Cavanaugh. Miriam Margolyes. lltrgo Weaving. 92 mins. An orphaned pig falls under the eye of a kindly collie and begins to think he‘s destined for glory at the regional trials. Talking animals suggest that this is a kids‘ movie: to an extent it is — and a great one — btrt there's enough skewered humour (hail the psycho mice!) for adults to disc0ver an unexpected cult hit. A triumph for the underpig. Glasgow: MGM Parkhead. Edinburgh: MGM. UCI. Fife: Robin's. Strathclyde: UCIs.
I Ballot Home 9 (I5) (Heather MacDonald. US. I994) 72 mins. One of the surprise hits at the I995 Drambuie Edinburgh Film Festival. this documentary follows the campaign leading up to a vote to remove legislation protecting homosexuals from discrimination in Oregon. At times. the level of ingrained prejudice and ignorance is shocking. Lesbian and Gay Film Festival. Glasgow: GI-T. Edinburgh: Filmhouse. I Balto (U) (Simon Wells. US. I995) With the voices of Kevin Bacon. Bridget Fonda. Bob Hoskins. 78 mins. When the medical supplies to an isolated Alaskan town are threatened by a blizzard. half-husky/haIf-wolf Baito — an outsider because of his mongrel nature - comes to the rescue. impressive action sequences ensure that Amblin‘s feature-length cartoon gives Disney a rtrn for its money. Edinburgh: MGM. Strathclyde: Cannon. Odeon Ayr.
I Beautiful Thing (15) (Hettie Macdonald. UK. I996) Glen Berry. Linda Henry. Scott Neal. 90 mins. Jamie. a teenager having a hard time at the local comprehensive. fails for neighbour Ste. who himself is on the receiving end from his ex- boxer dad. First-timer Macdonald's direction is unflashy. but attuned to the inner lives of these motley individuals. and the cast work wonders. Sec preview and review. Glasgow: MGM Film Centre. Edinburgh: Cameo.
I Dill Douglas Trilogy (i2) (Bill Douglas. UK. l972/73fl8) 48/55/78 mins. This trio of films about a boy growing up in a harsh mining community represents perhaps the peak of Scottish filrnmaking. Bare narrative. stark images. painful memories — the distillation of feeling on screen is as close to poetry as cinema gets. Edinburgh: Filmhouse.
I The Birdcage (I5) (Mike Nichols. US. 1995) Robin Williams. Nathan Lane. Gene llackman. I I9 mins. A remake of [a Cage Aux Fol/es with plenty to say about contemporary America's hypocrisy. Williams is superb (and more restrained) as the gay nightclub owner whose attempts to impress the right-wing parents of his son's fiancee go awry. Funny and sensitive. with excellent perfomtances. Glasgow: Odeon. Edinburgh: Dominion. Strathclyde: UCI Clydebank.
I Bloodsisters ( i8) (Michelle l-Iandelman. US. I995) 77 mins. An A—Z of S&M set against the backdrop of San Francisco's dyke leather community. who sometimes feel marginalised within an already marginalised group. Serious issues are juxtaposed with bizarre images and passtimes. Lesbian and Gay Film Festival. Glasgow: GFT.
I Boyfriends ( 18) (Neil Hunter/Tom Hunsinger. UK. I995) 85 mins. Made at the no-budget end of the British film industry. this gay variation on The Big Chill follows three male couples - all going through tempestuous times in their relationships — as they spend a weekend in the country. Lesbian and Gay Film Festival. Edinburgh: Filmhouse.
IW(IS)(MeI Gibson. US. I995) Mel Gibson. Patrick McGoohan. Sophie Marceau. I77 mins. Mel Gibson‘s long and bloody account of the life of Scottish warrior hero William Wallace boasts some remarkable battle scenes and great performances. Aiming to entertain on a wider scale than the more literate Rob Roy. Braveheart's Scottish passion is tempered by a few Hollywood moments — touches of sentimentality and ‘dramatic' historical inaccuracy. Nevertheless. it's a fine. full-blooded attempt to tap into the spirit that fires Scotland's history and heroes. Edinburgh: Odeon.
I DIM Dy The Sill (l5) (Nikita Mikhalkov. Russia. 1994) Nikita Mikhalkov. Oleg Menchikov. lngeborga Dapkounaite. I34 mins. Mikhalkov’s Oscar-winner is a genuine masterpiece. The gradual slide from the glory of the Revolution into the terror of the Stalin
dictatorship is concentrated into the events of a single summer's day in 30s Russia. as the country household of a popular Soviet officer is disrupted by the return of his wife‘s former lover. now a government infomrer. The sense of tragedy is immense. as the sunny. idyllic opening gives way to a darker. more uncertain reality. Glasgow: GFT.
I Casino ( l8) (Martin Scorsese. US. I995) Robert De Niro. Sharon Stone. Joe Pesci. I78 mins. Lifetime gambler Ace Rothstein is chosen as the mobs man in Vegas. and runs the casinos smoothly until things fall apart during the 70s. Scorsese's latest gangster epic has a touch of Greek tragedy about its downfall of a self-made man. but it's too much in GoodFe/las territory to bespecial. The cinematography and editing are as textbook as ever. and Stone delivers the performance of her career. Fife: Adam Smith.
I la Ceremonie A Judgement In Stone ( i5) ((‘laude Chabrol. France.- I995) Sandrine Bonnaire. Isabelle lluppert. Jacqueline Bisset.
I ll mins. An illiterate maid begins work at a posh btrt isolated home in rural France and begins a strange relationship with the obsessive local postal clerk. Clrabrol's masterly adaptation of Ruth Rendell's novel is like a reworked Heaven/y Creatures meeting a thinking-man's The Hand That Roe/ted The Cradle. Central: MacRobcrt.
I City Hall ( I5) (Ilarold Becker”. US. I995) Al Pacino. John Cnsack. Bridget Fonda. lll mins. When a shooting incident between a cop and a drug dealer ends in the accidental death of a young black kid. New York Major John Pappas (Pacino) finds himself in a crisis. Not only that. his idealistic assistant (Cusack) is beginning to discover" evidence of corruption in the background. Becker's direction sirows great control over a script that refuses to settle for simplistic morality. Pacino and Cusack are wonderful. Glasgow: Grosvenor.
I The City DI lost Children (15) (Jean-Pierre Jeunet/Marc Caro. France. I995) Ron Perlrnan. Daniel Emilfork. Judith Vittet. “2 mins. On a trust-shrouded oil rig. mad scientist Krank ages prematurer because he cannot dream. and so he kidnaps children from the local port and steals into their sleeping hours. A visually wonderful. wacky fairytale from the makers of Delicatessen. that brims over with cinematic imagination. Edinburgh: Cameo.
I colour Clinic A special event. launching contemporary music group Invisible Arts. showcasing the little known area of sound cinema. Six short acoustic films by electroacoustic composers will be projected through a state-of-the-art sound system. breaking down barriers and creating ‘a direct line between the ears and the imagination‘. Further information from Morven McLean on Ol3l 337 9033. Edinburgh: Filmhouse.
I The Confessional (I5) (Robert Lepage. Canada/UK/France. I995) Lothaire Bluteau. Patrick Goyette. Kristen Scott-Thomas. 100 mins. Acclaimed theatre director Lepage makes his film directorial debut with a complex. but marvellously visual tale that clashes past against present. Pierre (Bluteau) returns to Quebec and his quest for identity merges with flashbacks to the time Hitchcock came to town to shoot I Confess. Glasgow: GFI‘. Edinburgh: Filmhouse. I Copycat (I8) (Jon Amiel. US. I996) Sigoumey Weaver. Holly Hunter. Harry Connick Jr. I23 mins. A criminal psychologist (Weaver). who suffers from acute agoraphobia after an attack. is threatened by a copycat killer (‘My God. he's going to do Ted Bundy next') after a female cop (Hunter) tries to draw her out of retirement. A redundant. reprehensible slice of schlock that leaves a nasty taste in the mouth. Glasgow: Odeon. Grosvenor. Edinburgh: UCI. Strathclyde: UCI Clydebank.
I Cutthroat Island (IS) (Renny Harlin. US. I995) Geena Davis. Matthew Modine. Frank Langella. I23 mins. The daughter (Davis) of an infamous pirate inherits his ship. crew and mean reputation as she searches for an island and hidden treasure. Die Hard 2 director Harlin’s preference for blowing things up when the action sags shows lack of imagination and he lets it all go on too long. For a while. though. it's a matinee-style romp through all the peg-leg cliches of the genre. Strathclyde: Cannon. Odeon Ayr.
I Dead Man Walking ( l 5) (Tim Robbins. US. I995) Susan Sarandon. Sean Penn. Robert Prosky. 122 mins. A nun (Sarandon) begins her own difficult spiritual joumey when she becomes religious advisor to a brutal murderer (Penn) facing the death penalty. Sarandon‘s presence is unshowy and committed. Penn‘s vivid and deeply insightful. and Robbins's achievement is to make a film whose intensity and compassion ranks it far above the usual run of Hollywood pulp. Edinburgh: Cameo. Odeon. Central: MacRobcrt. Fife: Adam Smith. Strathclyde: Cannon. Odeon Ayr. UCI East Kilbride.
I Death M The Maiden (I8) (Roman Polanski.
UK/US/France. I994) Sigoumey Weaver. Ben Kingsley. Stuart Wilson. 104 mins. 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 Hitchcockian thriller (which trivialises Ariel Dorfman's source material). while Weaver waves a gun around like there‘s something creepy. crawly and extraterrestrial under the bed. Glasgow: Odeon.
I Deathwatch (I5) (Bertrand Tavemier. France/W. Germany. I980) Romy Schneider. Harvey Keitel. Harry Dean Stanton. I30 mins. In the future death has been excised from society‘s view. but a TV network with falling viewing figures comes up with a winner when they decide to plant a camera inside the head of employee Harvey Keitel so Ire can watch the terminally ill Romy Schneider and provide the station with an unmissable real life soap opera. Tavernier‘s first English language film has its lapses. btrt it‘s worth seeing for the marvellous use to which it puts Glasgow locations. Glasgow: GFT.
I la Dernier Tourant (PG) (Pierre Chenel. France. I939) Corinne Luchaire. Fernand Gravey. Michel Simon. 90 mins. A rare chance to see the first cinema adaptation of James M. Cain‘s The Postman Always Rings Twice. A
young woman living in the isolated Alps falls for
a handsome stranger and plans to kill her husband. Edinburgh: Filmhouse.
I Desperado ( I8) (Robert Rodriguez. US. i995) Antonio Banderas. Salnta llayek. Joachim De Almeida. 100 rrrins. Part sequel. part big budget remake. Desperado delivers all the shoot-outs and explosions denied us in Rodriguez‘s inventive debut El Mariachi. Banderas smouldcrs as the revenge-driven guitarist. but the emphasis is not on plot — delight instead in the glorious action set pieces. The ultimate firearm flamenco. Central: MacRobcrt.
I les lllaholiques ( l 5) (Henri-Georges C louzot. France. I955) Simone Signoret. Vera Clouzot. Paul Meur'isse. I07 mins. Fiendishly clever and rrurch imitated thriller in which a tyrannical schoolmaster is murdered by his wife and mistress. Except that he doesn‘t stay dead for long. The famous bathroom finale has frequently been borrowed. btrt this is the original and best. Edinburgh: Filmhouse.
I Dr llotPG) (Terence Young. UK. I962) Sean Connery. Ursula Andress. Joseph Wiseman. Jack Lord. l05 mins. The first Bond movie. and a vintage one at that. A very young-looking and Scots-sounding Connery works his charming (and — in hindsight - somewhat camp) way through the diabolical back passageways of Dr No‘s evil empire and the requisite number of floozies. pausing only to take out the occasional tarantula and take in the Caribbean scenery. To say nothing of Ms Andress' spectacular appearance on the beach with that conch shell . . . They don't make ‘em like they used to. Edinburgh: Filmhouse.
I Dr Zhivago (PG) (David Lean. US/UK. I965) Omar Sharif. Jtrlie Christie. Geraldine Chaplin. I93 mins. Big screen romance in the Gone Wit/t 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 lttsh. picture postcard photography. Edinburgh: Filmhouse.
I Dunston Check: II (PC) (Ken Kwapis. US. I995) Jason Alexander. Faye Dunaway. Eric Lloyd. 88 mins. There's monkey business aplenty when ajewel thief smuggles his orangutan partner-in-crime into a posh hotel. Adults will get even more out of this than kids. because the humour is irresistible. the characters suitably loathsome or adorable. and Sam the Orang a star in the making. General release.
I Eat Drink Man Woman (PG) (Ang Lee. Taiwan. I993) Sihung Ltrng. Kuei Mei Yang. Chein Lien Wu. l23 mins. Ang Lee‘s The Wedding Banquet was a surprise international hit: Eat Drink Man Woman surpasses it on every level. Chtr is the greatest chef in Taipai. btit for years his affection for his three grown-up daughters has been redirected into the lavish meals he prepares for them. When love unexpeCtedIy enters into the lives of all four. their inability to communicate comes to a head. Warm. funny. colourful. A joyful experiance. Glasgow: GFT.
I ECA Degree Show Always impressive. this year's collection of work by students at Edinburgh College of Art is eagerly anticipated. Subjects include Oldham Athletic Ladies Football Club. a motorway service station. tap- dancing aunts. a Burke and Hare musical. and an adaptation of Janice Galloway's ‘Plastering The Cracks‘. Edinbu h: Filmhouse.
I Executive Dec on (IS) (Stuart Baird. US. I995) Kurt Russell. Halle Berry. Oliver Platt. I33 mins. A team of Middle Eastern fanatics skyjack a 747. and US Intelligence pilot Russell reckons they're going to release poison gas over Washington. Sneaked on board in mid-air. he
Is fortnight. iii "
Catch the best Film tII
FIRST IIIII
I Beautiful Thing On a London housing estate one hot summer. two teenage boys embark on an affair that provides an escape from the problems around them. A low budget British gay movie that doesn’t preach. Edinburgh: Cameo.
I The Confesslonal Theatre director Robert Lepage turns his skills to cinema with the visually arresting. narrativer rich tale of two men searching for their identities in Quebec City. Glasgow: GFT Edinburgh: Filmhouse.
I Fargo Another top notch thriller from Joel and Ethan Coen. the makers of Blood Simple. Here they swap the sticky heat of the south for the murderous chills of Minnesota. Limited general release.
I Secrets And lies After the bitterness of Naked. Mike Leigh Opts for more emotive material as an adopted young black woman searches for her white working-class mother. This year's Palme D’Or winner at Cannes. Limited general release. REPEIITDBY
I Bill Douglas Trilogy Quiet, pained, poetic - My Childhood, My Ain Folk. My Way Home — the late Bill Douglas’s compression of memories on screen represents Scottish filmmaking at its finest. Edinburgh: F ilmltouse.
III Death Watch A rare opportunity to catch Bertrand Tavemier’s Scottish- shot sci-fi feature, with Glasgow atmospherically filling in as a futuristic city where death has effectively been banished. Glasgow: GFTI
falls out of contact with his bosses; so should they blow up the plane as it nudges closer to civilisation or not? A good beginning nosedives into formula with no hint of tongue-in-cheek. Edinburgh: UCI. Borders: Roxy. Fife: New Picture House. Strathclyde: UCIs.
I Eye For An Eye (I8) (John Schlesinger. US. I996) Sally Field. Kiefer Sutherland. Ed Harris. IOI mins. Karen (Field) listens helplessly on a mobile phone as her daugher is raped and killed. When the suspect is released on a technicality. she follows him around and meets up with a dodgy vigilante group. The momentum of the tense. distressing opening scene isn't carried through. and this straightforward thriller won't win any prizes for originality. See review. Glasgow: MGM Parkhead. Edinburgh: MGM. UCI. Strathclyde: UCIs.
I Fargo (I8) (Joel Coen. US. I996) Frances McDonnand. Steve Buscemi. William H. Macy. 97 mins. Hoping to make some bucks. a car salesman attempts to have his wife kidnapped by hitmen: but quickly blood is spilt. As the pregnant police detective on the case. McDortnand provides a warm-hearted centre for the movie. while the absurdist plot and weird local colour gain momentum. It‘ll be considered
a classic. given time. Glasgow: MGM Film
3D The List I4-27 Jun I996