cnd as hc lcapl'rogs his way through various human forms in ordcr to bring about thc .-\pocalypsc. Bcn llopkins' ycry strangc ay'ant gardc comcdy combincs (icrman lixprcssionist sct picccs with thc ludicrous comic inycntion ot' Monty Python. Though ncy-cr quitc as clcy'cr as it thinks. this chaotic film is rcally' a loyc lcttcr to London. and thc most idiosyncratic moyic this ycar. Scc rcy‘icw. ('amco. lidinburgh.
North Sea (1') (Harry Watt. t'K. I938) 30 mins. .\ladc two y'cars al‘tcr Night Mail. this was thc sccond of thc (iP() l’ilm l'nit's documcntarics of thc 30s, a human story of rcalism against rcality. 'l’hc I.umicrc. lidinburgh.
The Others t Ill 0... (Alcjandro :‘smcnabar. l‘S/Spain. 2()()l ) .\'icolc Kidman. l-‘ionnula Flanagan. Alakina Mann. Jamcs licntlcy'. 101 mins. 'I'lic ()Ilivrs combincs all thc clcmcnts of thc \"ictorian (iothic thrillcr. but .»\mcnabar's Amcrican dcbut is actually sct on Jcrscy. at thc cnd o1~ World War 11. Kidnian plays (iracc. a highly-strung woman who kccps hcr childrcn lockcd up in an old mansion bccausc shc hclicy‘cs thcy' will dic il' cxposcd to thc sun. Howcy'cr. thcy' do not (l\\L‘ll thcrc alonc. Amcnabar's is a moody talc that rcsts on thc impossibility of working out what is rcal and what is supcrnatural. .-\ triumph of mcrcilcss psychological manipulation. (icncral rclcasc.
Palestine, A People’s Record 1 I2) tKais al-Xobaidi. Palcstinc. 198-1) ll() mins. Account of Palcstinian nationhood bctwccn 1917 and 197-1 which utiliscs archiyal l‘ootagc of thc pcriod. Part of
IOQ 0H
Palcstinc :\t 'l'hc Picturcs. l‘iliiihoiisc. lidinburgh.
Paris: XYI 15) l/cka I.aplainc. lirancc. 3001lSylyiaVaudano. Lisa lidmonson. Pilou 1.oua. 81) mins. 'I'hc story follows thc torrid lil'c ol‘ Max. who is haying an affair with a jaH singcr. who slccps with his bcst l‘ricnd and busincss partncr. With a linc ja/l trip-hop scorc. Part ot' thc l-rcnch l’ilm i:C\1l\';ll. (ii-'1‘. (ilasgow.
Passing Summer: I51 t:\ngc|a Schanclcc. (icrmany. 21101 1 l‘rsina l.ardi. Andrcas Patton. Sophic :\igncr. 85 mins. Potrait of Bcrlin mm a six month pcriod ltK‘tlSSlll}! on thc liy'cs of a group o1 lhirtysomclhings. Part ol~ thc (icrman liilm PCSIthl. l-‘ilmhousc. lidinburgh.
The Piano Teacher (La Pianiste) (181 .0... l .\lichacl llanckc. l"rancc/.-\ustria. 7.11111 1 lsabcllc lluppcrt. 12‘) mins. .-\s with his prcy ious lilms. ('m/i' l'nknown and I‘mmy (iumm. Hanckc shows but docsn‘t tcll. ll‘s it“ [0 thc audicncc lo piccc togcthcr lllL‘ disltlt'hcd psy'chc ol. iit‘ika Kohut. thc \'icnncsc piano tutor of thc titlc (littppL‘l'l l. Hanckc lclls th‘ 1;th (bascd on lill‘ricdc Jclinck‘s noy'cli through a scrics o1 bcautil'ully composcd sccncs. cditing thcm togcthcr with thc prccision ot' a surgcon. Huppcrt capitaliscs on hcr opaquc yisagc. providing hcr dircctor with a bcautil‘ully nuanccd undcrstatcd pcrlormancc. It's a plcasurc to 'rcad' this film. and no surprisc it garncrcd both conlt'oycrsy and awards at thc ('anncs l"ilm l'cstiyal. l-‘ilmhoUsc. lidinburgh.
A Place In Berlin 1 IS) tJtlt'gL‘n Bottchct‘. (icrmany. 311011 88 mins. 1-'ormcr cast (icrmany' documcntary makcr Bottchcr combincs lootagc of a 1081 film about a
Drop-outs Jay and Bob get frisky with Carrie Fisher's nun in Kevin Smith's shamelessly adolescent foul-mouthed comedy Jay And Silent Bob Strike Back
Marx and lingcls monnmcnt in liast Bcrlin with an csploration of thc monumcnt's post- (‘ommunist al‘tcrlil'c. Part of thc (icrman liilm l-‘cstiy'al. (il’l'. (ilasgow: l’ilmhonsc. lidinburgh.
Planet Of The Apes t 121 0..
(Tim Burton. l’S. 211111 1 Mark \Vahlbcrg. Tim Roth. llclcna Bonham (‘artcr l 1‘) mins. Burton's rcmakc of thc scicncc liction classic rctains morc of thc cntcrtaining social satirc ol Picrrc Boullc‘s sourcc noy cl than thc 1908 original. .\'c\'crthclcss. thc lilms sharc a similar plot: An astronaut llittlc Mark \Vahlbcrg taking thc placc ol' manly. bc-loinclothcd ('harlton llcstoni is marooncd on thc planct and capturcd by thc w ar-likc apcs. 11c mccts a libcral t'cmalc chimpan/cc tllclcna Bonham-(‘artcrl. who hclps him cscapc. and lcads a t'cy'olt against thc simian oppt'Cssors. .-\s you might expect. Burton's slpcs cxcccds thc original film in makc-up whilc paying rcspcctl‘ul homagc to it. llowcycr. thc plot. tonc and pacing is a mcss and this is thc lcast Burton-csquc ol' Burton's lilms. .\'cw Picturc lloiisc. St Andrcws; .\1acRobcrt .-\rts (‘cntrc. Stirling. The Pledge t 151 0... (Scan Pcnn. IS. 20111 1 Jack Nicholson. Robin Wright- Pcnn. Sam Slicpard. 133 mins. in thc cold mountain rcachcs of .\'c\ ada thc body ol‘ a littlc girl is found. rapcd and murdcrcd. .-\ simplc-mindcd \atiy'c .-\mcrican is sw it'tly takcn inlo L‘ttslody and a cutilt‘ssltm is cxtractcd. follow ing which thc man kills himscll'. .-\n opcn and shut casc . . . l'or cycryonc but Jcrry Black (an admirably low kcy Nicholson). a rctiring policc ol‘liccr who thinks thcy hayc thc wrong man. (’ouchcd in thc com cntions ol' a thrillcr. Pcnn's third lilm as dircctor is first and
index Film
l'orcmost a compclling psychological study of a middlc-agcd man attcmpting to giy c his lil‘c mcaning post-rctircmcnt. chy and Mary ()lson Kromolow ski's script. adaptcd t‘rom l‘ricdrich l)urrcnmatt's noycl. kccps things ambiguous. Pcnn countcrs this. dirccting with an cy'cn hand and casting a sombrc mood oy'cr thc procccdings. l-‘ilmhousc. lidinburgh.
Point Break 1 15) O... IKathryn Bigclow. IS. 1991 1 Kcanu Rccy cs. Patrick Sway/c. (iary Biiscy.1.ori Pctty. 12(1 niins. Dircctor Bigclow (If/11c SIch .\‘¢'ur Ihil'ki takcs on llolly wood's action/adycnltn'c big boy s at thcir own gamc and comcs out on top. Rccy cs is thc cagcr young H31 rccruit on thc trail of a group of latcs-maskcd bank robbcrs who arc known to bc surlcrs. Bigclow tacklcs clichcs ol' buddy panncrships. macho bullshit and thrillcr shoot-outs with l'rcsh cncrgy. crcating a tcrrilic moy ic that has onc loot in rcality. thc othcr in an absurdist world. ('amco. lidinburgh.
Presque Rein (Almost Nothing)
1 IS) 0... (SCbasticn l.il'shit/. l’rancc. 2011(1) Jc‘rcmic lilkai'm. Stcphanc Ridcau. 1()() mins. 1.il‘shit/'s intcnsc. moody. homo- crotic l‘caturc conccrns lilkaim's drcamcr who is holidaying in thc South of lirancc
\\ ilh his dcprcsscd mothcr and surly youngcr sistcr whcn hc is litcrally follow cd homc from thc bcach by hunky Ridcau. l)c_spitc coming l'rom y'cry' dit‘l‘crcnt backgrounds thc mcn tall in low. and thcir affair is charch in all its \olatilc. intoxicatcd cxccss. Bcautil'ully pcrl'ormcd with rcal nuancc. l’rquuv Rim capturcs thc minutia of first on'c. li\hilarating and scsually proyocatiy'c. Scc rcy icw.
LI i~.‘ Li '5 1Y1 . i ::