Films screening this fortnight are listed below with certificate, star rating, credits, brief review and venue details. Film index compiled by Miles Fielder
About Adam 1 l5) 0. t(ierard Steinbridge. Ireland. 2001 l Stuart 'l‘ownxcnd. Kate lltldxotl. l'it‘anccx ()‘(Jtllllltlti ltlfi ininx. Initially toying with the
com entionx of the boy meetx girl xtereoty pe. Stembridge introducex ax to lmely Lucy ()wenx tHudxonl ax xhe meetx my xterioux Adam t'l‘ow nxendi againxt the backdrop of a modern day Dublin. A whirlwind romance enxuex and after much xaccharine xweetnexx culminating in a marriage propoxal. Slc‘ltlltl‘ltlge ix ready to get hix xtll“ erxiyc mixxion underway. A rather odd xcx comedy that'x neither funny nor xe\y and xhunx the moral high ground of the claxxic rout-coin formula to xuggext that infidelity can in fact be a good thing. The lumicrc. ladinburgh. Aimée And Jaguari 15).... i.\l;i\ liii'berbock. (icrinany. Itltll l Juliane Kohler. Maria Schradcr. llb ininx. 'l‘ruth ix indeed xtranger than fiction. lt‘x 1043. wartime Berlin. l.i|ly tKohlcri. paragon of .\'a/i motherhood. bi'a/enly conduch affairx while her xoldicr litixband ix at the front. l'elice tSchraderi. a Jewiin lcxbian poxing ax a (icnlile. workx for a .\'a/i ncwxpapcr while xiipply ing the underground with information. Two more unlikely bcdfellowx could not be found. But the pair become
loy crx. An inxpirmg. thrilling. moy ing and completely true talc. (‘ameo. lidinburgh. Ali 1 [Si O... tMichael Mann. l‘S. 30(th Will Smith. Mario Van l’ccblcx. Jon \'oight. 15-1 ininx. The trouble with .l/i ix that two and a hall hourx ix not enough time In l'L‘llH‘ lllc‘ lillL‘ ill the Sput'lx l’t‘l'\tlll;lllly ()l‘ The (‘cntui'y li\en condcnxtng it into the ten yearx from Not. when .-\li beat Sonny l.ixton to w in the world title. to hix \ iclory in the Rumble In The Jungle againxt (ieorge l‘oreman xtill pt'm ex unxatixfy ing. The film urgex tix to forget what we thought we knew. xteering the action away from the ring ax much ax poxxiblc. Yet there are xtill 3U minutex of ring time to appeaxe light fanx. (ienci‘al rclcaxc.
Amateur Singing Contesti 15» t l/lllxtt Ka/uyuki. .lapan. I‘N‘H ll." minx. \odo Jitnan ix a renow ncd .lapancxc xinging tournament for wouldbe pop idon and hax been on air for 53 ycarx. trayclling the country for amateur talent. Spooly fun looking at a quartet w ho giy e it a xhoi, (iilinoi'chilK i l 2. (ilaxgow.
Amélie t 15! ..... ilean l’ieri'e .lcuitet. l‘rancc. Itltll iAudi‘cy 'l'autou. Mathicu Kaxxoy Ill. Serge Merlin. llll minx. Ax w ith hix two prey iotix l'i'cnch lantaxiex.
lh‘lit (llt’\\('ll and [lie (in ()1 /.u\l (‘lii/t/n'n. .lcttttet creach a lantaxlical world. here rcimagining l’arix' oldext quarter. Montinartrc. Within ll the eccentric adycnturex of hix epony inoux heroine Iplayed by captiyating eltin newcomer Tautoui unfold in a manner ax comple\ ax a Sw ixx timepiece w hen Amelie decidex to bring happinexx to dexcr\ ing people by playing elaborate practical iokex on them. (’ompoxed of many moincntx of abxolute wonder. thix ix a lilm w hich celcbi'atex all the little. great thingx lll life. Brunton 'l‘hcatre (k l)otlllnioil. Edinburgh,
An Everlasting Piece t 15) 00. «Barry l.e\inxon. l'S. ltltll l Billy (‘onnolly Anna l'i'icl. Barry Mclnoy. 1th l]lll]\, ('raig l'L‘l'lelxtlll camped it up ax a honioxc\ual hairdrexxcr in Hip lite It (my and now fellow \‘xcxt coaxl lad Billy ('onnolly takcx up the xcixxoix ax the balmy ‘Scalper lll thix comedy xcl .igainxt a backdrop of troubled MK llt‘llthl, .lH /'.l('I’/(l\/Ill‘\' l’li'r (’ ltlL'll\t‘\ til] the plight of two barbcrx. (‘atholic ('olin I_\lcl:\oy. who .ilxo w role the xct'ipt. baxtng one of the characterx on hix latlici‘i and l’iotexlant (icoi‘gc iBi‘ian I'. “By met. who loi'in an unlikely pai'tnci'xhip to coi‘nci tltc haii‘piccc market w hen iiyal company 'l'oupcc ()l' \ot 'l'oupcc thrcatcnx to pit! them out ol buxincxx. l he lunncic. ladinbuigh.
Anastasia t l’( l l O... t Anatole l.it\ak. l'S. l‘)5(il Ingrid Bergman. Yul Brynner. Helen Hayex. 105 minx. Bergman returned to Hollywood after her notorioux ltalian dalliance with Roxxellini and won herxelf an ()xcar in thix xtory of a woman picked out of the crowd to impcrxonate the loxt daughter of the laxt Rtixxian ('Iar. Well mounted Hollywood xuper-production. l’l'll (‘inema. l’alkirk.
Apocalypse Now Fledux 1 IS) 0000 tl‘rancix l-‘ord ('oppola. l'S. 1979/2001) Martin Sheen. Marlon Brando. Robert l)u\all. 202 minx. ('oppola'x new. longer cut of hix Vietnam war maxterpiece includex more of l)u\'al|'x era/y chopper commander Kilgore. a xecond encounter with the Playboy Bunniex. a new xequencc xet on a remote l’rench plantation adding hixtorical background and Brando cxpounding upon the inxanity of war. It ixn't an improyement. btit conxidering tlte circumxtancex under which it wax filmed — in the l’hilippinex where
any thing from hurricanex to heart attackx plagued the caxt and crew you want to xec e\erything they got on film. l'('l. ('lydebank. Aprile tl’(il t.\'anni Moretti. l‘rance. l‘NSl “S ininx. A more oby iouxly political work than hix prey ioux lilmx. thix ix an intriguing mo\ ie lying xomew here between reality and fiction. in which Moretti celebratex both latherhood and the rixe of the ltaliaii l.eft. liccentric. heartfelt. an\ioux and tetchy. it'x little wonder hex xeen ax xouthern liurope‘x anxw er to Woody Allen. (El-“ll. (ilaxgow.
C9 Atanarjuat, The Fast Runner
t Ht 0.... I/acliariax Kunuk. ('anada. 200] l \atar l'ngalaq. litigcne lpkarnak. l’eter Henry Arnatxiaq. I73 ininx. Thix remarkable xingular beautiful lilm ix the fier to be entirely in the Inuit language. It ix quite ximply ax pure and perfect a piece of narratiye cinema ax you are e\ er likely to xee today. When an unknown xhaman ptitx an e\ il xpell on a group of nomadic lnuitx liy ing off the (‘anadian Arctic it takex twen- ty yearx before two brothei'x emerge to chal- lenge the e\ ll order. Director Kunuk ney ei' letx the xtunning xcencry o\ crpow er the many minute drainax being acted otit by a moxtly non-profexxional. thotigh iinprexxiye caxt. liilmhouxc. lidinburgh.
Atlantis: The Lost Empireit‘i
O. tKll'k Wixc. (iary 'l‘rouxdalc. l‘S. Illtll I Voiccx Hi Michael J. l'i)\. Jattlcx (iarner. John Mahoney. (lb minx. The baxic pt'ctlttxe ol l)ixney \ lalcxt. the tlixctnet’y til, the loxt. mythical empire of Atlantix. ix a \c‘cllat'lti with \tmtititimm llltlc‘ll \L‘tlpc for magic and enchantment it xhould be iinpoxxible to fail. Btit it ix rcalixcd with all the \ ixual and imaginatiye panache of a jaded xtrcct artixt. l‘urtherinore. it xorely Iackx ait eyebrow —arching. pupil-narrow ing. gloriouxly caricatured \ illain. Similarly. Milo. the geeky hero l \oiced by l"o\i ix deficient of charm and arouxcx little xy mpathy. Ax l)ixney 'x t‘alxoll d'cll‘e ix the good/bad tllcltoltlllly. ll xeeinx not only wax the liinpire loxt. but a grand opportunity too. Selected releaxe. Balkanisateur t the) (Soul-ix (int-itxax. (irccce. 1097i 08 minx. ('oinedy about two friendx w ho attempt to xtrike it rich by exploiting differing currency exchange ratex. Part of the (ireek l-‘ilm l-‘extiyal. l‘ilmiiouxe. lidinburgh.
Bangkok Dangerous 1 l8) .0. (Danny and ()xidc l’ang. 'I'hailand. 3(ltlll l’awalit Mongkolpixit. Premxinee Ratanaxopha. ltlS minx. 'I'hix xty lixed thriller begx coinparixonx with the bulch balletx of Jolm Woo. ('ertainly the cool camerawork. employing xlow -mo xhotx and dixtorted imagery. ix reininixcenl of Woo. The territory. too. ix pure Woo: the underworld of gangxtci'x and pi'ofexxional hitmen. Then theie'x the theme. one Woo hax returned to often: detached profcxxionalixin \‘erxux perxonal loyalty. In the l’angx' film. that theme ix played out through the xtory of Kong tl’awalit Mongkolpixill. a hii'cd killer w ho ix .ilxo a tlcal-iiiiite. l'ltiinatcly. tltough. Bangkok [hinge/mu ix further towardx the arthouxc end of the xpectruin than Woo'x ltlltlx. l '( i(' chl'rew Sll'L‘L‘l. (iltlxgtm. Baran t l’( it (Maiid Majidi. lratl. loot» Hoxxein Abedtni. [chm Balirami. Mohammad Ainir \giii. ‘l-l minx. Timely drama c\aiiiining lran'x troubch
relationxhip with Afghanixtan. ax xeen through the experiencex of Afghan labourerx working illegally on an Iranian building xite. Part of liarly Spring. (il’l‘. (ilaxgow; l‘ilmhouxe. lidinburgh.
A Beautiful Mind 1 Ill 0.. (Ron Howard. l'S. 2003i Rtlxxell ('row e. Jennifer (‘onnelly. Paul Bettany. 135 ininx. A Beautiful Mind once more prexcntx ('rowe with the opportunity to alternate hix tough guy rolex ((ilmliumrl with ‘xerioux acting' txee ‘l'lu' [rim/er). Here (‘rowe playx John .\'axh. the mathematicx geniux during hix college dayx in America in the l‘Htlx. but alxo a paramiid-xchi/ophrenic. who wax neyerthelexx awarded the Nobel l’ri/e late in hix life. On the negatiye xide of the equation. Howard‘s direclion xtink‘x. llix el'l'oi'tx to make math interexting fail dixmally. A for ()xcarx effort. but (' - for contribution to the field of biopic cinema. See feature and
re\ iew. (ieneral releaxe.
The Believeri l5) 0... tllenry Bean. IS. 200] l Ryan (ioxling. 'l‘herexa Riixxell. Billy lane. 08 ininx. A young New York
Jew ixh kid w ho'x alxo a neo-Na/i ix about ax proyocatiye ax xubiect matter getx. The xtory of Danny Blint rejecting hix yexhiya xtudiex to adopt a xkinhead uniform and undertake :1ch of terrorixm. might time been mere cheap xenxationalixin were it not for the thought- proyoking manner in which w riter-director Henry Bean iuyextigatex the xtory. and the fact that hix xcript ix baxed on a real caxe from the l‘)(i(lx. l‘nxurprixingly. Bean ta Jew l got hiinxelf into hot water in America. but hix film ix a cerebral theological and philoxophical inquiry which tranxcendx criticixm. (il’l'. (ilaxgow: (’ameo. lidinburgh. Black Hawk Down t IS) 00
(Ridley Scott. l'S. 2()()l l Joxh Haitnett.
liw an Mc(iregor. liwen Bremner. l-l-t minx. Scott‘x war mm ic. baxed on the book by Mark Bow den. dramatixex the 1993 battle in Mogadixhu between [S ground forcex and Somali militia. recaxting what wax exxentially a military dixaxter ax a tale of American heroixm. lt'x a one-xided.
jingoixtic \‘lCW of the eyentx. playing to the
American public in the wake of l I September. 'lechnically. it'x a remarkable. graphic re-enactment of modern urban warfare. Yet. although we're clearly expected to be appalled. two full hotirx of orchextrated carnage ultimately coinex acroxx ax yoyeurixtic. Selected releaxe. Blue Planet tl'l (2001 ). An awexome trip around. above and beyond our planet on the [MAX giant xcreen which prompted the llitxliiuglon I’m! to write: ‘If a picture ix worth a thouxand wordx. one image from Blue I’lum'l ix worth a lillion'. IMAX Theatre. (ilaxgow.
The Blue Room ttbcl (Variottx. l'K. 2()(ll l. An eyening of .xhort lilmx by new and extablixhed local lilininakei'x. followed by tltxc‘tlxxionx of what ytitl'Ve \L'L'll. ll. _\Utl “(till your film to be conxidered for future gatheringx. then xend a VHS copy to Film .-\tltl Vltlct) Accexx ('entre. 35a Siltllll \Vc‘xl 'l‘hixtle Street Lane. lidinburgh. lillZ ll-IW. Or call ()131 320 ()230. ('aineo. lidinburgh. Blue Velveti IS) .0000 (“mid l.y itch. l'S. WSm Kyle Macl.achlan. Dennix Hopper. lxabella Roxxellini. l2t) minx. In xinaII-town Middle America. would—be boy (lClCL‘llVC Macl .tlL‘llltlll lilltlx it xey'ered car on xoine w axle ground. When the police xhoo him away llL' tlecitlex to do \tllllC
Russell Crowe as maths genius/schizophrenicJohn Nash in A Beaut
index Film
itul Mind
inyextigating of hix own. A xingular fuxion of the coxy and the terrifying which blendx kitxch and nightmare. B-moy'ie detection and brutal xex to deconxtruct our complacent \‘ixion of normal xociety. 'l'hix ix film- making of remarkable imagination and xkill. l’ilmhouxe. lidinburgh; ('ineworld. l‘alkirk. Borstal Boy ( .\'(‘l tl’eter Sheridan. Ireland. 2001 l ()3 minx. The fier feature from the brother of Jim ix baxed on the xeini-autobiographical novel of Brendan Behan in which an lrixh lad leay'ex hix linglixh borxtal in 193‘). filled with ainbiguoux feelingx towardx the Britx. The imnatex are a mixed bunch including a gay xailor. a pxycho and a (ierman Jew. The opening lllt)\'lC of thix year‘x lrixh Reelx. The Lumiere. lidinburgh.
The Boy From Mercury (PG) 00.. (Martin Duffy. l'K/l‘rance. I‘No) Jainex Hickey. Rita 'l'tixhingham. Tom Courtney. 87 minx. liight-year-old Harry (Hickey) belieyex he hax xpecial powerx granted him through hix birthplace being Mercury rather than Dublin. a belief booxted by yixitx to the Saturday morning lilm club and hix lack of a father figure. An irrexixtible tale of memory. loxx and the xearch for a better future. If you manage to xit through thix without wilting intojelly at Hickeyk painfully innocent performance. then you haye the heart of a tyrant. The Lumiere. lidinburgh.
0 Bully ( 18) 0000 (Larry (‘lark. t‘S. 2002) Nick Stahl. Brad Renfro. Rachel Miner. l 12 ininx. If you can get paxt the fact that ('lark ix the biggext paedoy‘oyeur work- ing today then there ix lotx to enjoy in the new mm ie from the director of Kids. Bully ix baxed on the true xtory of Bobby Kent who wax murdered in l’lorida in 1993 by a group of teenagei'x led by hix bext friend Marty l’uccio. Ax you would expect from thix legendary photographer. Bully lookx great and ix naturalixtically paced and acted. .\'o one catchex xeedy xuburban teenage nihilixm better than (‘lark. See preview and re\ iew. l'(i(' Renl‘rew' Street. (ilaxgow; l'(i(‘ ('ineinax. lidinburgh.
Charlotte Gray t 15) 0.. (Gillian .»\rmxtrong. l'K. 2002) ('ate Blanchett. Billy (‘rudup. Michael (iambon. Ill ininx. There‘x a fundamental flaw in thix adaptation of Sebaxtian Faulkx' novel about a young Scotx woman who ix trained as a xpy by the Britixh Army during the Second World War and dropped into occupied France to work with the Rexixtance movement: it‘x about ax tenxe ax an epixode of “Al/u. ‘ul/u. The film focuxex too much on the characterx and not enough on the action. In contenting hiinxelf with character are and ritex of paxxage narrative. xcreenwriter Jeremy Brock and Armxtrong have abandoned the heightened drama of the xtory. l-‘ine pcrformancex. though. (ieneral releaxe.
9.9.5.... —
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cinema VOUCHER
28 lob-1.1 Mai 2002 THE LIST 25