Film index
The Importance of Being Earnest it.) 0.. (()liy'er I’arker. l'K/l 'SA. 2002) Rupert Everett. (‘olin I’irth. Judi I)cnch. 97min. Fans of Oscar Wilde's ‘triy‘ial comedy for serious people‘ will he more thaii familiar with the plot. Rural gent Jack Worthing tl-‘irthi inyents an errant hrother called liarnest as a means of escaping the mundanities of a life in the country. Jack. or rather liarncst‘s partner-in- crime. the wily Algy .\loncrieff thay ed to perfection to Iiy'erettl also has a made-up friend who he Visits in the country to outrun the deht collectors who pursue him in the city. This douhle duality comes a cropper. though. when both men go courting w is es (\‘y'ithers‘poon and ()'(‘onnori. The ensuing farce. conducted via Wilde‘s hriIIiantIy witty epigrammatic style t‘.-\u.stra|ia‘.’ I'd sooner die!‘ ). is a delight to watch although committed Wildeans w ill find that they foresee the punchlines hefore they happen. (iencral release. In the Bedroom t tSr 0000 t‘t‘otfa l‘ield. t'S. 2001i Sissy Spacek. Tom Wilkinson. Marisa Tomei. 130mm. Inspired by Andre l)uhus' short story Killings. In I/It' Bulnmiii is an exceptional dehtlt feature from actor-turned-liImmaker 'I'odd field. It examines. with great seiisitiyity and insight. the aftermath of an unexpected hereayeiiient when the son of .\latt and Ruth f-'ow ler (Wilkinson and Spacekl is murdered. Stylistic indulgences are prudently kept at Inf). and it's also blessed with a series of expertly calihrated performances. not least from Wilkinson and Spacek. .-\nd there‘s no clear-cut closure or cheap redemption. Iidinhurgh I‘ilm (itiild. Iidinhurgh. Insomnia t fit 0... i(‘fu~'isiopher Nolan. I'SA. 2002f Al Pacino. Rohiit Williams. .\lartin I)oflo\ an. llxmin. Nolan re-directs the Norwegian thriller of the same name as a smartly-plotted thy llillary Sell/i American crime drama which halances fine characterisation and thematic concerns w ith stunning set pieces. The film centres on a
hattle of w ills hetw eeii l’acino's \eteran cop and Williams disturhingly normal killer. Said hattIe occurs in the northern Alaskan township of Nightmutc. a place of perpetual daylight where I’acino’s \Vill I)oriiier can‘t get no satisfaction. neyci' mind sleep. You're unlikely to see such confident genre filmiiiaking come otit of Hollywood again this year. (iencral release.
Into the Deep tI‘i t\'ariotis. l'S. 200Il .\lin thc. .il) I.\l.v\.\ presentation. l.\l:\.\. (ilasgow.
Iris t I5l O... tRichard Iiyre. I'K. 2001 I Judi Dench. Kate \Yinslet. Jim Bi'oadhent. ‘Jflltiill. 'I‘hc lo\ c story of two of this century 's most significant w riter- academics. Iris Murdoch and John Bay Iey. is on ingly created from Bayley 's recent memoirs. It ultimately plots .\lurdoch's descent into the agonisiilg fog of .»\I/heimer's. htit is inter-cut with scenes of the early. tentatiyc on e hetween these two ()yford starlets. Although the later years are more inyoly ing than the early ones. the two narratiyes switch with deft slickiicss. 'I‘ake tissues. _\ou might need a few. (‘ineworld. I‘alkii'k.
Jubilee t IHi 0.. tl)erek .Iai'mail. I'Is. I‘FSI Jenny Runacrc. little Nell. loyal] \YIIE‘UV IIHmm. ()iicen Iili/aheth l is transported through time to \ ml the decaying nation of her ilailiesake successor as eyeiiiplified hy punk London. Dated Iooktiig now of course. htit amidst the determination to shock there's a good deal of tart hlack humour and a few typically loyely .Ial'fllall images. l‘iIiiiliouse. Iidinhurgh.
Kate 8: Leopold mm 0. dailies .\langold. I’S. 2002i Meg Ryan. lltlgh .Iackiiian. l.iey Schrciher. I2Iiiiin. Leopold tJackmanl. an Iiiiglish Duke in IN?) New York. is Iueiiig forced to many for money. (il\ mg chase to a furtiye fellow he finds at a party at his home. the two men finally fall from the Brooklyn Bridge Switching to 21st century Manhattan. the man in
WINNER
* * * *THE BIG ISSUE
Philip French - THE OBSERVER
Roger Clarke - THE INDEPENDENT
- (U) .-. '..‘,—\:- . at“. r H": “fly -‘ it" “’ " ' . " Hanoi-i". — a ' g. f 2 “L — .._..y.--_ ., . -" .: .- '- ' A film by Babak Payami (ENRMAKHF'f Based on an idea by Mohsen Makhmalbaf ~ ’ / NaSSIm Abdi Cyrus Abidi An Artificial Eye Release
BEST DIRECTOR - VENICE 2001 INTERNATIONAL CRITICS' PRIZE
"Delightful...perceptive...
perfectly for med " Alexander Walker EVENING STANDARD
****Wi
"The latest little masterpiece from Iran ”
* * ‘k * "Should get everyone’s vote ”
"More fine fare... "TIMEOUT
LONDON 2001
****mi
STARTS 11 OCT fiLMHouse
36 THE LIST Ti 7/ ()(L’. 20’)?
Lotfliatl Road, Edinburgh 0131-228 2688
tiue\tioli. Stuart tSchreihci'i. has discoy ered a portal to cross time and has inadyei'tently taken I.eopold hack with him. Stuart's downstairs neighhour happens to he his e\~ girlfriend Kate tRyani. (‘ue on e interest for Leopold. What follows is an often tii'esoliic. oiin occasionally aiiiusiiig comhmation of tiiiie—tray eI. humour aiid romantic comedy. interspersed with the clumsily deIiyered message that in modern times we hay e forgotten the important things in life.
especially the arts of courtesy and courtship.
()deon. .-\y r.
Khahi Khushi Khabie Gham tl’(ii tRaiiy .\leiion. Iiidlaflalilil. 2001i 2I0miii. 'I‘he Hollywood 'I‘oni ('rliisc. Rtlkli ls'hail. plays Ralitil. a young man who falls for the peppy :\ll|aIl. I.oye rarely running smoothly. the romance displeases RahuI‘s father. Yash. who wants him to marry the more suitahle Naina. Part of the Iiiiagiile:\Sl.v\ season. (il'lli. (ilasgow.
Kissing Jessica Stein t ISi COO t('harles lIerniaii-\Vurmfeld. I'S. 2002i IIL‘alItL‘l' Jltcl'gcllsefl. Jennifer \VL‘SIIL'ItlI. 00min. \Vestfeldt plays Jessica. a neurotic iournalist who‘s fed up with the string of loser dates she‘s had iii the past. ()n a whim. she answers an intriguing woman seeking woman personal ad and meets Ileleii tJuergenseiil. a seyually curious art gallery owner intending to emhark on her first leshlaii affair.
The performances are superh with a wry strong support east w lfli some gi'eat .\lanhattan location work tilot an easy achieyciilent in such a \isually familiar city I. this has oodles of quirky independent appeal. Rectiiiiiiiended. I'('I. liast Kilhride. K-Pax t 12) O. tlaiii SoftIey. l’S. 2002i Key in Spacey. Jeff Bridges. .\Iary .\lc('orniack. I2lmin. I’rot is a gentle. unassuming alien from the planet K-I’AX. who y isits liarth and ends up in a mental institution where he genially allows
I“) chiatrist Bridges to tr) to ‘cure' him. while at the same time managing to cure his fellow patients aiid sort otit Bridges' life too. Or is l’rot merely a nut'.’ 'I‘heorctically. this is a role made for Spacey: Ilowey’cr. Spacey plays I’i'ot as a cross between his character in The (Raul Suspects and Rohin Williams in any of his yomit-iiiducing roles. There are some nice aesthetic touches. hut they don't succeed in diverting your attention from the fact that this is a bland and uninspiring waste of a good story. ()deon. Iidinhurgh: ()deon. Kilmarnock. Lantana t 15> .000 (Ray Lawrence. .-\iistralia/(ieriiiaiiy‘. 2002) Anthony l.al’aglia. (ieoffrey Rtish. Barhara Ilershey. I2 I min. This small cinematic gem L‘\ploi'cs the great themes of It“ c and loneliness in a wry quiet and considered iiianliei'. I‘Uttl' marriages in total are hrought into play. each of them wrought
w itfi guilt. paiii and loneliness. and hccause the film opens with a close up of a dead woman's body concealed ill a dense thicket. we know that in the course of the action. one of the marriages will reach the ultimate end. l’art murder mystery. part psychological drama. part on e story.
My Kingdom — King Lear in modern Liverpool
[Jill/(lift! keeps you on your toes while it also makes you think ahoiit the ways in which we deal. or rather don't deal w ith emotional pain. Selected release.
The Last Broadcast I Is. I... tStefaii .'\\;tIst)/I.;lllet‘ \Vcilci'. I‘S. I‘NSi l)ay id Beard. James Seward. Stefan .-\\alos. Soiiiiii. (‘oiiipai‘isoiis with [In I‘ll/If Iii/i li I’m/mi which was released first. hut. according to .-\\ans and \Veilei‘. iilade later are hard to ignore. It's not merely the story of a young TV crew setting up a Iiye
w ehcast a\ they go deep Into the backwoods of .'\tllCI'lL'.l ill search of the Jersey l)ey il that recalls li/iiii' Ill/(fl. hilt also the use of a \ ldco diary kept It} the t‘\pltlf'cl's to It‘\ cal to us their fate. Similar. then. htit I'lii' lust lil‘tItIt/t’tlyl tlttt‘sfl'l compete \\ IlIl llle UIIIL‘I' film‘s simple. higth effectiyc storytelling scare tactics. l'iliiihoilse. I'.tIlflI‘lll‘j_‘Il.
Lilo & Stitch ill .0. il)eaii I)eh|ois and (hits Sanders. IS. 2002i Voices of Day eiin ('hasc. (‘Iii'is Sanders. 'I‘ia (’ari‘erc. .\5iiiiii. I'his is all ahout heliig had. It's a Disney cartoon that pits a wilful toddler. l.iIo tpronoiinccd I.ce low I. against a genetically engineered space creature tStitchi prograiilllied for iiia\imiiiii mischief. 'I‘hus the mawkish route heloy cd of Disney animators is well alid liiin hIockcd. UK. so it's a iililioi moyie it doesn't hay e the htidget oi \ ision of a .l/HIIyli’I’y. lift . and [list I‘L‘catlst' It's got water colour hackdrops doesn't nlake it Hum/m hilt what it does. it does with freshness and Ill\ entiy eiicss. not to mention gags for the grown ups. See rcy iew. (iencral f'L‘IL‘tt\L‘.
A Little Princess it’( o 00.
t.-\Ifonso (‘uai'oiL I‘S. 1005i Iileaiior Bron. I.iain ('tiiiniiighaiii. I.iesel .\Iatthews. (Flinn. Yotiiig Sara is forced to Ieay e her pri\ileged life in India for a New York girls' hoarding school when \\'\\'I hreaks out. Things turn for the worst. how e\ er. when her father is reported missing-iii-action and. penliiless. she is suhiccted to the cruelty of schoolmistress .\Iiss .\linchin. .\ moyie with a sense of real magic and [m e of storytelling. that is hcautifully designed and intelligently acted. (EFT. (ilasgow.
Live Flesh I IS) 0... tl’cdro .-\Ittlodo\'at‘. Spain. WWI Jay ier Bardem. I.iherto Rahal. Francesca Neri. 100mm. Based on a Ruth RendeII story. .-\hnodoyar's most rounded attempt to enter the mainstrealii follows the fate of a
w heeIchair-hotlnd policeman. the young man responsihle for the hullet that put him there. and his wife. with whom the recently released cony ict is in one. .\ny message waiting to he read is drowned in the hrightest aiid deepest of cliieiiiahigraphic e\pei'iences. and the pleaslues here are scyei'al. But there's .i IIlIlI that the diicctoi has slipped iiito middle giotlild iliediociity. ('anieo. Izdiiihurgh,
The London Weekend Show ls‘s‘ll the) t\'aiiotls. l‘ls'. l‘f""i .\‘tfmm. I’uilk filmed hefoic it hecaiilc a pheiioliiciioii. oil lllc‘ Janet Sll'et‘l I’tlllet ll'tttllctl I \\ I iiiaga/iiie sliow. Includes a specially staged Sey I’istols perfoiiiiaiicc. (‘(‘ \. (ilasgow.
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