Film index
Death in Venice (15) 000 (Luchino Visconti. Italy. l97li Dirk Bogarde. Bjorn Andressen. Silvano Mangano. 128mm. Ageing celebrated composer Von Atiscenbach (the capable. slightly rniscast Bogarde) comes to Venice in the midst of a creative crisis and becomes infatuated with a beautiful Polish boy who embodies the kind of physical and spiritual purity he's been looking for in his work. Highly decorative attempt at the unfilmable. though the use of Mahler's l-‘ifth Symphony is highly affecting. Edinburgh l’i/m Guild. Edinburgh.
Dogville (15) ..... (Lars \‘on Trier. Denmark/Sweden/l"rance/Niirway/Netherlands lFinland/(iermany/ltaly/Japan/L'S/t7K. 2002i Nicole Kidman. llarriet Andersson. Lauren Bacall. Jean-Marc Barr. Paul Bettany. l78min. Von Trier's huge. beastly experiment in form. Shot on studio stage sets in homage to the BBC dramas of the ()0s and 70s. l)ogi'ille tells the slowly disintegrating story of (irace (Kidman) an impoverished woman who stumbles into a small. isolated. turn of the century pioneer town to ask if the locals will take her in. Of course they're wary at first but (irace proves a tonic to all as she helps blind Jack McKay ((iazzarai around the house and baby-sits and cleans for the locals. A remarkable and unique achievement well worth the challenge of sitting through. Film/rouse. Edinburgh.
Don’t Worry, It’s Just a Phase 1 12A) ((‘ecilia Nearit-l‘alk. Sweden. 2003) 74min. A video scrap book of the lives of three girls who are just realising they like girls more than boys. Film/rouse. Edinburgh.
The Dreamers t 18) 0000 (Bernardo Bertolucci. l,‘K/l"rance/ltaly. 2003) Michael Pitt. Louis (iarrel. liva (ireen. Robin Renucci. Anna Chancellor. l 15min. Twins Isabelle (Green) and Theo ((iarrel) first meet American student Matthew (Pitt) at a protest rally surrounding the sacking of the director of the cinernatlieque. llenri Langlois. The trio bond through their shared love of imitating their screen idols and recreating scenes from their
favourite films. Much of this elegantly shot filrn unfolds in a rambling Parisian apartment. in which the three adolescents can retreat from the outside world and engage in sexual experimentation. A return to form for this great director. (Y El. (i/usgnii‘.
Easy Rider 1 lb) .... tl)ennis Hopper. l'S. 1960i l’eter lionda. I)ennis llopper. Jack Nicholson. ()Jiiiin. Two dudes on choppers with a couple of tanks ftill of drugs. riding across America iii search of . . . what'.’ The Dream'.’ l’reedom'.’ \Vell. tltey don't fitid it. What they do find at the close of the l‘)(v0s is the butt end of a bad trip. Whether you regard this as the best biker movie ever made or a generation-defining classic for bolhl. the impact. now and then. of Iiusv Rider can't be overstated. (‘(‘A. (ilusgow:
Elephant 1 15) 0000 ((itts Van Sant. t'S. 2003) Alex l-‘rost. liric Deulen. John Robinson. lilias .‘vlc('onnell. Jordan Taylor. 81min. Quiet. intelligent. non judgemental
theqj
Thursday l8 March 7.45 pm
Friday l9 March 7.30 pm Mugenkyo Taiko Drummers
Saturday 20 March 7.30 pm Hotel California Ltd presents The Eagles Story
Sunday 2| March 2.30 pm Edinburgh Quartet
Wednesday 24 March 7.30 pm Regular presents Horse
Scottish Chamber Orchestra
qh: the hq of live music in edinburgh
Clerk Street Edinburgh EH8 9J6 Booking Hotline: 0|3| 668 20|9 www.queenshalledinburgh.co.uk
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Thursday 25 March 8.30 pm Assembly Direct presents Salsa Celtica Friday 26 March 7.30 pm DF presents Lambchop Saturday 27 March 7.45 pm Scottish Chamber Orchestra Sunday 28 March 7.45 pm Meadows Chamber Orchestra Wednesday 3| March 7.30 pm George Heriot’s School Showcase
34 THE LIST 18 Mar—1 Apr 2004
Johnny Knoxville plans a Grand Theft Parsons
pseudo reconstruction of the events that could have led up to a (‘oluinbine-style school massacre. Van Sant uses real students to play the parts of the kids as he slowly reveals different parts of the day through various points of view. A major work. this is a fascinating experiment in the heart of the [S indie scene. I'i/mhoust'. Edinburgh.
Ell tl’(ii ... (Jon l";i\'reati. l'S. 2003) Will lierrell. James ('aan. lidward Asner. ‘mein. Buddy tl’errelli is a big lilf w ho. though accepted in his lilvish community in the North Pole. manages to wreak havoc on a daily basis. l-‘ed tip and confined by his charge. l’apa lilf t Bob Nevvharti sends him to the [S in search of his true identity. llilarious and puerile Yuletide comedy frorn the star of Swingers. ('(‘I. (‘lyrle/mrrk.‘ l‘f'l. lidinhurgh. Elling l l5) ... tl’elter Ntit‘ss, Norway. 3003) Per ('hristian lillefsen. Sven .\'ordin. 00min. Iz'lling follows two middle-aged psychiatric patients who are offered the opportunity to live by themselves in art ()slo apartment. The dtto itiake for all odd cottple combination: the narrator. lilling (lillefsen). is a self-styled ‘munimy‘s boy‘. By contrast. Kjell Bjarne t.\'ordini is a lumbering bear of a man. Based on a best-selling novel and a hit play. lz'lling is a gently good-natured fable. which cherishes the potential in people society is keen to dismiss. The comic mismatching feels slightly predictable. but it's effectively shot and solidly acted by its leads (in a reprise of their stage roles). Edinburgh l'i/m (iuild. Ifdin/iurgh.
The End of Summeril'i COO. tYasujiro ()lll. Japan. l‘)(vl i Yoko Tsukasa. Setsuko llara. (ianjiro .\'akamura. 102mm. ()/u‘s penultimate iiltn focuses on the extended Kohayagavva family in post-war Japan. They are planning for the youngest daughter Noriko thukasai to enter into an arranged marriage. and for their widowed daugliter-iri~lavv Akiko tllarai to find a suitable new husband. A health scare for the head of the clan Manbei t.\'akamurai results in cv eryone gatherng round the old man's bed. Beautifully shot in colour. The land o/Suninu'r acknowledges both the passing of a traditional way of life and the inevitability of death. yet it's also filled with generous qualities of warmth and humour. ('umm. Izdinlmrgh. England! t lSr tAchim yon Bort‘ies. Germany. 2000) Ivan Shvedoff. Merab .\'inid/e. 98min. The story of \‘aleri Silkorski. one of the thousands of soldiers deployed to clean up the ('hernohyl disaster. In the aftermath. having been told he is now terminally ill. Valeri heads off to lingland via Berlin to look for a childhood friend. (im'lhi’ Invlitul. (i/(lvgmi:
Enlightenment Guaranteed (Erleuchtung Garantiert) i no fl)oi'is Dorrie. (iermany. 1090) 108mm. In this freewheeling comedy two brothers a kitchen salesman and a lieng Shui consultant escape the stress of the workplace by taking a trip to Japan to chill in a Buddhist monastery. But their night on the town in Tokyo proves to be a more reliable tonic for their problems. (im'tlu’ Institut. (iluvgmi‘.
Etre et Avoir (To Be and to Have) tt'r .... (Nicolas l’hiliber't. lirancc. 2002i (ieorge l.ope/. l04min. l’hilibert's
documentaries are well recognised for managing to equal the emotional depth normally produced through great fiction. and this film is considered his most successful to date. having premiered at lillil". '1}; lie and to Have documents one year at (ieorge Lope/'s one-room school house in the remote dairy farming region of Auvergne. ('unuw. Iz'dinlnu'gh.
Fear x f 12A) ... (Nicolas Winding Rein. (‘anada/l)enmark/t 'K/Bra/il. 3004) John Turturro. Deborah l'nger. James Remar. ()lmin. See interview and review. Se/m'ted re/r'u'.
Floating Weeds ll’( ii .000 (Yasujiro 0/“. Japan. 105% (ianjiro Nakariiura. Machiko Kyo. Ayako Wakao. lliroshi Kawaguchi. llaruko Sugimura. ll‘hiiin. In a sleepy seaside village in southern Japan. a group of travelling players arrives one sultry summer. The troupe's leader Koniajuro (Nakamura) soon looks up his former flame ()yoshi (Sugimurai. (hit of jealousy, ls'omajuro‘s current mistress and leading lady Sumiko (Kyoi instructs a young actress Kayo (Ayako Wako) to seduce Kiyoshi. Richly atmospheric late period 0111 that illustrates the filmmakers accomplished visual artistry. I’louting lli'i'rlx deftly shifts from the comic to the melancholic. ever respectful of the transience of human lives. the film treats its beleaguered characters with notable generosity. ('unu’n. Ifdinlmrgh.
Game Over: Kasparov and the Machine tl’(ii (Vikram Jayanti. (‘anada/t 'ls'. 2003) ()0min. (iarry Kasparov is arguably the greatest chess player who's ever lived. and this is the story of the events surrounding the IW7 match he lost against IBM’s computer Deep Blue. The psychological perspectives. paranoia. accusations. and defences surrounding the ancient game are explored through interviews with Kasparov. his manager. chess experts and members of the IBM Deep Blue team. Because many saw the loss as a blow against humanity. the film insightfully ponders man's relationship with. and supremacy over. machines. I-‘ilmhouse. Edinburgh.
Ghosts of the Abyss 30 tl’(i) (James ('arneron. l'S. 2004i 59min. Documentary in which master storyteller James ('ameron leads all expedition back to the site of his greatest inspiration the wreck of the legendary Titanic where nearly l500 people lost their lives over a century ago. l'sing state-of—the-art technology developed specifically for the film. ('ameron and his team are able to explore the wreckage and bring it to screen in 31). The audience is able to experience an archaeological dive as if they were right in the dive ships or even as the crew 90 years ago. HHX. (i/(txgmil
Girl with a Pearl Earring l 12A)
.. tl’eter \y'ebber. l'K/l .uxeinbourg. 2003i Scarlett Johansson. (’olin l'irth. Tom Wilkinson. Judy l’arfilt. ('illian Murphy. 95min. Adapted from the book by Tracy Chevalier. Webber's siitiipttiously upholstered film deals with the story behind the creation of Vermeer‘s famous painting. Marred by miscasting and an overly literal approach to the cinematography. this is a major disapjmintment: a fascinating story has been rendered itito a dull. syrup-thick tale of love and peasantry. Dominion. Ifdinlmrjgh. Goldfinger ll’(i) 0000 ((iuy llatnilton. l'ls’. WM) Sean ('onnery. llonor Blackrnan. (iert l’robe. l 12min. The one with l’tissy (ialore. ()dd Job. Shirley Bassey belting it out. Shirley liaton covered in gold and a typically over-the-top plot as mad Auric plans to break into Fort Knox. Much better on the big screen when it doesn‘t have to be crariuned into the TV frame. l)mnininn. lidinlmrgh. GoodFellas 1 IS) 000.. (Martin Scorsese. ['S. [990) Robert De .\'iro. Ray l.iotta. Joe l’esci. Lorraine Braco. l’aul Sorvino. l-tSmin. l.iotta plays llenry Hill. a real-life Ina/inst). with De Nit‘o as his mentor in crime. And while the bullets. lists and carving knives fly. Scorsese brings its back to that unavoidable question glattiot'ous and lucrative to live this way. but can anyone really live with the consequences'.’ Winner of BAl-‘l‘A awards for best film. director and screenplay. and a Best Supporting Actor Oscar for Joe l’esci. ()demr. l'fr/inlmrgh.
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