Film
The Squid and the Whale ( ISi
.... (Noah Batltllbach. l‘S. 3005i l.aiira l.inney. Jetf Daniels. Jesse falsenberg. ()w en Kline Xflnun, Bernard (Danielsi is a once acclaimed noyelist whose star has long since waned and now works as a uniyersity professor. When his wife stans to base success with a noyel of her own. the resulting demise of their marriage has a profound affect on their two children, Writer/director Bauinbach concentrates on characters and moral conundruins oy er nlelixlrainatic plot points. In doing so he brings a unique angle to depicting diyorce on screen, An acerbic and ix‘casionally kooky and brilliant work. ('arneu. Edinburgh.
The Stolen Children ( rm 0.. ((iianni Amelio. Italy. l‘)‘)2l lznrico l.o Verso. Valentina Scaltci. (itiiseppe leiacitano. I llinin. A relationship deyelops between an ltaliaii policeman and two delinquent kids in his charge after their mother is arrested Superb performances grace this gentle study of the meaning of genome freedom. l'.tlropcall Film of the Year at the l‘NZ l‘eliy Awards. Part of ('inema Sud: Filminaking in the South of Italy. l-i/nihouse. Edinbiujeh.
* Strayed (Les Egares) ( lh'l 0... (Andre 'l‘echine. France. 2003) liinnianuelle Hcal'l. (iasptlrtl l'lllel. (iregoire l.eprince- Ringiiet. ()Sinin. It‘s l‘)~l0 and the French ()ccupation is beginning. ()dile (Benin) is
w idow ed and leases Paris with her children: their car is bombed and they take refuge in woodland w here they encounter wild boy Yyan. and settle in an abandoned house. Intense. quietly assured character study about a family cut adrift from its own emotional bearings. See review. page 42. l'i/Hl/lllllw'. Edinburgh.
Take the Lead ( In) .0 (fix Friedlandei‘. l'S. 200m Antonio Banderas. Rob Brown. Alfre Woodard. Dante Basco. Ray l.iotta. l l7min. Dangerous Minds meets .llad llol Ital/mom in this likeahle htit totally predictable ballroom dance cra/e cash-in roinancer. Still. this is at least a million times better than Shall We I)anee.". Selected release.
Thirst (Atash) ( llAl .O. (Tawfik Abu Wael. Israel/Palestine. 300-1) Htissein Yassin Mahajne. Amal Bweerat. Roha Blal. I l0min. Somewhere in the Occupied 'l‘ei'ritories. a Palestinian family ekes otit a precarious liy'ing by making charcoal at an abandoned military outpost. Bleak and uncompromising drama whose resolution illuminates the way fanaticism gets passed down between the generations. Film/louse. Edinburgh.
36 China Town ( 12A) (Abbas Alihhai Burmawalla/Mastan Alibhai Burmawalla. India. 2005) Kareena ls'apoor. Shahid Kapoor. Akshaye Khanna. l40min. (‘hinatown based Bollywood suspense fiick. ()deon .-ll 'I‘he Quay. Glasgow; Glasgow: ()deon l'iirr Kinnaird. Edinburgh.
Three ( ISl 0. (Stewart Raftill. l'K/laiseinbourg. 200m Billy Zane. Kelly Brook. 95min. Fairly turgid desert island lliriller from the master of straight-to-y'ideo fare. Raffill (Lost in Afriea. The New Slt'iyy Eamin Robinson. Mae and Mel. Three pctiple are marooned on a desert island but only one w ill sury be. At least stars Zane and Brook got to enjoy a nice working y'acalion ~- that's the main thing. (ieneral release. Three Colours: Red ( IS) 000. (Kr/y s/tof Kieslow ski. France/Switz/ Poland. I‘M-ll Irene Jacob. Jean-Louis 'l'rintignant. Ohmin. Kieslowski's tricolour trilogy comes to a close with what may be his greatest mastemiece. A Swiss model (Jacob) discoyers that a retired judge ('l'rintignantl is listening in to his neighbours‘ phone conversations. but instead of denouncing him. she too opens up her innermost secrets. Superficial details are stripped away as the director concentrates on parallel liy es and interwoy'en destinies. ('ameo. Edinburgh.
Three Dollars ( I5) (Robert Connolly. Australia. 2005) [)ay'id \Venham. Frances ()‘(‘onnor. Sarah Wynter. l l8min. .-\daptation of Elliot Perlman's novel in
w hieh a typical modern day patriarch is catapulted into an atay‘istic society. Eddie (played by [)ay‘id ‘Faramir‘ Welhain) is
52 THE LIST 1 1—25 May 2006
relegated front the supremacy of globalised infrastructures and forced to scayenge as a way of supporting his family Thus. issues of loy'e. morality and suryiyal are examined in contrast to the soocalled high point of cty ilisation. Part of London Alistralian Film Festiyal on Tour l-‘ilnihouse. Edinburgh.
* Time to Leave (Le Temps Gui Reste) ( lh'l .... flirttllctlls ()ltilt. France. 2005) Melyil Poupaud. Jeanne Moreau and Valeria Brunt-'l‘edeschi. 35min, See rey iew. page 4 I. l-‘i/nihouye. Edinburgh. TransAmerica (Gold Class) ( lSi .0. (Duncan Tucker. l'S. 3005i Felicity Huffman. Keyin Zegers. Fionnula Flanagan. l03inin. Pre-operatiy e transsexual Bree (Huffman) finds out she has a son, Posing as a ('hristian missionary. she driy es the l7-year-old across the LSA. At what point is it safe to tell him 'she' was a 'he'. and also his falher'.’. the Edinburgh. Edinburgh.
U-Carmen eKhayeIitsha ( DA» 0... (Mark l)orntord-.\lay. South Africa. 2005l Pauline Malefane. Andile Tshoni. Lungelwa Bloti. Zweiltingile Sidloyi. l20inin. This community theatre- ish film project dey'eloped and set in a South African township 20 miles outside (‘ape Town is something of a delight. Featuring a whole plethora of well fleshed ladies and gentlemen hanging out Bi/et's opera in the Xhosa dialect in the shebeens and dusty streets of likhayelitsha. linbued with a kinetic energy. this film can't fail to impress. (i/uygmi' Eibn 'I‘healre. (ilaygmi'; Eilmhouye. Edinburgh.
Vittorio de Seta Documentaries it’l O... (Vittorio de Seta. ltaly. l‘JS-l-S‘Jl 130mm. Selection of stunning documentaries made by Sicilian horn filmmaker l)e Seta between 195-1 and WS‘) chronicling the lives of fishermen farmers in Southern Italy. Part of (‘inema Sud: Filininaking in the South of Italy. I’i/Illlmuye. Edinburgh.
Waiting (Attente) ( IZA) (Rashid Masharawi. France/Palestine. 2005 l Youssef Baroud. Mahmoud Massad. Areen ()mari. ()(llllllt. A new film by Rashid Masharawi examining Middle liastern identity and
Pierrepoint
tension It follows Ahmad on his final mission of scouring Jordanian. Syrian and l.ehanese refugee camps for talent for the National Palestinian 'lheatre before leay mg the country. llassled by the authorities on all sides. the difficulties of creating any forms of escapism or reality become apparent. and Ahmad is torn between his quest and the promise of freedom abroad Part of Palestinian Filin Festiyal. I'i/Hl/lilllyr'. Edinburgh. l . (Rttl‘ blt’Klllflcb. l'S. 20%» Ryan Reynolds. Anna Farts. Jlistin Long. l.uis (iii/man ‘l-linin. See Also Released. page ~12 (it'rli'ru/ I'c'ft'ilyi'. Walk the Line ( DA» 0000 (James Mangold. l'S. 2005i Joaquin Phoeniy. Reese Witherspoon. ('iinnifer (ioodw in. Robert Patrick. Hoinin. l.ikeable Johnny ('ash biopic w hich follows the man in blacks quest for June ('arter's heart. ('iolden (ilohe winners Phoenix and \Vitherspoon ((‘arterl are hugely engaging she as the impish Southern lady and he as the brooding inappropriate suuor. Hall the [me eyplains how the pair's loy e w hich went unfulfilled as they were still married to different people while telling of their eyentual uniting and Johnny beating his addiction to amphetamines. See Rough (his. page 4 l. I'ilmhouye. Edinburgh. Wallace 8. Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit ( l 'l 0... (Nick Park/Stey'e Box. 1K. 200% Voices of Peter Sallis. Ralph Fiennes. Helena Bonham (‘arter 85min. The long-awaited feature- length debut for Park's plasticine master and mutt Wallace A': (iroinit. is, to coin a phrase. a grand day out. This time. the cheese- on'ing Wallace and his canine chum haye reinvented theinselyes as a humane pest- control outfit ‘Anli-Pesto‘ and there's a mysterious ‘were-rahbit‘ on the prowl at the local neighbourhood (iiant Vegetable competition. Knowing fun for all the family, (X'( ’I ('ly'debank. (’lydebank; ()demt For! Kinnaird. Edinburgh. When a Stranger Calls ( IN 00 (Simon West. [S 2006) (‘amilla Belle. Tommy Flanagan. Katie (‘assidyz 86min. See Also Released. page 42. (ieneral release.
The White Countess ( l‘( o .00 (James lyory. l'Kil'S (iciinany t'luna. 3005i Ralph l-iennes. \atasha Richaidson. Vanessa Redgraye. l ynn Redgias e l iStnin Set in late l‘l‘ytls Shanghai. .\leichant
lyory 's last ey er lilni togelhei eyploies the curious relationship between a ietugee \Vhite Rtissian countess ieduted to a soidid life in the city 's bats and a disillusioned hunter 1 S diplomat (l‘iennes i. deeply bereay ed by the deaths of his w He and children yictnns ol yiolent eyents in the political turmoil of l‘l‘ytls t‘hina that also robbed him of his sight Slight but interesting (i/ayeoii Iiim [hi-tare (i/ilyeim
Who Shot the Sheriff? ( l:'\l ( -\I.in Stiles. l'ls'. 200M “(linin liliis \l(\\tllllt'lll.tl_\ combines the conteinpoiaiy l oy e \fusic. Hate Racism tainpaign with its historical antecedent Rock Against Racism ('uiienl musicians like Pete Dollein .iiid .\fs Dynamite continue the iesistance ofteieil back lit the "70s by The ('Iain and other rockers against .\'eo \a/isin and the National Front. (i/iiseou li/in [hear/r. (ihlyuiiii.
Yours, Mine and Ours (lltli O. (Raja (iosnell. IS. 3005) Dennis ()iiaid. Rene Rtlsso. Sean l'al‘ls. Katlla l’cyec 00min. Somebody. soinewheie belieyes that what the world needs iiglit now is a ( "hr ape: by the l)o:en rip off and. right on cue. comes liiury. .lline and ()u/ y. a ielllakc of a much older film (which itself was based on an improbable btil true story l. with Dennis ()uaid atid Renee Russo taking on the roles formerly played back Ill l‘loS by Henry Fonda aiid l.uci||e Ball. as a w idowei w itli eight kids who falls for a widow w ith ten children of her ow n. A ()0 minute argument for birth control (ll/eon .li Ila Quay. (ilaygoii, (i/ayeoii ; ('f 'I ( 'lydebank. ('luh'billlh
lathura (P(ii.. (Joli l'ay ieati. IS. 2006) Jonah Bobo. Josh llutcheison. 'l’iiii Robbins. l13mm.'l‘wobi'otheis embark on an adyenture as their sci—ti boai'dgaine comes to life. l'ninspired cliildien's fantasy along the same lines of .lunian/i ('iiieiioi/d I’arkheild. (i/aseim ,‘ (‘ineiiuild Izdlnbuieh. Edinburgh.
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Last chance to catch Adrian Shergold’s compelling portrait of Albert Pierrepoint, one of the UK’s last professional hangmen. This unusual biopic follows Pierrepoint (played with grace and intelligence by Timothy Spall) from the simplicities of pre war Britain to the Nuremburg executions (which he led) and on to his enforced retirement. Pierrepoint paints a fascinating picture of a nation in time. The early screenings of this film on Saturday 20 and Wed 24, and the only screening on Sun 21 will be preceded by the excellent rarely seen Glasgow set short documentary Hanging with Frank.
I GFT. Glasgow from Fri 79 May.