www.lisi.co.uklfilm
Films screening this fortnight are listed below with certificate, star rating, credits, brief review and venue details. Film index compiled by Paul Dale
It: Indicates Listpicks entry
Adulthood ( l5) .0. (Noel Clarke. UK. 2008) .\'oel Clarke. Adam Deacon. Danny Dyer. 99min. In the sequel to 2006‘s Kidulthood troubled toughie Sam's (Clarke) London-based inner-city struggles continue on his release from prison. lissentially a vanity project for star/director/writer Clarke (best known as Rose's boyfriend in Doctor Who). his authentic portrayal of contemporary youth and some neat visual tricks ensure he leaves an undeniably impressive calling card. Selected release. Alvin and the Chipmunks (ti) 0.. (Tim Hill. LS 2007) Jason Lee. David Cross. Cameron Richardson. ‘)lmin. Likeable pre-school comedy featuring a bunch of pint sized chipmunk pop stars and their long-suffering human guardian (Lee). ( 'irteworld Edinburgh. Edinburgh. Angus, Thongs and Perfect Snogging ( 12A) 0.. ((iurinder Chadha. US. 2008) (icorgia (iroome. Aaron Johnson. Alan Davies. l00min. After [lend it Like Bee/(ham. Chadha takes a step into younger territory with this adaptation of two of Louise Rennison's books. The film lacks the sharp wit of slick American comedies such as Clueless and Mean Girls. but earns points for featuring actresses. including lead (ieorgia Groome. who really are the age of the characters they‘re playing. General release front Fri 25 Jul. The Apartment (PG) om. (Billy Wilder. lfS. l‘)(i()) Jack Lemmon. Shirley Macl.aine. Fred MacMurray. l25min. This new print of Wilder‘s corrosive 1960 lampoon of corporate America tells the story of spineless insurance statistician CC Baxter (Lemmon). Having fallen into the practice of leasing his apartment to his superiors for illicit liaisons. Baxter is rewarded with high-speed promotion. All of which suits him line until he realises that one of the ladies being taken back is the girl of his dreams. Ei/mhouse. Edinburgh. Baby Mama ( 12A) 0000 (Michael McCullers. LS. 2008) Amy Poehler. Tina Fey. (ireg Kinncar. 98min. When her doctor bluntly tells her that he ‘doesn't like the shape' of her uterus. Katc (Fey) engages the surrogate services of baby mama Angie ()stowist (Poehler). a trailer trash (iwen Stefani-wannabe. liach generation gets the Mary Tyler Moore it deserves; as creator and star of NBC's .i’l) Roek sitcom. Fey has earned herself the right to be 2008's funny—girl. General r‘eleaM'frorn Fri 25 Jul. Before I Forget ( Ix) (Jacques .\'olot. France. 2007) Jacques .\'olot. Jean-Pol
Dubois. Marc Rioufol. l08min. (iay gigolo Pierre (Nolot) is left destitute when his wealthy benefactor of 30 years dies. Suffering from poverty. loneliness and writer's block. the 58-year-old struggles to cope in this dry portrait of self-discovery. Part of the Lesbian & (iay Film Festival. Glasgow I-‘ilm Theatre. Glasgow.
The Belles of St Trinians (PG) (Frank Launder. UK. l954) Alastair Sim. Joyce (irenfell. (ieorge Cole. ()lmin. The original of the girls' school series. with Sim in top pantomime dame form as the headmistress and (ieorge Cole as an ‘Arfur Daly' prototype spiv. (‘t‘neworld I’arkhead. Glasgoii'.
Bigger Than Life ( IS) 0000 (Nicholas Ray. US. l‘)5(i) James Mason. Barbara Rtish. Walter Matthau. 95min. Mild-mannered schoolteacher Mason‘s personality is transformed when the drug he is routinely prescribed tums him into an addicted megalomaniac. Director Ray concentrates on the trappings of suburbia that stand around his central character and also contribute to the breakdown. A classic melodrama with a sharp social eye and great lilmmaking skill. much deserving of contemporary reassessment. Part of the Trouble in the 50s season. Glasgow I’ilm Theatre. Glasgow
Birdman of Alcatraz (PG) (John Frankenheimer. IFS. I962) Burt Lancaster. Karl Malden. Thelma Ritter. l47min. Frankenheimer‘s absorbing drama tells the true story of the redemption of a convicted killer. Robert Stroud (Lancaster. giving one of his finest performances) leaves a trail of violence and murder on his way to death row. but finds redemption when he finds a wounded sparrow and secretly nurses it back to health. Part of the Burt Lancaster season. Eilrrthouse. Edinburgh.
The Blue Angel (PG) .000 (Josef von Sternberg. Germany. 1930) limil Jannings. Marlene Dietrich. Kurt (ierron. l()8min. Berlin‘s decadent cabaret era is vibrantly brought to life as Dietrich's voluptuous singer Lola-Lola sets out to seduce and destroy a bourgeois schoolteacher. In her first major role. the actress taps into a potent current of female sexuality. Part of the Modernin and Tradition season. Film/rouse. Edinburgh. Bra Boys ( 15) (Sunny Abberton/Macario dc Sou/.a. Australia. 2007) 90min. The most commercially successful Australian documentary ever released. lira Boys offers a rare insider‘s glimpse into the notorious surfing tribe of south Sydney's working class beachside suburbs. Narrated by Russell Crowe. Part of the London Australian Film Festival. Glasgow l-‘ilm Theatre. Glasgow; I'illtlh(rtls(’. Edinburgh. Bratz: The Movie (PG) 0 (Sean
McNamara. LS. 2007) Logan Browning. Janel Parrish. Nathalia Ramos. Skyler
This excellent season of the former trapeze artist’s films continues with The Kentuckian
(which Lancaster also directed), Elmer Gantry, Birdman of Alcatraz, The Leopard and Sweet Smell of Success (pictured). The latter features Lancaster’s best-ever performance, as JJ Hunsecker, the monstrous newspaper columnist who tells Tony Curtis’s slimy gossip hustler: ‘You’re dead, son. Get yourself buried.’ They don’t write ‘em
like that no more.
I Fi/mhouse, Edinburgh, from Wed 17 Jul.
Shaye. 1 10min. The popular dolls Brat]. finally come alive in their first live action feature film: a shallow. depressing affair that sends out mixed messages about camaraderie and consumerism. Empire Clydebank. Clydebank.‘ Glasgow Eilm Theatre. Glasgow The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian (PG) 0. (Andrew Adamson. UK/US. 2008) Liam Neeson. Tilda Swinton. Ben Barnes. l43min. In the second instalment of the Narnia films. the Pevensie children are summoned back to Narnia for a slick. fast-paced romp through dark woods. underground cavems and fierce battles. With a simplistic plot. and Caspian (Bames) reduced to a pretty face. Disney may have finally brought Narnia to the big screen. but for a real joumey of the imagination. stick to the books. General release. A Complete History of my Sexual Failures ( 18) mo (Chris Waitt. UK. 2(X)8) Alexandra Boyarskaya. Danielle McLeoad. ()livia Trench. 93min. Documentary filmmaker Waitt sets out to contact all of his ex-girlfriends. to discover what makes him such a rubbish boyfriend. leading to a trip to Edinburgh. A brisk pace. a desire to bare all (literally) and (Thris‘ very ordinary but anxious humanity makes this slightly insular premise engaging viewing. Glasgow Eilm Theatre. Glasgoii'; Cameo. Edinburgh. Cross Life ( 18) (Claire McCarthy. Australia. 2007) Imogen Annesley. Paul Caesar. Tony Barry. l()0min. Set in King's Cross. Sydney‘s red light district. this vivid drama takes us deep inside the infamous community. where people sell sex but yearn for love. Part of the London Australian Film Festival. Eilmhouse. Edinburgh.
The Dark Knight (12A)
(Christopher Nolan. 2008) Christian Bale. llealh Ledger. Maggie (iyllenhaal. 152min. Following on from Nolan‘s critically and commercially successful Batman Begins. this sequel promises to be bigger and possibly even better in almost every way. lnevitably. though. expect proceedings to be overshadowed by Ledger‘s final screen role. as Batman‘s (Bale) arch-nemesis The Joker. General release. Dinosaurs Alive 30 (U) (David Clark/Bayley Silleck. US. 2007) 40min. Follow palaeontologists as they scour the globe for sortie fantastic dinosaur finds. then watch the creatures burst into 3D life. IMAX Theatre. Glasgow. Donkey Punch (l8) 0. (()liver Blackburn. UK. 2007) Julian Morris. Nichola Burley. 99min. Tammi (Burley) joins her two girlfriends on a holiday in Mallorca. only to be lured onboard a luxury yacht by some unscrupulous boys. Messy drug taking. DlY porn-making and a series of violent deaths by knife. rope. flare gun and outboard motor follow. A misguided British attempt to muscle in on the already hackneyed torture- porn genre. Selected release. The Edge of Love (15) 0000 Maybury. 2008. UK) Keira Knightley. Sienna Miller. Cillian Murphy. Matthew Rhys. l l0min. Welsh chanteuse Vera Phillips (Knightley) happens upon old lover Dylan Thomas (Rhys) who is now married to Caitlin (Miller). They become a firm threesome until Vera falls in love with young officer (Murphy) and group dynamics shift unpleasantly. Based around real events. Maybury‘s film is clever. funny. insightful and full of killer lines. Selected release. Elmer Gantry (PG) (Richard Brooks. L'S. I960) Burt Lancaster. Jean Simmons. Arthur Kennedy. Homin. Controversial in its day. this look at revivalist religion is unlikely to raise many eyebrows ()0 years later. That said. it‘s still an entertaining. intelligent movie. thanks largely to the
(John
presence of Lancaster. Part of the Burt Lancaster season. Eilmhouse. Edinburgh. Essentials: Protest ( 15) (Various) 82min. Presenting iconic cine-pamphlets. cine-manifestos and film essays that mobilised the social energies of discontent. crisis and struggle which convulsed the 20th century. including: Jean Vigo. Harun Farocki. Jean-Marie Straub and Daniele Huillet. Santiago Alvarez and Jorge Furtado. Glasgow Eilm Theatre. Glasgow Faithless Marijka (Plus Shorts) (PG) (Vladislav Vancura. Czechoslovakia. 1934) 76min. Set in Subcarpathian Ruthenia. I-aithless Marijka recounts a simple story of infidelity while exploring the larger context of the region‘s social isolation. Plus supporting short films Kujawiak and The Song ofRuthenia. Part of the Modemity and Tradition season. Film/rouse. Edinburgh.
Female Agents ( 15) .00 (Jean- Paul Salome. France. 2008) Sophie Marceau. Julie Depardieu. Marie (iillain.
l 17min. Allegedly based on a true story: in spring 1944 Churchill oversees a suicidal sabotage and rescue mission by female members of the French Resistance - a showgirl ((iillain). an explosives expert (Déborah Francois). a prostitute (Depardieu). a radio operator (Maya Sansa) and their leader (Marceau). Salome is an arch stylist and copyist but beyond the handful of great performances this feels like another po-faced TV mini series: interesting but pedestrian. Selected release.
Fool’s Gold (12A) 00 (Andy Tennant. US. 2008) Kate Hudson. Matthew McConaughey. Donald Sutherland. Kevin Hart. 1 12min. Witless. plodding rom-coni romp that reunites How to Lose A Guy in Ten Days pretty pair McConaughey and Hudson as estranged husband and wife- cum-treasure hunters on the trail of a legendary treasure ship. assisted by Sutherland‘s dapper billionaire and pursued by Hart‘s ruthless rapper-gangster. All that glitters is not gold. Selected release.
illi-
Falkirk Town Hall Falkirk Council
Archive Event: Bombs At Teatime
Sun 27th July 3:00pm
(+ free family workshop starts 2:00pm)
All About Eve (U) Digital Print
Mon 28th July 11:00am 7:30pm
Caramel (12A)
Wed 30th July 1:30pm 7:30pm
Tickets and further information from The Steeple Box Office or on
the door from FTH Cinema
0 1 324 506850
17—31 Jul 2008 THE LIST 49