Scratch O... ('amco 3. 3| Aug: l‘ilmhouse. 33 Aug. \'inyl junkie DJ Shadow trawls through a basement with literally a million records in it. searching for that hitherto untouched drum track. A group of l..-\ teenagers make their public debiit l)Jing at a local record store. I)! Q-Bert receives an award acknow ledgiiig him a possibly the finest ever scratch l)J. 'l‘hus. l)oug l’ray' delves deep into the world of ‘turntablisin'. tracing its cultural significance to the roots. l)raw ing on commentary from the biggest coriiinercial and underground names. lie traces that lineage from the primitive experiments in the early 80s to present day. May plays with they archetypes of scratching in his direction and editing something he could have made more of
and gives a comprehensive. but objective picture of this relatively undocumented sub- culture. (.\lark Robertson)
The Script Factory: Scene I:lllttlt()tlsc‘. 3| Aug. 9.30pm. 3pm.-1.30pm. Three separate events spread across a day: ‘l)ev eloprnent Journey' is a discussion of the process of idea to script. ‘( )racle By ()liver \Vingatc‘ is a reading by a professional actor of a script currently in development and ‘Masterclass Intei'view' rounds the day off with a special guest 'I‘BA (prev ioiis masterclasses have featured Lynne Ramsay. .\Iike l-‘iggis and Anthony .\Iingella).
Séance (Ko-rei) O... Lumiere. l7 Aug. 0.30pm: ('ameo. l‘) Aug. ll.l5pm. Kiyoshi Kurosawa (no relation to Akira) has been riiakiiig underground horror movies in Japan for the last ten years. This has to be one of his best. Junco is a psychic and her boy friend. llayakavv a. a 'l’\' sound engineer; their relationship is courteous but distant. llayakaw a wants Junco to iise her gift for commercial ends so he can dedicate more time to being creative with sound. The chance to prove herself arises with the kidnapping of a young girl by a paedophile. but things go horribly wrong. Beautifully shot. atmospheric and deeply disturbing. this is a subtle adaptation of Bryan l’orbcs excellent l‘)()-l tttov ic .St'illli't' ()II cl lli'! .'l/It'l‘llUllll. Seance is psychological horror of the highest order. st) Don‘t l.ook Nowl (l’aul Dale)
The Silent Killer .0. l’ilmhouse. 33 Aug. 9.30pm: (il’l‘. 34 Aug. (Lillpm. Scarifying low budget lilm about a (ilasgow 's Kurdish refugee community dying from a inysterious illness. liffective drama with an urgent. political message. tragically underscored by the rioting in (ilasgow following the murder of a Kurdish asylum seeker.
Skate Or Die! l'ilmhoiise. IX Aug. 3.30pm. 35 Aug. 5.30pm. .\lirrorball raids its archives for this cool programme of skateboard shorts by such luminaries as Mike Mills and Stacy l’cralta (see also Dueluri It Am/ /<It’rivv ).
Skillset: Careers In Film l'iilriihousc. 33 Aug. 4.30pm. If you want to work in lilm. this free (but ticketed event) is for you. Industry professionals give you the skinny on how they did it.
The Sleepy Time Gal ooo l‘ilmhouse. lo Aug. 0.30pm; l'(i('. 18 Aug. .‘s‘pm. l.ovely low key American indie drama about the epony motis late night radio [)1 (play ed by evergreen Jacqueline Bissct l. who. tcr'iiiinally ill. seeks to make peace
w ith her moody son (Nick Stahl ). estranged mother and a former lov er (the great Seymour ('assel l. .\leanwhilc. the daughter she gave tip for adoption (.\lar‘tha l’lirnpton) is attempting to discover her real mother‘s idciitrty. Director ( 'hristophcr .‘vlunch mtercuts this activ ity with some poetic interludes that describe the w rslful nostalgia his characters feel. but this is a lilm ol pcrloi'riiances. lhe scenes between Bissct and (‘asscl are beautifully played. as they effortlessly suggest an enduring deep emotional bond. By contrast and no less impressive arc l’linipton's more restrained businesslike dealings with adoption agency workers. (.\liles l'iclderi
Slogans I'llltllttitlst'. IS Aug. 7pm; l'( i( i. 33 Aug. 3pm. Satire on hard-line (‘onniiimisin and party dogma set in 7lls Albania.
La Soufriere + Lessons Of Darkness l-‘ilmhouse. lb Aug. noon. A pair of apocalyptic documentaries from Werner ller/og: a hilarious trip about a volcanic ('aribbean island about to explode and a disturbing examination of the aftermath of Iraq's invasion of Kuwait. Southern Comfort l‘ilmhouse. 21 Aug. 3pm. 35 Aug. 8pm. I)octltttenlat'y about the remarkable story of Robert liads. a female to male transsexual who was diagnosed with ovarian cancer and refused treatment by a prejudiced hospital in America's southern The State I Am In (Die Innere Sicherheit) ('ameo. 30 Aug. 7.30pm; I‘ilmliouse. 34 Aug. 4.30pm. ('ontrov ersial (ierman lilm about a family whose mother and father have been wanted terrorists since the 7(ls. Tartan Shorts (’ameo. l‘) Aug. 3pm. Annual showcase of three films from Scotland's prestigious short lilmmaking scheme. Always over-subscribed so book early. Taurus (Telets) Lumiere. 30 Aug. b.3(lpm; l‘ilmliouse. 33 Aug. 7pm. l.enin in his dying days is the subject of the second of Russian auteur .'\le\ander Sokurov 's leader's trilogy. the first of which. AIM/(It‘ll. was llttler. Tears (Nunmul) O... Lumiere. l7 Aug. (Lillplll. l‘iliiihoiise. 31 Aug. 5.30pm. In the neon interior of a club. a group of boys ply girls with drinks. They then demand se.\. and when it is not given freely. resort to force. Director lttt Sattg-soo opens his second feature with an unpleasant set piece whose frenetic physicalin sets the tone for the lilm to come. Shot w ith the jumbled close-ups more often seen in documentary filmmaking. Ii'rii'v is the tale of four Korean teenagers who live on the edge of the underworld. The four are both sympathetic and lhiiggish. birt their youthful amorality is nothing in comparison to the man they seek to escape from. sadistic club ow nei‘ Yong llo. Sang-soo's compelling lilm show s a society crippled by v iolcncc and misogyny in which moments of true intimacy are rare. but utterly precious. (James Smart) Tears Of The Black Tiger (Fa Talai Jone) O... (‘amco. lo Aug. lilpm. Kitsch. caml‘ and i—‘Ht'y'cous “lhai western' that rniscs Sergio [cone and Sarii l’cckinpah with Douglas Sirk-sty le melodrama and 'l'aiwanesc serials lrom the Slls and fills. Guillermo del Toro Reel Life t'(;('. l8 Aug. 3pm. The .\le\ican director of classy horror movies (iv/rm. .lli/ni‘i‘ and this year's Spanish crv rl war ghost story [he lh‘t'll'v Huck/Mlle art. See prev lc\\. Traktor Live Reel Life t‘(i('. l.s’ Aug. (rillplll. 'l'he ultra-cool and multiple award~ w inning adv crt and pop promo making collective from Sweden come to lidinburgli to tell iis how they do it in this .‘vlirr'or'lxill event. Traktor Screen oooo l'tllltltottsc. to Aug. lllfillpm. Anthology programme ol the work of Swedish collective ‘l'raktor. from their Diesel and Len (cans. Nike and Miller l.itc adverts to their promo for fat Boy Slim's ‘Yo .\lama'. The Transformation Of The World Into Music (Die Verwandlung Der Welt In Music) l‘ilmhouse. l‘) Aug. noon. Werner ller/og's enlightening look behind the scenes at the Bayreuth \‘v'agner opera festival. The Travelling Salesman (Commesso Viaggiatore) l'ilnihoiisc. Is Aug. lllpm. 33 Aug. 3.30pm. A surreal. l)av id l.y iicli vsty le trip into the subconscious as the eponymous salesman makes his rounds encountering various bi/arrc li'caks and mislits. Trouble Every Day 0. l'ilmhoiisc. 31 Aug. 9. illpm; ('aineo. 3-l Aug. llHllpm. ('lair'c |)cnis' lilm about an illness that demands its stillcrers go blood sucking wants to be both drug metaphor and III it‘l'ttf talc as American doctor Vincent (iallo. honeymooning in Paris. has odd links w rtli Beatrice l)al|c. his l’arisran lornicr' lover. But it lalls between botli camps. Min Peaks: Fire Walk With Me O... l'(i(‘. 1" Aug. ‘lpm. l)avid lyncli's big screen prequel to his television series phenomenon. being screened to tie in w rtli soundtrack composer Angelo Badalariienti's Reel life event earlier the same evening
gives a ttlaslel'class Ull ltls
This Filthy Earth 0... (.‘umeu. 16 Aug. 7.30pm. Inspired by [Emile Zola's Lu 'lilrrc
and John Berger's Pig (forth. the follow-up to writer-director Andrew Kotting‘s extraordinary (iullimnt is a visceral tale of greed. cruelty and superstition in a remote Yorkshire rural community. Sisters Kath (Deinel/a Randall) and Francine (Rebecea Palmer) eke out a living on the farm of their late parents. To Francine's dismay her elder sibling accepts a marriage proposal from the bullish Buto (Shane Attwooll). who has already cheated his own father (Dudley Sutton) out of land. But who‘s the gentle yet mysterious stranger (Xavier 'l‘chili).
speaking in a strange dialect'.’
Making the spectator aware of the film’s construction (speeded-up footage. time-lapse photography. shifts in format from celluloid to digital video. actors speaking to camera). Kotting has conjured up a singular cinematic universe. one peopled by demented preachers. blind vagabonds and cantankerous erones (try to think of Emir Kusturica and Werner Herzog making All (‘reurimav- (ii-cur Am! Small). [)emolishing the myth of the English countryside as a pastoral idy'll. This Filthy [furl/i presents an unflinching view of the animalistie quest for survival of its beleaguered characters. Not for the easily squeamish. although the lack of tonal variety in the material is offset the by feral power of the ensemble performances.
('l‘om Dawson)
Unfinished Symphony l‘ilttihouse. 2t) Aug. (rpm. 34 Aug. 4pm. 'l‘houghtful documentary about the 197] anti-war march by returning Vietnam veterans which uses for its soundtrack (iorccki‘s ‘Sy mpliony ()f Sorrowful Songs'.
Unseen And Unclean: Banned Videos l‘illtihousc. l‘) Aug. 3.30pm. .\lirrorball screens those music promos the censor chose to ban. every thing from Soft (‘ell's ‘Se\ l)warf‘ and Sonic Youth‘s ‘l)eath Valley ()0. to Death In \‘egas' ‘Aisha' and Queens ()l The Slime Ageis 'l'icclgootl‘. La Ville est Tranquille (The Town Is Quiet) O... l’ilmhouse. lb’ Aug. 0pm. 35 Aug. 7pm. The latest lilm from Rtilk't'l (iltc‘tltgltltttt l.l/(ll'ill\ ('l ./('IIII(’II(’. l'ullm/m’). a panoramic view of life in modern Marseilles. from hitmcn to hip hop warriors.
Une Vraie Jeune Fille (A Real Young Lady) 0. Lumiere. 31 Aug. (Lillpltl. ('athci'ine lit'ctlltll's t/v’nnlrllti’t'. .'l .llir Sm'ur) dcbtlt feature. sticky story about a young girl discovering her sesuality. What Time Is It There? (Ni Bei Pien Chi Tien) l‘ilmhoiise. l7 Aug. 7pm. I‘) Aug. 4pm. lidinbui‘gh's 'l‘aiwanese favourite. 'l‘sai .\ling-l.iang (The River). returns with an absin'dist comedy about a l’rancois 'l‘ruflaut-lov irig urchin who falls for a l’ar'isian girl.
Wings Of Glass (Vingar Av Glas) (‘ameo. 1‘) Aug. 4.30pm. 30 Aug. 5.30pm. (‘ultur'cs clash in this touching drama about a young Iranian girl w ho grow s up in a Swedish community.
With Great Joy (Mit Grote Blijdschap) 0.. l'( it '. l7 Aug. 0pm. 30 Aug. (Lillpm. Subtlety is the
essence of this dark tale. Set in the depths of
a Belgian forest. shadows lurk around every corner: most crucially. those ot the past. \Vhen l.uc hears that his brother. missing for liftceri years. has been sighted. there begins a search which leads into a world of murky isolation arid secrets. (‘lassic suspense is fused with original twists. making this a compelling. if somewhat unrelenting piece of filmmaking. ('ompounding sticli tension is the film's virtual total reduction ol colour to browns. grey s and muted greens a kind of muffled turmoil pervadcs‘ lli'I/i (iri'irl .lw. pushes unusual taboos whilst retaining a sensitivity to the painful issues at stake. It is slickly done. btit doesn't offer you a chance to breathe. (Richard (‘lai'kr
Wodaabe - Herdsmen Of The Sun + Ballad Of The Little Soldier liilmhouse. 31 Aug. 13.30pm. lithnocentric Werner ller/og documentary double bill. lliu/mr/u' concerning a Sahara desert nomad tribe who consider themselves the most beautiful people on the world. and liul/iu/ describing the Nicaraguan .‘vliskito lndians' rebellion against the former allies the Sandinistas.
World Animation l.uiiiiere. to Aug. (rpm: l-‘ilinhouse. 35 Aug. 13.30pm. Showcase of the finest animation from around the world.
Yellow Asphalt (Asphalt Zahov) 0.. l‘ilmhouse. l l 1‘) Aug. 3.30pm. 31 Aug. (ipttt. l)anny \crette's lilm esplores the complex interaction between the Bedouins and their neighbours. with whom they negotiate a problematical relationship. l)iv ided into three shorts. the liliii gathers power with each episode. The first lilm deals (quite briefly ) with a road accident in which two Israeli truckers kill a Bedouin child. while the second sees a (ict‘ttlan-bortt woman’s attempts to escape her oppressive tribal marriage. eventually developing IIIIU an estended chase sequence. But the lirial story. focusing on a hypocritical and ultimately murderous lsi'acli farmer. who turns on his illicit Bedouin lover. is by far the most powerful. This piece seems to contain the political tliematics which the other two only strive for. (Steve ('i'ariier)
You Really Got Me (Amatorene) 0.. (‘ameo. l7 Aug. 8.30pm. 33 Aug. (rpm. Norway 's l’al Sletunc follows up his superb dank comedy. .limA .lliirl. with another downbeat piece of slapstick. here revolving around that old chestnut of crime capers. the bungled kidnapping. (‘arv ing himself a niche as some kind of modern Blister Keaton. Robert Skia‘stad once again play s a hapless geek who suffers in silence. llis manager of a failing fast food business in (No is left by his esasperated girlfriend to tend to his mean-spirited father. But he liicks out when he fails to hang himself. instead stumbling across the king of Norwegian rock music and kidnaps him lrom the kidnappers. Sletunc maintains his trademark poker faced humour to amusing cllcct. as the casl ()l' (itlilltalls illltI gl'ttlcstltlcs \\.ttlilct' (ltt/ctl ttlttl c‘itllltlst‘il through a series of increasingly ridiculous circumstances.
(.\liles l'relderi
‘ Aug) THE LIST FESTIVAL GUIDE 41