FILM LIST
The Three Amigos (PG) (John Landls, US, 1987) Chevy Chase, Steve Martin, Martin Short. 105 mins. Merrily madcap Steve Martin can do little wrong in my book but The Three Amigos is enough to test the patience oi even the most indulgent Martin aiicionado. As co-writer, co-starand executive producer oi this current non-starterthe onus oi blamelalls rather inescapany on his shoulders.
Martin, Chevy Chase and Martin Short are, respectively, Lucky Day, Dusty Bottoms and Ned Nederlander, collectively known as The Three Amigos; silent screen heroes, upholder oi justice, deienders oi liberty and righters oi wrongs. The iilm hinges on a traditional instance of mistaken identity; a Mexican senorita assumes their iictional celluloid exploits to be genuine and begs them to rid her beleaguered village oi the villainous El Guapo. Western Union charges dictate a briei message and her plaintive pleas reach the Amigos as an adoring request ior a personal appearance at some village iéte. Temporarily out oi favour with their greedy studio boss they head ior Mexico and some easily ioreseen comic contusion.
in almost all its peripheral details The Three Amigos is an accomplished spool oi the western genre; Elmer Bernstein contributes a rousing
THE THREE AMIGOS
musical score redolent oi his Magniiient Seven, Randy Newman lightly satirises the singing cowboy with his Blue Shadows campfire ballad and the locations, set design and camerawork are beyond reproach. However, this admirable state at aitairs does little to compensate tor the film‘s central debilitating deliciency- a painiul lack oi laughs. The precious little mites amble along at the rate oi a iew litters and a halt-hearted guiiaw on the hour. The humour is predictable, well signposted and tar irom inventive with only the odd inspired notion and occasional set piece to suggest the
deranged mind so energetically at play in The Man With Two Brains.
As the innocents at large, our trio should evoke the gentle, aitectionate world oi Stan Laurel and Harold Lloyd but lack the technique, iinesse or material to achieve this. The cretinous Chase displays his iull tedious range at iunny iace pulling whilst Nederlander as the cute runt oi the pack fails to elicit much sympathy. Only Martin manages to raise a smile and then more in memory oi past achievements than current glories. Scant recommendation lorthis best iorgotten, substandard eiiort. (Allan Hunter).
l)e1phine as a character is irksome and one longs for a bit ofspit to go with the French polish. Edinburgh:
l‘ilmhouse
o Greystoke (PG) (Hugh Hudson. LR. 1984) Christopher Lambert. Ralph Richardson. lan Holm. 130 mins. LTinpteenth version of Edgar Rice Burroughs” Tarzan story. Lambert lopes convincingly. Richardson dodders poignantly and the apes. both genuine and simulated are fine. but extensive and injudicious editing have rendered the storytelling incoherent. Edinburgh; Filmhouse
0 Hannah and Her Sisters ( 15) (Woody Allen. US. 1986) Woody Allen. Michael Caine. Mia Farrow. Dianne Wiest. 107 mins. A delicious. upbeat celebration ofthe cohesion and support within the family unit as several related couples fall in and out of love over the changing seasons. Wonderful. Strathclyde: ()deon Ayr
0 Heatwave ( 15) (Philip Noyce. Australia. 1981 ) Judy Davis. Richard Moir. Chris Haywood. 95 mins. Activist Davis rallies the locals to protest against their forced eviction to make way for the construction ofa lucrative redevelopment project by a company who will not stop at murder to achieve their aims. The issues are further complicated by her attraction to the architect caught between the opposing camps. Excellent. stylish conspiracy thriller-genre drama with intelligent direction and fine performances. Gripping. Edinburgh; Filmhouse
0 ll ( 18) (Lindsay Anderson. UK. 1968) Malcolm McDowell. David Wood. Richard Warwick. 111 mins. The Kids are alright as anarchy and rebellion erupt with all the passion oi an exploding at a stuffy English public school. Symbolic. if not even allegorical stuff it is too. for the breakdown ofsociety was seemingly not too far away in 1968— indeed. the final moments of machine-gun fire at prize days are not too dissimilar from contemporary events in Paris. ()ne of the ten best films ever made in Britain. period. Edinburgh; Cameo
0 Jeanne Dielman, 23 Ouai de Commerce, 1080 Bruxelles ( 18) (Chantal Akerman. Belgium- France. 1975) Delphine Seyrig. 198 mins. Seyrig gives an amazingly committed. tour de force performance in this celebrated. dauntingly minimalist epic covering three days in the solitary existence of a Belgian housewife. mother and part-time prostitute who lives in a tiny apartment with her teenage son. However. her well-ordered routine will gradually be disrupted by outside forces. Glasgow; CrF'I~
0 Le Jour Se Leve (PG) (Marcel Carne’. France. 1939) Jean Gabin. Jules Berry. 93 mins. Classic evocation of doomed romanticism and fatalistic concerns in this story of a murderer. cornered in a Parisian tenement who reviews the events which have led to his dire condition. The haunted and hunted Gabin was never more stoical or noble. Pass the Gauloises someone. Edinburgh; Filmhouse
o Jumpin' Jack Flash (15) (Penny
Marshall. US. 1986) Whoopi Goldberg. Jonathan Pryce. Stephen Collins. 105 mins. Excrutiatingly tedious spy caper with Ms Goldberg as a computer programmer enlisted to aid at British operative‘s covert flight from behind the Iron Curtain. Whoopi Shit. Glasgow; Cannon Sauchiehall Street. Cinema
0 The Killing Fields (15) (Roland Joffe. UK. 1984) Haing S. Ngor. Sam Waterston. Bill Paterson. 142 mins. Powerful. Oscar-winning true life story of a deep friendship that endures the horrors ofwar and its aftermath in Cambodia. Glasgow: GFI‘
0 King oithe Marvin Gardens ( 18) (Bob Rafaelson. 1972) Jack Nicholson. Bruce Dern. Ellen Burstyn. Scatman Crothers. 111-1 mins. Nicholson is the host of a controversial late-night radio show. obsessed with creating a tragic autobiography for his listeners. A phonecall from his elder brother Dern summons him from Philadelphia to Atlantic City where a wild scheme is unveiled to buy a holiday island offthe coast of Hawaii. Unfortunately. Dern is also heavily involved with ruthless black marketeers.
Unforgettany atmospheric. haunting elliptical twilight drama of fading dreams. battered hopes and rueful remembrance ofthings past. An unarguably great film and part of a splendid double bill of Rafaelson's work. Edinburgh: Cameo
0 Kiss of the Spiderwoman(15) (Hector Babenco. US-Brazil. 1985) William Hurt. Raul Julia. Sonia Braga. 121 mins. Two men share a
prison cell. victims in their individual ways of an unspecified fascist regime. One is a flamboyant homosexual. the other a macho revolutionary. The pain oftheir confinement ultimately brings mutual understanding and a moving exchange ofroles. Edinburgh: Filmhouse 0 Labyrinth (U) (Jim Henson. US. 1986) Jennifer Connelly. David Bowie. 101 mins. Angst-ridden teenage girl asks the Goblins to take away her babay brother. The Goblins duly oblige. but she has second thoughts and makes her way through Demon Dave's mysterious labyrinth to fetch the little brat back. ()ccasionally inventive and fairly charming family film will please the kiddies. but parents will squirm at Bowie's haircut and his cataclysmically inept performance. Not as bad as one fears. though. Strathclyde; ()deon AFT 0 Legend (PG) (Ridley Scott. US. 1985) Tom Cruise. Mia Sara. Tim Curry. 93 mins. Wildly self-indulgent fairytale with Good and Evil at it once more. Pretty pictures but a narrative shambles. Edinburgh; Filmhouse 0 Little Shop of Horrors (PG) (Frank ()2. US. 1986) Rick Moranis. Ellen Greene. 9-1 mins. Brash. breezy big-scale musical about Audrey. a likeable plant with a man-size appetite. Glasgow; Cannon Sauchiehall Street. Strathclyde; Cannon Greenock. Cannon Kilmarnock o Mannequin (PG) «:2 (Michael Gottlieb. US. 1987) Andrew McCarthy. Kim Cattrall. Estelle Getty. 91) mins. Inane sounding romantic screwball comedy with the cute McCarthy as a storeman at a department store who falls in love with a beautiful mannequin who comes alive and is revealed to be a spirit from Egyptian pre—history. Told you it sounded inane. Glasgow; Cannon Sauchiehall Street. Lothian; Cannon Falkirk. Strathclyde: Cannon Greenock. Cannon Kilmarnock 0 Mary of Scotland ( U) (John Ford. US. 1936) Katharine Hepburn. Fredric March. Florence Eldridge. 123 mins. Occasionally stodgy but generally well-mounted historical epic detailing skullduggery in the British Royal Courts and a celebrated battle of wills between rivals Mary and the jealous Elizabeth ofEngland. An uncharacteristic Ford film. Edinburgh: Filmhouse
o Mona Lisa ( 18) (Neil Jordan. UK. 1986) Bob Hoskins. Cathy Tyson. Michael Caine. 104 mins. Hoskins gives a heartrending much-lauded performance as the ex-con with a battered heart in this brilliant thriller/film noir from the exceptionally talented Jordan. Absolutely not to be missed. Glasgow: GET
0 The Money Pit (PG) (Richard Benjamin. US. 1986) Shelley Long. Tom Hanks. 91 mins. Rickety. slapstick farce about a young couple's travails when they move into a suspiciously inexpensive house
14 The List 12 — 25 June