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to wander in exile estranged front ltis wife attd unable to return to ltis younglover. lts crisp attd light tone rttake Dark lites delightful enough. but tlte bonus ofa graceful tour dc force troitt the (‘annes pri/ew inner Mastroianni tttake it art experiettce to savour. The opportunity to w atclt such a master craftsman at work is , not to be missed. l-idinburgh: l-'ilittltotise. IThe Easy Life ( l’( t i t l)ino Rosi. ltaly. l9o2) Vittorio(iassittan.(‘atherine Spaak.Jean-lotus'l'rttttigttant. lll5ntins. Middle-aged. tun-seeking playboy (iassman takes iiteek student 'l‘rintignaitt iii ltatid one w eekend and introduces hiiti to the high life on a journey from Rottie to \'iareggio. ('y iitcal. w ell-played satire on tlte ltaliaii consumer booiit culture ofthe 19(tlls. lzdinbtirglt: l-'i|ttiliotise I Eddie Murphy Raw ( ls‘ l t Robert 'l'ownsend. IS. 198"!) liddie Murphy. 90 mills (‘ontpelently directed record of Murphy live. recorded at two New York cottcerts iii w hich lte struts ltis mainly
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'Brilliant . . Stunning. . Riveting. .’
PRINCE ‘SIGN 0 THE
TIMES (18) 3.00 (not Suns), 5.00, 7.00, 9.00pm
O 7/10“
Sun 7 Aug at 2pm AMADEUS (PG)
Sun 14Aug at2pm BELLMAN AND TRUE (15)
O Late Nights
Fri5Aug at 11.15pm BLUES BROTHERS (15) & RUMBLE FISH (15) Sat6Aug at 11.15pm LETI-IAL WEAPON (18) & BLADE RUNNER (15)
Fri 12Augat11.15pm DON’T LOOK NOW(18) & PEEPING TOM (18)
Sat 13Augat 11.15pm LAST TANGO IN PARIS (18) 8r DECAMERON (18)
From Fri 12 Aug season of HandMade Films with MONTY PYTHON’S LIFE OF BRIAN
N EW S H O P 1; art; X _
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.- PMS . ' MICROFILE TIGER FAX
WE ALSO STDCK CLASSIC PENS. PAPER. GIFTWRAP AND CARDS
PAPER ’l‘I( HER 53 LDTHlAN RDAD EDINBURGH TEL 031228 2790
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FILM LIST
four-letter stand-up act. fine. if you're a fatt. (ilasgow: (irosvenor. I The Great War( PC) (Mario Monicelli. Italy. 1959) Alberto Sordi. Vittorio (iasstttan. Silvatto Mangano. 1-12 tttiits. WWII. two reluctant soldiers enterge unscathed after a number ofeontic escapades. (iood~looking historical satire whose anti-heroic attitudes caused quite a stir at home upon the film's initial release. (ilasgow: (il-vl‘. I Hairspray ( PU) (John Waters. l'S. 1987) Divine. Ricki Lake. Sottny Bono. Debbie Harry. Pia Zadora. 93 mitts. See caption review. (ilasgow : (‘attnon Saticltieltall Street. I Innerspaceo’oi (Joe Dante. t'S. 19s7j Dennis Quaid. Meg Ryan. Martin Sltort. 119 ittiiis. Miniaturized attd acciderttally injected ittto Sltort's btitti. maverick pilot ()uaid has a ntere twenty-four hours to alert tlte hapless victim to his presence. effect an escape and evade the wicked clutches of various industrial spies. ()verplotted but ertgagirtgly ramshackle cartoottish adventure frolic. Edinburgh: Filmhouse. I Jungle Book (it) (Wolfgang Reithermatt. LS. 1967) With the voicesof (ieorge Sanders. Louis Prittta. 7S ntitts. (irowiiig tip iii the jungle. young Mowin learns frottt the animals around ltirtt. linjoy able latterday Disney. a long way after Kipling. but the songs are wonderful. (ilasgow : ()deon. [idittburghz ()deon. Strathclyde: (’attnon. Kelburne. ()deon Ayr. ()deon llantilton. Rialto. I Lethal Weapon ( IS) ( Ricltard Donner. L'S. I987) Mel (iibson. Danny (ilover. (iary Btisey. lll9 ntitts. (iibson isa widower psychotieally bettt on revettgc. (ilover a middle-aged. middle-class family man in this formula buddy cop movie. lifted just above the averages by itstoueli of humanity and charismatic performances. Edinburgh: (‘ameo I The Mission (PU) (Roland Joffe. L'K. l9fs’(t) Jeremy Irons. Robert De Niro. Ray McAnally. 125 ntins. lit 18th century
Salome's Last Dance (18) (Ken Russell, UK, 1987) Glenda Jackson, Nickolas Grace, Imogen Millais-Scott. 90 mins. It is time once more to hang your head in shame or shake it in disbelief at the latest cinematic mutant given birth by Ken Russell. Now on a multi-picture deal with Vestron that allows him to film anything as long as it doesn't cost too much, Salome is the result of a dare that he couldn’t film his own highly individualistic interpretation of Wilde's play for under a million dollars. How could the issuer of such a challenge have conceived of
South America a Papal Prelate is called iii to resolve a territorial dispute between Spaitt attd Portugal. His decision is dictated by the political climate iii littrope attd ltas harsh ramifications fora mission run by Jesuit priests. Both a study ofrttale friendship attd an exploration of man's capacity for the noblest altruism aitd the tttost treacherous selfishness. 'I‘lie .lli’sst‘on is ait operatic film of depth attd considerable power. A tttust. (ilasgow: (if-'1‘. I Moonstruck ( l’( i ) (Norman Jewison. j l'S. 1987) (her. Nicolas (‘age. ()lympia l)ukakis. Ilitl ittitts. 'l‘horoughlywittnittg romantic cotttedy with ('lteron ()scar-winning form as a dow dy young widow w ho accepts a proposal of ntarraige front a man she does not love itt return for a safe atid secure futttre. Asked to clear tip sortie bad blood with his young brother it is love at first sight when they meet ; she undergoes a (‘inderella-like transformation aitd is tortt between the conflicting demands of her head arid heart. Meanwhile. other members of lter closeknit ltalian-American fantily are similarly thrown into amorous turmoil by the influence of a mischievous tttoott. ('ombitting humour aitd poignancy with a charming eccentricity. .lfomtxtrttt'k is a delightful story. engagingly told. ()scars also went to l)ukakis attd .lolttt Patrick Shanley‘s rich. tutti fruti script. lidittburgh: l‘ilmhouse. I Non Professionals ( 15) (Sergey Bodrov. L'SSR. 1985) An amateur rock group touring Kazakhstan perform iii an old folks home arid the generation gap is all tooobviotis. Well-observed exampleof the new openness which was commended at the 1987 Soviet National Film Festival for its ‘moral arid stylish endeavours‘. (ilasgow : (il’l‘. I Overboard ( 1’( i ) ((iarry Marshall. 118‘. l9S7)(io|die llawtt. Kurt Russel. lidward llerrttiannt. Katharine llelntond. l 12 mitts. Spoiled heiress llawtt fires hunky
carpenter Russell after his attetttpt at
SALDME’S LAST DANCE
the creature he would unleash? Russell‘s solution to his financial restrictions has been to film the play on one set as a performance by the staff of Wilde’s favourite house of ill-repute in Victorian London. Witnessed by Wilde with Lord Alfred Douglas as John the Baptist, Stratford Johns' rouged and rotund Alfred Taylor leads his troupe of game amateurs in a colourfully awful rendition of the text. Using the Biblical tale of the temptress Salome exacting the head ofJohn the Baptist as her price for the Dance of the Seven Veils. Russell hints at the parallels to come in
some outfitting work on her luxury yaeltt fails to satisfy. However. when she falls overboard attd loses her memory he claims! tltat she is his wife. and so offslte goesto the backwoods to look after his four j uncontrollable kids.
lixpertly performed romanticcomedy. with lttisbaitd attd wife pairittg l lawn artd Russell making art effective screen partnership. Altttost well enouglt done to evoke memories of the 30s screwball models the film so obviously draws upon. (ilasgow : ('aitiioit Sauchiehall Street. I The Passionate Thief ( l’(i i (Mario Motiicelli. ltaly. 1%”) Anna Magitatti. Ben (iauara. 'l‘oto. l-‘red (‘lark. lllotttins. little seen. offbeat comedy intertwining the lives of two iittpecunious film extras and a smooth-talking con artist as they attempt to work the crowds of revellers attd wealtlty tourists during the New Year festivities. ‘A minor tale ofloveand larcetiy' . lidittburglt: l'iltt‘ihouse I Police Academy V: Assignment Miami Beach ( PG) 2‘: (Alan Myersott. LS. 1988) Bubba Stttitli. David liraf. Michael Winslow. 90mins. Latest execrable dollop of comic ineptitude has as its ingredients a Police (‘hiefs‘ convention. a stolen bagof diamonds. attd our lovable academy graduates on the loose itt Miami. The production ttotes protttise ‘high-speed boat chases across alligator-infested swamps‘. (iod help us all. (ilasgow: (‘antton Saueliieltall Street. lidinburgh: (‘annon. (‘entralz ('annon. I River's Edge ( 18) (Tim 1 lunter. LS. 1980) (‘rispiti (ilover. Keanu Reeves. Dennis Hopper. 99mins. A motiveless murder is the catalyst for a moral crisis arttottg a group of teenage buddies.
(‘hallenging exploration of alienated youth attd their attempts to forge a value system iii a society of ituttibitig tttoral blattkttess. lidinburglt: l‘ilmhouse. I Rumble Fish ( IS) ( I‘rancis l-‘ord (‘oppola. L'S. 19S3) Mickey Rourke. Dennis l lopper. Matt Dillon. 94 tttitts. lilectrifying expressionist v istials grace art
Wilde‘s own betrayal via his homosexual liaison with Bosey. There is a also a suggestion that Russell feels some personal affinity with Wilde in the shared outrage and critical disdain fortheirartistic endeavours. Serious themes that can very easily be dismissed in a film that is clearly not serious at all, what can one reasonably expect from a ‘Jolly Russell Production’ in which the director himself appears as a caustic photographer?
Salome is a virtually unbearable mess and probably Russell‘s worst film. Flatulent self-indulgence ofthe lowest order, full of smirking innuendo, lavatorial schoolboy humour, in-jokes and deliberately dreadful performances. it makes the Carry On films appear like the height of sophisticated wit.
When allied to a script of substance and real wit, Russell's undoubted sense of style and visual panache can work wonders. When in unholy alliance with his own deathless pearls the result is a thoroughly resistible home movie that deserves an eighth veil to be discreetly drawn over its existence. Forthcoming from the Vestron deal are Bram Stoker’s The Lair Of The White Worm and D. H. Lawrence's The Rainbow, offering the possibility of
redemption for the unrepentant bad boy of British cinema. (Allan Hunter)
10The List 5— 11 August 1988