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FILM LIST
F Janet Leigh. 126 mins. In his most convincing screen role. Laurence Harvey plays a Korean war hero who has actually been brainwashed by the communists. and on his return to America becomes a mere pawn in a sinister mission they have planned for him. Army intelligence officer Sinatra is out to stop him while the maniacal matriarch Lansbury hovers threateningly in the background throughout. Brilliant political satire-cum-thriller. with a cast in great form and a staggeringly inventive plot clearly and grippingly unravelled. lt damn well works and surprises in a way that so few films do anymore. Edinburgh University Film Society.
I Manhunter( 18) (Michael Mann. US. 1987) William L. Petersen. Tom Noonan. Brian Cox. Kim Griest. 119 mins. FBI agent Petersen returns from psychiatric treatment to face another case. using his customary technique for tracking down serial killers by recreating their train of thought. In the past this has proved all too wearing on his own mental state. and when faced with evidence ofa killer who slays whole families every lunar cycle . he finds himselfback on the brink. Convincing and disturbingadult thriller with effortlessly stylish use of the wide screen. Edinburgh: Filmhouse.
I Manon Des Sources (PG) (Claude Berri. France/Italy. 1986) Yves Montand. Daniel Auteuil. Emmanuelle Beart. 114 mins. Ten years after the demise ofJean de Florette. the Soubeyrans run a prosperous carnation farm. Jean's daughter has grown into an alluring young woman and sets out to wreak her revenge. Steering this epic rural saga towards the realms ofGreek tragedy. this is a fulland
satisfying second half that exploresthe
sufferingof the guilty as they pay a
crippling penance for man‘s greed and
envy. The production values are as high as ever and Auteuil assumes Depardieu's mantle in his development from glaikit idiot to broken-hearted suitor.
Edinburgh: Broughton Film Society.
I Ma Nuit Chez Maud (PG) (Eric Rohmer. France. 1969)Jean-LouisTrintignant. Francoise Fabian. Marie-Christine Barrault. 113 mins. The third in Rohmer's series of Comedies e! pro wrbes was the first to bring him to widespread international recognition. Trintignant plays a priggish Catholic enduring a long dark night of the soul in the company of free-thinking divorcee Fabian. ‘l'he profoundcst questions of the spirit and the heart are delicately teased out in what remains one of the director's finest moments. Edinburgh: Film Guild.
I Matewan ( 15) (John Sayles. US. 1987) Chris Cooper. Will ()ldham. James Earl Jones. 131) mins. Matewan. West Virginia. 1920. The entire town is owned by the mining company. and the men‘s working conditions are harsh enough to provoke a walk-out by the immigrant workers. While the bosses try to break the strike. the arrival of a union organiser leads to violent conflict. Sayles' modestly budgeted account of a key moment from American labour history has an extraordinary feeling of authenticity. derived from fine performances. splendid photography and a precise eye for detail. A tad overlong perhaps. but a rousing. humane and worthwhile piece ofwork. Edinburgh: Filmhouse.
I Midnight Express ( 18) (Alan Parker. UK. 1978) Brad Davis. John Hurt. Mike Kellin. 121 mins. Dealingeconomically with the truth this is still a riveting storyof the nightmare that befell American Billy Hayes when he was incarcerated in a hellish Turkish jail on a charge of drug-smuggling. Brutal. viscerally powerful filmmaking that won an ()scar for ()livcr Stone's script. Edinburgh: Cameo.
I Midnight Hun ( 15) (Martin Brest. US. 1988) Robert De Niro.('har1es(irodin. YaphctKotlo.132mins.l)e Nlrois charming and surprisinglystraightforward
LOCK UP
Lock Up (John Flynn, 1989, US)
Sylvester Stallone, Donald Sutherland, John Amos, Darlene Fluegel.106 mins. No relation of Sergio, Frank Leone (Stallone) is a model prisoner serving out the last few months of his sentence in a happy relaxed pen where weekend breaks are the norm and even the guards smile. Suddenly, he’s bundled out in the middle of night to Gateway, not the supermarket, but the ‘worst shithole in the system’, a diabolical institution run by his old enemy Jarden Drumgoole (Sutherland). A sadistic close-cropped martlnet, Drumgoole has never forgiven Leone for breaking out of an earlier, otherwise ‘escape proof’ jail and making the con’s life a living hell is his hope for revenge.
Frank suffers The Hole, half rations and the Warden's hulking stooges, but still finds time to make friends, play a game of football and rebuild a decrepit old carto music. He vows never to be broken or provoked.
This is a prison movie made by numbers with every uncomfortable angle to life behind bars softened to accommodate Sly’s Nice Guy image. Rape, drugs, AIDS and murderdon't happen at Gateway, instead the film follows the simple route of putting the star inside, throwing away the key and
M
.. s‘
watching the muscles ripple and the sweat pour. However, given this very limited ambitlon, it isn’t bad. There’s some knockabout fisticuffs with the
inevitable elephant-sized opponent, an
entertaining final confrontation around the electric chair and choice needling insults from the mostly bloated guards.
‘Lock Up”s main problem though is that between the beginning and the end, its paper thin plot has nowhere to go. Sutherland’s brittle, contrived character is forgotten about for much of the time while the movie conceitrates on Muscles building up a circle of friends and giving vent to his usual bite-sized profundities: ‘Your body has to be here, but your mind don’t’.
As a Prisoner of War film Stallone’s ‘Escape to Victory’ fell a long way short of ‘Stalag 17’ and ‘The Great Escape’. Similarly this is quite a few rungs down from such real convict classics as ‘Brute Force’ and ‘White Heat’. Still, as short term sentences go, it’s not unpleasant. (Tom Tunney)
From Fri 2: Glasgow: Cannon The Forge, Ddeon, Salon. Edinburgh: Ddeon. Central: Allanpark, Cannon. Strathclyde: Ddeon Ayr, Ddeon Hamilton, UCI Clydebank. UCI East Kilbride.
as a bounty hunter bringing Grodin back from New York to Los Angeles to face charges ofembezzling Mafia money. Unfortunately the FBI. the mob. the cops. and another bounty hunter all want their hands on him too. Focusing on the growing friendship between the two leads as they rely on each other to escape their pursuers. this is an amiable buddy movie that‘s also an unpredictable road movie and a quite smart cop movie too. Strathclyde: UCl Clydebank.
I Mississippi Burning ( 18) (Alan Parker. US. 1988) Willem Dafoe. Gene Hackman. Frances McDormand. Brad Dourif. 127 mins. This study of racial hatred in the deep South of America stirred up a hornet‘s nest ofcontroversy. but gained six nominations and an Oscar. Despite its commercial context it remains a powerful thriller full ofgood intentions. and few mainstream directors would dare even to try and bring such a flammable
subject to the screen. Edinburgh: Film Guild. Strathclyde: UCl East Kilbride. I The Mosquito Coast (PG) (Peter Weir. US. 1986) Harrison Ford. Helen Mirren. River Phoenix. 119 mins. A black-edged reworking of elements from 'l‘heSn'Lss Fumin Robinson as Ford‘s know-it-all inventor forsakes the sad decline of Western civilisation and recklessly heads into the jungles of South America with his family and worldly goods. Edinburgh: National Museum.
I My Life AS A Dog (PG) (Lasse Halstrom. ' Sweden. 1985) Anton Glanzelius. Manfred Server. Anki Liden. 101 mins. Wholly captivating rite of passage tale set in Sweden during the 195(1s. Twelve-year-old lngemar copes with his mother‘s terminal illness and his family's general indifference to him by indulging in a high fantasy life. including the pretence that he is a dog. Terrible title. wonderful. unmissable film. Glasgow: GFT.
I Nine-And-A-Half Weeks ( 18) (W Lyne, US. 1985) Mickey Rourke. Kim Basinger. 113 mins. Divorcee Basinger becomes a slave to love and lust when she succumbs to the stubbly charms of commodities broker Rourke. Empty-headed and disturbing designer bonking. Strathclyde: Odeon Ayr.
I Dliver And Company (U) (George Scribner, US. 1989) With the voices of Joey Lawrence. Billy Joel. Dom DcLuise. Bette Midler. 74 mins. Disney studios' free adaptation of Dickens‘ Oliver Twist is set in modern New York. with Oliver asa cute kitten hanging out with a bunch of streetwise dogs. The Artful Dodger is played by pop-singer Joel, while La Midler turns in a pampered poodle. The usual Disney charm prevails. though Dickens‘ cutting edge is blunted somewhat. Glasgow: Cannon Clarkston Road. Cannon The Forge. ()deon. Edinburgh: Odeon. Central: Cannon. Strathclyde: ()deon Ayr. Odeon Hamilton. UCI Clydebank. UCI East Kilbride. WMR Film Centre.
I One From the Heart (Francis Coppola. US. 1982) Frederic Forrest. Teri Garr. Raul Julia. Nastassja Kinski. 107 mins. Uncharacteristically optimistic effort from Frank has Forrest and Garr as a lovin‘ an' leavin' an lovin‘ again couple. whose simple history is told in the form ofa neon-lit musical comedy set in Las Vegas on Independence Day. Edinburgh University Film Society.
I Parenthood ( 15) (Ron Howard. US. 1989) Steve Martin. Diane Wiest.Jason Robards, Rick Moranis. 124 mins. The film apparently comes straight from the personal experiences of Ron ‘Mr Nice Film' Howard. the ex-Happy Days star. Our Steve. ex-Happy Feet star. is in his element as a lovable jerk trying hard to be a good dad. However. the climactic montage where every member of the cast is either giving birth or cuddling some cute wee baby in glutinous slow-motion had this old bastard reaching for his Sten gun. Glasgow: Cannon The Forge. Cannon Sauchiehall Street. Edinburgh: Cannon. Strathclyde: Cannon, UCl Clydebank. UCI East Kilbride.
I Pather Panchali (PG) (Satyajit Ray. India. 1955) Kanu Bannerjec. Karuna Bannerjee. Uma Das Gupta. 115 mins. Ray‘s debut feature was the first Indian film to cause a stir in the West and set him on the path to an acclaimed career. lt‘sa simple story of a young boy‘s life in a rural Bengali village. but told with the kind of sensitivity and warmth that Hollywood turns into sentimentality. Followed by Aparajito and The World 0pr11 to complete The Apu Trilogy. Edinburgh University Film Society.
I Patti Hocks ( 18) (David Burton Morris. US. 1987) Chris Mulkcy. John Jenkins. Karen Landry. 87 mins. Two blue collar buddies (Mulkey and Jenkins) take a long overnight drive to visit Billy's ex. A revealing journey. not so much for the language (which is uncomfortably realistic) as for the dramatic effect ofthis tightly controlled environment. The pay-off to all the macho talk is ofcourse that the girl is far more independent and charismatic than either man recognizes. A healthily honest look at the least attractive side of the human male. Glasgow: GFI”. I PetSematary(18) (Mary Lambert. US. 1989) Dale Midkiff. Denise Crosby. Fred Gwynne. 102 mins. In a dark old house near an old lndian burial ground. strange things can happen. This comes in handy for Midkiff who. shattered by the death of his two year-old son. tries to bring him back to life through supernatural meddlings. But the lad comes back slightly changed and anyone in reach of the cutlery is at the sharp end of the youngster‘s tantrums. Well acted ifclumsily structured. and occasionally scary. Like most Stephen King books. this could have been a great movie; but like most Stephen King films. it isn‘t. Strathclyde: Civic Centre Motherwell.
20 The List 26 January — 8 February 1990