I Avalon t I ' I Alter [Ii/re;
IAmerican Friendsri’r‘ii .\Iiehael I’aliii stars \s ith (‘onriie Booth and 'I run Alxaiadoiri a quaint lo\ e
stilt} l‘asetl on the tll;lr‘ie\ of his great-grandlatliei. an ( )xtord don \s hose eiieouiiterssitli a young Irish-Aiiier‘iean \somari and her aunt iii Sssit/erlandehaiiged his life. See leature (’aniion Saueliiehall Street (iIasgoss and ( )deori Izdinhurgh from I-rill Mai.
I
and [III lien. Barr} I.L‘\'Iil\tlli returns tohis :iatn e Baltimore for a tender. suits and seriii-auiohiograplueal stor_\ ahout Iiasterii Izuropean immigrants making a ness lile in the promised land ol the
mid-Atlantieeoast.
Starring Armin \Iueller-Stahl..Ioan I’lrm right and Aidan ()uiiiii. See re\1e\s Izdinhurgh ( ariieo lrom Hi 2‘) Mar. I Awakeningsr 12 I Base-it on the hook h} ()loei Saels‘s and made “‘llll his eo-operatiori. I’enns .\1arshall'slilrii stars Robin Williams as a nessls appointed [I\}L‘lltIIIlL‘f';t[Il\I \\ ho deselops aspeeial relationship \HIII piist-eneephalitie patient Roheit I)e \ir'o, \s ho has lis ed in his msri \soild tor deeades. See leature. (‘arinon'l he I-orge. ()deons I‘tlllll‘lllgll arid (ilasgoxs . and all I '( 'ls lrom I-ri 22 Mai. I Desperate Hours r is) Michael (‘imino‘s ne\s pssehologieal thriller isa remake ot the W“ original. starring \Iiekes Rourke asaiieseaped eiimirial insadingtlie eomlortahlesuhuil‘aii home ot 'l rm ( ~or rieIl (Anthony IltIPIslll\litlltI holding his tamiI_\ hostage See presiess Iidinhurgh. ( 'l_\del\arils and last Klll‘ilrle I ’( 'Is trorii I H 2" Mar
INDEX: 18 LISTINGS 25
ILM
18 ’l‘he List 22 Mareh» 4 April I‘I‘II
FILM
I Adam‘s Rib t I’( i I ((ieorge ( ‘ukor . l '8.
1949) Katharine I Iephurn. Speneer' 'l'rae} . Jud} Ilollida}. It‘rl mins. I’erleet I lephurii and lime} \ehiele as the} pla} [\sril;l\\_\et‘s
AVALON
respeetixels defending and proseeutmg dumh hlonde IIollida} . \sho'seharged \sithshooting her tsso—timinghushand with intent to kill. (ireat stull. (ilasgoxs: (BI-'lf
I American Friends 1 i’( ‘i I ('I ristram
I’ossell. l'Is'. I‘Nl I .\liehael I’aliii.(‘oiiriie Booth. 'l'rini .'\l\ ar‘ado. Allied .‘sfoliira “5
mins. 'l'he semi-lietionalised stor} ol I’alin's great—grarrdlalher I‘dss ar'd. an ()xtord don \s ho tell in lo\ e “ith a pretts soung Irish—Amerieaii girl. Iilinor
(Als aradoI. \\ hour he met is hile \sallsing in the Miss Alps. 'l‘he stor} ol their romariee is eomplieated. hossesei . h} the soeial eonstraiiits ol Aeaderrie. h} the
eollege philariderer ( )Irs er 8} me i Molina)
and h} Izliiior's Aunt ( 'aroliire t Booth I.
\s ho also has designs on Palm \Vhimsieal.
arehetypalh I’aliii—esque and rather hland. 'I'he sort ol lilni _\ou eari see is ith your elderls relations on a Sunday
alternoon. See Ieature. (ilasgoss : ( ~annon
Sauehiehall Street Izdinhur'gli; ( )deori, I . . . And Justice ForAll l iiiiNorman Jessison. ['8. 10"”) Al I’aeino. .Iaek Warden. John IVorss the. lee Stiasherg. (‘hristine I.ahti. I It) iTllil\. Iei i'il} iirgset eompelling expose of eorruptiori iii the heart ol the Ameriean iudieial s_\steitl. in \\ hieh I’aeino stars as a delenee attorrie} struggling against the grain ioseeure justiee lor his stitehed-up clients. 'I he effect is diluted some“ liat h} aquirk} strain ol humour and a dated diseo soundtraek. hut the stor'_\telliiig is still ehillingl} elteethe. (ilasgoss (il’l IThe Apartmentii’mtnilh Wilder .t'S. Willi) Iael; I.emmon. Shirle} .\lael.aine.
I-red MaeMurra}. Ras \Valston. 125 mins.
Splendid satire on sex. sueeess and moralit} . in which I.emmon's eler k generates lug hueks h} suh-lettirighis apartment to senior exeeutis es tor immoral purposes. oiih to liiid that his own girl is hasirig it otl \sith his liiiss. Both eentral perlormanees are uonderlttl. generating hotli lar‘ee and pathos \\ ith admirahle suhtlet}. Iidinhurgli: ('ameo. I Arachnophobia l I’( i I ( I'rarik Marshall. I 'S. I‘I‘III) .Iell Daniels. .luIian Sands. IIarle} .Iane Ko/ak. .Iohn ( ioodman. Illl mins. In rural retreat on the ( ~alilor‘nia eoast. the Jennings lamil} are unpleasantl} surprised \s hen the} meet their new neighhours. a partieularl} venomous hreed ot spiders. \\ liieli are to terrorise the \ illage ol ( 'ariaima. not least through the surgery of araehnaphohie I )r .Ierinings t Daniels). I’rodueed h} Stes en Spielbergand hilled asa‘thr‘illomeds‘. this feast of humorous horrors is guaranteed to appeal to \Ik‘Is-IIIIIItIL‘tI punters \\ hoenios either nightmaresoi elose eontaet with our eight—legged
friends. (‘entral: ('aledoniaii. Strathelsde:
Mother“ eIl lheatre.
I Avalon l l ' I ( Barri I,e\ irisoii. I'S. I‘I‘IIII Armin Mueller-Stahl. IiIi/aheth I’er'kins. .Ittitll l’loxs iiglit. Aidan ()uiiin. lltrmiiis. See res iess. Izdiiihur‘gh: (‘ameo.
I Awakeningsr I: I t I’eniis Marshall. I 'S. 1901 I Roheit I)e \iio. Roluii\\‘illiaiiis. John I leard. .Iulie Is'as iier. I’erielope Ann Miller . Mas \ori Ssdow 121 mins. Based on the hoolx hs pssehiatrist ( Ill\ er Saelss. sl ixiiAeIii/ies tells the stor} ol a reelusix e neurologist t\\ illrams I \slrose ness post at Ilainliiidge I Iospital III New York is not the elimeal esper ieiiee he had aritieipated. Instead. he lirids himsell tlr.i\s ii toa partieular groupol statue—like eneephalitie patients. among them I )e \iio'sl eoirardl o\se Ashisohsession with their uiie\pressed inner ll\ es grosss. he des elops a relationship with I ms e
l
Avalon(U)(Barry Levinson, US, 1990) Armin Mueller-Stahl, Elizabeth Perkins, Joan Plowright. Aidan Quinn. 128 mins. After such major-league box-office hits as Good Morning Vietnam and Rain Man. Barry Levinson returns to his fecund source of semi-autobiographical talesfrom Baltimore with a bittersweet rumination on the immigrant experience and the price America exerts forthe fulfilment otdreams and the realisation ofambitions.
A mosaic of memories. incidents, family gatherings and social occasions, the film charts the history of the Krichinskys. beginning with the joyous 1914 arrival of patriarch Sam (Mueller-Stahl) whenthe fictional town of Avalon is ablaze with 4th of July fireworksthat magically spell a personal. neverto be forgotten. welcome to a land of boundless opportunity.
Overthe next four decades. the family‘s upward mobilitytakesthem from the comfort oftheirlamiliar neighbourhood out to the suburbs and their story proves to be the archetypal one of of the industrious lower middle-classes whose struggle for prosperity and self-improvement is captured in snapshots of schooldays, family dinners, risky business ventures, lazy days oisummer, impulsive marriages and the rosy-hued nostalgia and regrets of old age.
« ,' *\
A beautifully crafted tale. filled with tableauxthatare exquisitely suffused with light, thefilm is nota simplistic paeantothe American Dream but. ultimately. a more sobering view of the dissolution of the nuclear family and a once potentsense ofcommunity and belonging. The theme, ofsomething importanthaving been lostinthe process ofassimilation and social change, is sharply highlighted in the contrast between the bustling conviviality at the multitudinous family Thanksgiving meals of the early days andthejoyless contemporary equivalentwhen foursets ofeyes concentrate on the cathode ray with TV dinners perched ontheirlaps.
An interesting companion pieceto work like King Vidor‘s An American Romance. Avalon has a sure touch. a keen eye for detail. a fine sense of ensemble playing from a superior cast and the kind of intelligent. melancholy tone little seen intoday's cinema but best exemplified by the work of Billy Wilder or Ernst Lubitsch. After the more overtly comictone ofDinerandTin Men. Levinson's abiding fascination with the universal truths to be drawn from his intimate experience of Baltimore lives has produced a poignant elegyfortimes past. (Allan Hunter)
From Fri 29 Mar. Edinburgh: Cameo.
\\ Illell lieglns to release both I ins C‘s ahilit} to eomiriuiiieate and hier n repressed emotions. See feature. (ilasgors : ( 'aniion 'I he I-oige. ( )deon. Iidiiihurgh: ( )deon. It 'I. Str'athelsde: [It i 'iiiieixmk. i 'r 'l I‘ast Is'illu'ide.
I Bad lnlluencei IH) (('urtrs I Iaiisoii. I ’S. 1%”) Roh lots e. Iames Spader . I.isa /.arie. Ill: mins. Spader pla_\s a demure lirianee manager will a luxury I A apartment and. signiligaiith . a \ ideo eamera. Ixiiter loss e. \\ ho persoriilies ever} thing Spader ain't: eool. assured and unhindered In moral seruples. 'l he mo strike up a liiendship and Spader 's Iile takes a dramatie turn. 'I'liough it shares mueh the same roots as the pretentious .-l/riirrnrivii /em it is a far superior
pioduetiori. \sith suspense and humour serxed up iii equal measure Ari tirie\peeled sliee ol tirialitx eriieiiairiiiieiit (ilasgoxs. (iios\enoi IBlack Narcissusd’riii\tiiiiael i’imell. l'Is'. I" 1"] IIel‘rtliill Iseii.\.ilrii. Ieari Simmons lllllmiiis Iserr‘seoloiis o'nuirs iii the llimalasas lirid their lailli tested In the desires or the llesli An urililsels suliieet matter .isloiiishiiigls k’\lls.tll\ e studiosettiiigsaiid.ilteetiiigls controlled peiloriiiaiieesareeoiiiluried iii alieautilul. iriiiiiiie lilm I'LIllllItlitill. I'llill ( iuild I Blue Steel l I\I l Isathisii IIrgelois I S. I‘Ntlllamie l.ee ( ‘urtis. Ron .\II\ er ('laiies Ilroxsii ll'hmiris ('uitisstarsasaii ill lated roolsie cop. \\ ho IslllN a gun toting hood on her first iiight oil the heat landing