FILM INDEX
I “I let (PG) (John Huston. US. 1956) Gregory Peck. Richard Basehart. Leo Glenn. 116 mins. Great setpieces don't quite add up to a magnificent whole in Huston's version of Melville‘s novel. but the whaling scenes are certainly worth catching. Peck is a bit weak. but the director's use of colour and selections from the original text give the piece some depth.
Edin : Filmhouse.
I The OT Elli M (12) (Timothy Forder. UK. 1992) Robert Powell. Finty Williams. Peter Pacey. 98 mins. A solid but curiously misshapen period thriller fashioned from the shreds of Dickens’s last. unfinished novel. A choirmaster bumps off his nephew in order to win the love of a pupil. and thereafter it's more of a ‘how' dunnit than ‘who'. bound up in familiar TV Dickens trappings. See review. Glasgow: MGM Sauchiehall Street. Edinburgh: Odeon
I Iatleeel l-eeeelehellleeeeas) (John Landis. US. 1978) John Belushi. Tim Matheson. John Vernon. 109 mins. Probably the only US campus comedy worth talking about. with Belushi at his manic best. Delta House provides the Hyde to the American educational institution's Jeckyll. with toga parties. fart- lighting competitions and all of those other college indispensibles. And . . . ‘lt's not over until we say it is. Was it over when the Germans bombed Pearl Harbour.’ ‘Germans?’ Etc. etc. Edinburgh: Cameo.
I m OHIO UM M (18) (Tom Savini. US. 1991) Tony Todd. Pauicia Tallman. Tom Towles. 96 mins. Not as influential as Romero‘s original. but this remake by horror sfx grandmeister Savini is more intelligent and terrifying than the other zombie rip-offs that have oozed their rotting flesh onto the market. With a heroine in the Ripley mould. it‘s toughened up for an apocalyptic scenario. Glasgow: Grosvenor. .
I One Pelee I". (18) (Carl Franklin. US. 1992) Bill Paxton. Cynda Williams. Billy Bob Thornton. 106 mins. Tight li'l crime thriller in the Jim Thomson mould begins with a brutal set of drugs-related slayings. but soon becomes a fascinating character study as a trio of crooks head towards a small town in Arkansas and the cops who await them. Excellent performances all round. particularly Paxton as the over-zealous. but not wholly innocent. Southern sheriff holding his own against the boys from LA.
Glas ow: Odeon.
I (PG) (Sally Potter. UK. 1992) Tilda Swinton. Billy Zane. Quentin Crisp. 92 mins. A male Elizabethan courtier begins a journey of self-discovery that involves four centuries and a sex change. Swinton’s simple but unique beauty captures the androgyny of the perfect Everyman/woman. while director Potter creates from Virginia Woolf 's novel a humorous and visually splendid succession of episodes that is a constant joy to watch. At last. a literary film rather than a literature substitute. Edinburgh: Cameo.
I Mitt I.“ (15) (Philip Noyce. US. 1992) Harrison Ford. Sean Bean. Anne Archer. Patrick Bergin. 121 mins. Follow up to The Hunt For Red October finds Tom Clancy‘s hero Jack Ryan being tracked down by the brother of an Irish terrorist he killed while on holiday in London. Some good. tense set pieces - particularly the hi- tech ‘kill by satellite' sequence - but its meddling use of Irish politics and unwillingness to condemn the lRA make it of slightly dubious merit this side of the Atlantic. Edinburgh: Cameo.
I The M (15) (Robert Altman. US. 1992) Tim Robbins. Greta Scacchi. Fred Ward. Peter Gallacher. 124 mins. Alunan's. satire on the wheeling and dealing of modern day Hollywood is more than just an excuse for cineastes to play trainspotter with the famous faces in cameo roles. It is also a terrific thriller about a studio exec receiving death threats from a spurned writer. Tim Robbins is magnificent in the lead role. while Altman manages to grin as he bites the hand that feeds him. Edinburgh: Cameo.
I The Pill: E” (15) (Howard Franklin. US. 1992) Joe Pesci. Barbara Hershey. Stanley Tucci. 99 mins. Pesci adds another dimension to his varied repertoire as an ambulance-chasing 1940s press photographer who gets caught up in a gangland black market scam. The moody photography gives period authenticity and the film is at its best when showcasing the work of real-life snappers. but the crime plot scents tacked on and underwritten. Edinburgh: Filmhouse. Fife: Adam Smith.
I m I”! (18) (Quentin Tarantino. US. ' 1992) Harvey Keitel. Tim Roth. Michael Madsen. 100 mins. A gang of hoods. known only to each other by colour-coded nicknames. meets at an abandoned warehouse to figure how out their rigorously planned heist went so drastically wrong. The best debut in years from writer-director Tarantino. whose stylish violence seduces the audience into complicity. Brilliant in every sense of the word. Glasgow: Odeon.
I AliverlueTheefi it (PG)'(Robert
Redford. US. 1992) Craig Sheffer. Brad Pitt. Tom Skerritt. 124 mins. A fine. lyrical piece by director Redford describing the love and loyalty of two contrasting brothers in Montana early this century. Based on Norman Maclean's semi- autobiographical novel. it fuses the Scots Presbyterian lifestyle of American settlers with an uue understanding of nature. Wonderful performances. beautiful photography: altogether a perfectly crafted film about human relationships. Fife: Adam Smith.
I m lleetl: Prince MWUZ) (Kevin Reynolds. US. 1991) Kevin Costner. Morgan Freeman. Christian Slater. Alan Rickman. 147 mins. Second outing of the year for the Nottingham legend. this time with Hollywood's golden boy in the title role. Costner's Robin slips into Indiana Jones mode as he sets about undoing the wrongs of Rickman's scene-stealing Sheriff in a way that is wonderfully reminiscent of the best Saturday matinee swashbucklers. Edinburgh: Filmhouse.
I lleger III I! (15) (Michael Moore. US. 1989) Michael Moore. Roger Smith. 90 mins. Altemately hilarious and saddening portrait of the disastrous effects of widespread unemployment on Moore's home town of Flint. Montana. A former journalist. Moore sold his house and auctioned its contents to make this movie. An unexpected hit in the States this docu- comedy follows the trail of his camera as he gleans comments from all manner of folk and sets off in search of Roger Smith. the head of General Motors. who closed down their Flint factory with the loss of 30.000 jobs. Edinburgh: Filmhouse.
I Reaper Ste-per (18) (Geoffrey Wright. Australia. 1991) Russell Crowe. Jacqueline McKenzie. Daniel Pollock. 89 mins. A group of Nazi skinheads in Melbourne find their numbers dwindling when they get caught up in a street war with local Vietnamese. Hand-held camera shots draw the audience into the frenzy. letting them reject the skinheads' views with moral certainty rather than blind emotionalism. A film that pressurises viewers into addressing the issues involved. Central: MacRobert. Strathclyde: UCI Clydebank.
I flew (PG) (Fred Schepisi. US. 1987) Steve Martin. Daryl Hannah. Shelley Duvall. 107 mins. Witty. tender and charming reworking of Cyrano de Bergerac which deploys a range of comedy techniques as fire chief Martin of the enormous proboscis copes with life and lovestruck romance. Edinburgh: Cameo.
I Salaa- m! (15) (Mira Nair. lndia/France/UK. 1988) Shafiq Syed. Raghubir Yadav. Aneeta Kanwar. 113 mins. A marvellous movie shot on location in Bombay. which records the lives of the city‘s thronging street urchins. focusing on young Krishna‘s descent into a seedy underworld of prostitution and narcotics as he uies to earn his fare back to his native village. This auspicious debut from lndian woman film-maker Nair avoids the obvious. and makes its moral points through its sympathy for the remarkable children whose indomitable spirit is convincingly captured by the former documentarist‘s camera. Edinburgh: Filhouse. I Scent et a lenen (15) (Martin Brest. US. 1992) Al Pacino. Chris O'Donnell. James Rebhom. 156 mins. A blind. alcoholic ex- serviceman and a scholarship college boy spend Thanksgiving Weekend in New York and find themselves in a series of funny and moving adventures which finally lead them to come to terms with their true selves. Overlong in its opening and closing scenes. this is still one terrific movie. with what is possibly Pacino's best performance in a distinguished career. Glasgow: MGM Sauchiehall Street. Edinburgh: Dominion. Borders: Kingsway. All UCls.
I Sum 82 (15) A superb selection of work made under the auspices of Glasgow Film and Video Workshop. Nine pieces by Scottish- based film and video makers cover the spectrum from video art to short narrative. If this is the tip of the low-budget filnunaking iceberg in Scotland. the country does indeed have a future to look forward to. Edinburgh: Filmhouse.
I Silent m (U) (Douglas Trumbull. US. 1971) Bmce Dem. Cliff Potts. Ron Rifkin. 89 mins. Pioneering effects boffin Trumbull (he supervised 200] ‘s elaborate setpieces) came up trumps with this warmly affecting debut sci-fi feature. Dern stars as the scientist in charge of a spacecraft experiment that's literally another Garden of Eden and is apparently intended to renourish old mother Earth after the ravages of nuclear war. When orders come through that the plan is to be ditched. Dern and his team of robots )head off into hyperspace in the hope that they can inspire life on another sphere and setting the scene for a tearful finale. Edinburgh: Filmhouse. I M lien (15) (Hal Hartley. US. 1992) William Sage. Robert Burke. Karen Sillas. 104 mins. Two mismatched brothers go in search of their athlete-tumed-radical father. whose absent presence acts like Godot to their Estragon and Vladimir. And. as in the stage piece. it‘s the
wordplay (Hartley‘s patented ear for quirky
dialogue) and wayward philosophising en route that becomes more important than the journey itself. Edinburgh: Cameo.
I Single“ 12) (Cameron Crowe. US. 1992) Bridget Fonda. Campbell Scott. Kyra Sedgwick. Matt Dillon. 90 mins. The way it's been sold you'd think it was some total guitar hardcore odyssey vibe. but in fact it‘s a honey-coated romance that just happens to take place in Seattle. There's a high recognition factor for twentysomethings in the audience as they watch the ensemble cast find its way around misdirected crushes. parties from hell and crap gigs. Watch your life flash before you. Glasgow: GFl‘
ITheSHbIefthellefleIlIrleHPGw‘t mins. Dramatisation of real life events which occurred when the Greenpeace flagship was bombed in New Zealand. A top notch cast (Sam Neil. Jon Voigt) bring weight and credibility to an important story with shades of international conspiracy. Edinburgh: Filmhouse.
I Sen-«shy (12) (Jon Amiel. US. 1993) Richard Gere. Jodie Foster. Bill Pullman. 114 mins. The plot of The Return of Martin Guerre goes wandering for a few years before emerging from the mists of the American Civil War in the shape of lack Sommersby (Gere). who‘s not quite the man his wife (Foster) remembers. She's in love. but a court has to decide the genuineness of his claims. As effective as a thriller as the original but the central pairing lacks the spark that would really have set it on fire. General release. .
I Soylent Green (15) (Richard Fleischer. US. 1973) Charlton Heston. Edward G. Robinson. Leigh Taylor Young. 97 mins. Film adaptation of Harry Harrison's highly-regarded novel Make Room! Make Room! sets up a plausible vision of a future world teeming with hungry millions. Heston is a tough cop trying to discover exactly what are the ingredients of Soylent Green. a synthetic foodstuff that's been cooked up to help feed the planet. The final revelation might be obvious from a long way off. but it’s very logical in a Swiftian sort of way-Edinburgh: Filmhouse. I Sweet Ease. lieu “be (18) (lstvan Szabo. Hungary. 1992) Johanna Ter Steege. Eniko Borcsok. Peter Andorai. 81 mins. A deeply-felt. authentic portrait of Szabo's homeland's post- Communist period of adjustment. seen through the eyes of two former Russian teachers trying to master enough English to keep ahead of the students they're instructing. Made compelling by its central perfomtances. See review. Edinburgh: Filmhouse.
I Tfl (PG) (F.W. Mumau. USA. 1931) Anna Chevalier. Matahi. Hitu. 90 mins. Mumau‘s last film - made partly in collaboration with documentarist Robert Flaherty - tells of a young Tahitan girl. earmarked for a sacrifice ritual. who falls in love with a pearl fisherman. This special performance features a live performance of Violeta Dinescu‘s score. performed by Paragon Ensemble Scotland. Wed 19 only. See Screen Test and Mayfest preview. Glasgow: GFT.
I reruns-nu 6160808) 107 mins. Four North American shorts from the touring Seventh Lesbian and Gay Film Festival. all with a witty take on modern living. Glasgow: GFT.
I Tales Fre- Bllll lleseltal (I8) (Guy Maddin. Canada. 1988) Maddin's homage to the surreal silent classics. showing with his 1990 feature
Archangel. Glasgow: GFT.
ITMZ: M(15)(James Cameron. US. 1991) Arnold Swarzenegger. Linda Hamilton. Edward Furlong. Robert Patrick. 136 mins. The most expensive film ever made. In a reprogrammed role that says much about his changed image since the first movie. Arnie becomes the underdog fighting to protect mother and child from another more advanced cyborg. With an element of uncontrived human compassion lurking throughout the gloriously expensive action sequences. as Swarzenegger's cyborg develops human feelings. this is more than just a $100 million fairground ride. Edinburgh: Filmhouse.
I 70188:“. I. I. (18) (Shinya Tsukamoto. Japan. 1989) 67 mins. Forget all that Cronenberg has taught us concerning body horror - this low budget metal machine monster movie has some incredible scenes of male genitalia turning into power drills and the like. A must-see for the sick cult connoisseur and all the better for remaining uncut by the censor. With Jan Svankmajer's eye-opening short Food. Central: MacRobert.
I Teteee 2: The 8M (18) (Shinya Tsukamoto. Japan. 1992) Tomoroh Taguchi. Nobu Kanaoka. Shinya Tsukamoto. 83 mins. More sophisticated than its eye-opening predecessor. Tsukamoto's latest post-modem body horror does have a plot - something to do with the murder of a child and the father's subsequent mutations through rage. However. it is the relentlessly violent. arty imagery that most sticks in the mind. Central: MacRobert.
. I TeeslesletieshlenleUZ) (Alain
Corneau. France. 1992) Gerard Depardieu.
Guillaume Depardieu. Anne Brochet. 114 mins. The story of 17th century viol de garnba virtuoso Marin Marais (told in flashback using Depardieu pen: etfils) acts as a background for conflicts between music and musician. art and artiste. Hugely successful on home territory. it marks an impressive debut for young Guillaume. who’s likely to set beans racing from Toulouse to Tollcross. Central: MacRobert.
I T018 (PG) (Barry Levinson. US. 1992) Robin Williams. Michael Gambon. Robin Wright. 121 mins. When their father dies. Leslie Zevo and his sister Alsatia are left his utopian toy factory. but their nasty uncle decides instead to turn out war toys: it‘s militaristic madness against childish lunacy. Nice sets but. wow. is this a piece of gross self-indulgence from Levinson who doesn't seem to know if this is a kids' film for adults or an adults' film for kids. Edinburgh: UCl. Strathclyde: UCI Clydebank.
I MUS) (Walter Hill. US. 1992) Bill Paxton. William Sadler. lce T. Ice Cube. 101 mins. Another Walter Hill film. another flop. The casting of sundry rap stars and much jazzy MTV visual frippery can't pump any new life into the well-worn storyline of assorted parties fighting it out over a large chunk of stolen loot. See review. Glasgow: MGMs. All UCls.
I M (15) (Hal Hartley. US. 1990) Adrienne Shelly. Martin Donovan. Merritt Nelson. 90 mins. in suburban Middle America. a rebellious high-school dropout (Shelly) leaves home after causing her father's fatal heart attack by announcing she‘s pregnant. By chance. she meets the dangerous but intelligent Matthew. who has also rebelled and lost his job. A highly unusual black comedy with several unexpected twists from the writer/director of The Unbelievable Truth. Edinburgh: Cameo.
I Tucker: The Ian m llis Drea- (PG) (Francis Coppola. US. 1988) Jeff Bridges. Martin Landau. Joan Allen. 110 mins. Coppola‘s best film in years charts the rise and fall of Preston Tucker. a naive but ingenious engineer who in 1948 produced a car so technically advanced that it scared the Detroit majors into action. Coppola at last re-unites his stylish technique with a grasp of narrative control in a manner that brings back memories of the great Hollywood productions. Edinburgh: Filmhouse. I Under 810’ (18) (Andrew Davis. US. 1992) Steven Seagal. Tommy Lee Jones. Gary Busey. 103 mins. Die Hard on a boat. with martial arts ace Seagal as the ship's cook and the only man who can take on a group of terrorist revolutionaries who have taken over its nuclear arsenal. A kind of ultra-violent comedy. it should take Seagal out of the video ranks and into the big league. as he's simply a better anti-hero and actor than Jean-Claude. Arnie and Dolph put together. Edinburgh: UCl.
I W (15) (Clint Eastwood. US. 1992) Clint Eastwood. Gene Hackman. Morgan Freeman. 123 mins. Clint returns to the saddle as a former killer. tamed by his late wife. but pressed into joining a bounty hunt which takes him to the town of Big Whiskey and into the presence of its sadistic sheriff (Hackman). A darkly disturbing western which destroys the genre‘s traditional notions of clear-cut good and evil. instead presenting violent acts as physically and psychologically painful for victim and perpetrator alike. Edinburgh: UCl. Strathclyde: WMR.
I I”! (PG) (Nikita Mikhalkov. France/USSR. 1991) Badema. Bayaertu. Vladimir Gostukhin. 120 mins. The simple tale of a nomadic shepherd who leaves the Mongolian steppes to go shopping in town is transformed into an awe- inspiring piece of true cinema. Grand. poetic. visually stunning and alien - words cannot describe the sights and sounds of the landscape and the people who inhabit it. Edinburgh: Filmhouse.
I m Peter(12) (lan Sellar. UK. 1989) Ray McAnally. Gordon R. Strachan. David Hayman. 92 mins. Affecting adaptation shot on Orkney of Scots writer Christopher Rush's impressionistic A Twelvernonth And A Day. set in a fishing village in the 1950s. One of McAnally's last roles casts him beautifully as the sympathetic grandfather of Peter. played by nine-year-old Strachan (who is not to be confused with the diminutive Scottish midfield genius) in this moving study of a dying community seen through the eyes of a young boy. Edinburgh: Filmhouse.
I Th mm Flh m (18) 79 mins. Four weird and quirky works - Dog Stories. The Exquisite Corpse. Joe 90 and A Game of Death - from this innovative group working at the cutting edge of Canadian cinema. Glasgow:
G
PT. I YOIIOI m (PG) (Chen Kaige. China. 1984) Xue Bai. Wang Xequie. 89 mins. Kaige‘s extraordinary debut feature centres on the clash between the traditional values and rituals of a remote mountain uibe and the modernist drive towards Communist industrialisation. Edinburgh: Filmhouse.
36 The List 7-20 May 1993