INDEX FILM
I Rancho Notorious (PG) (Fritz Lartg. US. 1952) Marlene Dietrich. Arthtrr Kennedy. Mel Ferrer. 89 mins. Another of Lang‘s heroes who's lives are arbitraily transformed by fate. Verrt Haskell is a cowhand who sets out to revenge the murder (and likely rape) of his fiancee. His best clue to their whereabouts is a ranch rtrn by former barroorn singer Altar Keane. Performances are excellent. particularly Dietrich who copes admirably with a more mature role. Glasgow: GFT. Edinburgh: Filmhouse.
I Raven's End (PG) (Bo Widerberg. Sweden. 1963) Thornmy Berggren. Keve Hjelm. Erny Storm. 100 mins. Higth praised at its time for its social realism (a break front the brooding Bergmanesque qualities of Swedish cinema). Widerberg’s semi-autobiographical film still manages to carry an air of lyricism. A young would-be writer lives in a run-down apartment with his alcoholic father and exhausted mother. but each believes they have the capability to better themselves. Edinburgh: Filrnhouse.
I Rebecca (PG) (Alfred Hitchcock. US. 1940) Laurence Olivier. Joan Fontaine. Judith Anderson. 130 mins. Wonderfully atmospheric romance. made when Hitch was at his height. The young bride of rich widower Maxirtt de Winterjoins him at his grand mansion — Manderley — btrt everywhere she turns. there are memories of his first wife. whose death is surrounded by mystery. Anderson's overwrought Gothic housekeeper Mrs Dartvers steals the show. Glasgow: GF'T. Edinbrrrgh: Filnthouse.
I Reservoir Dogs (18) (Quentin Tarantino. US. 1992) Harvey Keitel. Tim Roth. Michael Madsen. 100 rttins. 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. MGM Parkhead. Edinburgh: Cameo. Odeon. UC 1.
I Rough Diamonds (PG) (Donald Crontbie. Australia. 1994) Jason Donovan. Angie Milliken. Peter Phelps. 90mins. A late addition to this fortnight‘s releases (hence no big review). this culture clash comedy starts ex-Neiglrlmur Donovan as an Aussie cattle farmer whose burttp on the road with upmarket city girl Milliken forces her to stay for a while at his ranch. Country-style duetting. social issues. romance. comedy — it‘s all thrown in for better or worse. Glasgow: MGM Parkhead. Edinburgh: Odeon. UCI.
I Seven Brides For Seven Brothers (U) (Stanley Donen. US. 1954) Howard Keel. Jeff Richards. Russ Tamblyn. 103 mins. Classic MGM a11- singing all-dancing musical loosely based on the Rape of the Sabine Women. Despite its arch symmetry. it remains a colourful and vigorous affair with a cosily effective score by DePaul and Mercer (Spring. Spring. Spring — as in rites of. . .). The dancing. choreographed by Michael Kidd. is its strongest point btrt its status as an all time great is probably marred most by the brash and primitive technicolorrr filming. Glasgow:
I Shallotv Grave (18) (Danny Boyle. UK. 1994) Kerry Fox. Ewan McGregor, Christopher Eccleston. 90 mins. Three Edinburgh flatmates find their new co-habitant dead with a stack of money under his bed. so after performing a little DIY on the corpse. they reckon all their worries are over. But the cops are closing it). there are two thugs after the money. and the psychological tension is beginning to show. Filled with dark humour and cynical one-liners. this Scottish thriller is bloody and intelligent enough to please the cult audience while remaining accessible enough to be a mainstream hit. General release. I The Slingshot (12) (Ake Sandgren. Sweden. 1993) Jesper Salen. Stellan Skarsgard. Basia Frydman. 100 mins. In the 1920s. a 12-year-old Swede is bullied by all and sundry due to his mother's religion (Russian Jew). his father's politics (Socialist) and his own diminutive size. But at least his home ntade slingshots (knocked together from a couple of condoms and a bit of wire) are selling like hotcakes - until his mother intervenes. A funny and unsentirnental portrayal of the youthful pursuit of experience. Glasgow: FT
I Smoking/Io Smoking (PG) (Alain Resnais. France. 1993) Pierre Arditi. Sabine Azettta. 135/142 mins. A beguiling transportation of Alan Ayckbourn's Intimate Etc/ranges: the setting is still Yorkshire. but the dialogue is undoubtedly French. Interlocking lives. unsteady marriages and social embarrassment. all tttixed up in time and narrative in that inimitable Resnais manner. The films can be viewed in any order. Central: MacRobett.
I Sonatlne (l8) (Takeshi Kitano. Japan. 1993) 'Beat' Takeshi. Aya Kokumai. Tetsu Watanabe. 93 mins. A hitman is sent to Okinawa. ostensibly to sort out a gang war. btrt he soon realises he's being set up for a hit. More innovative than Tarantino. more controlled than Woo. Takeshi
rewrites the book on policier revisionisrn with this challenging. flirtatious. highly individual movie. Edinburgh: Cameo.
I The Specialist (18) (Luis Llosa. US. 1994) Sylvester Stallone. Sharon Stone. James Woods. 110 tttirts. Crack explosives duo Stallone and Woods fall out when on the job. btrt soon find themselves going head to head once more when Stallone is lured out of retirement to provide a few bombs for Stone's revenge plot on the killers of her parents. Frequent loud bangs can't fool trs irtto believing this is value for money. rtor cart the steamy sex scenes hide the fact that there‘s no cherttistry between the leads. As for the mess that is the plot — it's like chunks of raw tneat flung onto a lazily tended barbeque. General release.
I Speed (15) (Jart De Bont. IJS. 199-1) Keartu Reeves. Dennis HOpper. Sartdra Bullock. 115 mitts. A white-knuckle adrenalin ride that is the fastest. rrtost finely trrrted fairgrourtd attraction of the year. Witlt LA S\\’A’l‘ man Jack 'I'raven
(Reeves) up against rrtad bomber Howard Payrte
(Hopper) irt a tower-block elevator siege. a bus
wired to blow if it drops below 50mph and LA's as-yel-urtfinished subway. this is a movie that will leave you on a high for days afterwards. Glasgow: ()deon. Edinburgh: Cameo. UCI.
I Spielberg Film Archive Marilyn Koolik. Director of the Steven Spielberg Jewish Film Archive at The Ilebrew University irt Jerusalem comes to Scotland to deliver art illustrated lecture on 'The Land ()f Promise: Film-Making lrt Pie-State Israel'. which examines the role of cinema irt the Zionist campaign for the State of Israel. Archive artd recent clips illustrate dominant themes. artd the event will be given a special Scottish dimension. Thurs 19 only. Glasgow: GFI‘.
I Stargate (PG) (Roland Emrttericlt. US. 1994) Ktrrt Russell. James Spader. Jaye Davidson. 122 rttirts. Was Earth visited centuries ago by aliens. Seems like it. particularly when Egyptologist Spader' solves the key to a huge engraved circle found at the pyramids artd unlocks a doorway to another planet. Along with a military team led by Russell. he encounters totalitarian space god Ra (Davidson) artd reverses ES foreign policy by helping the locals. Big budget science fictiort with gleefully ridiculous story attd brilliant effects. See review. General release.
I Suspicion (PG) (Alfred Hitchcock. US. 1941) Cary Grant. Joan Fontaine. Cedric Hardwicke. 99 mins. Rougish Grant marries the rich btrt easily overpowered Fontaine. brrt his dirtgy past artd shady present are called into question when his friend Nigel Burce dies. (‘lassic ‘is lte or isn't he'." stuff. with the suave Grant on fine form artd the director only letting us dowrt at the very end. Glasgow: G171. Edinburgh: Filmhouse. I Sweet Smell Of Success ( 15) (Alexander Mackendrick. US. 1957) Burt Lancaster. Tony Curtis. Susan Harrison. Martin Milner. 96 mins. Ealing comedy director Mackendrick‘s first American movie is a dark-centred conspiracy thriller with a superb evocation of fear artd paranoia. sltot on the streets of New York. Lancaster stars as a powerful journalist obsessed with destroying ltis sister's marriage. while Curtis is the gossip hack whose willingness to oblige leads him into a web of trouble. Edinburgh: Cameo.
I Sweetie (15) (Jane (‘ampiott. Australia. 1989) Genevieve Lemon. Karert Colston. Tom Lycos. 100 rttirts. Controversial debut feature front New Zealand borrt Campion follows the fortunes of two sisters. the quiet. rtervy Kay ((‘olston) artd the unpredictably psychotic Sweetie (Lemon). whose behavioural eccentricities involve eating cltina ornaments artd pairtting herself blue. Boldly scripted artd composed. the film brings a dreamlike quality to the everyday. but beneath all the self-consciously challenging camerawork. there breathes a very simple tale of common humanity. Glasgow: GET.
I Taxi Driver (18) (Martin Scorsese. US. 1976) Robert De Niro. (‘ybill Shepherd. Jodie Foster. 114 mins. Art alienated taxi driver irt New York is so repelled by the squalor attd the moral decay around him that he is driven to terrible violence. ()ne of the key films of the Seventies with the Scorsese-De Niro partnership at its peak. Edinburgh: MGM.
I Thelma & louise ( 15) (Ridley Scott. US. 1991) Susan Sarartdort. Geena Davis. Harvey Keitel. Michael Madsen. 129 rttirts. The buddy/road movie genres are ttrrrted on their heads as Sarandon artd Davis grasp the steering wheel and ltead off leaving a trail of murder artd mayhem irt their wake. ()tt one level. the film is the critical catalyst that had the feminists cheering artd ptrt the stars on the cover of Time magazine; just as importantly. it's art accessible piece of entertainment with excellent central performances. Edinburgh: Cameo.
I This Boy’s life (15) (Michael Caron-Jones. US. 1993) Robert De Niro. Ellen Barkitt. Leonardo DiCaprio. 115 rttirts. The boy from Broxburn directs Hollywood superstars irt Tobias Wolff's autobiographical tale of growing up in 50s America with a violent stepfather. Young
DiCaprio virtually acts De Niro off screen irt this enjoyable. if a little predictable. coming-of—age tale. Edinburgh: Cameo.
I Three Colours: Red (15)(Krzysztof Kieslowski. France/Swint/Poland. 1994) lrerte Jacob. Jean-Louis 'I‘rintignant. 9() rttirts. Kieslowski's tricolour trilogy comes to a close with what may be his greatest masterpiece. A Swiss model (Jacob) discovers that a retired judge (Trintignant) is listening irt to his rteighbours' phone conversations; btrt instead of denouncing him. she too operts up her innermost secrets. Superficial details are stripped away as the director concentrates on parallel lives artd interwoven destinies. Glasgow: Gl’l‘.
I fimecop ( 18) (Peter llyartts. LS. 1994) Jean- (‘laude Vail Darttrtte. Rort Silver. Gloria Reuben. 98 rttirts. Vail Darttrne artd partner Retrberts are cops keeping art eye on time itself; when the duo travel back to 199-1 to investigate the mystery surrounding a powerful senator. personal agendas emerge. llyarrts. director of 20/0 artd ()ut/untl. can handle the sfx of large-scale sci-fr. btrt the narrative artd perforntances tertd to be dwarfed by the design. Nevertheless. one of the
few genuinely robust sci-fi movies around.
General release.
I True Romance (18) (Tony Scott. LS. 1993) Christian Slater. Patricia At'quette. Dennis Hopper. 1 19 mitts. Comic bookstore assistant (‘Iarence meets. sleeps with artd marries rtovice hooker Alabama within a tttatter of hours. then the lovebirds firtd themselves on the rtrrt with art accidcrttally stolen case ofcocaine. Limelight- stealirtg cameos arid writer Quentin 'I‘arantino's verbal set-pieces fire this excellent movie. the epitome ()f disposable pop culture for the fast- food generatiort. Strathclyde: L'(‘ls. WMR.
I Vanya 0n 42nd Street (1’) (Lottis Malle. vs. 1994) Wallace Shawn. Julianne Moore. Andre Gregory. 1 19 ntins. ()ver a period of forrr years. stage director Andre Gregory worked with a group of actors for irregular ‘undress rehearsal' run-throughs of David Mamet's adaptation of (‘hekhov's Uncle l’unyu. Malle's film version is equally experimental: the camera moves it) close as the lirtes are delivered it) a naturalistic manner without props or costumes. L'ntimatcly. however.
the intpeccible performances artd (‘ltekhov's
drama win the day. resulting it) a good film. brrt excellent theatre. See feature. Edinburgh: Cameo.
I Violent Streets tit-u Tine/(18) (Michael Martrt. 1981) James (‘aan. Tuesday Weld. 122 mins. Morose safecracker Caan seeks to better his life by starting a family. and taking on one last lucrative job. btrt the mob ltave other plans 11) store for ltirtt. Excellent psychological heist movie with (‘aan convincirtg as the thief with a heart artd a brilliartt setpiece robbery sequence. Director Martrt went on to create Miami Vice. Edirtbtrrglt: Filmhouse.
I Wes Craven's New Nightmare (15) (Wes (‘raven. US. 1994) Heather Langenkamp. Robert Ertgltrrtd. Wes Craven. 112 ntirts. A disturbing. post-rttodern take on the Elm Street series it) which the original director reworks. reassesses artd revitalises the moribund Freddy rrtytltology by casting himself artd other associates as themselves artd their fictiortal courtterparts. Don't be fooled by the certificate - there's some creepy. subversive strrff going on here. General release.
I What’s Eating Gilbert Grape? (12) (Lasse Hallstrom. US. 1993) Johnny Depp.Jtr1iette Lewis. Leonardo Di (‘aprio 118 mitts. For once. Depp is the sole figure of calm irt art oddball world. the oldest sort irt a dysfunctional fantin who live in a neurotic Iowa backwater. Only when holiday-maker Lewis arrives does he begirt
to consider his owrt feelings. With one eye on
detail. the other on the absurd. director Lasse (My Life As A Dog) Hallstr'om delivers a sympathetic romance surrounded by Arnericart foibles. The acting is superb from all concerned. A low-key wortder. one of tire films of the year. Fife: New Picture House. Robin‘s.
I When A Man loves A Woman (15) (Luis Martdoki. I994) Meg Ryan. Andy Garcia. Ellen Brrrstyrt. 12f) rttirts. Casting Ryart against type as an alcoholic ntother going tltrough rehab hell and piecing together lter domestic life does add welcome friction to Mandoki's follow-up to Burn Yesterday. btrt otherwise it's a rather typical piece about forgiveness. inner strength and reinforced farttily values. The romantic :ontent artd emotional rnattiptrlatiort. however. will please the ltankie carriers lit the audiertce. (‘erttralz MacRobert.
I Wolf ( 15) (Mike Nichols. LS. 1994) Jack Nicholson. Michelle Pfeiffer. James Spader. 125 mins. If you go to this expecting a full-bloodied werewolf rrtovie. you'll be disappointed. Director Nicltols trades traditional settings attd gore for a deeper analysis of one man's transformation on physical. erttotiottal artd psycltological levels. Bitten by a wolf. Nicholson's books editor fertds off his mid-life crisis and vents his passions on cynical rich girl Pfeiffer. More a date movie with teeth than out- and-out ltorror. Edinburgh: MGM.
SOLE RETAILERS 1N SCOTLAND FOR THE LEGENDARY
0T0
l.|-..\'1'III'IRS
CLASSICS 1N LEATHERWEAR
CUT FROM HIGHEST QUALITY STEERHIDE AND FRONT QUARTER HORSEHIDE.
LLJJ >X< rrnrurnrru
52 COCKBURN STREET EDINBURGH TEL: 031 225 9007
EB CAMEO 95!
HOME STREET 0 TOLfCROSS 0 TEL 031-228 4141
FROM FRIDAY 13 FOR TWO WEEKS
Shallow Grave t...
1.55, 4.25, 6.40, 9.00pm
(late night Thurs, Fri, Sat at 11.45pm)
Vanya on 42nd Street to)
1.10, 3.50, 6.30, 9.10pm
Pulp Fiction 1.4618300
(both not Sun), 8.15pm (late night Thurs, Fri, Sat at 11.55pm)
see usrtuo motive
NIGHT. IND
The List 13—26 January 1995 29