INDEX FILM
FILM
Films screening this fortnight are listed below with certificate, credits, brief review and venue details. Film index compiled by Alan Morrison.
I The Adventures Of Priscilla. Queen Of The Desert ( IS) (Stephan lilliott. Australia. l99-1) Terence Stamp. lltrgo Weaving. (iuy Pearce. 101 nrins. Two transvestites and a trans—sexual team up for a trip acrOss the Atrstralian outback for a drag show in Alice Springs. Serious isstres pop tip from time to time. btrt the emphasis is on the canrp humour of the in-bus bitchrncss and orrtragcotrs musical set pieces. Edinburgh: (‘ameo
I Andre (l') ((ieorge Miller. l"s‘. 199-: ; Tina Majorino. Keith (.‘arradine. (‘helsta l’reld. 9-1 mitts. This time it's the turn of a seal to keep the kids oolring and aalrirrg. as the true story of Andre unfolds. Set dtrrirrg the early ()(ls‘ in a small fishing town in Maine. the film has all the necessary elements - cute kid bonding w rtlr crrte animal — and with a few adventure sequences in the plot that ptrts this llipper'cd hero in the Skippy/(‘hampion/Rirr Tin Tin class. (ilasgow: Cannon. Edinburgh: MGM.
I Appleseed (15) (Kazuyoshi Katayama. Japan. E991) 7| mins. lrr a future world. run by a singular corporate entity. jxrlicewoman Dtrnan and cyborg sidekick Bularis track down terrorist A.J. Sebastiatr. w hose criminal acts threaten the delicate balance of this utopia. The character animation is rudimentary. even by manga standards; the backgroutrds don't even aspire to the Altiru class. and otrly the hardware seems to have been drawn with relish -- which says a lot about the filmtrraker's and rrrore about the target audience. litlinburgh: liilmhouse.
I An Awfully Big Adventure ( )5) (Mike New-ell.
['K. I995) lltrglr (irant. Alan Rickrrran. (ieorgina fates. llZ rrrirrs. Amidst dreary post- war surroundings. the naive and impressionable Stella ((‘ates) discovers a micrtwosmic world of rivalry. jealousy. lust and resentment when takes a job as assistant stage manager with a rep theatre conrparry. .\'ewell taps into the darkness of Beryl Bainbridgc's novel, btrt like his previous [inc/unitedA/tri/ and Four ll't’t/r/ingi rim/A I’u/ri'rul. it really might be more suited to an evening at home ttr front of the box. (ilasgow: (Jrosvenor. lidinburgh: Cameo.
I Barcelona ( 15) (Whit Stillman. t'S. 1994) Taylor Nichols. (‘htis lzigeman. Tushka Bergen. 100 mins. As a follow-up to .llt'rrtrptr/rmn.
w l itetdirector-produccr Stillman focusses on another group of yotrrrg people who seem to Converse solely tlrrotrglr witty dialogue. The backdrop rs itrterestirrg: a pair of American cousins get on each other 's nerves rtr Barcelona dtrring the 70s. a titrre when their country men were unpopular because of anti-NATO tensions. (‘cntralt MacRobert.
I The Bear (PG) (Jean-Jacques Arrrraud. l‘r'ance. I988) Bart. Douce. Jack Wallace. Tcheky Karyo. 9S rnrrrs. Simple. trrrsentimental narrative follows the experiences of two bears. a big adult kodiak atrd a young orphan ctrb. as they are pursued by
two hunters. (‘leverly filmed to capture the bears
acting naturally. this rrrsightftrl record of their point of view rrrakes a moving plea for the decent treatment of all animals and is highly etrtertairring as it goes about it. lidinbtrrgh: liilrrrhouse.
I Before Sunrise ( I 5) (Richard l.inklater'. L'S. 2995) Jtrlie Delpy. lithan llawke. Andrea lickert. l()l trrirrs. American lnter-Railer llawke and French student Delpy are llre strangers on a trairr who strike up a chance conversation atrd spend a night wandering around Vienna. The actors give career-best performances while director Lirrklater veers into liric Rolrnrer terrrtor v with a funny. sweet and fundamentally wise llltfylc. lidinbur'gh: (‘ameo
I Black Beauty (l’) ((‘ar‘oline 'l‘hotrrson. L’S/l'K. 199-1) Sean Bean. David Thew lis. Peter Cook. 82 mins. The most famous horse in children‘s literature returns in a faithful screen versiotr by debut director 'l'homson. whose work as a screenwriter -- The Secret (fun/err, [St/H'Hl't/ St‘isurl'litirtrls. Tlrr' .Vig/rrnrtm' Before ('lrriirnrttr — taps itrto a darker current of childhood vision. The pace sets off at a gallop. atrd should intrigue adults as well as younger viewers. (‘entral2 Allanpark. Strathclyde: WMR.
I Blade Runner ( IS) (Ridley Scott. ('8. 1032) Harrison Ford. Rutger llauer'. Sear. Young. 117 mins. A tough cop tracks down a group of malfunctioning androids in this gritty hitech retread of Raymond (‘handlcrz executed with Scott's ctrstotrrar'y \ istral flair. and with strong performances. especially from l:()l(l and llatrer. Edinburgh: (’ameo.
I Boy Meets Girl t I8) (Ray Brady. UK. I994) Tim l’oole. Danielle Sanderson. Margot Steinberg. 93 nrins. Boy meets girl. Boy goes home with girl. Girl drrrgs boy. (iirl tortures. burns. maims. humiliates. kills boy - and does it all on video for her future enjoyment. A distressing. low budget British movie with a vicious humour. suggesting it's all a big. sick joke that also has serious questions to raise about sexual pow er-play and our never-ending fascination with human cruelty. Followed by a censorship debate with the film’s director Ray Brady and (‘hanrrel 4's Stuart (‘osgrove (ilasgow': (El-'1'.
I Boys On The Side ( l5) ( llerbert Ross. IS. 1995) Whoopi (ioldberg. Drew Barrymore. Mary Louise Parker. 1 l7 tnitrs. Raucous black lesbiatr (ioldberg and shyly romantic ride-share Parker are off to discover a new life: en route they save abused Barrymore from her drug- dealcr boyfriend. When Barrymore discovers she‘s pregnant. the trio show sisrctly solidarity and set up house lzrgelltct. Though the characters nay sound like crude archetypes. the sheer strength of the jx'rforrrrarrccs invests them with rtrmanity. (iirls' night out movie of the year. All 1 (Is.
I The Brady Bunch Movie ( l 3) (Betty Thomas. LS. 1995) Shelley Long. (iary (ole. Michael McKeatr. 98 mins. The makeshift Brady household is caught iii a 70s tirrrewarp of flares. groovey chicks and parental lronrilies. so while trying to pay off their back taxes. their anachronistic attitudes clash with the moral ambiguities of the 90s. Kitsch and absolutely hilarious. this is the one 'l‘V-to-big-screcn transition that has worked a treat. See review. (ieneral release.
I Bullets Over Broadway ( I 5) (Woody Allen. l‘S. 199-1) John (‘trsack. Diatrne Wiest. (‘hazz Palminteri. l()5 mins. Selfv absor bed playwright David Shayne ((‘usack) comprorrrises all the way down the litre as he attempts to get his new trtaster'piece staged -~ he's w rllrrrg to cast a gangstcr's girlfriend for the necessary ftrrrdrrrg and take writing tips from her streetwise btxlyguard. Allen's emphasis is on witty dialogue and strong jk'rformanccs. which gives the frlnr a slightly theatrical feeling. (ilasgow: ()deon. lidinbur‘gh: ()deon.
I Bye Bye love (l’(i) (Sam Weisman. l'S. I995) Matthew Modine. Randy Qtraid. l’atrl Reiser. 105 mins. Three-divorced father's. their ex-
“ ives. their current partners and. inevitably. the kids caught in the middle flesh glide through sortie formulaic comedy-drama in what could well be a hastily revised draft of a TV series that never got the green light. It's not that the acting
arid direction are bland. they're just so : lightweight. they might as well not be there at all. All ()deons. All l'(‘ls. (ilasgow: MGM
l’arkhead.
I Camille Claudel (l’(i) t Brtrrro Nuytten. lirance. I988) lsabelle Adjanr. (ierard
Depatdietr. Laurent (ir‘evrl. I75 mins. Despite its slightly forbidding length. this account of the troubled and eventually tragic life of l‘rench sctrlptress (‘amille (‘latrdel (Adjarri ). and her
i relationship as both pupil and lover with
Atrguste Rodin (Depardieu) boasts a least of menrorable irrrages and goes to prove that France's biggest stars are also two of its best actors. lidinhurgh: l‘rlmlrouse.
I Circle Of Friends ( 15) (Pat O‘Connor. l'S/I‘K. 199-1)(‘hris()'l)onnell.(‘olin l‘rrth. Mitrrrie Driver. l()2 trrins. A group of friends meet arrtl socialise together as a relief from their college sttrdies itr Dtrblitr. wrtlr love atrd disappointrrrent inevitably rearing their heads. A
slice of life itr l957 lrelarrd — so parochial it
might as well be another planet 1— ()'('onnor's adaptation of Maeve Birrchy's novel is faitlrfrrlly recreated btrt too lightweight. (ilasgow: ()deon. lidinburgh: ()tleon. l'(‘l. l-ife: MGM
Strathclyde: l‘(‘ls,
I CletkS( IS) (Kevin Smith, (S. I993) Briatr
()‘llallotan. Jeff Atrderson. Marilyn (ihigliotti.
9() mins. Jtrst when you were sick of the very
sight of the word ‘slackcr'. along comes ('lerkr
and gives the whole commetcialisatron of the
(ien X lifestyle a good hard kick tip the
backside. Kevin Smith's lrrlariotrsly fotrl dialogue peps tip the exchanges on life. sex and
everyday living between bored convenience
store check~out assistant Dante and equally
bored video store nranager Randal. lidinbtrrgh: lirltrrhouse.
I Le Colonel Chabert (l’ti) (Yves Angelo.
l‘r‘arrce. I994) (ierard Depardieu. liantry Ardarrl.
l‘abr'ice Luchirri. lll mins. In the post- .\'apoleonic years. a hero thought to be dead
rettrrtrs to Paris and tries to reclaim his rank and
fortune from his now remarried wife. Angelo's
directorial debut has strong similarities in its story to The Return ()1 .llttrlin (Jitt'rri'. but it
foregoes the cat-arrd-mouse games of that movie
for a colder. bleaker' approach to identity and
justice. Well-played literary cincnra that's perhaps too sombre to draw everyone in. Glasgow: (il'Vl‘.
'l‘hC EpiCCttTrC oftht: (:ulrurol universe
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and coffee house in the heart of the old town.
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The List 3- l5 .ltm I995
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