FILM INDEX
FILM -muz-
Films screening this fortnight are listed below with certificate, credits, brief review and venue details. Film index compiled by Alan Morrison.
I Ace Ventura: When llature Calls (PG) (Steve Oedekerk. US. 1995) Jirn C arrey. Simon Callow. Ian McNeice. 94 mins. This puerile. stereotyped and occasionally brilliant follow-up to the surprise hit that launched Carrey's career finds the pet detective in Africa. The natives are defined by silly rituals and a war-like nature. the English as upper-class twits. and amongst it all. Carrey's hit-and-miss antics become wearisome. See review. General release. I The Adventures Of Priscilla. Queen Of The Desert ( l8) (Stephan Elliott. Australia. 1994) Terence Stamp. Hugo Weaving. Guy Pearce. 104 mins. Two transvestites and a trans-sexual team up for a trip across the Australian outback for a drag show in Alice Springs. Serious issues pop up from time to time. but the emphasis is on the camp humour of the in-bus bitchiness and outrageous musical set-pieces. Edinburgh: Cameo. Film Guild. I The American President (15) (Rob Reiner. US. 1995) Michael Douglas. Annette Bening. Martin Sheen. 113 mins. Widower and leader of the Western world Andrew Shepherd (Douglas) falls for a sparky environmental lobbyist (Betting). but finds that press intrusion. opposition slurs and his day-today chores get in the way of romance. Director Reiner (When Harry Met Sally) again pulls off a perfectly balanced romantic comedy. throwing in some serious points along the way. General release. I Angels & Insects (18) (Philip Haas. US/UK. 1995) Mark Rylance. Kristin Scott Thomas. Patsy Kensit. 117 mins. An explorer accepts the job of cataloguing the insect collection of an aristocrat. but when he falls in love with his daughter. he faces class rivalry and snobbery. An infuriating period piece with only Rylance and Scott Thomas proving themselves in the acting stakes. And the metaphors are so forced. it's embarrassing. See review. Edinburgh: Filmhouse. I New! (18) (Francis Coppola. US. 1980) Martin Sheen. Marlon Brando. Robert Duvall. Dennis Hopper. 153 mins. Vietnam as The Ultimate Trip. We follow US Army assassin Sheen downriver and deeper into the Heart of Darkness ruled over by Brando's mad Colonel Kurtz. Alternater pretentious and visually overpowering (the Valkyries helicopter attack. for example). its grandiloquent folly somehow pierces right to the bone of the conflict. Released in a new 70mm print. Edinburgh: Filmhouse. I l’Avventura (18) (Michelangelo Antonioni. Italy. 1960) Monica Vitti. Gabriele Ferzetti. Lea Massari. 145 mins. Slow and detached from plot devices. Antonioni's focus concentrates more on the developing relationship of a couple searching the Sicilian landscape for a missing friend than the how or why of the disappearance itself. A prime example of European chic. now looking a bit too self-conscious. Edinburgh: Filmhouse. I Babe (U) (Chris Noonan. Australia. 1995)
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James Cromwell. with the voices of Christine Cavanaugh. Miriam Margolyes. Iltrgo Weaving. 92 mins. An orphaned pig falls under the eye of a kindly collie and begins to think he‘s destined for glory at the regional trials. Talking animals suggest that this is a kids' movie: to an extent it is — and a great one - but there's enough skewered humour (hail the psycho mice!) for adults to discover an unexpected cult hit. A triumph for the underpig. See review. General release.
I la Belle et La Bete (PG) (Jean Cocteau. France. 1946) Jean Marais. Josette Day. Marcel Andre. 92 mins. Sombre. magical and extravagant rendition of the fairytale with Day as
Beauty and Marais as her shepherd lover and the I
Beast. A haunting fantasy. Glasgow: GFT. Edinburgh: Filmhouse.
I La Belle liolseuse Divertimento (15) (Jacques '
Rivette. France. 1991) Michel Piccoli. Jane Birkin. Emmanuelle Beart. 126 mins. Shorter version of Rivette's film in which a painter finds inspiration in a new model. the effects of which spill over to his private life. Slightly different footage and re-editing gives a fresh. faster paced slant to an absorbing drama. Edinburgh: Filmhouse.
I Beethoven (U) (Brian Levant. US. 1992) Charles Grodin. Bonnie Hunt. Dean Jones. 87 mins. A small St Bernard pup escapes from an evil vet and attaches itself to the Newton family. Soon it grows to enormous proportions and begins to wreck domestic havoc. Endless visual gags and good timing. particularly from Grodin. enliven what might have been a run-of-the-rnill mutt movie. Fife: MGM.
I The Big Sleep (PG) (Howard Hawks. US. 1946) Humphrey Bogart. Lauren Bacall. John Ridgely. Martha Vickers. 114 mins. Marlowe gets caught up in the peccadilloes of the Sternwood family as he tries to stop a spot of blackmail. Needless to say. the broad knows more than she lets on. Witty. sultry. atmospheric. mainstream film noir with Bogey and Bacall doing their excellent double act. Glasgow: GF'T. Edinburgh: Filmhouse.
I Blue Week (15) (Matti Kassila. Finland. 1954) 78 mins. A young man goes to an offshore island for a weekend's relaxation. where he meets an attractive woman and her middle-aged husband. A brief affair ensues with unexpected consequences. There's a distinctly Bergmanesque flavour to the story as it draws upon the sensual quality of the Nordic summer setting. Glasgow: GFT.
I Braveheart (15) (Mel Gibson. US. 1995) Mel Gibson. Patrick McGoohan. Sophie Marceau. 177 mins. Mel Gibson's long and bloody account of the life of Scottish warrior hero William Wallace boasts some remarkable battle scenes and great performances. particularly McGoohan's merciless King Edward. Aiming to entertain on a wider scale than the more literate Rob Roy. Braveheart's Scottish passion is tempered by a few Hollywood moments — touches of sentimentality and ‘dramatic' historical inaccuracy. Nevertheless. it's a fine. full~blooded attempt to tap into the spirit that fires Scotland's history and heroes. General release.
I The Bridges 0f Madison County (12) (Clint Eastwood. US. 1995) Clint Eastwood. Meryl Streep. 94 mins. Robert James Waller"s book may be literary tripe. but one‘s admiration for director-star Eastwood increases a thousand- fold. as he conjures one of his finest achievements as a filmmaker. It's a classic love story between a passing photographer and a
; woman whose husband and children are off at
i the state fair. and Eastwood has created a work i with real tear-stirring potency despite its utter
; lack of sentiemental gushiness. Edinburgh:
1 Filmhouse.
: I The Brothers McMullen ( 15) (Edward Burns. 3 US. 1994) Edward Burns, Jack Mulcahey.
Michael McGlone. 97 mins. Adultery.
commitment. splitting up. fidelity — the main
j topics of conversation for three Irish-American brothers who are each undergoing a period of
adjustment in their personal lives. Edward
Burns' award-winning debut is a low-budget
indie charmer. with a well-crafted screenplay and charismatic performances. Glasgow: MGM Film Centre. Edinburgh: Cameo, 15(‘1.
; I The Cameraman (PG) (Edward Sedgewick. US. 1928) Buster Keaton. Marcelinc Day. Harry Gr'ibbon. 80mins. A struggling photographer
' takes the job of a newsreel cameraman and
unexpectedly becomes a hero in one of his films. Some lacklustre clowning in the early stages
soon makes way for moments of comic mastery. Glasgow: (il’l‘.
, I Candyman 2: Farewell To The Flesh (18) (Bill Condom US. 1995) Tony Todd. Kelly Rowan.
William O'Leary. 95 mins. The original was one
j of the few truly scary horror films of the 90s.
tapping into the power of urban myths. Here. the potency is diluted as the story flips from the 19th
Century roots of the Candyman legend to
modem-day New Orleans. Pretty much a
straightforward slasher movie. Glasgow: MGM Parkhead. Edinburgh: UCI. Strathclyde: LTCIs. WMR.
. I Carringlon (18) (Christopher Hampton. 15K.
1995) Emma Thompson. Jonathan Pryce. Steven Waddington. 123 mins. Hampton's debut as writer-director concentrates on the deeply loving. platonic relationship between Bloomsbury Group writer Lytron Strachey (Pryce) and painter Dora Carringron (Thompson). The film takes an episodic approach to their life together. letting the performances flourish. but providing some
extremely funny and literate one-liners to lighten
the moments when tragedy looms. Darker and more intriguing than the typical British period piece. Edinburgh: UCI. Strathclyde: 1.1(‘1 liast Kilbride.
I Casper (PG) (Brad Silber'ling. US. 1995)
Christina Ricci. Bill Pullman. (‘athy Moriarty. 100 mins. Everyonc's favourite friendly ghost has been living with his three bad-tempered
uncles in an abandoned mansion. When it‘s
3 bequeathed to a money—grabbing heiress who
thinks it‘s filled with hidden treasure guarded by
unquiet spirits. Casper comes into contact with
; ghost psychologist Pullman's tomboy daughter
f (Ricci). A very messy amalgam of Ghostlmrterr
effects. Addams F amil_v gothic humour and the
sort of overblown feelgood Spielbergiana that
revels in funny gadgetry and family values. Glasgow: Odeon. MGM Parkhead. Edinburgh: UCI.
I Chinatown (Roman Polanski. US. 197-1) Jack Nicholson. Faye Dunaway. John Huston. 131 mins. Private eye Jake Gittes takes on a routine case in 1937 LA and ends up uncovering tnore than he bargained for. Splendid conspiracy thriller with a handsome period look and a quite superlative cast Despite rumours spread by Nicholson and Polanski. though. the nose-slitting
scene was faked. Edinburgh: Filmhouse.
I Chunglting Express ( 12) (Wong Kar-Wai. Hong Kong. 1994) Brigitte Lin. Takeshi Kaneshiro. Tony Leung. Faye Wang. 97 mins.
Such a glorious concoction of humour. energy. style and kookiness rarely comes our way. The
two loosely overlapping stories are set around a fast food stall in Hong Kong. with mismatched romance and indulgent heartache the menu for today. The second segment is the stronger. but the film is so fresh and unusual that it more than survives this slight imbalance. A Boat [)e Souffle for our times. Glasgow: GFT.
I The City Of lost Children (15) (Jean-Pierre Jeunet/Marc Caro. France. 1995) Ron Perlman. Daniel Emilfork. Judith Vittet. 112 mins. On a mist-shrouded oil rig. mad scientist Krank ages
prematurely because he cannot dream. and so he
kidnaps children from the local port and steals into their sleeping hours. A visually wonderful. wacky fairytale from the makers of Delicatessen. Glasgow: GF'T. Edinburgh: Cameo.
I Clerks (18) (Kevin Smith. US. 1993) Brian O‘Halloran. Jeff Anderson. Marilyn Ghigliotti. 90 mins. Just when you were sick of the very
. sight of the word ‘slacker‘. along comes Clerks and gives the whole commercialisation of the Gen X lifestyle a good hard kick up the
backside. Kevin Smith's hilariously foul dialogue peps up the exchanges on life. sex and everyday living between bored convenience store Check-out assistant Dante and equally bored video store manager Randal. Edinburgh: Cameo.
I Clueless (12) (Amy Heckerling. US. 1995) Alicia Silverstonc. Stacey Dash. Britanny Murphy. 98 mins. Beautiful. fashionable and
streetsmart Beverley Hills schoolgirl Cher
Catch the best Film this month. @
FIRST Bill I Babe Far more than a kids‘ comedy about a talking pig, this surprise cult crossover is to One Man And His Dog what Have I Got News F or You is to Question Time. General release.
I Cold Fever A young Japanese man comes to Iceland and finds himself in the expanses of Iceland in the most visually stunning culture-clash comedy you’ll ever see. Glasgow: GFT. Edinburgh: 1" ilm/touse.
I Seven Morgan Freeman and Brad Pitt descend into some stylishly bleak shadows to solve a series of murders based on the seven deadly sins. General release.
I The Brothers McMullen An American indie filrn without designer violence or slacker values: Edward Bums‘ refreshing study of’the bonds between three Irish-American brothers bubbles with easy charm and human insight. Glasgow: MGM Film Centre. Edinburgh: Cameo. REPERTORY
I Public Access Brian Singer’s peek behind the curtains of small-town America is actually a more intriguing film that its follow-up, Tire Usual .S'uspects. Edinburgh: F ilmhouse.
I la Belle it La Béte Cocteau's beautiful fairytale is reissued in a new print struck front the restored negative. Glasgow: GFT Edinburgh: Filmhouse.
I L’Avventura Antonioni‘s character study, with its defined formal style. is probably one of the greatest arthouse movies ever made. Edinburgh: Filmhouse.
(Alicia) is spoilt to distraction. but when teenage romance floors her. she's as clueless as anyone. This has all the ingredients for an unashamedly brainless smash teen comedy — including a new line in kooky dialect — but unfortunately it doesn't do anything that [leathers didn't do
better. Glasgow: MGM Film Centre.
I Cold Fever ( 15) (Fr'idrik Thor Fridriksson.
Iceland/Germany. I995) Masotoshi Nagase. l.ili
'l'aylor. Fisher Stevens. 85 mins. One of the oddest road movies ever made. with a young Japanese man travelling from the confines of Tokyo to the mystical. mythical landcapes outside Reykjavik. Very funny. but also rather moving. as the culture clashes reveal as many similarities as difference. See preview. Glasgow:
(ll-'1'. Edinburgh: Filmhouse.
i l
I The Creature From The Black Lagoon (18) (Jack Amold. 195-1) Richard Carlson. Jrrlia Adams. Ricou Browning. 79mins. Fifties' monster movie classic has a party of scientists on an Amazon expedition discovering a strange amphibious creature. the gill man. who proceeds to threaten the safety of the entire group. lrnpressive underwater camerawork and some sympathy for the big green fella mark this out as far superior to most of the genre. Edinburgh: (.‘ameo.
“The List 15 Dec 1995-11 Jan 1996