INDEX FILM
FILM mm:-
Fllrns screening title fortnight are listed belorv with certificate, credits, brief review attl venue details. Flint Intlex compiled by Alan Morrison.
I the Mrenhrree 0t Pinocchio (U) (Steve Barron. US. 1996) Martin Landau. Jonathan Taylor Thomas. Udo Kier. 96 mins. More faithful to the original novel than the Disney cartoon. this mix of animatronics. computer animation and live action still falls short of the mark. Landau is a sympathetic Geppetto and the period detail gives a nice fairytale mood. but the sentimentality and rnoralising (and the shoddy cricket animation) undermine its good elements. See review. General release.
I Alaska (PG) (Fraser Heston. US. 1996) Thora Birch. Vincent Kartheiser. Charlton Heston. 109 mins. A young brother and sister go searching in the Alaskan wilderness for their father. missing in a plane crash. Their adventures bring them into contact with a grizzled hunter (Heston) and a cute polar bear cub. Good wholesome family entertainment with some tense action scenes. See review. General release.
I Alice (IS) (Jan Svankmajer. Switzerland. 1988) 84 mins. Radical new version of the Lewis Carroll classic by brilliant Czech filmmaker Svankmajer. which has the protagonist as the only live action character making her way through a harsh dreamscape vividly conveyed through puppet animation and trick photography. Atmospheric treatment of cruel. childlike fantasies. which makes for absorbing viewing. but Disney it definitely ain't. With the Brothers Quay‘s scary short Street 0f C I‘(K'0(Iile’5. Edinburgh: Filmhouse.
I W (PG) (Anthony Hopkins. UK. 1996) Anthony H0pkins. Leslie Phillips. Kate Burton. 89 mins. For his first visit behind the camera. Hopkins takes Chckhov's Uncle erm to Wales. An eccentric family and equally odd friends weep. shout and feel sorry for themselves in a large country house. absorbed with their unrequited romances and jealousies. The balance of tragedy and farce is disasterously unsteady. the acting extremely self-indulgent. Central: MacRobert.
I Babe (U) (Chris Noonan. Australia. 1995) James Cromwell. with the voices of Christine Cavanaugh. Miriam Margolyes. I-lrrgo 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. Fife: ABC.
I Barfly (18) (Barbet Schroeder. US. 1987) Mickey Rourke. Faye Dunaway. Alice Krige. 99 mins. Bar-room bum Rourke finds artistic inspiration in the demon drink. but his discovery by a prestigious literary magazine and the temptations of wealth it offers threaten his relationship with fellow alcoholic Dunaway. Calculating exercise in existentialism. based on the autobiogaphical writings of cult author Charles Bukowski. here energetically inrpersonated by a game Mickey Rourke. Edinburgh: Cameo.
I Bemchais (15) (Edouard Molinaro. France. 1996) Fabrice Luchini. Michel Serrault. Michel Piccoli. 100 mins. Playwright. judge and spy Pierre-Augustin Caron de Beaurnarchais gets up the nose of 18th century Parisian aristocracy
while meddling in political intrigue and various sexual feats. This hugely entertaining romp moves at a frantic pace. centring on its charismatic central character. a sort of James Bond precursor. History as spectacle. Glasgow: GFT. Fife: Adam Smith.
I Beautiful Thing (15) (Hettie Macdonald. UK. 1996) Glen Berry. Linda Henry. Scott Neal. 90 mins. Jamie. a teenager having a hard time at the local comprehensive. falls for neighbour Ste. who himself is on the receiving end from his ex- boxer dad. First-timer Macdonald's direction is unflashy. but attuned to the inner lives of these motley individuals. and the cast work wonders. Bright. summery and full of life‘s possibilities. Edinburgh: Cameo. Strathclyde: UCI East Kilbride.
I Berlin hternational Short Film Festival (IS) 95 mins. A selection from this year's event. bringing together nine works from Europe and North America. including Beriou's Er Memoriunr. Edinburgh: Cameo.
I The CFO (U) (Brian Cosgrove. UK. 1989) 105 mins. Animated version of the Roald Dahl favourite has young Sophie battling against evil.
aided and abetted by the Big Friendly'Giant. Glasgow: GFT.
I The Big Blue (15) (Luc Besson. France. 1988) Rosanna Arquette. Jean-Mare Barr. Jean Reno. 120 mins. Barr and Reno. friends since they were children. are divers competing to reach the greatest depths without the aid of breathing equipment. and also rivals for the romantic attentions of Ms Arquette. A commercial smash in its native France. Besson's film is a stunningly photographed visual experience in varying shades of blue. Even if the plot is a load of tosh. the dolphins are nice. Edinburgh: Cameo.
I The Birdcage (15) (Mike Nichols. US. 1995) Robin Williams. Nathan Lane. Gene Hackman. 119 mins. A remake of La Cage Aux Fol/es with plenty to say about contemporary America's hypocrisy. Williams is superb (and more restrained) as the gay nightclub owner whose attempts to impress the right-wing parents of his son's fiancee go awry. Funny and sensitive. with excellent performances. Strathclyde: East Kilbride Arts Centre.
I Blue In The Face (15) (Wayne Wang. US. 1995) Harvey Keitel. Roseanne. Victor Argo. 89 mins. Using Keitel's cigar store manager's tangled love life as a loose narrative thread. the makers of Smoke returned to the set for an improvised portrait of Brooklyn and its residents. Witty celebrity cameos aplenty from Madonna. Jim Jarmusch and Michael J. Fox. in what is nothing less than a party on screen. Edinburgh: Filmhouse.
I BornlrayUS) (Mani Ratnam. India. 1995) Aruind Swamy. Manisha Koirala. 140 mins. Romeo And Juliet. Indian-style. as a wealthy Hindu falls in love with the Moslem daughter of a local brickmaker. They run off to Bombay and raise a family. Then suddenly Ratnam's romance takes off: caught up in the riots and massacres following the 1992 storming of the Temple of Ram. the couple's families are put more severely to the test. An outstanding epic. surprise winner of the Audience Award at the 1995 Drarnbuie Edinburgh Film Festival. Strathclyde: UCI Clydebank.
I Boston Kickntll(l8) (Paul Hills. UK. 1995) John Simm. Emer McCourt. Marc Warren. 105 mins. Despite a strong resemblance to Trainspotting. Hills's dynamic movie comes into its own as an attack on dead-end life in England's purpose-built new towns. Teenage alcohol abuse. casual sex and violence and a surprisingly romantic sub-plot sit nicely on t0p of a blasting classic and indie rock soundtrack. See review. Glasgow: Odeon at the Quay. Edinburgh: UCI.
I BraveheartUS) (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. Aiming to entertain on a wider scale than the nrorc literate Rob Roy. Brat'elreurt's Scottish passion is tempered by a few Hollywood moments — touches of sentimentality and ‘dramatic' historical inaccuracy. Edinburgh: Odeon.
I Breaking The Waves (l8) (Lars von Trier. Denmark/France. 1996) Emily Watson. Stellan Skarsgard. Katrin Cartlidge. 158 mins. In a close-knit Calvinist community in the north of Scotland. a young woman faces banishment from the church when she makes a self- sacrificing pact with God in order to save her husband's life. Unlike von Trier's austere arthouse works (Europa). this intimate melodrama is raw and exposed. Emotional connection transcends everything else in one of the most moving films ever made. See preview and review. Glasgow: GFT. Odeon at the Quay. Edinburgh: Cameo. UCI.
I The Brothers Sitlarlanowslry (PG) (Wim Wenders. Germany. 1996) 80 mins. A fitting addition to the celebration of 100 years of cinema. Wenders's excursion into the life of Max Skladanowsky - inventor of the bioscope — combines early films and personal memory to create a sense of wonder at the medium. Gemran Film Festival. Glasgow: GFI‘. Edinburgh: Filmhouse.
I Mill. Lite (15) (Peter Welz. Germany. 1994) 105 mins. Two women meet for the first time. hold up a bank. begin a series of robberies and give out the proceeds to the needy. becoming popular folk heroes in the process. A twist on both Robin Hood and Thelma & Louise. set in the world of the modern media. German Film Festival. Glasgow: OH”.
I 0810 Scarpa (U) (Murray Grigor. UK. 1996) 60 mins. A evocative film on Italian modernist architect Carlo Scarpa. made by one of Scotland's leading documentary filmmakers who has often revealed his skill at capturing the beauty of architecture on film. Glasgow: GFT. I Carrington (18) (Christopher Hampton. UK. 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 Lytton Strachey (Pryce) and painter Dora Carrington (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: Film Guild.
I Chain Reaction (12) (Andrew Davis. US. 1996) Keanu Reeves. Rachel Weisz. Morgan Freeman. 106 mins. Reeves is a scientific genuis (it's the movies. remember) whose discovery of a cheap. clean energy source finds him being framed for murder by shady government types and big business congolmerates. Cue some lame on-the-run cliches. not surprisingly from the director of The Fugitive. Occasional action set pieces and fast pacing can‘t disguise the flaws of doggy filmmaking. See review. General release. I Id Homeland (15) (Volker Koepp. Germany. 1995) 158 mins. A sweeping. insightful portrait of the people of the Baltic region. once populated by the Pruss. then taken over by the Russians after WW2. Different generations and backgrounds united by geography. Gemran Film Festival. Glasgow: GFT. Edinburgh: Filmhouse. I Com llnder Fire (15) (Edward Zwick. US. 1996) Denzel Washington. Meg Ryan. Lou Diamond Phillips. “6 mins. Washington gives a superb performance. hinting at dangerous vulnerability. as an army officer assessing a fellow soldier's nomination for a posthumous award and then has to face his own nighurtares over a friendly fire incident. Slightly slushy in some areas. but otherwise an intelligent. understated film. General release.
I The Curse 0i Frankenstein (18) (Terence Fisher. UK. 1956) 83 mins. Peter Cushing. Christopher Lee. Hazel Court. 83 mins. Britain's first colour horror movie set the tone for a number of lurid Hammer excursions into the genre. Lee‘s monster lacks the iconic power of Karloff for the simple reason the make-up isn't good enough. Glasgow: GFT.
I Dead Man ( 18) (Jim Jannusch. US. 1995) Johnny Depp. Gary Farmer. Lance Henricksen. 121 mins. After heading out west for a job vacancy that's already been filled. accountant Bill Blake (Depp) finds a posse on his tail after the shooting of his would-be employer‘s son. With a bullet in his own chest. Blake hooks up with an Indian called Nobody (Farmer). who reckons this is the spirit of the poet Blake and so
[CHACUN CHERCHE SON CHAT]
An Artificial Eye/Mayfair Presentation Released by Artificial Eye
prepares a proper funeral. Glorioust shot in black and white. meticulously paced and imbued with a spiritual transcendence. Jarmusch‘s existential Westem is innovative and unexpected. Glasgow: GFT. Central: MacRobert. I The Devil Ilitlee Out (18) (Terence Fisher. UK. 1967) Christopher Lee. Charles Gray. Patrick Mower. 95 mins. Lee is the good Duc de Richleau: Gray the Satanist baddie: Richard Matheson the writer (from Dennis Wheatley's novel): Fisher the director who pulls it all off atmospherically. One of Hammer's finest moments. with a fine use of colour. Edinburgh: Cameo. I Dr Jekle Ind Sister llytle (18) (Roy Ward Baker. UK. 1971) Ralph Bates. Martine Beswick. Gerald Sim. 97 mins. An intriguing and successful variation on the Stevenson original. with Bates literally getting in touch with his feminine side. For added attraction. a Jack The Ripper plot is thrown in. as the lovely lady lures prostitutes to their death. Freud would have had a field day. Glasgow: GFT. I Dracula. Prince of Darkness ( 18) (Terence Fisher. UK. 1965) Christopher Lee. Andrew Keir. Barbara Shelley. 90 mins. Picks up from where the Hammer original left off. with unwitting travellers providing the necessary blood to bring the Count back to un-life. A worthy successor. made when the company was at its height. Glasgow: GFT. Edinburgh: Cameo. I Dragonheart (PG) (Rob Cohen. US. 1996) Dennis Quaid. Sean Connery. David Thewlis. 103 mins. Disillusioned but noble knight Bowen (Quaid) teams up with the last of the dragons (voice and mannerisms by Connery) to free the land from a tyrant king (Thewlis). Dungeons and dragons for all the family in a film that is only fun when the expertly animated. fire-breathing beast is on screen. Otherwise the storyline lumbers along. See feature and review. General release. I The Eighth Day (15) (Jaco Van Donnael. France. 1996) Daniel Auteuil. Pacal Duquenne. 114 mins. The follow-up film by the director of Toto Le Heros will disappoint most. annoy many and win over only a few. Auteuil plays an uptight businessman whose life is transformed when he comes into contact with a man with Downs Syndrome (Duqtrenne). The film shifts its styles boldly from sentiment to comedy to drama. and its moments of bizarre magic realism give it a lift. but trltimately it falls into the
dreadful ‘handicapped people are t_ou_c_he_d_by _
“H
‘ From 25 Oct Cameo, Edinburgh
The List 18-31 Oct 199633