FILM INDEX '
O’DerLL’s.
; l‘C’S lRISl’)
. pore gneat been, 912th peopLe
ano gneat
CROIC.
The new O'Neill's embodies everything that's good about a real lrish bar. Great
atmosphere. great people. great tasting Guinness
and. as we say in Ireland. great "craic" all round. 1
NOW OPEN
. ® .. onerLLs @
99 Hanooen Stneet, Ebrnbangb EH2 101. Telephone: 0131 225 4680.
l
FILM
Films screening this fortnight are listed below with certificate, credits, brief review and venue details. Film index compiled by Alan Morrison.
I Aardrrran Animation (PG) 90 mins. A compilation of animated shorts featuring national heroes Wallace and Gromit in A Grand Day Out. The Wrong Trousers and recent adventure A Clare Shave. Glasgow: GFT. Edinbur h: Filmhouse.
I Acts totte(18) (Bruno Barreto. US. 1996) Dennis Hopper. Amy Irving. Amy Locane. 108 mins. Hopper plays a high school teacher nearing retirement age. whose life is turned around by the sexual appetite of a seventeen- year-old pupil. The film boasts excellent performances from a strong cast and offers a worthy twist to the rites of passage plot. btrt it lacks a mood of tension. See review. Glasgow: Showcase.
I The Adventures Of Pinocchio (U) (Steve Barton. 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 moralising (and the shoddy cricket animation) undermine its good elements. Glasgow: Virgin. Edinburgh: Odeon. UCI. Borders: Roxy. Strathclyde: Odeon Ayr. UCI
C lydebank.
I The Adventures Of Priscilla. Queen Of The Desert ( l8) (Stephan Elliott. Australia. 1994) Terence Stamp. Hugo Weaving. Gtty Pearce. 101 mins. Two transvestites and a trans-sexual team rrp for a trip across the Australian outback fora drag show in Alice Springs. Serious issues pop tip from time to time. btrt the emphasis is on the carrrp humour of the in-bus bitchiness and outrageous musical set-pieces. Glasgow: GET. I American Buffalo (15) (Michael Corrente. US/UK. 1995) Dustin Hoffman. Dennis Franz. Sean Nelson. 87 mins. NYPD Blue veteran Franz plays the down-at-heel proprietor of a junk shop whose plans to steal a rare coin are hijacked by fellow loser Hoffman. (‘orrente's film of David Mamet‘s play sticks so close to its theatrical roots. it barely acknowledges its new cineatic forrrr at all. The cast of three indulge in the profanities of the rapid-fire dialogue. but this production is worth it for the only for the performances. Glasgow: GET. Edinburgh: Filmhouse.
I Antonla’s line (15) (Marleen Gon'is. Netherlands/Belgitrrn/UK. I995) Willeke van Ammelrooy. Els Dottermans. Dora van der Overloop. 104 mins. The Best Foreign Film Oscar winner for I996. Arrrmu’u '3‘ Line is the famin saga of five generations of women from a rural Dutch community. The story. told with magic realist elements. is fragmented and incidenet-driven. but it's uplifting in its engagement with the sexual politics Gorris has explored in previous films. Edinburgh: Filmhouse.
I les Apprentis (15) (Pien'e Salvadori. France. 1995) Francois Cluzet. Guillaume Depardieu. Judith Henri. 98 mins. This contemporary French variation on the Wit/mail & I scenario finds two social misfits breaking into the workplace of one when they're evicted from their rent-free abode. Funny and unsentimental. it's a beautifully played piece that. although it peters out towards the end. wins the day with its engaging comic tone. Glasgow: GFT.
I The Battleship Potenkin (PG) (Sergei Eisenstein. USSR. 1925) A. Antonov. Vladimir Barski. Grigori Alexandrov. 75 mins. Made for the 20th anniversary of the 1905 revolution. Eisenstein's all-time classic follows the mutiny by the crew of the Prince Poremkr'n and the support given by the local civilian population. who are mown down by the Czar's troops in the famous Odessa Steps sequence. Expressive camera technique and a grasp of editing that wrote the textbooks are just some of the innovations that put Eisenstein and Russian film firmly on the cinematic map. Glasgow: GFT.
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: Filmhouse.
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 Beast. A haunting fantasy. Central: MacRobert. 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 Stemwood family as he tries to stop a spot of blackmail. Needless to say. the broad knows rtrore than she lets on. Witty. sultry. atmospheric. rrrainstreamfilm flair with Bogey and Bacall doing their excellent double act. Edinburgh: Cameo.
I Blaclt Itarcissus (PG) (Michael Powell. UK. 1947) Deborah Kerr. Sabtr. Jean Simmons. 100 mins. Kerr‘s colony of rrtrrrs in the Himalayas find their faith tested by the desires of the flesh. An unlikely subject matter. astonishingly evocative studio settings and affectineg controlled performances are combined in a beautiful. trnique film. Edinburgh: Cameo.
I Blood F0! Dracula ( 18) (Patrl Morrissey. Italy/France. 1973) Udo Keir. Joe Dallesandro. Maxine McKendry. 103 mins. Delightfully gory and at times extremely funny. Morrissey's distinctive take on the vampire myth has Keir's srrrprisingly sympathetic bloodstrcker searching for virgin blood irt Italy. but thwarted by Dallesandro‘s efforts as an over-sexed Marxist gardener. Watch out for Vittorio De Sica and Rorrran Polanski in cameo roles. Glasgow: GFT. I Blood Simple (18) (Joel (‘oen. US. 1983) John Getz. Francis McDorrrrarrd. M. Emmet Walsh. 99 mins. Atrspicious debut from the (‘oen brothers' direction/production team. Walsh excels as the seedy Sheriff investigating a simple murder whose devilish 'l‘exan chronicle of double- crossing is anything but simple. Arr enthusiastic attempt at conterttpor'ar'y film noir. which keeps everyone guessing even after the final frame. Edinburgh: Cameo. (‘entralz MacRobert.
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 Jarrrrrrsch and Michael J. Fox. in what is nothing less than a party on screen. Edinburgh: I-‘ilmhouse.
I le Bonlteur (15) (Etienne (‘hatiliez. France. 1995) Michel Serrault. Eddy Mitchell. (‘artrrcn Matrra. 106 mins. Setrault excels in this warmly comic tale of a harried businessman who escapes his dull marriage and work problems by taking up another identity at a country retreat with Carmen Maura and a new family. The humour has a serious touch to it. and it's also worth checking out footballer Eric (‘antona in his first big screen cameo. Glasgow: Gl’l‘. Edinburgh: Cameo.
I Brassed Off (15) (Mark Herman. UK. 1996) Ewan McGregor. Tara Fitzgerald. Pete Postlethwaite. 105 mins. When the local pit is due to be closed down. it‘s the end of the day for the colliery brass band as well. even though they've got a chance at winning the national competition. Politics are the heart of the story. btrt writer-director Harmen has created a film that balances nicely between pithy humour and heartbreaking poignance. Performances are excellent. particularly Bullvkirmnge/‘s Stephen T orrrpkinson. Glasgow: Odeons. Edinbrrrgh: Cameo. Odeon.
I Breaking The Waves ( 18) (Lars von Trier. Denmark/France. 1996) Emily Watson. SteIIan Skarsgard. Katrin Car‘tlidge. 158 mins. In a close-knit Calvinist community in the north of Scotland. a yorrng 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. Errrotional connection transcends everything else in one of the most moving films ever made. Glasgow: GFT. Edinburgh: Cameo. Filrnlrorrse.
I Brothers BI Trouble ( 15) (Udayan Prasad. UK. 1995) Om Puri. Angeline Ball. Pavan Malhotra. 102 mins. The story of tensions between a group of Asians smuggled illegally into Britain during the 60s provides a fascinating glimpse into a corner of British cultural history too often forgotten. In dramatic terms. however. the film needs more focus. The Cmrrmirmenrs' Angeline Ball gives a prizefighter's performance as a waif taken off the streets by Puri's commanding head of the household. Glasgow: GFT.
I Ming 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
34 The List 13 Dec 1996-9 Jan 1997