FILM index
FILM INDEX continued
Matilda (l’Gi (Danny l)e Vito. [‘8. WW») Mara Wilson. Danny l)e Vito. limbetli l)avidt/. ()8 ilillis. Capturing the delicious
wickedness of Roald l)ah|'s writing. director
He \'ito fully esploits e\aggeration and playful camera work to tell the tale of a gifted child who uses her super brain to outwit her neglectiiil parents. ()ffsetting the lovable Matilda against a series of horribly inflated bad characters. the film‘s message for children will appeal to the iiiisehevious kid in everyone. (ieiieral release.
Michael Collins ( l5) (Neil Jordan. US. l‘)‘)(il Liam Neeson. Julia Roberts. Alan Rickman. l3: mins. Winner of the Best l'lllli and liest Actor awards at the Venice film festival and tire cause of knee-jerk criticism from the right-w irig press. Jordan‘s stirring historical epie is an honest portrayal til .i tagged and lilimtl} conflict between lllL‘ lliitisli imperial power and idealistic lrish Nationalists early this century. The action is well handled. the cliai'acterisatioiis strong and the brutalin on both sides is iie\ er glossed (Wet. (iltisgow' (il‘il..
My Own Private idaho t isi i( itis \’;rn Sant. [8. WW] i ls’iyer l’hoeni\. Keanti Ree\es. \Villiam ls’ichert. lll§ iiiiiis Shakespeare's Heir-ii ll' l’trr/s / tI/lt/ ..‘ are goen a slea/y. contemporary twist in \'an Sam's follow -tip to [Hugo/tire ( int/tin. l’lioeni\ and Reeves make play a rent boy and the preppie Iayalioiit obiect of his affections effcctnely .\ compelling. idio- syncratic. left-field gem. lidinbtirgh: Cameo. Natural Born Killers i l.\'i (()li\ .‘r' Stone. [78. l‘l‘l.1i\\'ood_\ llarrelson. .liiliette l.ewis. ls’obet't l)owne_\ .li ll‘) iiiiiis. Stone's visual and aural assault makes for one of the most remarkable cinematic espeiiences in years. his attempts to marry style with content. and provide a damning e\pose of the media adulation oi serial killers is less successful. letdown by his trademark o\ei'statement. \iolcni. mesmerising. hallucinatory and bold in its use oi \aiiotis iilm formats. .Vli’K is a landmark in .\ll \'-iniliienced filmmaking. l dinbiii'gh. (lriiieo.
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Angel heart: Claire Danes in Romeo And Juliet
The Near Room ( lbi i l)a\ id llay tiiati. l'K. NOS i Adrian Dunbar. llav id ()‘llara. Julie Graham. st) mins. linter a vision oi (ilasgow where Mr Happy neyei‘ smiles better and washed-up newspaper hack (‘har'he (Dunbar) realises that the young girl he is searching for iii a sewer of corruption and child pornography is his ow n long-lost daughter Robert Murphy 's screenplay throws a tight net over the characters. creating a world where ilre past liiints eyeryotie down with a relentless. merciless llic‘\ liability. 'l he film's unstoppable descent into the dark underbelly of life makes The
Nair Ron/ii the Scottish etiim alent of Sci ('11.
See feature and re\ iew (ieneial release. New British Animation ( la‘i 7; mins appro\. l)ark visions and comic worlds clash in this eye-opening showcase of new work. 'I he brilliant l’hil .\liilloy offers llilit/ ()i (turner and/loii Var/2' Al»! (or «i 'li'n A't'ig/i/mziiA lit/e. ()scai'-nominated Aardiiian short llii'i"\ [he is a medieval moralin tale. and 'li'tum/mlier is a slice of platform obsession that won the .\lcl .ai'en Award for Best British Animation at last year‘s lidinbiirgh l'llill l (‘sli\;il. See preview. Stirling MacRobeit.
Nothing Personal i I‘m Iiiatitieus ()‘Sullixan. l'K. l‘)‘l5i lan llai't. .lames lii‘ain. .lohii l._\ rich. 5" mins. lhii‘ing a shaky ceasefire in l‘)75. a team oil oyalist paraiiiilitaries iii lieliast pursue their own agenda. bringing tragedy to an liiliiie‘t‘ill Catholic man (I _\iiehi ()'.\trlli\;iii's dramatic portrait of ‘l he li'oiibles show s the effect of the violence on ordinary people. as well as hinting at how ilie situation legitimises the actions of dangerous psycliotics. l'lie acting is strong. ‘-\lille the lllt‘t‘tl lias .i leiist‘ lll('\ ilal‘ilil} (ilast'ow (il'l'.
101 Dalmatians «t‘i (Stephen llet'ek. (Isl I‘Noi (ilenn (lose. .ioely Richardson. .leii l);tllit'l‘s lll‘i iiiiiis. lllsl't‘} turns one of its favourite animated iiliiis into a li\e action pantomiriie w ith spotlges of House .lhuzt' buifooner'y. making sure tlieie are plenty oi dogs to make the kitls go 'aaahhli' llie story remains pretty much untouched \ile \illainess (‘ruella lle \'il (Closer kidnaps enough spotty pups to make a stunning coat. but the animal world _-.'ets the better of her btit so does the oldriashioned morality. which stresses the sanctity oi marriage and that a woman‘s place is by her man's side (ilasgovv Showcase. l (.l ("lydebaiik last Kilbride l‘('l lsc'lsti Rosy
Paris Was A Woman i 1.3» ((il't‘la Schiller. l'ls'. I‘l‘l‘i “5 iiiliis Schiller 's argues that the creati\ e iiipirt oi the women oi the l’arisian left llaiik scene early this century has been grossly overlooked in ia\ our. iiiisiirprisiiigly. of their male counterparts .\li\itig intery iew s and archive footage. she reassesses the work oi Gertrude Stein. Sylyia Beach and others and. perhaps more importantly. suggests that their liiesty les it‘s implied most were lesbians that broke many barriers. l'diiibui'gh l‘ilmhotise Paths Of Glory (l’tiiiStanley ls'irbiick. lb. Ills-W Kirk Douglas. Ralph \leeker.
Adolphe Meniou. so mins. Moving portrayal of the madness of war has three men selected for trial for cowardice after a futile World War (hie mission unsurprisineg fails. Douglas is superb as the defence lawyer during the court martial scenes. slioi on location in a l-‘rench chateau. Kubrick's lengthy tracking shots through the trenches are among the most effective scenes of battle ever filmed. lidinburgh: l‘ilmhoiise.
The People vs Larry Flynt ( 18) (Milos l‘ormaii. 1'8. 1996) Woody llarrelson. Courtney l.o\c. lidward Norton. Ht) mins. l’ollow mg the rise of pornography publisher l.;il't'} l-ly nt irom humble beginnings through court cases and an assassination attempt. The People \'.\ lorry l-‘l‘vnr is about a lot more than politics. 'l‘hat‘s not to dismiss the film's central argument -- that the right office speech is absolute btit it is Courtney love as lily nt's junkie wife Althea that you won't be able to take your eyes off. Without her. the film would still be coiitr'o\er'sial. btit it wouldn't be so exciting. See feature and review. (ilasgow: ()deons. Showcase. l'klitibtirgh. ()deon. llCl. liast Kilbride: l'(‘l.
The Phantom ( l Ii (Simon Wincer. US. I‘Noi liilly lane. Kristy Swanson. 'l‘reat Williams. iiiti mms, He may be the original comic book hero. but alter countless screen outings for his crime-battling colleagues. the Phantom is looking well past his sell by date Here the purple-clad crusader (Zane) has to stop a power-cra/ed business magnate (\Villramsi from unleashing a deadly force. Designed in the best Art Deco style. but
e\ erything and everyone is retiiarkably plastic and soulless. li'\ me. Magnum.
The Pillow Book ( l.\‘i (l’eter (ireenaway. l‘KNetherlands/l"rance. I‘J‘Nii Vivian Wu. Izwan .\lc(iregor. Yoshi ()ida. llo mins. (ireenaway ‘s distinctive sty le of frames
w iilun frames and test scrolling across the screen reaches its /c‘ililli in this visual masterpiece. A Japanese model chooses her lo\ei's on the strength of their calligraphic skills. and slowly she puts in motion a i'e\enge plan against the man who ruined her father. ,\lc( iregor co-stars as a bise\tia| translator w liose kit is more off than on. bill the graphic nudity is sensually handled. Achineg gorgeous images make for sheer cinematic poetry lidinbui'gh, Cameo. Quadrophenia i l.\‘i i l’rank Roddam. UK. 1‘) ")i l’liil l.l.iiilc'ls. l,eslie Ash. l’hilip
lla‘. is. Sting. l.‘.ii mins .\lods and rockers li\t‘ it up on lirigiitoii beach by swapping buckets and spades tor chains and sticks.
l ixely iiist liali has enough energy. music.
\ rolence and period ilayoiir to carry it along. but all too soon it degenerates into some sort of treatise on the morality of youth. set to times by [he \\'lio Glasgow: City Centre (ideon Stirling MacRobert.
Ransom ( I“ Ron Howard. [38. l‘)‘)(ii Mel (irbsoti. Rene Rirsso. (iary Siiiise. Ill tiiitis. Sell .made iiullionaire lom .\liillen's life takes a turn for the traumatic when his son is kidnapped After the l’lil bungle the ransom till 1‘. \ltilleii goes (in network 'lAV [ti tiffcr
the $2 million as a bounty on the kidnapper‘s head. A tightly paced. dark and brooding Hollywood thriller which has more than the average amount of tension and twists. the acting is all-round excellent. but it's Gibson's movie and he‘s perfect as the likeable bloke with an underlying vicious streak. Glasgow: ABC Film Centre. ()deon Quay. Showcase. UCl Clydebank. lidinburgh: UCl. Ayr: ()deon. East Kilbride: UCl.
Romeo And Juliet (12) (Bar. Liihrmanii. Australia/US. 19%) Leonardo DiCaprio. Claire Danes. Pete l’ostlethwaite. 120 mins. 'iiie Strict/y Ballroom director‘s treatment of the Shakespeare tragedy is a magnificent riot of Colour. action and sexy teen romance. without any need to sacrifice the text. To call it ‘M'l'V Filmmaking‘ misses the point that the camera tricks and iii-jokes don't in any way distract from the fact that l.uhrmann has completely grasped the issues at the centre of the play. An intoxicating. breathtaking mix of Catholic iconography. high camp and street violence that's both deliciously feverish and studiedly cool. General release.
The Sargossa Manuscript (15) (Wojciech Has. Poland. i964) 175 mins. A fuller version of the film than the drastically cut British version. this teaser follows a Belgian officer across Spain during the Peninsular War. Multiple storylines are rendered in gotliic mood and. while it's still very confusing. it's also strangely beguiling. lidinburgli: l’iliiilitiiise.
The Secret Of Roan lnish (PG) (John Sayles. US/lreland. I994) Jeni Courtney. liileen Colgari. John Lynch. l()3 mins. Master filmmaker Sayles delivers a wonderfully wistful Celtic fantasy that should appeal to older and younger viewers alike. Capturing the mood of rural lreland and the legend of the half-human. half-seal selkies. lie spins a rich tale of everyday magic which taps into the cultural identity of the setting without a hint of condescension. Glasgow: Gl-‘I‘.
Secrets And Lies (i5) (Mike lcigh. UK. 1990) 'l'imothy Spall. Brenda Blethyn. l’liyllis Logan. 1-10 niins. leigh's Palme l)‘()r-winning follow up to Naked is a bittersweet take on suburban domestic life. Young black optician Hortense searches for the mother who ptit her tip for adoption as a baby. btit is surprised to discover it's white working-class Cynthia. Genuinely emotional. with great performances by Marianne Jean-Baptiste and Timothy Spall. but the showstopping turn comes from Cannes winner Brenda Blethyn. Glasgow: (il-‘l‘.
A Self-Made Hero ( I 5) (Jacques Audiard. l’rance. l‘)‘)(i) Matthieu Kassovitz. Anouk (irinberg. Saiidrine Kiberlain. 105 mins. A rare blend of frivolity and seriousness, Audiard‘s second feature probes the legacy of l-‘raiice's Vichy period through the life of a perpetual daydreamer who gets a taste for fibbing and embarks on an unlikely odyssey from gormless nowhere man to fraudulent hero of the wartime resistance. Matthieu Kassovitl. (who made the brilliant street- saga [xi lluim'i fills Albert with an engaging iiielange of timidity. low cunning and underlying determination. See preview and review. Glasgow: Gl’l‘. lidinburgh: l-‘ilmhouse.
She's The One ( l5) (Izdward Burns. US. 1996) lidward Burns. Mike McGlone. Jennifer Aniston. ()7 mins. 'l‘liis pleasing comedy shares the satne sense of humour as litii‘ns‘s debut lili/ll’ Brothers Altthl/lc'n) and focuses on the fraternal tensions between a pair of lrish-Americans in matters of love. sC\ and marriage. A gentle. witty. perceptive film with neat dialogue. fresh characters and
' nicely judged acting — US indie cinema as
quality soap. lidinburgh: Cameo.
Shine ( l 2) (Scott llicks. Australia. 1996) Geoffrey Rush. Noah 'l'aylor. Armin Mtieller-Stahl. 105 mins. Winner of nine top awards at Australia's equivalent of the ()scars. Shine is a remarkable and devastating film about the life of child prodigy and pianist David Helfgott. who was forced to retire from the stage due to a mental breakdown. but returned later in life. The performances show real love. while the recital passages are presented with a conviction that underlines the quality of the film as a whole. Glasgow: Gl’l‘. ()deon