FILM
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Lord of darkness: Angus MacFadyen is the evil Emperor Komodo in Warriors 0f Virtue
The warrior returns
We've seen nothing of ANGUS MacFADYEN since he played Robert The Bruce in Braveheart, but the Edinburgh- born actor has been far from idle in America. Words: Alan Morrison
It has been two years since he led the troops to victory at Bannockburn. In that time. limi'v/imr/ has swooped the ()scars and busloads of American tourists have stepped onto Scottish soil to make l‘riends with the ghosts ol~ their ancestors. So why haven't we seen more (it Angus .\l;icl5ady‘en'.’
It‘s not that the 32-year-old Scot has been sitting with his I'eet up beside a Hollywood swimming pool. Since the final credits tot‘ Brave/rear! rolled. Maci’adyen has completed no less than six I’eature I‘ilms. the I‘irst oI' which ~ kids‘ Iantasy adventure Ilirrrinrs (2/~ \i'rlm' — finally makes it onto British screens as. admittedly. one ot the summer’s lower—profile releases. In it. Macliadyen continues the tradition ot being the l'iuropean actor playing the baddie in an American movie.
‘I play the evil emperor oI‘ this l‘antasy land called Tao. and.‘ he laughs. ‘it's silly stul'II It’s about live kung-I‘u-I‘ighting kangaroos who represent the virtues of loyalty. honour. righteousness . . others which I can't remember. I don’t know why they wanted me as the bad guy. Maybe it's to do with my theatrical background. It‘s a very theatrical performance I give. incredibly over-the-top. I guess a
’I feel if I have the opportunity, it's crazy not to at least give it a shot in HOllyWOOd.’ Angus MrFadyen
. and a couple ol-
lot ot' American actors have a very naturalistic approach to acting. and so everything is small and contained and reality-based. Whereas this is like doing Shakespeare on stage.‘
The post-/fl'(lt'(’/1(’(ll'l period not only brought .\lacl5adyen a spot of tabloid interest — he and (‘atherine Zeta Jones were a couple for a while — but a wider range of job otters. After playing a German t‘lying ace held in a prisoner-ollwar camp in The lirv/t'n'um Buys. he moved to Los Angeles to cash in his credibility chips alter Mel (iibson‘s epic proved to
be something ol~ a phenomenon. With Warriors ()f
I'irriw out ot‘ the way. he then concentrated on tour independent projects. all of which have yet to be released. There‘s also a role as Lord Byron in the pipeline.
The steady work seems to be Stateside. so when can we expect Macl’adyen to make another film in his homeland'.’ ‘l‘d like to do it now.‘ he admits. ‘l was on Skye recently - my parents live there now — and I thought I’d love to spend. say. three months of the year here. doing a really good TV series. a drama or a ten-part thing. It‘s just I I‘eel it' I have the opportunity. it's crazy not to at least give it a shot in llollywood.‘
Although his first rave reviews came when he was a student on stage at lidinburgh University's Bedlam 'l‘heatre in the mid-80s. it was always I'ilm acting that interested him. ‘liver since l‘)7‘).‘ he explains. ‘when I saw The (ind/Eula»: It was Al Pacino. in that scene at the restaurant table. when he has to shoot those guys. The camera starts going in slowly on his face. and his eyes dilate and move I‘rom side to side. 'l‘here‘s dialogue going on. but it doesn't matter because you can actually see his thought process. Then I I’inally understood — that‘s what it is that I want to do. The rest has just been getting the experience. getting ready to do that.‘
Warriors Of Virtue opens on Fri 25 Jul.
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Rough Cuts
The column that hopes Jimmy Stewart is having a wonderful afterlife.
UNTIL LAST WEEK, there wasn’t a
cinema screen between Edinburgh’s
Lothian Road and Princess Street in
Falkirk. So the new eight-screen ABC
multiplex at Westside Plaza in Wester Hailes has an enviable catchment area, taking in not only Edinburgh's west side, but also towns such as Bathgate, Livingston and Linlithgow.
Step inside, and you're immediately greeted by a bank of box office tills.
Slip along the L-shaped vestibule — past the pick 'n' mix sweetie mountains - and star photos, from Greta Garbo to Sharon Stone, line
the corridor to the screens. The main
cinema, seating 416, is particularly well proportioned, with a good screen size, comfortable seats and probably the best rake of any multiplex in Scotland.
The Wester Hailes cinema is the ABC
chain’s first multiplex, and opened
at a special ceremony on Thu 17 Aug
to the roar of The Lost World.
General manager Colin Bayes - who has spent the last three years in the
city centre at the Lothian Road ABC - is getting ready to host world premieres of The James Gang (with John Hannah) and Shooting Fish (with Kate Beckinsale) during the Scottish Screen Edinburgh International Film Festival.
GLASGOW FILM AND VIDEO WORKSHOP has extended its opening hours until 10pm, Mon—Thu, and 10am-6pm on
Saturdays. The GFVW is also running
a series of two-day training courses in AVID non-linear editing
throughout August; these are aimed
at beginners, but knowledge of Apple computers and film/video editing is useful. Call 0141 553 2620 for details.
DOUGRAY SCOTT, recently seen abusing the long arm of the law in Twin Town, is the latest young Scottish actor set for a major American breakthrough. In disaster movie Deep Impact, produced by Steven Spielberg’s DreamWorks company and Paramount studios, the Fife-born actor plays a cameraman facing a fast- approaching deadly comet. Big name co-stars include Robert Duvall Morgan Freeman, Vanessa Redgrave, Téa Leoni and Elijah Wood.
Watch the skies: Dougray Scott heads for Hollywood
25 Jul—-7 Aug 1997 THE UST 33
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