Films screening this fortnight are listed below with certificate. credits, brief review and venue details. Film index compiled by Alan Morrison.
Addicted To Love ( l5) (Griffin Dunne. US. I997) Meg Ryan. Matthew Broderick. Tcheky Karyo. IOO mins. Hard-hearted Ryan teams up with romantic Broderick to spy on and sabotage the new partnership of their respective ex-lovers. but discover that love mightjust be kindling between themselves. Ryan tinkers with her sweet image but it never really rings mm. The cinematic equivalent of a frozen ready—meal — not turkey. but close - this is bland. predictable and convenient. but just about digestible. General release.
The Addiction ( I8) (Abel Ferrara. US. I995) Lili Taylor. Christopher Walken. Annabella Sciorra. 82 mins. New York philosophy student Taylor finds herself abstractly questioning the nature of life‘s morality until she is passionately bitten one night by a beautifulwoman (Sciorra) and launched into a subversive. bloodthirsty lifestyle. Shot in black and white. and accompanied by an urban rap soundtrack. The Adllit‘lion captures the energy and power of addictive behaviour. Stirling: MacRobert.
Alive And Kicking ( 15) (Nancy Mcckler. L'K. I996) Jason Hemyng. Antony Sher. Dorothy Tutin. 99 mins. It would be a shame if the apparently downbeat subject matter — a drama about a gay dancer with AIDS — put audiences off what's actually a passionate and involving British movie. lileinyng is Tonto. who takes on a demanding ballet lead despite his HIV+ status. while undergoing a turbulent relationship with dedicated AIDS counsellor Sher. A film that steadfastly refuses to indulge itself in self-pity. See review. Glasgow: Gl’l‘. Edinburgh: Filmhouse.
Batman 8 Robin (PG) (Joel Schumacher. US. I997) George Clooney. Amold Schwarzenegger. Chris ()‘Donnell. I30 mins. Moving even further way from the Gothic melancholy of Tim Burton's first two films. the fourth Batman movie brings in Poison Ivy (Uma Thurman) and disaffected scientist Dr Freeze (Schwarzenegger). 'lhurinan's scene- stealing performance saves the film from total failure. while Clooney does exactly what's required. but no more. Noisy. empty and without a hint of wit or intelligence. General release.
Bean (PG) (Mel Smith. L'K. I997) Rowan Atkinson. Peter MacNicol. Pamela Reed. 97 mins. Bean the movie makes an attempt to broaden the range of Atkinson's tremendously successful TV sight-gag character by sending him off to Califomia to be mistaken for an an expert. Most gags are agreeably daft: several are tiresomer lavatorial; eventually. however. the film upholds fatnily values and true blue American schnialtz. You'll like it if you like the TV show. Real grown-ups should stay away. General release.
Big Night ( I5) (Stanley 'l'ucci/Campbell Scott. US. I995) Stanley Tucci. Tony Slialhoub. Ian Holm. Ill) mins. Brothers Primo and Secondo Pilaggi run a New Jersey Italian restaurant that's all btit bankrupt because of Priiiio‘s- punctilious attitude to his cuisine. so Secondo is persuaded to set tip a ‘big night for the
famous singer Louis Prima. The 50s setting is nicely but simply detailed. the characterisations strongly observed. and the dialogue gently humorous. A warm and inviting independent movie that doesn‘t slip into easy resolutions. East Kilbride: Arts Centre.
Box Of Moonlight (l5) (Tom DiCillo. US. 1996) John Turturro. Sam Rockwell. Catherine Keener. “2 mins. When his business trip is cancelled. stickler for routine Al Fountain (Turturro) watches all his best laid plans fall apart. The allegorical nature of this film makes it difficult to engage with any of the characters. but writer-director DiCillo (Living In Oblivion) is more interested in .satin'sing society than individuals. Tunurro turns in an intelligent and often amusing performance. but doesn‘t have the power to make the film live. Stirling: MacRobert.
Con Air (I5) (Simon West. US. I997) Nicolas Cage. John Malkovich. John Cusack. Il2 mins. Sit down. strap yourself in. stick your head into the roar of the jet engine of this noisy. stretch-the-credibility movie. Cage plays a manslaughter parolee whose pn'son plane ride home is hijacked by vicious convict Malkovich. so he draws on his military training and strong sense of honour to save the innocents in the air from certain death. A constant attack of big bangs. action set-pieces . dry one-liners and illogical plot hiccups. Glasgow: Showcase. Edinburgh: UCI. Irvine: Magnum. Paisley: Showcase.
The Crucible ( l2) (Nicholas Hytner. US. I996) Daniel Day Lewis. Winona Ryder. Paul Scofield. I24 mins. Arthur Miller adapts his classic stage play based on the 17th century Salem witch trials and. although the relevance to the McCarthy hearings has drifted into history. it still questions many of today's irrational and hysterical belief systems. The finger-pointing is done by a spurned young woman. who accuses her ex-lover's wife of witchcraft. and soon an all-cosuming tide of evil and hypocrisy is devastating their village. Edinburgh: Cameo.
Donnie Brasco (18) (Mike Newell. US. 1997) Al Pacino. Johnny Depp. Michael Madsen. 127 mins. Depp plays a federal agent who gains the confidence of mob underling Al Pacino as part of a major surveillance operation in late '70s New York. but their growing bond threatens the forthcoming bust. Through his eyes. we learn the language. rituals. and economic realities of being a made man. Glasgow: Odeon Quay.
The English Patient (15) (Anthony Minghella. UK/US. I996) Ralph Fiennes. Juliette Binoche. Kristin Scott Thomas. I62 mins. A mysterious stranger. suffering from hom’fic burns. is cared for by a Canadian nurse during the final days of WWII. In flashback. we discover more about the great romantic affair whose tragic climax brought him to this state. Spectaculme filmed on location. the film boasts magnificent performances from each and every one of the leads. Edinburgh: l-‘ilmhouse. Stirling: MacRobert.
The Fifth Element ( l2) (Luc Besson. France/US. I997) Bruce Willis. Milla Jovovich. Gary Oldman. 127 mins. New York City in the 23rd Century. and cabbie Korben Dallas (Willis) picks up an unexpected passenger in the shape of Leeloo (Milla Jovovich) — an alien who holds the key to saving the world. Besson‘s second English
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language film - following the excellent Leon — is a colourful jumble of camp designs (by Jean-Paul Gaultier). self-indulgent performances and genre rip-offs which plays for laughs as genuine sci-fi ideas run dry. Glasgow: ABC Film Centre. Edinburgh: Cameo. Galashiels: Pavilion. Motherwell: Moviehouse.
Grosse Pointe Blank (l5) (George Armitage. US. I996) John Cusack. Minnie Driver. Alan Arkin. l08 mins. Depressed freelance hitman Martin Q. Blank (Cusack) returns to his home town for a high-school reunion. but finds his past private life and current profession are about to overlap. Armitage turns in a fair post- Woo action sequence here and there. while Cusack positively inhabits Martin. switching from comic/romantic lead to focused killer effortlessly and believably. See review. Glasgow: GFT. Odeon Quay. Showcase. UCI Clydebank. Edinburgh: ABC Wester Hailes. UCI. Paisley: Showcase.
l Confess ( l5) (Alfred Hitchcock. US. I953) Montgomery Clift. Karl Malden. 95 mins. Quebec priest Clift hears a confession from a murderer. but discretion and duty lead him to become the prime suspect. A moody tale shot on location in Canada. Glasgow: Gf’l‘.
Johns (18) (Scott Silver. US. I996) David Arquette. Lukas Haas. Elliot Gould. 96 mins. Male prostitute John (Arquette) wakes to find his money stolen. then attempts to hustle the money he needs with the help of his friend Donner (Haas). Johns owes a certain amount to Midnight Coii'hoy and My Own Private Idaho. but has neither the relentlessness of the former nor the lyricism of the latter. Never- theless the leads imbue the film with moments of real poignancy. Kirkcaldy: Adam Smith. Kolya (l2) (Jan Sverak. Czech. I996) Zoenek Sverak. Andrej Chalimon. Libuse Sfrankova. l05 mins. Womaniser and batchelor Louka marries a Russian woman who wants a Czech passport and. when she skips the country. is left to look after her five-year-old son. Separated by language. nationality. age and blood. surrogate father and child discover how to care and love across such divides. This winner ofthe Best Foreign Language Film Oscar is a resonant mix of gentle humour and weepy emotion. with fine performances and brilliant crafting. Kirkcaldy: Adam Smith. Lady And The Tramp (U) (Hamilton Luske. US. I955) With the voices of Peggy Lee and Bill Thompson. 75 mins. Disney‘s first animated feature in cinemascope has mongrel Tramp helping pedigree pooch Lady out of a sticky situation and falling in lurve along the way. Richly drawn with hummable tunes and endearing characterisations. this is the classic Disney mix as before. Lovely spaghetti-eating sequence. General release.
Liar Liar (l2) (Tom Shadyac. US. I997) Jim Carrey. Jennifer Tilly. Amanda Donohoe. 87 mins. After the bewilderineg ill-focused Cable Guy. Jim Carrey delivers a likeable. effective. but decidedly mainstream comedy with a set-up that's blissfully simple — a birthday wish by Carrey's son means lawyer dad must stop telling lies for a single day. A very workable springboard for Jim Carrey's usual repertoire of play-dob facial tics and energetic slapstick. Glasgow: Showcase. Paisley: Showcase.
The lost World: Jurassic Park (PG) (Steven Spielberg. US. I997) Jeff Goldblum. Julianne Moore. Pete Postlethwaite. I29 mins. Goldblum and Co drop onto a second dinosaur-filled island. which is disrupted by a mixed bunch of capitalists and salad hunters. sending the camavores on a rampage. The story is far better than Jurassic Park. making for a thrilling adventure with impeccible effects that renders the original as good as extinct. Watch out for the certificate though: sustained scenes of terror suggest it should have been a ‘l2‘. General release.
Mamma Roma ( I8) (Pier Paolo Pasolini. Italy. I962) Anna Magnani. Ettore Garofolo. Franco Citti. I IO mins. Pasolini‘s superb second film - after the grimy. hoodlum tragedy Accamne — stars Magnani as a prostitute escaping a cycle of poverty and despair. only to have her past reappear in the shape of a blackmailing pimp. The film' encapsulates a doomed human condition by marrying high art and then-influential Italian neo-realisin. Glasgow: GF'T.
Men In Black (PG) (Barry Sonnenfeld. US. [997) Tommy Lee Jones. Will Smith. Vincent D‘Onofn'o. 95 mins. Smith and Jones are two cryptically named ‘cosmic G-men‘ who
monitor extraterrestrial aliens living on Earth. while stopping the nastier breed of space baddie from colonising the planet. lones‘s seen-it-all straight man is the perfect foil for Smith‘s wide-eyed new kid on the block. while Sonnenfeld's skilful integration of the visual effects proves that eye-popping spectacle and coherent storytelling need not necessarily be diametrically opposed. General release. Microcosmos (U) (Claude Nuridsany/Marie Perennou. France. I995) 75 mins. A bug~eyed look at the world of insects. this French one- off creates a kind of Iife-in-a-day between the blades of grass in an overgrown meadow. The award-winning macro-photography and imaginative sound evoke and surpass the artificial worlds created in all those science fiction movies. Edinburgh: Cameo. Kirkcaldy: Adam Smith.
North By Northwest (PG) (Alfred Hitchcock. US. I959) Cary Grant. live .‘vlarie Saint. James Mason. I36 mins. Quintessential Hitchcock comedy-actioner with Grant perfect as the everyday adman pitched into a freewheeling espionage adventure. where nobody believes his innocence btit he finds self-worth and romance along the way. Classic sequences abound. including the crop-dusting routine and the Mount Rushmore climax. Brilliant entenainment. Glasgow: (if-'l‘.
One Fine Day (PG) (Michael Hoffman. L'S. I996) Michelle Pfeiffer. George Clooney. Charles Durning. 109 mins. An ambitious architect/single mother and a wisecracking newspaper columnist/everyother-weekend father spend a hectic day together when their kids miss their school's field trip ferry cruise. Despite modern trappings like cellular phones. One Fine Day is a defiantly old-fashioned film. btit Clooney's cocky charm and Pfeiffer's comic skills are so beguiling that it will charm all btit the most cynical of viewers. General release.
Palooltaville (l5) (Alan 'I‘aylor. US. I996) William Forsythe. Vincent Gallo. Adam Trese. 92 mins. The simplest way to nutshell I’a/ookaville would be to describe it as a heist movie starring the Three Stooges. Incompetence causes our heroes to break into a bakery instead of the next door jeweller's. but then their humanity wins over as they save a security driver's life. The jokes are everywhere — all over the script. in the visuals and off-camera. Glasgow: Odeon Quay. Portraits Chinois ( I5) (Martine Dugowson. France/UK. I996) Helena Bonham Carter. Jean-Philippe licoffey. lilsa Zy'lberstein. I 16 mins. Dugowson's follow-up to the rather marvellous Mina 7aiiitwtliaum paints a broad canvas of thirtysomething Parisian life and romance. Bonham Carter (in not unimpressive French) gets the nominal lead as a couture assistant going through a double-crisis at work and at home. while the director's insight into her lovers and liars remains wise and humane. Edinburgh: Cameo.
Romeo And Juliet ( I 2) (8212. Ltihrmann. Australia/US. I996) Leonardo DiCaprio. Claire Danes. Pete Postlethwaite. I20 mins. The Strictlv Ballroom director's treatment of the Shakespeare tragedy is a magnificent riot of colour. action and sexy teen romance. without arty need to sacrifice the text. An intoxicating. breathtaking mix of Catholic iconography. high camp and street violence that's both delicioust feverish and studiedly cool. Edinburgh: Cameo.
Scottish Screen Edinburgh International Film Festival This year's Film Festival spreads out from its twin bases at the Filmhouse and Cameo with a daily programme at the Glasgow Iiilm Theatre and special gala screenings at Edinburgh's two ABCs. Dominion. Odeon and [CI See Festival Film review section on pages 85—88.
Scream ( IS) (Wes Craven. I'S. I996) .\'evc Campbell. Courteney Cox. Drew Barrymore.
l I lmins. 'Ihe teenagers of Woodsboro know they‘re typical stalker fodder. so when a killer hits town. they gather in an enormous house to watch horror movies as the real bad gtiy gets closer. Self-consCious references are good fun. the opening sequence is genuine white- knuckle material. and — if yoti know the rules — you'll find it perfectly scary and funny. Glasgow: City Centre ()deon. Showcase. L’Cl Clydebank. Edinburgh: L'Cl. liast Kilbride: UCI. Paisley: Showcase.
Shine ( l 2) (Scott llicks. Australia. I996) Geoffrey Rtish. Noah 'I‘aylor. Armin Mueller- Stahl. l()5 mins. Winner of nine top awards at Australia's equivalent of the ()scars. Shine is a