Father Christmas himself iii the same movie" One to entertain tlte younger viewers. or those w tth a high crassness threshold (ilasgow (irosyenor.
Seven Years In Tibet (15) (Jean-Jacques Annaud. L'S. I997) Brad Pitt. I)avid 'l‘hewlis. Bl). Wong. I3l titiiis Sporting Hitler Youth peroxide and spotitiiig suitably strangled vowels. Pitt is ace climber Heinrich Harrer. who strays across the Tibetan border atid becomes a friend of the young I)alai lama lTnfortunately. Brad seems to have yery ltttIe purchase on the material. aitd we're left with fabulous landscapes iii search of a movie. (ilasgow. ()deon ()tiay
A Simple Wish iI’(i) (Michael Ritchie. lfS. I997) .‘ylara Wilson. Martin Short. Kathleen Turner. 9t) ittttis Wlieit she ttiakes a wiin for her singer-actor dad to laiid the lead iii a Broadway musical. Mara Wilson (of .IItl/lllltl fatne) fiitds herself saddled with a bumbling fairy godfather iii the sltape of Martin Sltort. 'I‘he magic world of the fairytale is updated to the 90s for a colourfttl but ultimately sickly sweet kids movie that featttres good effects. (ilasgow: (ii‘osvenor. The Singing Ringing Tree itf) t’l'iraticesco Stefant. Iiast (iermany. I958) 73 mitts. Imaginative adaptation of the (il'lltllll Brothers" tale. tn which l’rincess 'l‘housandbeauty's suitor prince has the unenviable task of supplying her w ith said vegetation in order to win her hand. (ilasgow (il"l~
Smilla's Feeling For Snow t IS) tttille Atigttst. (iet'many/l)enmark/Swedeii. I997) Julia ()t‘iiiond. (iahriel Byt'ne. Richard Harris. Ill) mms. When (ireenland native Smilla tlulia ()riiioitd) investigates the death of her neighbout”s cltild tn a fall. her highly developed ‘sense of snow" convinces her it was murder. Ati Arctic conspiracy of iceberg-sized proportions unravels tn August's version of Peter Hoeg‘s bestseller Stark blue photography captures the landscape so effectively it makes you shiver. bttt doesn't stop the film from being arty more than a bland thriller. lidinbtirgli: Cameo
Snow White: A Tale Of Terror ( 15) (Michael Coliii. L'S. I996) Stgotirney Weaver. Satit Neill. (iil Bellows It)() nitns. 'lhis unanintated. tin-Disneytied version of the fairytale ltas a magical gothic setting wherein the attractive Claudia tWeaver ). new wife to Barott Hoffntan (Neill) develops art irrational inferiority complex to her porcelein-skinned stepdaughter l.i|li (Monica Keena). Weaver's performance dominates the screen and is so strong that the viewer empathises with the traditional baddy. Unfortunately. however. the supporting roles remain flat and artificial. lidinburgh: liilmhouse.
SpiceWorld: The Movie (PG) (Bob Spters. UK. 1997) The Spice (iirls. Richard Ii. (irant. Alan Ctiiittitiitg. 93 mins. ‘A 90s Hun] I)(l'\' is .N'i'g/il. with a pinch of Spinal 721p and a little Speed thrown tn.‘ say s the publicity material. The story chronicles the hectic five days iii the lead-up to the girls' first live concert at the Royal Albert Hall and. on the way. crams iti so many celebrity cameos, you get the sense this could be the big screen equivalent of .‘y'm'l's Home l’urlv. Of course. plenty of hit songs are included too. (ieneral release.
Star Trek: First Contact l 12) (Jonathan I-‘rakes. US. I996) Patrick Stewart. Jonathan Frakes. Brent Spiner. l I l ttttits. The eighth and tttost impressive instalment iii the series gives the M't/ (intern/uni crew a chance to be ftilly centrestage. A brooding Captain Picard (Stewart) leads the fight against the half-flesh. half-machine Borg. who are intent on attacking Iiarth and changing history. (ienuinely scary tti parts. with ftiie performances throughout. l-Idinburgh: Cameo.
Starship Troopers (15) (Paul \‘ei‘hoeven. US. I997) Casper Van l)ten. l)tna Meyer. Denise Richards. I29 mitts. Way in the future. Iiarth is run by a crypto-fascist regime. and the members of the (ialactic Armed Forces are seitt into space to fight a race of alien bugs hell-bent on wiping out humanity. The computer animation work is first rate and. despite its gory slice 'it' dice violence. one reading of the movie‘s sub-
test is decidedly atiti-ttttlttat'tsttc See
preview atid review (ieneral telease
This World, Then The Fireworks t ls. (Michael ()bIowttl. l'S. I997 (ittia (iershon. Billy Zane. Sheryl Lee llX) tttitts l’rostitue atid psycho tw tit Carol t(iershon) atid her slick and sexy brother .‘ylarty i/ane) have tiittcli tit coiitittott other than their birthdays try L‘\I(Il'll()ll. murder and incest 'l‘lte lttte between sex aitd brutality is blurred iii a film whose style-for-style's sake barely hides a distinct lack of story (ilasgow (il’l. Tomorrow Never Dies t 12) (Roger Spotttswoode. l'K. I997) l’tet'ce Bt'osiiaii. Jonathan l’ry ce. Michelle Yeoh l|9 tttttts Media ttiogtil lilliot Cary er t l’t'y cc) is ttiantpulatitig events to bring the planet to the brink of World War ‘l’lti'ee. bttt James Bond is oii hand to break a few skulls and say e the planet Some of the stittits inspire ntore adttiii'ation than escttetiient. hut. oti the pltts side. Bi'osnaii has added a more dangerous edge to the cltat iii and Yeoli. doyenne of llotig Kong action films. is a Bond girl who brings a lube grace to lter fight scenes See review. (it‘tiet'al release Total Eclipse t IS) «Agiiteska Holland. l'S. I990) Leonardo l)t(‘apt'itx l)ay id 'lliew lis. Romaine liohrtnget‘. ll).< ttitiis l'nusual casting coittbiiiatton to say the least Rumw Arit/ Julia's l)t(‘apt‘io and Milt't/‘s 'l‘hew lts are. t'estwctiyely. I5t'ench poets Rimbaud atid \erlaine itt tltts period piece that‘s more interested iii private life scandals than literary merits Adapted by Christopher Ilaittptoti front his ow n play. it's like a pretentious cousin to .'Illltlt/t'l(\ (ilasgow (il’l‘.
Under The Skin 1 IS) 1(‘at‘tne Adler. l‘ls'. I997) Samantha Morton. ('laire Rtislibrook. Rita ‘l'tislitnghatti. SF itittis Sisters lris l.\IUI'l()lIl attd Rose (Rushbi'ook) ai'e devastated when their mother lithlllltglldltl) dies front a brain tumour. and his resorts to a series of increasingly high-risk sesual encounters which alienate her from both fatiiily atid friends. Director Adler allow s ltet' tltree lead tic‘lt’L'sses It) Cslitltlisli full and rounded characters w tth retitarkahle simplicity. bttt her plottiitg ts wayward
(ilasgow; (il’l‘. Iidinbtirgli: I-"tlitiltottse. Wallace 8: Gromit Trilogy tl'i 9t) mllts. ()ne t’plastectne) itiaii and his dog set otit on a trio of ()scar-w itiiiiitg adventures — A (irtilit/ l)tiv ()ul. The Il'rmig 'I‘mim'rs attd A Close Share. Contic masterpieces. one arid all.
Wilde ( l5) (Brian (itlbert. l'ls'. I997) Stephen l-‘ry. Jude Law. Vanessa Redgrave. I I7 itiiits. 'l‘he casting of Fry as \‘ictorian wit. tiovelist atid playwright Oscar Wilde seems alittost inevitable. audit pays off. with the actor getting beyond surface details to the intelligent. kind man beneath. (Iilbert's film is gritty iit its portrayal of homosexual relationships than titost British period dramas. btit first and foremost it is a moving story of tragic. obsessive Iove. (ilasgow: ABC l-‘ilm Centre. (il’l‘. lidiitbtirglt; Cameo (ialashiels: Pavilion. Will It Snow For Christmas? (12) tSandrine \'eysset. l-‘rance. I996) Dominique Reyiiiond. Daniel l)ttval. 9| mins. While a loving mother works her fingers rigltt through to the bone. all the father can do is criticise her aitd their iIlegttmate children. seeing them as economic tools -- possibly because he has another family elsewltere. 'I‘he deceptively slight plot takes only ten seconds to stimitiarise. btit the deeply ntemorable end result suggests a work which is utterly engrossing aiid preys on the mind long after the closing credits have faded. (ilasgow. (il-‘I‘. Iidinburgli; liilitihouse.
The Wings Of The Dove t IS) (lain Softley. l.’K. I997) Helena Bonham Carter. l.inus Roaclte. Alisoit Iilltott. I08 iiiins. An intelligent. emotionally dcvastatittg adaptation of Henry James's novel that confidently side-steps the pitfalls of stuffy costume drama. Prevented from marrying her hutttble lover. Kate tBonItam Carter) plots to pair Iiittt off with a rich. sickly American. Everything about this film emphasises quality. including the costumes. photography. use of Venice as a setting and - above all —- the peerless perforttiances. See review. (ilasgow': (il’l'. Iidinburgh: l'iIttthouse.
I A .17:. 7* I ,-
JONNY LEE MILLER
Em. a? 7 .wd
JAMES WILBY
JONATHAN PRYCE
A FILM BY GILLIES MACKINNON
E 3 E 5’ E i
BASED ON THE NOVEL BY THE BOOKER PRIZE WINNER, PAT BARKER.
Cameo, Edinburgh UCI, Edinburgh
Odeon at the Quay, Glasgow Glasgow Film Theatre
Starts Fri 2nd Jan
Starts Fri 9th Jan