FILM index
FILM LISTINGS continued
I37 minx. litrropean aeaderinc lliinibert Humbert (lions) ltistx alter lohta (Swain). the underage daughter of liix landlady. and begins a paedophile alfair with her. l.y ne establishes l.olita‘s childishnexs and turns her into a sex object. btrt also explicitly shows the cost of the illicit relationship. The sex scenes are handled w itli a degree of restraint. although the film affords more sympathy to the anguish of the adult abtiser rather than the pain of the child \ ictirii. See feature and review. (ilaxgow: ('ity (‘eiiti‘e ()deon. Showcase. (ilaxgow: ABC Wester Hailes. ()deon. [7(‘l. l’aixley: Showcase. Lucie AubraC(13)((‘Iaude Berri. l‘rance. l‘)‘)7i ('arole Bouquet. llaniel .\titetiil. ll.‘ itiiiix. Based on the real-life story (il a Resistance fighter who rescued her husband from the clutchex ol the ( iextapo. Berri‘s film is a tale of quiet heroism in a teinpestuoux time. of loye on the edge. It could possibly use a lew more dramatic thrills to give it xonie pace. btit as a picture of occupied l’rance where the over-riding emotion among the people was a desire to get their ordinary lives back. 1.!“ (e xlll/H'tlt‘ is a gentle and touching succesx. Stirling. MacRober‘t.
Ma Vie En Rose ( I 3) (Alain Berliner. l’rance/Belgiuni/llK. 1997) (ieorgex l)(i l’resne. Michele l.aroque. Jean-Philippe licoffey. ()3 mins. llappy xeyen-year-old Ludoyic loses cross-dressing and is convinced he w ill grow tip to become a girl His parents hope it‘s a passing phase. but hostility from their neighbours catixex probleiris. 'l'he L'llllth eye world is \ ixually striking. the message of accepting the difference of others worth repeating. the performances by all trememdous. .«\ refreshingly hoiiext look at a complex subject. lidinburgh: ('aineo.
The Man In The Iron Mask ( I2) (Randall Wallace. US. I‘M?) Leonardo DiCaprio. Jeremy Irons. (ierard Depardieu. I33 minx. When lirance's dissoltite young king puts the country on the \‘L‘Ig‘t‘ of turmoil. the Mtisketeers reform to rescue a my sterious
prisoner languishing in the Bastille The writer of Ii’nii‘t'lit'tirl makes liix debtit .ix director with an adaptation of.-\lexandre l)umax's rollicking period adyentiiie. but he can't direct a light scene to x;l\ e his life 'I he performances yary so wildly in (one. that the cast at times appear to be acting Ill thllcient films. Largs: Barrl'ieldx.
The Man Who Knew Too Little? ( l3) '.l(ill .-\iniel. US. I907) Bill Murray. l’etei (iallagher. Joanne Whalley. 93 niinx. American Wallace Ritchie (Murray ) ix in London when he getx caught tip w itli foreign spies. btrt reckons the w hole e\periencc Ix‘ an interactiye theatre show. 'l'heie are luiiiiy momentx. btit only w hen Murray is free from the constraints of the may dull \t‘llt‘l. which is too llul'ly' to make the Bond pastiche work one more time See iey iew. (ieneral release
Marius Et Jeanette ( Iii (Robert (itiedigriian. l'ranee. l‘l‘l’i) (ieiaid Meylan. .i\riane .v\st airde. ll)? mmx Marius Ix . lonely security guard who got his (oh by pretending to haye a limp; Jeanette ix a single parent trying to bring tip two children on a check-out girl‘s wage. .-\s romance blossomsbetween them. theirneighbours squabble ()\ er politrcx. race. religion and sport. and all are reyealed to be neither saints nor sinners. btit plain. decent people. A may gentle and unpretentious lilm which quietly L‘;I[)ll\ttl('\ (Ix. See It‘\ lt‘yy. (il.lx;'(i\\. (il’l'.
Martha — Meet Frank, Daniel And Laurence ( l5) (Nick llanmi. l'lx’. I‘I‘) '; Monica l’otter. Rtiltrx Sewell. loin Hollander. Joxeph l-iennex 3* imiix liming two days in l.ondon. .-\meiican Martha encounters three bext buddies allot whom are instantly smitten by her and fall otit among themselyex. .-\( llI'\l glance. a xrniple comic triptych about late and mixxed chances. itx coiiiple\ storytelling perspectiyex don‘t really xtiit the romance
genre. (ieneral release.
Matilda (l’(i) (Danny l)e \'rto. l'S. I‘I‘Itii Mara Wilson. l)any l)e Vito. liiiibetli l)avrdt/.. ()8 mins (‘apturing the delicious wickedness ol Roald I).ili|'x w iiting'. director
at 8.00pm
at THE ROYAL LYCEUM THEATRE, EDINBURGH
Box Office
0131 229 96 ‘
so THELIST (4—28 May 1998
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l)e \'io lully e\ploitx exaggeration and
Na} ltil camera work to tell the tale of a grlted child who uses her super brain to otrtwrt her neglectl'ul parents. ()ffsetting the loyable Matilda against a series of horribly inllated bad clraracterx. the lTlllhx empowering mexxage for children will appeal to the mischey ious kid in e\eryone. (ilaxgow. l’(‘l (‘lydebank liast Kilbride. l‘(‘l.
Mean Streets ( I8) (Martin Scorsese. [78. I‘ll/'3) llaiycy Keitel. Robert De Niro. David l’io\al llII minx. 'l‘ony ‘x Bar is the base for tour young ltahan-:\niericanx. whose iiicieaxingly illegal actiy ities lead to tragedy. \'i\ idly obxei \ed character study which coriibinex breathtaking technique with a pciyaxiye sense of corruption. Keitel and de .\'rro giye of then may best. With Scorsese's early short lilm. l‘lie lire Marie. lidinburgh. (‘ameo
MouseHunt (l') (( ior'e \eibinskl. l‘S. I‘M”) Nathan l .me. I cc liyans. ('hrixtophei Walken ‘IS llIlII\. lane and liyans play hapless brothers who inherit a decr‘ipit mansion. btrt when they decide to renoyate auction it. a resident rodent is not willing to be ex icted. .-\n e\celleiit blend of laurel and Hardy slapstick and black humour. .‘Jllllyt’llillll is sheer entertainment and has some real belly laughs. 'I he tone and the pacing are spot-on throughout. and the sets and special ellectx are the icing on the cake. (it'llelal release.
Mr Magoo (l’fi) (Stanley long. [3. l‘)‘)7) lexhe Nielxen. l'x'elly l.ynch. Matt Keedar. S" minx. When a priceless stolen gem falls iiiio the handon bumbling millionaire ()urncy Magoo. w ho keeps on emerging unscathed as chaos ensues around liitii. 'l'his Ii\e action yerxion of the short cartoons relies on broad physical slapstick for its comedy rather than \ei'bal tokes. American critics slaughtered the film ‘an insult to the intelligence of the entire human race" (l’SA liitltly ). (ieneral release.
Mrs Brown (l’(i) (John Madden. UK. 1997) Judi l)encli. Billy ('onnolly. Antony Sher. It)? iiiinx. Queen Victoria's obsessiye
iiiotii nrng l'oi' l’irnce Albert is casting gloom oycr the entire country. xo Highland gliillie John Brown ix called down from Balinoral to shake tip the stully linglrxh court Maddcn's Iilm calf! match the comic brio and y ixual panache ol (Ii/re .‘Itlt/ll('\\ (M King btit liix understated direction undeniably xtiitx the story. The perlor'mances are unifoi iiily splendid. with l)ench and ('onnolly (botli perlectly cast) giving the Iilm a surprising emotional depth. (ialashielx: l’ayrlioti. Kll'kcaldy: Adam Smith.
Mrs Dalloway (l’(i) (Marleen (ioi'rtx.
L'S/l 'lx'r’Netherlandx. I997) Vanessa Redgray e. Natascha Mclilhone. Michael Kitchen. 97 turns ()xcar-winner (iorrix (.liirnmti 'y /,II.‘('l adaptx Virginia Woolf 'x noyel into .i moy mg and romantic drama about an intelligent and \ibiant woman. Set in I033. with numerous flashbacks. it presents the thoughts. memories and actions ol a middle-aged society lady as she prepares for an e\ening party on one single summer day. Beautifully filmed in a period London and held together by a xtrong British cast. liast Kilbride; :\rts Centre.
My Beautiful Laundrette ( I5) (Stephen l5rears. L'lx'. 1985) Daniel Day Lewis. Roxlian Seth. Gordon Warnecke. Shirley Anne field. 97 mins. A yotrng Asian from South London is giyen the chance to manage his uncle's Iaundrette. which he and his es-skinhcad boyfriend transform into the latest word in latindromats. Originally made for 'l'\'. this provided Channel Four's first foray into the cinema. (iltisgoyvz (ili'l'.
My Son The Fanatic ( I 5) (Udayan l’rasad. L'lx'. I997) Om l’tii'i. Rachel Griffiths. Stellan Skarsgai‘d. ln Hanif Kureishi's screen adaptation of his own short story. put-upon Bradford taxi di'iyer Puri is caught tip in a domestic battle that pits pits whisky and Louis Armstrong against the Koran. 'l‘hose expecting another rock ‘n' roll rites of passage tale a la Btu/(Ilia ()1 Suburbia may be disappointed. btit here is an absorbing account of conflicting rnoralities and generational tensions in [in (/e .sii‘t'le Britain. Glasgow: (ll-T. Edinburgh: Cameo.
The Omen (18) (Richard Donner. US. 1976) Gregory Peck. Lee Rcmick. David Warner. l I I (runs. The young son of the American
(ir'rtig’t.
Ambassador to Britain and his wife turns otit to be (he .-\ntiehrixt in this effective and gory horror piece that was popular enough to spawn a succession of secqtiels. Jerry (ioldsmith'x ()xcar-w inning score certainly lielpx the mood of unease. (ilaxgow; (‘iroxyenor
Paws (l’(i) (Karl '/.w icky. Australia/UK. I‘N7i Nathan ('ayaleri. lirnilie lirancois. voice of Billy Connolly. (\‘3 mins. Clever doggic l’(‘ is on a tilixxtotl to deliver a computer disc. btit is being tracked down by the unpleasant baddie who killed his master. Befriending computer whin. kid lac. the mutt links tip to a yoice simulator and starts talking with the broad twang of Billy Connolly. Some genuinely funny moments allow lor a whole range of teenage crises to be dealt with in an uncringeworthy fashion. lidinbtirgh: ()deon. UH. liast Kilbritle; UCI. (ileniothex: Cinema. lryine: Magnum. Stirling: ('arlton. MacRobert.
Der Platz ( 18) (I'll M. Schuppel. (iermany. l‘N7) 53 minx. .\cclainred at the l‘)‘)7 lidinbtirgh l‘lllll l-extiyal (five stars in The l.ixI) (liix poetic documentary juxtaposes heayy machinery and the tranquil thoughts of the labourers during the rebuilding of l’otsdanimer Plan in Berlin. Industry and nature. noise and peace collide With shorts ('ouiil .l/t' On] and The lairt' [lot/eel: (ilaxgow: (il7l‘.
ll Postino (U) (Michael Radford. ltaly. I‘NS) Massimo 'l'r'oisi. l’hilippe Noiret. Maria (ira/ia (‘ucrnotta l(l.\‘ mins. When e\iled (‘hilean poet Pablo Neruda (Noiret) ai'rryes on a remote island off the Neapolitan coast. he aqu local postman Mario ('l'i‘oisi) to woo the y illage barmaid. (iently paced and ltill of Mediterranean sun. Radford's llllll rs tricer tinxentimental. Sadly. 'l‘roisi died the day after shooting was completed. btit he couldn't haye left a finer legacy. (ilasgow; (ill
The Postman l l 5) (Key in ('oxtner. US. l‘)l)7) Key in (‘oxtiieix Will l’atton. ()livia Williams. I77 minx. (‘oxtner's overblown patriotic epic died at the American box ollicc and was slaughtered by critics who reckoned that it was ltill of hollow conceits‘. 'l he director-star plays a driller who brings hope to disparate communities in a post- apocalyptic future threatened by an army of terrorists. Most UK publications weren't able to renew it before release 7- which is normally a bad sign btit lliirerw'rir/(l was equally slated. and it pros ed entertaining enough (ilaxgow; (ill.
The Rainmaker I IS) (l‘il‘illlc‘h l'-()l'tl (’oppola. l'S. BN7) Matt Damon. Jon \‘oight. Danny l)e\’ito. (in ruins. lt'x (irixhain time again. as idealistic law school graduate Rudy Baylor (Matt Damon) discovers the realities of America's legal system when he takes on a giant corporation running a monumental insurance scam.
(ii (sham and (‘oppola'x indignation at the iniquitiex ol .\iiiercan capitalism is irripiesxiye. bill the film's plot is too cliched and predictable lor their aiialyxis to make the impact it (lexeryes 'l‘he acting. however. is C\L‘CllClll. (ilasgow: ABC film (‘entre. St Andrews: New l’icture House.
The Raw And The Cooked 2 ( l8) ()0 mins. The second of three programmes of futuristic short British works (compiled for the litinc'l' 98 festival) is titled 'lilectric 'l‘ranxforinations‘. liw'en Brernner stars as a skinhead in Skin. while other shorts by filmmakers pushing back the boundaries. include videos from Radiohead and Cibo Matto. (ilasgow': Gl’l‘.
The Raw And The Cooked 3(18)9O mins. 'Direct Address' closes the season with a collection of short works that convey what it's like to be someone else.
The Real Blonde (l5) (Tom DiCillo. US. 1997) Matthew Modine. Catherine Keener. Daryl Hannah. I I0 niins. Struggling actor Joe appears in a Madonna video. while his girlfriend works in the modelling industry. A stylish and at times pointed movie. but one which ultimately slo-nios rather than fist- flies its punches. That said. it does hit many of the right spots in attacking the artificcs of life. See preview and review. Glasgow: Odeon Quay.
Red Shoes (PG) (Michael Powell & Emcn’c Pressburgcr. UK. I948) Anton Wallbrook. Marius Goring. Moira Shearer. I33 mins. Ballerina Shearer is torn between an autocratic impressario and a starving young