reviews
RENTAL
The Big Lebowski (18) 113 mins
The Coen brothers’ shaggy dog story barks rn the drrectron of The 8rd Sleep but doesn't have the same brte as an oddball mystery Jeff Brrdges rs great as The Dude a man so lard back, he's horrzontal who be<omes rrrvolved rn a krdnap/mrssrng person plot due to the fact that he shares the same name as a Calrfornran mrllronarre. Some of the srdelrne characters are brrllrantly brzarre, but a \‘.’ITIII of desperate \vackrness hangs over others As a frlrn, rt jUSi meanders around too much (PonGr‘amr tAM‘r
City Of Angels
(12) 109 mins
Hollywood has a stab at romantrc :srng Wrrn Wenders' W/ngs Of Des/re, and the result rsn't half bad Nr(()las Cage .s the doleful angel who comes to Los Angeles to soothe the troubled heart of surgeon Meg Ryan \then he starts experrenc rng strange emotrons, he wonders how he can swap rmrnortalrty for the imperfect lrle of a human berng. The (]()lIll( sp'endour of the orrgrnal shrfts rnto soft i()( us, but enough of the orrgrnal (ontept rewards to stop a melodrama over oad lVVarnerr rAlvll
Kiss Or Kill
(18) 92 mins
With a script a slow iour-year-old would have rejected as too lame and a central parrrng you Just long to be seen put away, this rs a lrmp attempt at a hard-bolled road movre Wrth an underlyrng theme abOuI hour you never really know each other Most annoyrng of all rs the mrgrarne- rnducmg jump-cut technrgue as the cops get on the trarl of those they suspect of gorng around SOuth Australia, connrng drunks out of therr loot and therr lrves =Allrance' rBDr
A Thousand Acres (15) 101 mins
Take the rough outlrnes of the plot of Krng Lear and transfer :t to an A'nerrcan farm, \.‘.'here head of the
VIDEOS
famrly Jason Robards as ready to davxy up the land betvxeer‘. has three daughters, l\lr(helle Pfezlfer, Jessrca Lange and Jenn fer Jason le g". The restrit rs somethrng that ones more to The Walto/rs than to Shakespeare, ‘-.‘.liIl the actresses ail o\.'e"(l()rrrg the ’sullerrng' scenes Sodden \‘.|iIl schmat/ rPolijranr rAlvl
RETAIL
Ponette
(PG) 93 mins
Four-year-old ‘vlt to re Thy sol ‘.'.o" the Best A( tress Auxard at t"e 1090 ‘.'e"r( e I‘rlnr F(‘S°.l‘.'<iI, and he" berlorrnapte s .ndeed r‘ttrrftrr'ktrt)l(> \'-./rt" the fate o‘ a (are-\.'-.'orn ange', s‘re rear ts to the death ()t' be" rnother mt”. (on‘trs on, anger, sadness, desperatop and a((eptap(e Thr‘trsol glues more tl‘a" ‘.'.e 'nrg":t expe<t t'o'n a (pr‘d at tor, but Ja(dues Dorlron's 77"”. s too re,petrt:‘.e overall, part ( .. ar lo. the
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Animation On 4 Vol II (15) 76 mins
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A Taste Of Cherry
(PG) 98 mins
F rst 't \.'.as rn tr‘e l997 Ca'Wes F": 'r‘ Festival (or'tpetrt'on, thee the lrawar‘ author'tres fort ed t otrt And so, .'.l‘("‘~ Abbas Krarosta'r‘fs p“:Iosopp (a essay on surt rde e‘.renttra‘.‘,' '.‘.o'r t"e Parn‘e 00!”, there \.'~.e"e some who 'er kored rts su((ess may have 'rad 'wore to do
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Going swimmingly: Kathryn Erbe, David Arquette and Brad Hunt star in road movie Dream With The Fishes (18, 93 mins, *tt). The film, not released in Scottish cinemas but favourably reviewed down south, is available to rent from Mon 7 Dec.
120 THE LIST .% 7/ De: ‘998
RENTAL The James Gang (15) 95 mins
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Shoplifters of the world, unite: John Hannah and Helen McCrory in The James Gang
There's a fair amount of Scottish talent on both sides of the camera in The James Gang; but after its world premiere at the 1997 Edinburgh International Film Festival, the film didn't really get much of a chance to shine on Scottish big screens. That‘s a shame, because Helen McCrory gives an excellent performance that gets to the heart of what it means to be a mother in a modern-day, financially strapped world.
She plays Bernadette, who takes her family of four on the run when their Pilton home is fire-bombed. Husband Spendlove (John Hannah) is a professional waster, frittering away his money in London, so he’s not much help. And so Bernadette unwittingly finds herself on the Most Wanted list as she uses the kids as distractions when she turns to crime.
The Bonnie and Clyde myths that Spendlove sings about in a scuzzy karaoke bar are blown away by economic reality in Stuart Hepburn's script. There’s a touch of Roddy Doyle about some of the off-centre family values, but also a serious tone that lurks beneath the laughs. Bernadette’s mission is to keep her family together, no matter what, and her acts are never malicious — they’re driven by desperation and love. Only when the film strays to a sub—plot involving policewoman Toni Collette does it lose its way.
(Alan Morrison) At'ar/ab/e to rent from Mon 7 Dec”.
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A Day On The Grand Canal With The Emperor Of China (E) 47 mins
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Only An Excuse (PG) 121 min
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(diet tr'rg together the 1.997 llog'r‘anay prograrrrne, the BBC Srotla'rd 75th Anneversary speczai and t"e '98 \.'.’o" (2' Car) shoe. There's also 35 'r‘ rtutes o‘ unseen . ess t'trnvryl 'th'a T:n‘e' sketr"es krnd of lrke the subs ‘-.'.ho (one o". xther‘ the frna. \.'.hrs:{e's about to biota, but who can't "rake a real ntpressro". on the overall game [\I the e"d of the day, 3-l to t"e BBC Sz otland Comedy Urrrt WI. {TX 99 AM
Tekken: The Motion Picture
(15) 62 mins
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REVIEWERS THIS ISSUE: S..sa"'ra Bearrr‘tont, B'War‘ l)<>".af(lso",
.\ a" filo" so", l’eter Ross
STAR RATINGS dn'r‘wssaple Very good \"r'ortl‘. a shot Belor. average ‘r’o.. we pee" tsarr‘ed