Fear And Loathing In Las Vegas ( I 8) (Terry Gilliam. US. I998) Johnny Depp. ll8 mins. As adaptations of cult books go. (iilliam's take on Hunter S. 'I‘liompson’s assassination of the American Dream is a glorious mess of a movie. It remains true to the author's vision of moral torpor and psychosis. whilst injecting a good shot of Ciilliam‘s own obsessions. Flawed. certainly. but epically degenerate. And thus pure gonzo. (ilasgow: ABC Film Centre. Edinburgh: ABC Film Centre.
Fire ( l5) (Deepa Mehta. Canada. I996) Sliabana Azmi. l()-l mins. Sensitive C\illl)lllilll0li of the break up of a New [)ehli family as seen from the perspective of devoted wife Radha. When Radha‘s brother- in-law brings his feisty. new wife into her home. the ties that hind begin to unwind. (ilasgow: (ii-“L
Flirt ( l5) (Hal Hartley. US/(iermany/Japan. I996) Bill Sage. Martin Donovan. Dwight Iiwell. 80 mins. With a theme-and-variation structure. l-‘liri centres on a single situation — a lover's ultimatum - illustrated through three separate stories. Amusing cameo appearances from Hartley regulars titillate the audience. while the rhythmic dialogue. tightly choreographed action and colourful characterisation inject the film with the director‘s distinctive vibrancy. (ilasgow: (ii-'1‘.
Flubber (U) (Les Maytield. US. I997) Robin Williams. Marcia (iay Harden. Christopher McDonald. 93 mins. This remake of l9(il Disney favourite 'l’lie Alive/ii Mint/ed Professor casts a subdued Williams as a scientist who invents a gravity defying goo. btit may well lose his fiancee in the process. Combining many of the worst. most annoying attributes of films designed to have ‘family appeal'. l’fllh/u’l' merely flops when it should fly. Iidinburgh: ()deon.
The Fly ( I 8) (David Cronenberg. US. I986) Jeff(ioldblum. (ieena Davis. l()(l mins. Brilliant i'econceptualisation of the camp I958 classic. w ith (ioldblum highly effective as the scientist whose esperiments in teleportation go disastroust wrong. and his wife Davis no less impressive as the love of his life. Special effects superlativer revolting. tension sustained lltt'ottgliottl. lidinburgh: Cameo.
Girls Town ( 15) (Jim McKay. L'S. I998) Lili Taylor. Bruklin Harris. Anna (irace. S9 mins. (iii/s 7mm — about three hiin school girls coming to terms with their best friend's suicide — is a raw independent feature based on improvisation. McKay 's feature views lives through an observant style. a style which looks for the truth of a given moment over the harried needs of plot. lidinbui'gh; Filmhouse.
Godzilla (P(i) (Roland limmerich. US. I998) Matthew Broderick. Jean Reno. Maria PitiIlo. l-ll) mins Nuclear testing causes a lizard to grow to an enormous size. reproduce .is'esually and Iiead to New York to lay some eggs. When the military take the offensive. it's time for the rampaging reptile to demolish .‘slanhattan. (int/:i/Iu goes beyond insulting its audience and makes the game error of forcing our sympathy away from the monster and onto the non-descript humans. lidinburgh: ()deon. Kilmarnock: ()deon.
The Governess ( I5) (Sandra (ioldbacher. UK. I998) Minnie Driver. Tom Wilkinson. Jonathan Rliy s-.\leyers. l 14 mins. Driver excels in this period film as the charismatic Rosina. a Jewish proto-feminist who moves from her London life to Presbyterian Scotland. where she passes herself off as a (ientile governess for a dysfunctional family An underachieving mosie. but l)i'i\ei"s star w ill continue to rise on the back of what is an utterly memorable performance (ilasgow. (il’l‘
Grease (P(ii (Randal Kleisci'. liS. l97b’) John 'li‘ayolta. Stockard ('hanning. Olivia Newton l()lllt I 11) mins 'l'he long-running Broadway show arrives on screen dripping with 50s nostalgia. cheery tunes. Iiigli camp value and the w insome charms of the plastic Newton-John and the toothy 'l'rayolta. A nice collection of old timers enhance the cast. (ilasgow (irosvenor.
Green For Danger ll’(i) (Sidney (iilliai. UK. 1946) Alastair Sitii. Sally (iray. ‘l'i'eyor Howard. 9| mins. Murder mystery with splashes of black humour as two murders in a cottage hospital throw suspicion on the
staff. Sim is in fine form otit of his St 'l‘rinians dresses and into the attire of an eccentrically unsuccessful detective. Edinburgh: St. Bride's Centre.
Gregory's Girl (PG) (Bill Forsyih. UK. l98l ) Gordon John Sinclair. Dee Hepburn. Clare (irogan. 9| mins. Winning comedy from Cumbernauld with Sinclair eventually finding romance after his heart is set afiame by the latest recruit to the school football team. Seminal piece of Scottish cinema. its universal appeal demonstrating that homegrown talent can compete with Hollywood‘s fittest in the entertainment stakes. Supported by Gregory’s 2 (Iii-ls preview plus I.iuiiiere Brothers film (liri -l Dec) and the short film ll’flt't’ly (Sat 5 Dee), lidiiibtirgli: Lumiere.
Hands (aka Palms) (PG) (Artur Aristakisyan. Russia. I994) I29 mins. Originally completed over four years ago. Hum/s won numerous awards on the international film festival circuit. Aristakisyan's film. which has been compared to the work of such luminaries as Pasolini and 'l’arkovsky. is the story of social outcasts: the disabled. the homeless. the mentally ill. [idinburghz l-‘ilmliouse. Hangmen Also Die (PG) (Frill. Lang. US. I943) Brian Donlevy. Anna Lee. Walter Brennan. Lil mins. lii wartime Czechoslovakia. the Nazis exact terrible punishment on brave partisans. Propaganda effort co-scripted by Bertolt Brecht. whose impassioned impact is sadly undercut by a phoney Hollywood idea of eastern [Europe Glasgow: (ioethe liistitut.
Henry'Fool ( I8) (Hal Hartley. US. (998) Thomas Jay Ryan. James Urbaniak. Parker Posey. I37 mins. Intellectual vagabond Henry l-‘ool drifts itito a small American town and shakes up the monotonous lives of a bickering family. most notably of shy garbagenian Simon (him. who metamorphosis into a celebrated writer Iidinburgh: l-ilmhouse.
Hideous Kinky ( l8) ((iillies Mackinnon. UK. I998) Kate Winslct. Said 'l‘agniaouhi. 98 mins. lirom the battlefields of France in Regenerul/oii to the Morocco of the l97()s. .‘ylackinnon adapts listher lireud's novel about a young woman who leaves London and a failed relationship behind and takes off with her kids for sunnicr climes'. peace. love and happiness. (ilasgow; (il’l‘
The Horse Whisperer ( )3) (Robert Redford. US. I998) Robert Redford. Kristin Scott Thomas. Sam Neill. l(ib‘ mins. Redford indulges several of his favourite passions at once in British author Nicholas livaits‘ best-selling tale of an equine shrink. As with Redford's previous directorial efforts this is a fine looking and intelligent film. pitting the yuppie values of east coast magazine editor Scott 'l‘homas against the virtuous all-American qualities of Midw'estet'ttei' Redford. l‘alkirk: I’l‘ll. Housekeeping (P(i) (Bill l-'orsy tli. Canada. I987) Christine Lahti. Sara Walker. Andrea Burcliill. llo mins. Scrupiilously faithful to the Marilynne Robinson novel. I-‘orsytli‘s film tells of two orphaned sisters who are entrusted to the custody of their eccentric aunt Sylvie. Literater scripted. confidently directed. beautifully photographed and performed with sensitive insight. Supported by the short film [first It's Dark. Edinburgh: Lumiere.
If Only ( I S) (Maria Ripoll. UK/Spain. 1998) Douglas Henshall. l.ena Headey. Penelope Cruz. 93 mins. Self-absorbed actor Victor is distraught that his cs-girlfriend. Syls ia. is about to marry someone else. Btit then he did admit to cheating on her. One drunken night. he's given a magical opportunity to relive the day he told Sy ls ia the truth. I/ ()iili bounces along with a fresh. independent spirit and Ilenshall's performance should make him Scotland's latest big screen star. (ilasgow; ()deon ()uay. The Importance Of Being Ernest (PU) (Anthony Asquith. I'K. I953) Michael Redgrave. Michael l)enison. Joan (ireetiwood 93 mins. (ioi'geous 'l'echnicolor print restoration of the feature film adaptation of ( )scar Wilde's play L'nashamed about its stage origins. Asquith employs a fabulous cast atid allows the test to speak for itself. (ilasgow; (ii-'1‘.
It's A Wonderful Life (l’(i) (Frank Capra. 17S. I946) James Stewart. Donna Reed. Henry 'li'ayers. 'lliomas Mitchell. I29 mins.
Small-town boy Stewart was into financial difficulties and is on the brink of suicide when an elderly angel descends to earth to show him all the good his life has done for those around him. Arclietypal Capra sentimentality with a superbly detailed fantasy framework and one of Stewart's most lovable performances. ()ne to warm even the most glacial heart. (ilasgow': ()deon Quay. lidinbtirgh: Cameo.
Jackie Brown (l5) (Quentin 'l‘arantino. US. I997) Pam (irier. Samuel L. Jackson. Robert De Niro. I54 mins. Tarantino‘s blaxploitation homage is proof that the director jtist loves to hear his characters run their mouths off. However. the dialogue is pure pleasure in this sprawling. funky. triple-crossing heist movie about a Federal Agent sting to trap a gun runner. A classic Hollywood thriller in the sense that it is about the enjoyment of the moment. rather simply finding out whodunit. l-Idinburgh: Cameo.
James And The Giant Peach (1.!) (Henry Selick. L'S. I996) Paul Terry. Susan Sarandon. Simon Callow. 79 mins. from the director of Tim Burton ‘\ T/lt‘ .N'i'gliliiirire Before (‘lirisiniuv comes a wonderfully colourful adaptation of Roald Dalil‘s much- Ioved nosel. Live action tops and tails the story. but for the most part. it‘s ftiii times with stop-motion puppets. By turns funny and scary. it stays true to Dahl‘s surreal and whimsical vision. Supported by Tim Burton's brilliant short homage to Vincent Price and lidgar Allen Poe. l'iiieenr. with the voice of Price. lidinburgh: Lumiere.
Khule Wampe (Who Owns The World?) (Slatan Dudow. (iermany. I932) Hertha 'liiiclc. lirnst Busch. Martha Woltei'. 75 mins. Bertolt Brecht wrote the screenplay for this parable of middle class apathy and working class evolutionary fervour set against a background of grinding poverty in l9.‘~()s Berlin. lidinburgh: l-‘ilmhousc.
LA. Confidential ( IS) (Curtis Hanson. US. I997) Kesin Spacey. (iiiy Pearce. Rtissell (‘rowc. Kim Basinger. 135 mins. Adapted from James lillroy 's neo-noir novel. the best American film of 1997 evokes a glitzy post-
index FILM
WW2 Los Angeles underpinned by an all- pervasive. festering corruption. An intricate. drop-dead brilliant plot links bent cops. good cops. Hollywood star lookalike prostitutes and the mob. The dialogue crackles and the actors burn up the screen: one of the few films one would dare mention in the same breath as the definitive C/ii'iiuimrii. lidinbtirgh: Cameo.
The Last Days Of Disco (I5) (Whit Stillman. US. 1998) Chloe Sevigny. Kate Beckinsale. Chris liigeman. ll2 mins. Writer-director Stillman has carved out a cinematic niche for himself with his urbane comedies of manners Metropolitan and Barcelona. and his latest is no exception. Sevigny and Beckinsale play publishing assistants who frequent a trendy club in early 80s New York. where they and their male yuppie friends worry about relationships. careers and the reactionary subtest of Disney's Lot/v Am] The Trump. It's glorious stuff. St. Andrews: Picture House.
Local Hero (PG) (Bill t-‘orsyth. UK. I983) Peter Riegert. Burt Lancaster. Denis Lawson. l l I mins. One of Bill Forsyth's most sure-footed ventures. and one in which his eye for charm balances with his love for whimsy. An ambitious executive of an American oil company is sent to buy an entire Scottish town fora future drilling project. btit soon finds himself falling in love with the place. while being hoodwinked by the community. Supported by the short film Spit/me I)i.vtmiee. Iidinburgh: Lumiere.
Lock, Stock And Two Smoking Barrels ((iuy Ritchie. UK. I997) Nick Moran. Jason Statham. Vinnie Jones. l()7 mins. A cocky young bunch of ‘entrepreneurs' set tip a card game with [East End London criminal Hatchet Harry. Of course. things don't work out in their favour and they liiid themselves owing the gangster plenty of dosh. Witty homage to the British crime thrillers of the l9(i()s. (ilasgow: Showcase. Edinburgh: Cameo. Paisley: Showcase.
Continued over page
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3—17 Dec 1998 THE ll8T41