FILM LISTINGS continued
The King AMI I (U) (Richard Rich, US, 1999) Ian Richardson, Miranda Richardson, Martin Vidnovic. 87 mins. Animated version of the true story of Anna Leonowens and her experiences as a teacher for the royal family in 19th Century Siam. Great songs by Rodgers and Hammerstein and, being animated, the facility for more active roles to be taken by talking elephants, sentimental chimps and proud panthers. It’s a cracking ride. General release. LA Without A Map (15) (Mika Kaurismaki, US, 1999) David Tennant, Vincent Gallo, Julie Delpy. 106 mins. LA WithoutA Map has all the elements of an ’indie’ classic: a cult source novel, star (Johnny Depp) and cult (Warhol performer Joe Dallesandro) cameos, super cool LA- all sun-bleached boulevards and advertising billboards - and a suitably wacky story involving a Scots lad working as an undertaker in Bradford, who falls in love with an American actress, follows her to LA, gets married and unwittingly becomes a Hollywood screenwriter. And yet, virtually every scene falls flat. Nevertheless, this is an oddity of the required viewing variety. Sec preview and review. Edinburgh: Filmhouse.
The Last Days Of Disco ( 15) (Whit Stillman, US, 1998) Chloe Sevigny, Kate Beckinsale, Chris Eigeman. 112 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 Beckinsaie play publishing assistants who frequent a trendy club in early 805 New York, where they and their male yuppie friends worry about relationships, careers and the reactionary subtext of Disney ’5 Lady And The Tramp. It's glorious stuff. Edinburgh: Cameo.
Late August. Early September (15) (Olivier Assayas, France, 1999) Mathieu Amalric, Jeanne Balibar, Jeanne Balibar. 112 mins. Gabriel, a young writer, is struggling to let go of an old relationship with Jenny at the same time as being apprehensive about committing to a new one with Anne. Meanwhile, his best mate Adrien is dying. Since it deals with the universal theme of change and how people cope with it, this film from Irma Vep director Assayas is highly accessible. It’s too long and lacks a gripping plot structure, but as a vehicle for touching deep emotions it works. Edinburgh: Lumiere.
Life Is Beautiful (PG) (Roberto Benigni, Italy, 1998) Roberto Benigni, Nicoletta Braschi. 116 mins. A comedy about the Holocaust? Surely not. Well, that’s what Italian writer-director-star Benigni has done in fashioning a poignant comic fable about the resilience of the human spirit and the power of the imagination. A humane and moving film. Edinburgh: Filmhouse.
lock, Stock And Two Smoking Barrels (18) (Guy Ritchie, UK, 1997) Nick Moran, Jason Statham, Vinnie Jones. 107 mins. A cocky young bunch of ’entrcpreneurs' set up a card game with East End London criminal Hatchet Harry. Of course, things don’t work out in their favour and they find themselves owing the gangster plenty of dosh. Witty homage to the British crime thrillers of the 19605, with appropriately seedy, underworld locations and Streetwise dialogue. Edinburgh: Cameo. The lord of the Rings (PG) (Ralph Baltshi, US, 1982) With the voices of Christopher Guard, William Squire, Michael Scholes, John Hurt. 133 mins. Successful animated version of the Tolkien epic covers the first two books of the trilogy only. Sticking closely to the text and using live action tracings to give authenticity to the animation, it manages to avoid Disney cuteness and creates an exciting and enjoyable mythical adventure that only the Tolkien purist will find fault with. Edinburgh: Filmhouse.
A Man Is A Woman (15) (Jean-Jacues Zilbcrmann, France, 1998) Antoine de Caunes, Elsa Zylberstein, Gad Elmaleh. 96 mins. Part of The Martell French Cinema Tour. See preview. Glasgow: Odeon. Edinburgh: Odeon. The Man Who Knew Too Much (PG) (Alfred Hitchcock, US, 1956) James Stewart, Doris Day, Bernard Miles. 120 mins. Not the1934 original with Leslie Banks and Peter Lorre, nor the Bill Murray spoof with the ‘Little’ appendix, but Hitch ’s remake of his own film with the monumental James Stewart as the doctor on vacation in Marrakech who witnesses a murder and thereafter gets into all kinds of trouble. Kirkcaldy: Adam Smith.
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The Match (15) (Mick Davis, UK, 1999) Max Beesley, Laura Fraser, Richard E. Grant. 96 mins. In a Highland village, Wullic Smith carries the physical and emotional scars of a childhood tragedy. His only way to salvation seems to be through his childhood sweetheart, Rosemary who has returned from the Big City. Or he can manage Benny’s Bar football team to glory in their annual clash with Le Bistro, coached by the sleazy Gorgeous Gus. The result of all this is not exactly a tale of the unexpected. Glasgow: GF’I‘.
The Matrix (15) (The Wachowski Brothers, US, 1999) Keanu Reeves, Carrie-Anne Moss, Lawrence Fishbume. 139 mins. In the future, reality is actually an illusion — the human race is enslaved by a computer virus which has taken over the world. Computer genius Neo (Reeves) is one of the few people who doesn’t believe his eyes, so it’s up to him and a couple more cyber commandos to save the world. Falkirk: FI'H.
Mickey Blue Eyes (15) (Kelly Makin, US, 1998) Hugh Grant, James Caan, Jeanne Tripplehom. 102 mins. Four Weddings meets The Godfather in this funny though highly predictable romantic comedy. Grant plays an Englishman abroad with a girlfriend
(T ripplehom) whose Dad (Caan) has dubious Mob connections. By comparison with the more staid Notting Hill, Mickey Blue Eyes is far more engaging. It may not play to the unconverted, but for those who like him already this tale will confirm Hugh as their blue eyed boy. Glasgow: Odeon Quay, Showcase, UCI. Edinburgh: UCI. East Kilbride: UCI. KeIso: Roxy. Paisley: Showcase.
A Midsummer Night’s Dream (PG) (Michael Hoffman, US, 1999) Kevin Kline, Michelle Pfeifl'er, Calista Fiockhart. 115 mins. Not since Max Reinhardt’s 1934 version has any film sought to pay loyal tribute to this classic tale of misbegotten romance and fairy magic. Until now. Hoffman, cautious that the text’s classical Greek setting might distance his audience, has relocated to Tuscany at the turn of the century and draws upon those changing times to highlight the conflict between the old and young generations in the story. Kline stands out in the role of Bottom, while the lush world of nymphs, satyrs, centaurs and Medusas is a beauty to behold. See review. General release. Mifune (15) (Saren Kragh-Jacobsen, Denmark/Sweden, 1998) Anders W Berthelsen, Jesper Asholt, Iben ljejle. 98 mins. On the eve of his wedding, Copenhagen yuppie Kresten (Berthelsen) learns that his father has died and reluctantly returns to the remote, neglected family farm. Unable to cope with his mentally handicapped brother, Rud (Asholt), he advertises for a housekeeper, and is delighted when the beautiful Liva (Hjejle) arrives to take on the job. But Liva too has a secret. Kragh-Jacobsen’s film, the third made under the Dogma banner, distinguishes itself by not playing fast and loose with the rules, by telling a simple, linear story with a minimum of formal fussiness. So, ironically, while Mifune less ambitious and innovative than Festen and The Idiots, it is also the purest, most involving and most emotionally satisfying. See preview and review. Glasgow: GFT. Edinburgh: Cameo.
Mighty Joe (PG) (Ron Underwood, US, 1998) Charlize Theron, Bill Paxton. 114 mins. Whichever way you cut it, Mighty Joe is just another big monkey movie. Despite infinitely more sophisticated efl'ects than its 1949 predecessor, this version is far less involving or entertaining - it’s so predictable you would think the monkey wrote it. Edinburgh: Lumiere. Kilmamock: Odeon.
Moon Calf (15) (Claude Mouriéras, France, 1999) Julien Charpy, Vincent Dénériaz,
-5 have."
Fairy tale ro ance: A Midsummer Night's Dream
Frederic Pierrot. 100 mins. Part of The Martell French Cinema Tour. See preview. Glasgow: Odeon. Edinburgh: Odeon.
Mouchette (PG) (Robert Bresson, France, 1967) 82 mins. Bresson’s adaptation of French Catholic novelist George Bernanos’s story is a heartbreaking account of an inarticulate peasant girl condemned to a life of hopeless harshness in provincial France. Glasgow: GF’I‘. My Favourite Martian (PG) (Donald Petrie, US, 1999) ) Christopher Lloyd, Jeff Daniels, Elizabeth Hurley. 92 mins. This movie remake of an American TV favourite, scarcely known in the UK, is a breezy family adventure that’s amusing and disarrningly entertaining. Some excellent special effects help, as we meet a hapless Martian visitor who has crash landed on Earth and is keen to leave as soon as possible. Edinburgh: Odeon. Grecnock: Waterfront.
The Need (Alireza Davoudnejad, Iran, 1992) 81 mins. Beautifully made film about two boys, faced with the bleakest of prospects, on their way to adulthood. Edinburgh: Filmhouse. Never Been Kissed (12) (Raja Gosnell, US, 1999) Drew Barrymore, David Arquette, Michael Vartan. 107 mins. As journalist Josie Geller, Barrymore is given her first undercover reporting assignment: to go back to high school as a student to find out about modern education from the inside. Needless to say Jessie has some problems adjusting to the priorities of her new life and, at school first time around, Josie was far from Miss Popular.
index FILM
Capitalising on the mnsiderable charm of its star, Never Been Kissed is a cheery, upbeat afiair, enjoyable enough for the popcorn cinema audience. General release.
The New Eve (18) (Catherine Corsini, France, 1999) Karin Viard, Pierre-Loup Rajot, Catherine Fact. 94 mins. Part of The Martell French Cinema Tour. See preview. Glasgow: Odeon. Edinburgh: Odeon.
Notting Hill (15) (Roger Michell, UK, 1999) Hugh Grant, Julia Roberts. 110 mins. Screenwriter Richard Curtis’s eagerly awaited follow-up to Four Weddings And A Funeral has Grant playing William Thacker, the divorced owner of a travel bookshop into whose life walks Hollywood megastar Anna Scott (Roberts) and, before you know it, they kiss. Glasgow: Odeon, Showcase Cinema. Kirkcaldy: Adam Smith. Paisley: Showcase. Once Upon A Time Cinema (U) (N. Shah, Iran, 1992) A 1001 night of Iranian cinema, Shah’s film concerns a monarch with 84 wives and 200 kids who hates cinema! Until he sees his first silent film and then he takes on board a whole new harem. mins. Edinburgh: Filmhouse.
Once Were Warriors (18) (Lee Tamahori, New Zealand, 1993) Rena Owen, Termuera Morrison, Mamaengaroa Kerr-Bell. 99 mins. Tamahori’s feature debut is a gritty Loach- style look at domestic violence and disenfranchisement within Auckland’s Maori underclass. It’s a film about survival — of individuals, of families, and of race. It’s also an uncompromising, shocking film that doesn't sensationalise its material. Edinburgh: Filmhouse.
A Passage To India (PG) (David Lean, UK, 1984) Peggy Ashcroft, Judy Davis, Victor Bannerjee, James Fox, Alec Guinness. 163 mins. Meticulous adaptation of EM. Forster has Australian Judy Davis cast as the young woman travelling through the sub-continent with her fiance's stuffy mother (Ashcroft). Overlong and over-rated, for all its attention to detail, this numbingly slow latterday Lean seriously fudges the crucial scene in the Malabar Caves. A disappointment. Edinburgh: Lumiere.
Continued over page
CAMPUS
STUDENT 8: . YOUTH TRAVEL
51 BRANCHES NATIONWIDE 233 BRANCHES WORLDWIDE
WORLDWIDE
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