Film index
My Big Fat Greek Wedding (Hit 0.. (Jocl /.w'ick. l'S. 2002i .\'ia Vardalos. John (‘orbct. (ii ('aridcs. (Martin. 0ch (ircck-.-\incrican 'l‘oula (\'ardalosi is ncycr going to gct a man. A hcayy girl with httgc glasscs. shc is dcstincd to work away hcr spinstcr lifc in thc family's rcstaurant. ‘I)ancing Zorba's'. Her family arc rcady to dcspair all thcy want is for hcr to find a nicc (ircck' boy so shc can cook lots of food and pop out morc littlc Zorbas. 'l'hcn shc finds a guy. lan ((‘orbcti. But hc's not (ircckfl Oh no. what arc thcy going to do?! 'l'hc film's jokcs and its cxploration of cross-culturc is \agttcly in thc samc win as [fast f.\ lids! or “(’Ild [I likt' Bt’t'k/ltlnl. bttt without any of thc hard cdgc. Syrupy swcct in parts. momcnts arc as ltard to swallow as a Sll()l of Ohio. (icncral t‘clcasc.
My Sister’s Kids (PG) ('l‘omas Vilum Jcnson. Dcnmark. 3()()l i 78min. l‘amous proszsor of psychology. lirik' l.und. promoICs tbc nccd for a scnsitiy c approach to child raising in his ncw book. So w hcn his sistcr gocs on holiday hc trics putting his thcorics into practicc with ltcr fiy c kids. MacRobcrt. Stirling.
Nackt ( IS) (Doris l)orric. (icrmany. 2002i llcikac .\lakalasch. 98min. A film from onc of (icrmany's promincnt filmakcrs. Dorric. A group of fricnds hay c know cach othcr for ycars. but only now as adults do thcy truly gct to know onc anothcr. l-‘ilinliousc. lidinburgh.
The New Country ( (Si ((icir llanstccn Jorgcnscn. chdcn. 2001 f 137mm. \Vrittcn by Lukas Moodysson who on thc strcngth of his lulCSl film. 'Ihgvt/ivr. is bcing totttcd as thc ncw lngtnar Bcrgtnan 'I‘lit' .Vt'u (‘otmlry' is thc story of two t‘cf'ttgcc's. onc African. thc othcr Iranian. who go on thc run in ordcr to ayoid dcpot'talion. This road moyic gcts to grips with thc dy natnics of modcrn-day Sw-cdcn. l‘ilmhousc. lidinburgh.
The Nightmare Before Christmas (P(ii 0.... (llcnry Sclick‘. l'S. MUM With thc yoiccs of (‘hris Sarandon. Danny lilfman. ('athcrinc ()‘llara. 76min. Jack Sk‘cllington. thc skinny trickstcr king of llallow'ccntown. is f‘CsllL‘ss with succcss and nccds a ncw challcngc. so hc hatchcs a plot to kidnap Santa and crcatcs a mixcd-up Yulctidc which isn't quitc what thc kids of the world cxpcctcd. Produccd and bascd on a story and charactcrs by Tim Burton. this is a real imaginatch trcat dcliciously dark stop-motion animation on thc big scrccn. (il‘vl‘. (ilasgow.
Nine Queens ( (fit 00.. (l-abian Biclinsky. Argentina. 2002i Ricardo Darin. (iaston Pauls. Ignasi Abadal. 1 15min. 'l‘wo small-timc swindlcrs mcct sccmingly by chancc in a Bucnos Aircs comcnicncc storc and agrcc to tcam up for thc day. And lhcn an opportunity to pull a maior-lcaguc scam lands on Ihcir laps. as an cxpcrt f'orgcr contacts Marcos about a sct of rarc stamps from \Vcintar (icrmany'. lhc so-callcd \inc Quccns of thc titlc. A hugc hit in its natch Argcntina. Biclinsky’s fast-mm ing .\'i'm' Qm't'm is both an cngrossing con-artist yarn and a sly commcntary on a socicty currcntly in cconomic f'rcc-f'all. ('('A. (ilasgow. Okay (ccrt tbc) (Jcspcr \V Niclscn, Denmark. 2002). ()tfmin. Bittcrswcct comcdy with Paprika Stccn about a woman callcd .\'ctc who discoy'crs hcr fathcr's got thrcc wccks to li\c. Shc wants him to mow in with hcr. but hc has othcr plans about how to dic. l'iltnhottsc. lidinburgh.
Old Maid (l') (lidmund (iottldittg. IS.
1939) Bcttc l)a\is. Miriam Hopkins. (icot'gc
Brcnt. 90min. from an lidith Wharton Itoy cl scl in thc (‘i\ ii “(at cm. Bcttc Day is plays ('harlottc l.o\ cll. who has an illcgitimatc child with a man in lo\ c with hcr cousin [)clia (Miriam llt)pl\'lllsl. l)clia ditcltcd him to marry for moncy'. but w hcn hc dics in thc war. and shc finds out about thc cltild. shc ruins (‘harlottc's chancc for a good match and adopts thc child lict'scllh. St Bt'idc's ('cntrc. lidinburgh.
Om Jai Jagadish (P(ii (Anupam thr.
India. 2002) tbc .\lin. A middlc class mothcr
trics to kccp an cyc on hcr thrcc sons ()m. Jai and Jagadish as lhcy aim for succcss in fif’c. North lidinburgh Arts ('cntrc. lidinburgh.
30 THE LIST 2?); N0. '7‘ i)r::; PM}?
J-Lo has had Enough of those big ass jibes
Once Upon a Time in the Midlands ( l5) 0... (Sbanc .\lcadows. l’K. 300] i Robcrt (‘arly|c. Rhys lfans. Shirlcy llcndcrson. 104mm. \thn (ilasgow pctty crnninal Jimmy (("arlylci \L‘C\ his childhood s\\ L‘Clltcut'l tttttl L‘\ Shirlcy (llcndcrsoni on thc Vancssa l‘clt/ show. bc dccidcs It) takc thc pI‘UcL‘cds (il~ :t bungch robbct‘y and Inn cl down to Nottingham to w in hcr back from hcr gcckish buy lil'lL'lltl l)L‘k (ll-alts). ’l'hcrc arc. how cy cr. a few obslaclcs in lhc way for thc aycnging ‘cowboy ‘. including l)ck's his cra/y stcp sistcr ( Kathy Burkci and hcr c‘sll'angt‘tl ('tk \V-(il‘scssctl husband (‘hat‘lic (Ricky 'l‘oinlinsoni. .\lcadows dirccts his all- star cast with skill. aw arc that thc bcst (lUlllCSIlL‘ slnt‘iL‘s arc Illusc lltttl arc lUld \\ fllt simplicity and cmotion. .\lonicnts in this filtn can bc clawing. not lcast lhc trcaclc~ atllbtlshcd cnding. btit .\lcadow s aim is gcncrally truc. (‘incworld. lialkirk.
One Hour Photo (Gold Class) ( 1M .0. (Mark Romanck. l‘S. 2002i Robin Williams. ('onnic Nic‘lsc‘it. liriq l.a Sallc. 95min. (iold ('lass Scrccning with lti\ury lcathcr scaling. pri\atc bar and waitcr scryicc. Sy Parrish. a Ioncly photo lcchnician who finds joy in thc pt'cciotls momcnts of othct' pcoplc‘s liy cs. most notably a picturc-pcrfcct fatnin who‘yc \isitcd thc Saymart mini-lab whcrc Sy “(irks sincc tltc birth of lltcit‘ ninc—ycar old soit. His own lifc dcyoid of colour and humanity. as rcprcscntcd by his working cm ironincnt lhc grcat w hitc church of consumcrisni Sy trics to takc his placc in thc li'antc of thc idcal family. thn hc finds thc picturc l0 lk‘ lcss lllttlt [lk'l‘l-L'L‘l. S} ltlkt‘s matlcrs into his own considcrably psychotic hands. 'l‘hc casting of Robin Williams is ittspit‘cd — ltkcablc bccttttsc ltc‘s good Ultl \lrs l)oubtfirc and tcrrify ing for thc sainc rcason. (‘onccrns that pop promo dircctor Ronianck has inadc a film that is sty Ic oycr substancc is not so clcar cut. how c\ cr.
\Vat‘ncr \‘illagc. lidinburgh.
Orange County ( l3) (Jakc Kasdan. l'S. 3003i (‘olin llanks. Jack Black. Schuylcr l'isk. 82min. ('alifornia surfcr dudc Shaun Brumdcr (flanks. son of form wants to giy'c tip thc board for thc pcn and go study crcatiyc writing at Stanford l'niycrsity. But whcn his dim-w ittcd school guidancc counscllor mcsscs tip his application. dcspcratc Shaun turns to his drug-addch loscr brothcr l.ancc (Black) to citsurc his cntry into Stanford by any tncans ncccssary. ‘l'hosc Incans gi\ c risc to a scrics of comic sct-picccs of thc gross otit \aricty. to which c\ccssi\ c antics Shaun's swcct girlfricnd Ashlcy disk) can only look on with a mixturc of rcsignation and horror. It might sounds all \ct'y postr-l‘arrclly brothcrs. btit ()nmgt' (‘nimn has sonic talcnt bchind thc camcra in w rilcr .\likc \Vhitc (Ur/(ck A'- li’m'ki and dircctor Kasdan (who prcy iously madc thc undcrratcd Zt'm [film-Ii. ('ircuit (‘incma. l.i\ ingston.
The Powerpufl Girls (P( n ((‘raig .\lc('rackcn. [-5. 3003! \itlL‘Cs ()l' ('thy ('ayadini. lara Strong. lili/abcth Daily. 73min. Bascd on thc animach Amcrican 'l‘\' scrics. but looking much likc a Japancsc animc. 'I'Iu’ I’ou't'r/mff(Hr/y .lloi'i't' proy idcs us with thc origin of supcrgirls Blossom. Bubblcs and Butlcrcup. ('rcatcd by Prof'cssor l'toniuin aftcr hc accidcntally mi\cs thc wrong chcmical compounds. thcsc culics coursc ltayoc in low nsy illc whcn thcy play a gamc of supcr tag. Stcr ('cntury. lidinburgh.
Prop and Berta (l‘) (Pcr l-‘ly. Dcnmark. 200] i 73min. ('harming animation of Prop who has an M ii w itch for a ncighbour. ()nly fi'icnds Bcrla. thc cra/y cow. and four musical trolls can hclp. \lacRobcrt. Stirling. Pure t 18) ((iillics .\lacls'innon. (K. 2002) l)a\id “cnham. .\lo||y Parkcr. ls'cira Knightly. Uomin. This film caplurcs a lunatic rclationship bch ccn a hopclcss itinkic-tnolhcr and an unfortunatc lcn-ycar-
old namcd Paul. Paul obligingly assumcs solc rcsponsibility for his mutn. and iii doing so. tclls an atypical talc of rofc- rcycrsal in an atypical family. A rclcyant. compassionatc story dcpicting a child's untiincly progrcssion to maturity. (il-‘l‘. (ilasgow. Quadrophenia ( I8) 00. (liranc Roddam. l'K. l‘)7‘)t Phil Danicls. l.cslic Ash. Phil l)ayis. Sting. lltimin. Mods and rockcrs liy c it tip on Brighton bcach by swapping buckcts and spadcs for chains and sticks. l.iy'cly first half has cnottgh cncrgy. music. yiolcncc and pcriod flayour to carry it along. but all too soon it dcgcncratcs into sonic son of trcatisc on thc morality of youth. wt to tuncs by The Who. l‘('l. (‘lydcbank
The Quiet American ( 1M 0000 (Phillip .\'oy cc. l‘S/l'K. 2002) .\lichacl (‘ainc. Brcndan l-‘rascr. l)o 'l‘hi llai ch. llHlmin. 'I'hc prcyious IUSS adaptation of (iraham (irccnc's noy cl cxciscd thc book's critical contmcttt on Amcrica‘s carly ll]\t)l\'L‘lttL‘tll in Victnam and (irccnc hach it. This ncw \crsion rctains thc cotnmcnt. so it'd bc inlct'csting to scc what hc would hayc madc of this film. smartly scripch by Brit ('hristophcr Hampton. impcccably dircctcd by Attssic Phillip .\’oy cc and f'caturing a carccr bcst pcrf'ormancc by ('ainc. In fact. (‘ainc. w hosc pcrformancc is rcmarkably rcstraincd and bcautifully modulatcd. bascd his part. 'l'homas l’owlcr. a jadcd British ncwspapcr corrcspondcnt in Saigon at thc cnd of thc l-‘rcnch lndo-(‘hina colonial pcriod. on (irccnc himsclf. Scc fcaturc and rcyicw. Sclcctcd rclcasc. 6 Rabbit Proof Fence (l’(if oooo (Philip .\'oy-cc. Atistralia. 2002i liycrlyn Sampi. Kcnncth Branagh. l)a\'id (iulpilil. ()Jmin. lt‘s thc humanity of .\'oy cc‘s story tclling which is thc most salicnt fcaturc of this film about Anstralia's Stolcn (icncration. 'I‘hc didacticism of" this trtic story of thc abduction of thrcc aboriginal childrcn from thcir tribc. and lhcir rcscttlcmcnt at a prison-likc camp for thc training of mixcd racc childrcn into whitc culturc is hiddcn bcncath its story of human strugglc and cndurancc. Noycc forgiycs all. liycn Branagh‘s .\lr .\'c\ illc. who wc first cncountcr cyplaining thc bi/arrc scmi- fascist cugcnics that motiyatc hint. is sccn as not so much cy il as profoundly wrong- hcadcd. 'l‘hc childrcn arc lhc natural stars. with pcrformanccs pcrfcctly incasurcd to thcir agcs and situations. Sclcctcd rclcasc. Rishtey (l't (Indra Kumar. India. 2002) tbc .\lin. Asian film prcscntation about hopc surfacing w hcn all appcars lost. starring Anil Kapoor. 'I‘hc Bombay ('incma. (ilasgow. Road to Perdition ( lit 0.. \lL‘nths. l'S. 2003f Tom Hanks. Paul .\'cw man. Judc law. 1 17min. A l)cprCssion cra gangstcr picturc with solid Amcrican fatnin \alucs. It may also. likc .\lcndcs' absurdly o\ crratcd ()scar-winncr :lnu'rit‘un Ii‘mun'. fool cincma-gocrs into confusing its moody sclf-importancc for profound insight. Pot" hcrc arc Big Stars. Big 'l’hcincs (l’athcrs and Sons. Loyalty and Bctrayal. Sin and Salyationi and llcayy Symbolism (\Vatcr + l)cathi. 'l‘hrough ('onrad llall's darkly glistcning cincniatography. many of tltc indiy idtial tablcau\ arc imprcssiycly stagcd and stunning to bchold. If only .\lCllLlC\. L'lltpl}. (H Cf-tlt'L‘ssCtl spCL‘lttClL' lttttl donc justicc to thc finc photography and pcrformanccs. MacRobcrt. Stirling. The Santa Clause 2 «ti 0. (Michacl icinbcck. l‘SA. 3003i 'l‘im Allcn. lili/abcth .\litchcll. Judgc Rcinhold. Ill-1min. l)id w c t‘cally nccd a Sun/t1 (‘luuw scqucl'.’ Apparcntly so. as Santa has to find ;t \\ ilc lX'l-UI'L' (‘ltt‘tslmtts or clsc hc lnscs ltis job. SL‘C l'L‘VlL‘“. (iL‘ltL‘t'tll t'L'lL‘usC. Santa vs the Snowman 30 (Pm (Various. l‘S. ltltfli .\lin tbc. l.\lA.\' big scrccn. scasonal prcscntation. l.\l:\.\. (ilasgow. Scars ( llAi (l.ars Bcrg. Norway /Sw cdcn. Ztitll f 7(imin. 'l‘hc story of thrcc fricnds. \iktor. Rogcr and Arnor. \lacRobcrt. Stirling. Scooby-Doo (t’( if .0 (Raia (iosncll. l‘S. 2t)()3i l'rcddic Prin/c Jr. Sarah .\ltchcllc (icllar. \latthcw l.illard. STmin.
(Sam