Films screening this fortnight are listed below with certificate, star rating, credits, brief review and venue details. Film index compiled by Paul Dale
Aileen ( l5) 0... (Nick Broomfield. t'K/t'S. 2002)After 12 years Broomficld returns to the scene of the crime of his 1002 film xii/(1')! liitln‘lms.‘ lllt’ Xt’lllltg ()l (I Si’l'lrll Killer. to see her be executed by the very people that were happy It) condone her exploitation in the state of I‘Iorida. Moving and incredibly low key for Broomfield and his co.director Joan (‘hurchilf (i/uxeim' I'ilm 'I‘ln'um'. (iluseon .' I'i/mliouu’. Edinburgh.
AI-Jazeera: The Voice of Arabia
( I2A) (Tewfik llakem. France. 2002) 52min. Shot on location in Doha. Qatar. this documentary film about the Arabic cable news channel that beat western media big boys at their own game combines news footage. C\L‘L‘l'pl.\ from .-\l-J;t/L'Ct'tt programmes and interview s with executives. anchors. and journalists. A fascinating insight into a big new world media play er. l‘l/Hl/lnllu’. lit/inliiujul).
Along Came Polly (12A)oo
(John Hamburg. I’S. 2003)Ben Stiller. Jennifer Aniston. 00min. See rev iew. page 25. (ii'm'l'tll I't'/('(l.\(’.
Amandla! ( 12A) 0... (Ice Hirsch. l'S. 2003) 103mm. Award winning documentary Anmmllo.’ A Revolution in Four I’ur! Harmony tells the story of black South African freedom music and the pivotal role it play ed in the battle against apartheid across the decades. featuring interviews with Hugh .\lasekela. Abdullah Ibrahim atid Sibongile Khumalo. ('(I-f. (i/(rseou': I'ilmliouu’. [ailinlmrelr
American Cousins ( IS) 0.. (Don
(bulls. l'K. 2003) ()legar iiL‘tltH'U. Stephen (iraham. Dan lledaya. Shirley Henderson. John llenshaw. Danny Nucci. (ierald l.epkow ski. 93min. This likeable .\lafiosi- on-the-run comedy romance drama sees Yankee mobsters (iino (Nucci) and Settitno
(lledcya). take refuge in the (ilasgow cafii owned by their Scottish/Italian cousin. But cousin Roberto (Lepkowski) isn‘t the tough guy they'd expected. He likes fish frying and stamp collecting. (iino and Settimo try to repay Robeno‘s hospitality by chasing off debt collectors bill in the process they create a whole load of other problems. This liorsythian little drama also features a rather nice cameo from Vincent Pastore. better known as Pussy in The .S‘o/n'unos. (’(I-l. Glasgow:
The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz ( l8) 0.. (Ted Kotcheff. ('anada. 197-1) Richard Dreyfuss. Micheline Lanctot. Jack Warden. Randy ()uaid. l2lmin. In 1948 Montreal. young l)uddy (Dreyfuss) finds his way quickly to the top. learning on the way that niceness is necessary too. Over-simplified btit amusing. with an ()scar-nominated screenplay adapted by Mordecai Richlcr from his
novel. (l’estival of Jewish (’ulture). (ilusgow
l'i/m ‘l‘lieum: (i/uveow.
QThe Barbarian Invasions ( 18) 0.. (Denys Arcand. (‘anada/l-‘rance. 2003) Remy (iirard. Stephane Rousseau. Dorothee Beri'yman. 90min. See interview. page 26 and review. page -8. (ilusgow [Vi/m 'I‘lu'uln'. (iluseow: film/rouse. Iziliiilml‘gli. Beijing Watermelon (P( i) (Nobultiko ()bayashi. Japan. l‘)8‘))A sharp comedy about a Tokyo grocer and his wife who befriend a group of students to the point of neglecting their business. (ii/nton’liillU/l (iltls gnu:
Bellany: A Life, Death and Resurrection ( 12A) (Pete and Terry Wolsey. l'K. 200| ) 48min. Documentary about the life and work of Scottish artist John Bellany. notable for depicting the hardship of those w ho lives depend upon the sea. Film/rouse. lz'tlinlmreli.
Big Fish (l’(i) .0. (Tim Burton. l'S. 2003) liw an .\lc(iregor. Albert l‘inney. Billy (‘rudup. Jessica Lange. Alison Lohman.
l l0min. lidward Bloom (l‘lllllcyl is much loved. but his compulsive yarn-spinning has alienated him from his journalist son Will ((‘rudupL whose wedding day lidward upstaged with a typically scene-stealing speech. listranged since then. lidward and Will are reunited when the father falls ill
Ben Stiller and Jennifer Aniston in Along Came Polly
index Film
and the son returns from Paris. together with his French wife. Josephine (Marion (‘otillard) who soon falls for lidward's entertaining mendacity. Will. on the other hand. is determined to find the truth behind his father's slippery fictions. ('ue gentle giants. utopian villages full of happy-shiny people. exotic circus performers. cabaret- perf‘orming conjoined twins and poetry- spouting batik robbers. l'nf'orttmately. the film‘s big moral message is mawkish and disappointingly conventional. but Burton country is always worth venturing into for a bil. (it'llt'l'u/ I'l’l(’(1.\'(’.
Blind Spot - I-litler’s Secretary (PG) (Andre Heller and ()thmar Schmiderer. Austria. 2002) 90min. Documentary feature based on an exclusive interview with Traudl Junge. Adolf Hitler's private secretary from autumn 19-12 until the collapse of the Nazi regime. She worked for him at the Wolf‘sschanze in ()bersalzberg. on his private train and. finally. in his bunker outside Berlin. It was Junge to whom llitler dictated his final testament. Ii) her first ever on-cainera interview. 81-year-old Junge talks about her unique life. Now a ftirious opponent of National Socialism. she is fascinating. guilt ridden company throughout this thought provoking documentary. (ilusgow Film 'l’ltmire. Glasgow.
Blood Simple (18).... (Joel (‘oen. l'S. I‘M-l3) John (ietz. l‘rancis .\lel)ormand. .‘yl limmet Walsh. 99min. Auspicious debut from the ('oen brothers‘ direction/production team. Walsh excels as the seedy sheriff investigating a simple murder whose devilish Texan chronicle of I. double-crossing is anything but simple. An I enthusiastic attempt at contemporary film noir which keeps everyone guessing even after the filial frame. ()(ll’Ull. Edinburgh.
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19 Feb—4 Mar 2004 THE LIST 29