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Film index
Gandoili: Family Business (PG) (Ken Griffiths. UK. 2003) 97min. An elegiac yet humorous documentary about brothers Frederick and Arthur — two irascible old men who have just sold one of the most prestigious camera-making businesses in the world. This film invites outsiders to share an enthusiasm of the lost art of camera-making while taking a trip back in time to a much simpler Britain of 20 years ago. Filmhouse. Edinburgh. German Video Art (tbc) Screenings of the winning films from the tenth Marl Video Art Awards. in conjunction with the Goethe lnstitut. C(‘A. Glasgow.
Ghost World (15) ooooo (Terry Zwigoff. US. 2001) Thora Birch. Scarlett Johansson. Steve Buscemi. l l lmin. Daniel Clowes adapts his own cult comic with Zwigoff. opting not to translate parrot- fashion. but to distil the essence of the source material. Thus. characters. setting and tone are spot on. but the episodic nature of the serialised strip is shaped into a low key story revolving around high school graduates Enid and Rebecca (Birch and Johansson) who temper disgust with the bland westem world of shopping malls and theme restaurants with cynical bemusement. The dialogue. humour. production design and performances are a world apart from lesser American teen flicks. CCA. Glasgow. Ghosts of the Abyss 30 (PG) (James Cameron. US. 2004) 59min. Documentary in which master storyteller James Cameron leads an expedition back to the site of his greatest inspiration — the wreck of the legendary Titanic where nearly 1500 people lost their lives over a century ago. Using state-of-the-art technology developed specifically for the film. Cameron and his learn are able to explore the wreckage and bring it to screen in 3D. The audience is able to experience an archaeological dive as if they were right in the dive ships or even as the crew 90 years ago. IMAX Theatre. Glasgow:
Girl with a Pearl Earring (12A)
.0 (Peter Webber. UK/Luxembourg. 2003) Scarlett Johansson. Colin Firth. Tom Wilkinson. Judy Parfitt. Cillian Murphy. 95min. Adapted from the book by Tracy Chevalier. Webber's sumptuoust upholstered film deals with the story behind the creation of Vemieer's famous painting. Marred by miseasting and an overly literal approach to the cinematography. this is a major disappointment: a fascinating story has been rendered into a dull. syrup-thick tale of love and peasantry. Selected release. Good Boy! (if) C” (John Robert Hoffman. 2003) Molly Shannon. Liam Aiken. Kevin Nealon. Brittany Moldowan. 87min. When ()wen (Aiken) gets a new pooch from the local pound he‘s in for more than he realised. Hubble may look like a cuter than average Norfolk terrier. but he‘s actually an interstellar emissary from the planet Dog Star. the home world of all the galaxy"s canines. Arriving on Earth to discover that the hounds are no longer top dog. Hubble. with the help of ()wen. has only got a few days to whip the
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34 THE LIST 19 Feb—4 Mar 2004
David Spade and friend in Dickie Roberts: Former Child Star
neighbourhood dogs into shape before the arrival of the Great Dane (voiced by Vanessa Redgrave). If they don't manage to pull this off. she's likely to order a global recall that will deprive man of his best friend once and for all. Likeable talking animals comedy that is suitable for all ages. ()deon ll’ester Ilailes. Edinburgh. Edinburgh.
Goodbye Lenin! ( moss
(Wolfgang Becker. Germany. 2003) Daniel Brjhl. Katrin Sass. Maria Simon. 121mm. Charming comedy drama which won the Blue Angel Award at Berlin. Set initially during the dissolution of (iDR in 198‘) when Alex‘s mother slips into a coma after an almost fatal heart attack. She awakes in 1990 and [East Berlin has already changed considerably. Alex is determined to protect her from any kind of shock. ('ameo. Edinburgh.
Haunted Mansion (PU) so (Rob Minkoff. (TS. 2003) liddie Murphy. Terence Stamp. Nathaniel Parker. Marsha Thomason. Jennifer Tilly. Wallace Shawn. 86min. Jim livers (Murphy) is a real estate
shark who makes a detour from the family holiday to take his family to an old mansion at the request of a ghostly butler. Hi jinx and life lessons ensue. Anaemic attempt to turn at Disneyland theme park ride into a family film. General release.
Holes (PG) 0... (Andrew Davis. IS. 2003) Sigoumey Weaver. Jon \‘oight. Tim Blake Nelson. Shia l.aBeouf. Khleo Thomas. 1 17min. A wrongfully convicted boy is sent to a desert detention camp where he digs holes and listens to spooky stories. Bizarre. episodic and oddly endearing this is one weird Disney family flick that escapes from the usual clichlis of the genre. (TA. Glasgow; ('(‘I lz'dinlnojglr. lzidinlnugh. House of Sand and Fog ( IS)
.0. (Vadim Perelman. l‘SA. 2003) Jennifer (‘onnelly. Ben Kingsley. 124mm. See review. page 26.
O Infernal Affairs( l5 )ooo (Ame 1.211). Hong Kong. 2002) Tony l.eung. Andy Lau. 98min. See preview. page 25 and review. page 27. Selected release.
In the Cut ( 18) .0 (Jane ('ampion. LS. 2003) Meg Ryan. Mark Ruffalo. Kevin Bacon. 1 lein. l-‘rannie Avery (Ryan) becomes a witness in a murder investigation and then begins an erotic affair with detective James Malloy (Ruffalo). A young woman has been mutilated in a pattern of serial killings and l-‘rannie may have seen her in a seedy Manhattan bar on the night she was butchered. But what l-‘rannie saw in the bar's darkened cellar was the victim giving a man with a distinctive tattoo on his arm a blovvjob. So. when Malloy comes calling to her apartment and she notices the same tattoo. l-‘rannie begins to suspect the cop‘s the killer. Pretentious. cringy erotic thriller adapted from Suzanne Moore's trashy novel and dressed up as art. (amen. lz'dinbragh.
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Intacto ( l5) 0... (Juan ('arlos liresnadillo. Spain. 2003) Max Von Sydow. Iiusebio Poncela. l.eonardo Sbaraglia. l()‘)min. liresnadillo‘s award-winning debut feature is a futuristic. metaphysical thriller. which imagines a universe where luck has become a material commodity which can be bought. sold and stolen. it‘s a clever blend of science fiction. crime thriller. road movie and romantic drama which. while suggesting that so-called ‘good luck' might be an awful curse. also serves as an allegory for the gulf between rich and poor. Anchored by Von Sydow's eerily calm performance. which brings an important depth of humanity to the fable. Intaeto should be seen now before the inevitable Hollywood remake dilutes its pleasures. Iz‘rlinlnajgh I’ll/n Guild. lz'dinlnojgh.
It’s All About Love ( IS) oooo (Thomas
Vinterberg.l 'S/Japan/Sweden/l 'K/l )enmark/ (iermany/Netherlands. 2003) Joaquin Phoenix. Claire Danes. Sean Penn. Douglas Henshall. l0-imin. John (Joaquin Phoenix) comes to .\'ew York in 202l to finalise his divorce with lilena ((‘laire Danes) but their feelings for each other haven't entirely disappeared. This conceit is used by ex- Dogme director and writer Thomas \‘interberg to make a film that is more concerned with emotional resonance than formulaic Hollywood storytelling. Futuristic. fantastical and whimsical. this is well worth catching. I'G(' Rr'Ii/i‘eii' Street. Glasgow; Glasgow: Film/rouse. Edinburgh. Kal Ho Na Ho ( IZA) (Nikhil Advani. India. 2003) Shah Rukh Khan. Saif Ali Khan. Preity' 1/.inta. Jaya Bhaduri. Three friends. one of whom is a stockbroker in Manhattan. go through a series of incidents that change their lives completely. Romantic drama from India starring the eminently watchable Khan. Glasgow" l-ilm 'I'heatre. Glasgow:
The Last Samurai ( 15) ea. (lidw'ard '/.wick. l'SA. 2003) Ken Watanabc. Tom ('ruisc. William Atherton. ('had Lindberg. Ray (iodsltall Sr. ISUmin. Nineteenth century Japan. one fearless samurai who is still loyal to his weak- willed. vulnerable emperor. Katsumoto (Watanabe) rebels against the ruling bureaucrats who then seek military aid from America. Help arrives in the form of (‘iv il War veteran (’aptain Nathan Algrcn (Cruise). Algrcn is ultimately charged with bringing the renegade Katsumoto to justice. But Algrcn. a bitter. cynical drunk since serving with (ieneral ('nster in his ingloriotis campaign to extinguish the Native American. finds he has more respect for the honourable samurai than the vvesternised way that prev ionst sickened him in America. Hugely overweight rites of passage cpic which has clearly been cobbled together as a vehicle for the (‘ruiseter Director Zw ick keeps thiitgs very watchable. however. if a little simplistic. l‘ans of the wee man should approve but you may find yourself thinking that maybe Richard (’hamberlain did a slightly better job in Shogun. General release.
Life of O-haru (PG) (Kcnji .\lo/ogtlchi. Japan. l‘)52) ('lassic account of one woman's decline in a 17th (‘entury Japanese court. Glasgow I‘ll/n Theatre. Glasgow. Lilya 4-Ever ( (8) oooo (Lukas Moodysson. Sweden/l)enmat'k. 2003) ()ksana Akinshina. Artiom Bogucharskij. [jubov Agapova. l()‘)min. Living on a dilapidated housing estate in an unspecified city of the former Soviet l'nion. 15-y‘eaitold Lilya (.-\kinshina) is first abandoned by her mother. then moved by her aunt from her comparatively cosy flat to a filthy hole and finally forced to turn to prostitution. Hope is given by l.ilya's burgeoning friendship with another rejected child. bttt this is all-too short lived as Moodysson digs deeper into the abyss. revealing his true purpose: a graphic expose of liuropean sc\ trafficking. With Moodysson's unflinching direction and Akinshina‘s remarkable performance in the leading role. it packs a punch that leaves you reeling. Glasgow" I‘ll/n 'I'ltealre. Glasgow: