a deeply quirky romantic drama out of Alison Tilson's beautiful spare screenplay. ()ne for the ladies. Seleeteil release. Jersey Girl (12A) .00 (Kevin Smith. 2004) Raquel ('astro. Ben Affleck. Liv Tyler. Jennifer Lopez. George (.‘arlin.Widowed dad ()llie Trinke (Affleck) has moved back to his dad‘s (Carlin) house in New Jersey and the duo do their best to raise young Gertie (Castro). Gone are Clerks writer/director Smith‘s trademark comic book references. fart jokes and quirky off beat dialogue. Instead we are threatened with a second rate rerun of Three Men and a Little Lady. but the film fast-forwards eight years and just as all hope is lost. Affleck tries to rent out a porno in the local video store without his daughter noticing. Through Liv Tyler's video clerk Maya. Smith reveals his true self and sticks two fingers up at his doubters. Tyler. in a role she was born to play. delivers a mesmerising performance whose monologues match the best from ('lerks' or (having Amy. Through her relationship with Affleck it becomes apparent that Smith‘s opening salvo was itself an attack on the conventions of the rom-com genre. General release.
Ju-On: The Grudge ( 15) 0.0 (Takashi Shimizu. Japan. 2003) Megumi ()kina. Misaki Ito. Misa l'ehara. Yui Iehikawa. ()lmin. See review. page 28. Selected release.
Kill Bill: Volume 1 (IS) 00... (Quentin 'I‘arantino. LS. 2003) l'ma Thurman. David ('arradine. Lucy I.iu. Daryl Hannah. V'ivica A Fox. Michael Madsen.
l l0min. A long time in the coming. 'I‘arantino‘s two-part martial arts sword fighting epic gets off to a roaring rampaging start with \‘ol 1. Taranlino wears those influences on his sleeves: (’hinese/Japanese martial arts flicks. blaxploitation and anime. Something of a departure from his previous films in that there is no smart era-defining dialogue here. just glorious. bloody. driven narrative. A mast for anyone with a passion for the left field. low budget joys of people like Argento. Jodorowsky and any of the directors who came out of the Shaw Brothers studios in the 70s. Grosi'eno); Glasgow.
Kill Bill: Volume 2 ( IS) 00.. (Quentin 'I’arantino. l.'S. 2004) l'ma ’l’hurman. David (‘arradine. Daryl Hannah. Michael Madsen. Samuel I. Jackson. 136mm. 'I'arantino‘s rollicking rampage of revenge changes gear for its concluding part. A dialogue-heavy Western bathed in the spirit of B and exploitation movies. this is a thrilling. perplexing end to a great pseudo feminist riff on violence and revenge. It is also very nice to see ('arradine back in a film deserving of his talents. Grosvenor: Glasgow.
Kind Hearts And Coronets (PG) 0... (Robert Hamer. UK. 1949) Dennis Price. Alec Guinness. Joan Greenwood. Valerie Hobson. 106mm. This blacker than black Ealing comedy has the suave and sophisticated Price killing off an entire family tree (all played by Guinness) in order to move himself closer to the d‘Ascoyne family title. Low-key cynicism and disarming callousness make it a true gem of British post-war cinema. Cameo. Edinburgh.
The Ladykillers (15) .0 (Joel and Ethan Coen. LS. 2004) Tom Hanks Irma P Hall. Marlon Wayans. JK Simmons. 104mm. Bland remake of Mackendrick‘s 1955 Iialing classic. Hanks gleefully adjusts his false teeth to play a southern variation of Alec Guinness' professor. with Irma P Ilall's tough evangelism replacing Katie Johnson‘s frailness as the ‘formidable antagonist' of a landlady who stands between llanks' gang and stolen casino money. Predictable jokes about dim-wilted criminals posing as musicians follow. plus bouts of irritable bowel syndrome. a dog in a gas mask and various other low-brow ('oen-stylc riffs shape the familiar comic theme. That said. the relocation to the Deep South does provide the space for some welcome satirical jibes at black culture. mainly through Marlon Way'ans' foulmouthed
janitor Gawain McSam. and the fresh setting provides an excuse for a great gospel soundtrack too. General release.
Lakshya ( l2A) Il‘lll‘liilli Akhtar. India. 2004) llrithik Roshan. Preity Zinta. Amitabh Bachchan. ()m Purifl‘he story of a clueless teenager who ends up being a war martyr. It's based on the Indian Army's 199‘) skirmishes with Pakistani intruders in the heights of Kargil district in the restive state of Jatntnu and Kashmir. The hugely popular Indian epic traces the journey of a cadet with an unusually harsh and intelligent sensibility (for Bollywood). Newcomer Hrithik Roshan and screen legend Amitabh Bachchan star. ()deon at the Quay. Glasgow. Glasgow; L'CI Edinburgh. Edinburgh.
The Lion King (L') Disney's first animated feature get the IMAX treatment. IMAX Theatre. Glasgow.
The Mahabharata (t') .00 Brook. l'K/I’rance. l‘)8‘)) l'rs Bihler. Rys/ard (’ieslak. Yoshi ()ida. Bruce Myers. 360mm. Brook's unforgettable theatrical marathon was adapted for television in collaboration with (‘hannel 4. and is an adequate record of the stage show. But the atmosphere generated by Brooks extraordinary. multicultural company in action cannot be reproduced on screen and the guts of the piece are not always iti evidence. I'ilntltouve. Edinburgh.
The Man in the White Suit (1’0) 0... (.-\Iexander Maekendrick. l'ls'. I95] ) Alec Guinness. Joan Greenwood. (‘ecil Parker. 85min. A dishwasher in a textile mill invents a fabric that never wears out or gets dirty. Mackendrick adds a touch of acidity to the lialing comedy formula. Guinness is spectacularly good. exploiting his trademark smarminess to great effect. (when. Iz‘rliti/mrgh.
Mango Kiss ( 15 ) (Sascha Rice. t‘SA. 2003) Daniele I‘crraro. Michelle Wolff. Sally Kirkland. S-lmin. Sass and Lou are best friends and lovers and sexually curious about the world of non-monogamy. S/M and role playing. So they set off with two friends on a journey of discovery btit soon sexual tension explodes. tempers are lost and there are tears before bedtime. I'it‘sl time director Rice's energetic. funny. probing romantic comedy explores gender roles. sexual expression and trust. Part of the London Lesbian and Gay film festival on Tour. l-"i/mhouse. l'.}/i'/iliiir‘g/i.
Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World ( 12A) .00. (Peter Weir. IS. 2003) Rtissell ('rowe. Paul
(Peter
Bettany. James D‘Arcy. Iidward Woodall. (‘hris l.arkin. 138mm. Ship Surgeon Stephen Maturin (Bettany) and Navy (’apt Jack Aubrey ((‘rowe) get caught up in a battle of wits with a French Naval destroyer during the Napoleonic Wars in Weir's first film as director since The Truman Show in 1998. Based on the Iiiin seas adventure novels of Patrick ()‘Brian. this a rare atid stirring treat which boasts great performances and some truly awe inspiring action sequences. I'i/ttt/touse. Iidinbiugh. Mean Girls (12A) 0000 (Mark S Waters. LS. 2004) Lindsay Lohan. Rachel McAdam. Lacey Chabert. Amanda Seyfried. Tina Fey. Lizzy Caplan. 97min. Raised in Africa by zoologist parents. Cady Heron (Lohan) thinks she knows about survival of the fittest. But the law of the jungle takes on a whole new meaning when the home- schooled 15-year-old enters school for the first time and encounters the peculiar cliquey world of the girl teenager. Acerbic. clever teen dratna written by Saturday Night l.ti'r"s Tina Fey. General release.
Mona Lisa Smile ( 12A) 00 (Mike Ncwell. IS. 2003) Jtilia Roberts. Kirsten Dunst. Julia Stiles. Maggie Gyllenliaal. Ginnifer Goodwin. Dominic West. 1 17min. In 1950s conservative America. Katherine Watson (Roberts) is a free-spirited graduate teacher from (‘alifornia who accepts a teaching post at Wellcsley (iii‘l‘s ('ollege. The students are torn between the traditional wife bound repression and a longing for intellectual freedom. Dead Poet's Soei'etv for girls. Yawn. Nice costumes though. HI'IlIlloIl 'I'lieatre. Iii/inhio'g/i.
Monsieur N ( 13A) 0.. (Antoine De ('auncs. I‘rance/I'K. 2003) Philippe 'l'orreton. Richard Ii Grant. Jay Rodan. lilsa 1/.ylberstein. Roschdy '/.em. 35min. Antoines de ('aunes‘ conspiracy theory drama about Napoleon escaping from exile on St Helena. Told through the eyes of a aide-de-cainp Basil Ileathcote (Rodati) who. seeing Napoleon's corpse being returned to Paris. tries to reconstruct the life of the general on the sumptuous island 20 years prev iously. Intriguingly. the film explores the many
fabulist claims without entering the world of
fantasy. btit nearly all the avenues explored. especially ill the flabby middle section of the film. seem to be heading nowhere in particular. although you cannot help but admire the beautifully shot views and the solid performances. (‘u/iieo. Iz'din/uo'gh. Monster ( IX) 00.. (Patty Jenkins. IS 2003) (‘harli/e 'l'heron. ('Iiristina
“iii
Wayne Rooney gets to meet the in-Iaws in a land far, far away in Shrek 2
index Film
Ricci. Bruce Dern. Scott Wilson. Pruitt Taylor Vince. I09min. Well made. if bleak and harrowing drama detailing the troubled. exploited life and death of LS serial killer Aileen Wuornos. Theron is remarkable as Wuornos. who is learnt strong support from Ricci in a unshowy role as friend Selby. Patty Jenkins‘ measured grim control of this dyspeptic tale pays ultimate dividends. UGC Park/read. Glasgow. Glasgow.
Morvern Cellar ( 15) ooooo (Lynne Ramsay. L'K/Canada. 2002) Samantha Morton. Kathleen McDermott. 97min. Small town hedonist and check-out girl Morvern Callar (Morton) awakes one morning to find her boyfriend has committed suicide. When she finds the finished manuscript of her boyfriends novel she puts her name on it. sells it to a publisher and goes on holiday with her best friend Lanna (.\Icl)ermott). Initially. the vacation is little more than a jaunt to Ibiza. but (‘allar soon finds her expectations of life change even as her friend remains devout to her shitheel life in a dead end town. Ramsay. co-screenwriter Liana Dognini and Morton have done a remarkable job of transposing this quirky. distant character and her awkward strange
journey to the screen. In an age of
saccharine and spice and all things predictable this is surprisingly brave cerebral filmmaking. (ii/ntorehillG/2. Glasgow.
The Ninth Gate ( IS) .0 (Roman Polanski. l'S/i"rance. 2000) Johnny Depp. Frank Langella. Lena ()lin. l33min. I)cpp’s ‘book detective' Dean (‘orso is hired by collector Boris Balkan (Langella) to locate copies of a text that may well have been illustrated by Satan himself. When the people (‘orso meets die in odd set-piece scenes that bring those pictures to life. he knows he's dealing with forces much more powerful than any of human origin. Though Polanski's film nods to the likes of Iidgar Allen Poe. the dominant literary influence would appear to be Dennis Wheatley. There's only a minimal amount of tangible suspense or scares. and the dialogue clunks so loudly it brings an elephantine subtleness to mumbo jumbo. Part of the Polanski season. Film/rouse. Ifr/itthutg/t.
Not on the Lips (Pas Sur la Bouche) (PG) 0. (Alain Resnais. Iirance/Switzerland. 2003) Sabine A/cma. Isabelle Nanty. Audrey Tautou. 1 17min. See review. page 2‘). ( ‘( 'xl Glasgow.
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