THIS FILM OUT-GROSSED BOTH MURDERBALL AND GRIZZLY MAN IN THE US
The bak of
As THE WILD PARROTS OF TELEGRAPH HILL finally gets a small Scottish release Paul Dale wonders why there are not more parrots at the pictures.
magine how much better the spit/hand/cock scene in lirokebaek Mountain would have been if there
had been a Poicephalus parrot in the corner of
Heath Ledger and Jake Gyllenhaal's tent echoing their crttcial seduction scene. Or what about (food Night. and (loud Luek‘.’ Who could resist a film about a chainsmoking broadcaster and his peach-faced love bird‘s attempts to bring down Senator Joe McCarthy. In fact. come to think of it. I cannot think of one recent film that would not benefit from the inclusion of a conure. macaw or cockatoo. With their incessant mimicry and chirpy chatter. exotic birds are a huge pain in the arse if you are actually trying to watch a DVD at home. but put Joey in the picture and you know you've got a gift that keeps on giving.
By way of explanation. I have a long association with our squawking feathered friends. My extended family has always kept exotic birds. it is rumoured that budgerigar fancier and former strongest man of the world Jeff Capes once went round to my uncle's house to get tips on how to breed chaflinches. I‘ve even kept a few budgies myself. all of whom I named after famous Liverpool Vaudeville comedians but. like Maya Angelou. I learnt why the caged bird sings and realised that all birds need to be free. Since that time I have had to find my passion for these creatures by proxy through cinema. But there are only so many times you can watch Doctor Doolittle (both the Rex Harrison and Eddie Murphy versions). Pirates of the Caribbean and the many terrible versions of Treasure Island (not to mention John Robert’s excellent I998
film Paulie and that Carry On lilm in which Sidney James gets betting tips from his wife's pretty Polly). So it was with some pleasure that I fell upon Judy Irving‘s beautiful. sensitive and undeniably moving feature documentary T/lt’ ll’i/(l l’arrots of Telegraph Hill. a film that unbelievably out-grossed both Alltl'dt’l'lhl/l and (iri::,/_v Man in the l’S. It tells the quirky but enticing story of self-styled ‘Bohemian St Francis‘ Mark Bittner. an ex-mtisician and now ‘Dharma bum‘ ('a homeless seeker of truth' according to poet (iary Snyder) who is famous across
parts of San Francisco for his devotion to a flock of
wild red and green parrots who live in the Russian
quarter. The all too sane Bittner is the antithesis of
Grizzly Man’s Timothy 'l‘readwell. Watching him caress. care for and articulate his love for these extraordinary birds you are left in no doubt that. unlike Treadwell. this shabby man holds at least one of the keys to eternal enlightenment. For all its cheesy soundtrack and community TV production values The Parrots of Telegraph Hill is like some crazy lix for us bird lovers. the time we spend with Bittner‘s beloved but fundamentally free South American cherry heads (a deeply cultured man. Bittner has amusineg called his favourites Mingtis. Olive. Pushkin and Connor) is golden time. a time before man. bird flu and the hovering hawks decimate their breeding grounds.
GFI', Glasgow from Sat 8-Mon 10 Apr. See review. See review, page 45.
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THE BEST FILM & DVD RELEASES
Ill The Squid and the Whale Noah Baumbach. the screenwriter of The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou remembers his parents' divorce in this quirky comedy drama. See review. page 46. General release (from Fri 7 Apr).
* The Three Burials oi Melquiades Estrada Veteran actor Tommy Lee Jones makes his cinematic debut with this minimal, taciturn, humane and multi referential Tex Mex revenge Western. See review. page 45. Selected release (from Fri 31 Mar).
* The Wild Parrots of Telegraph Hill Low budget documentary about one ageing Beatnik's relationship with a flock of red and green parrots. See article. left and review, page 45. GFT. Glasgow (from Sat 8-Mon 10 Apr).
3|: Hidden Back by popular demand is Haneke's seminal and disturbing psychological thriller. Filmhouse, Edinburgh (from Wed 29 Mar— Thu 6 Apr only).
3|: Cult! Another selection of oddities mined from the cinematic wilderness. this showcase includes such delights as Andy Warhol’s Bad and Herzog’s fantastic Even Dwarves Started Small. GFT. Glasgow (from Tue 77 Apr) and Filmhouse, Edinburgh (from Fri 31 Mar).
1|! Day of Wrath The best of a bunch of welcome DVD releases that celebrate the work of the great Danish filmmaker Carl Theodor Dreyer. Seriously good. See review. page 47. Out Mon 10 Apr (BFI).
* The Orson Welles Collection Much delayed. much anticipated box set featuring Citizen Kane. The Magnificent Ambersons and Touch of Evil. See review, page 47. Out now (Universal).
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