Bobby. iKaleem Aftabi I Selected release from Fri 26 Jan See feature. page 3 7.
ROMANCE. DRAMA SCI-Fl THE FOUNTAIN (12A) 97min 0000
Plagued wrth prot‘ltiction problems — most infamoust star Brad Pitt exrting over creative differences. causing the film to close down — Darren Aronofsky's labour of love has been a long time coming. Before rewriting the script and recasting a scaled down second incarnation of the film. Aronofsky even wrote a graphic novel version of his spiritual meditation on love and death. Happily. the finished film is beautifully
cast of superstars some of the characters only function is to give another big name a walk-on part. So wl‘ereas Lyndsay Lohan marrying Elijah Wood to keep n.ni frorn gong to Vietnam and the racza' tensions in the kitchen befu'seen Christian Slater. Laurence Fzslzburne and Freddy Rotlr'gce.’ are ':i\.'t>l‘.“ng. there seems little point In Sharon Stone cutting hair or Anthony Hopkins playing chess. Estevw is no Robert Altman but he does dc a good ob .n miXing ll‘ archive footage of Bobby Kennedy lll with the fictional action. The saccharine tone is in keeping with. the fawning perspective of this rambling love letter from Emilio to
st out I ROCKY BALBOA (12A) 102min .000
Rocky (Sylvester Stallone) hits the nail on the head when he answers the put down ‘Was that something from the 80s?’ fired by his foe Mason Dixon (real life light heavyweight champ Antonio Tarver) with the retort ‘More like the 705, actually.‘ Forget all the numerical sequels (admittedly, this is difficult as there are flashbacks to all the Rocky films except the dire Rocky V), for this is the natural heir and successor to the original.
Balboa lives on past glories. People only come to the restaurant he owns to listen to Rocky tell old fight stories. His son (Milo Ventimiglio) despises dad for giving him the Balboa name, a tag that he’ll never be able to live up to. Rocky is still grieving over Adrian’s death. He is a lonely man, looking for a connection, something to explain life to him. He is given a bone when a computer-simulated fight says that Rocky would beat the incumbent champ in a fight and an exhibition bout is arranged. The boxing continues to stay on the ropes as he attempts to strike a friendship with an old flame (Geraldine Hughes) and maintain his relationship with his hilarious trainer Paulie (Burt Young).
Indeed, the problems facing Rocky are the same as those that Sylvestor Stallone must deal with: a once great career, a slide into obscurity and a return to the scene of your greatest achievement to relight a flame. That Stallone succeeds is down to a script that matches those he wrote in his heyday (Rocky, Staying Alive, First Blood and Paradise Alley), which taps into his own real-life experiences and is full of brilliant one-liners. It’s way better than even diehard Rocky fans could have hoped for. (Kaleem Aftab) I General ’(3/(){1.‘;() from In 15) Jan. See Big Picture, page I l.
crafted piece of cerebral science fiction that's reminiscent of genre clas8ics such as 200]: A Space Odyssey and Solar/s. though it has a more emotional core than those films.
At once intimate and epic. The Fountain tells the story of a man named Tomas Tommy (Hugh Jackmani who loves a woman named Isabel |//| iRachel Weis/i through three millennia — tbth century Spain. the present and the far-flung 2(3th century.
The film unspools in a complicated box-within-a—box-wrthin-a-box structure. seguing back and forth from one story to another and drawing emotional. thematic and stylistic parallels. The Visuals. from a ruined Mayan temple to an interstellar flight. are (lax/ling. So too is the minutiae of the film. such as the moments ot tenderness between Tommy and l//i. which are shot so intimater it looks like Aronofsky used a microscope. And at the centre of all this impressiye cinematic trickery is an affecting study of how men and women deal differently wrth death. iMrles Fielderi I General release from Fri 26 Jan. See rntervreii' il.‘ Books. ixrge 26.
DRAMA VENUS (15) 94min 0..
This film would probably make more money if they renamed it l/‘i/rtlinarl and l: The Pensioner Years. because that's what it most closely resembles when it's good. Maurice (Peter O'Toolei and Ian iLeslie Phillipsi are a couple of veteran acto‘s who spend their decrepitude drinking. bitching and yismng the theatre. 'lheir world is turned upside down v~rhen Ian's hateful. shallow. troublesome niece Jessie iJodie Whittakeri comes to stay. and Maurice finds himself falling for her brash northern charms.
This perverse and occasionally very touching character study has a superb pedigree. with Hanif Kureishi on script duty. the always dependable Roger Mitchell (The Mother. Enduring love) at the helm and (the mighty O'Toole and Phillips aside. who both give exceptionally good performances) there's even Vanessa Redgrave and Richard Griffiths in well defined support roles. So why isn't it totally successful? Well. Kureishi may be a past master at middle-class ennui but he certainly can't write teenage roles to save his life. The character of Jessie s so turgid and unbelievable that Just watching her brings on human shrinkage and. unfortunately, lV star Whittaker is less than capable of making anything of this meagre meal. A real waste. (Paul Dale)
I General release from In 26 Jan.
Film
Rough Cuts
Film news and giveaways for beautiful cineaste types
IRVINE WELSH
I It seems the film adaptation of Irvine Welsh’s novel Ecstasy has run into a heap of bother on its way to the big screen. Production was supposed to start in November but clashes between the Scottish production manager and the line producer and Rob Heydon, the Canada- based director of the £6.5m budget film meant that production will not start until March or sometime thereafter, if it happens at all. On top of that, Scottish co-stars Billy Boyd, Ford Kiernan and Greg Hemphill have now had to move on to other commitments. Another regrettable tale of ego and hubris in the Scottish film industry, we think, but rather than criticise, Rough Cuts has a suggestion for all those involved in this sorry tale. Why don’t you condense the whole script to one minute and then enter it into The List and Metro Ecosse’s fantastic One Minute Wonder film competition. Go on - the discipline will do you good. Visit www.|ist.co.uk and download an application form today. If you live in Scotland and over 16 we want to hear from you now.
I Future Shorts is back at The Arches in Glasgow on Sunday 28 January. As ever, this showcase features the very best international shorts out there at the moment. Check www. tutureshortscom for more information.
WIN BROTHERS DVDS AND T SHIRTS!
On Monday 2? ~~ January lartan Video releases on DVD the brilliant documentary Brothers of the Head. the tale of the two (I()llj()lll(3(l twins who kickstarted punk rock. Is it true or is it fake? We have five copies of the film and five specially designed T shirts to give away. To be in vath a chance of winning these. simply send an email marked 'l ll’AD' wrth your name. address and daytime telephone number to promotionsUlistcotik by no later than f'riday Q l'ebr‘tiary.
ti"? Jari 1 let: ' THE LIST 39