www.list.co.uk/film
One Night in One City ( )8) (Jan Balej. Czech Republic. 2007) 78min. This surreal animation focUses on several lonely Prague towerblock inhabitants. With bizarre hobbies such as donkey worship. conducting dead insect cichses and snorting ants along with a conspicuoUs white powder. Balej's characters wear their filmic inheritances on their sleeves. and the influences of Jan Svankmajer. Jan Lenica and the Quay Brothers are heavily felt. Pan of Puppet and Animation season. Film/rouse. lidinlnagh.
The Orphanage ( IS) oeoe (Juan Bayona. Spain. 2007) Belen Rueda. Fernando (‘ayo. Roger Princep. l()5min. First-time director Bayona and producer Guillermo del Toro create the best ghost story ()f the year so far. Laura (Rueda) was raised in an orphanage and on returning to her childhood home with her son Simon (Princep) things stan to get creepy. The key to the success of this film is the edge-of- the-seat suspense. and there's even a brilliant sting in the tale. Seleeted release. The Other Boleyn Girl (12A)
0. (JUstin ('hadwick. UK. 2008) Natalie Ponman. Scarlett Johansson. liric Bana. l l5min. The ‘hidden history‘ of Mary Boleyn. sister of Anne. the second of Henry Vlll‘s six wives. Playing the Boleyn girls. Portman and Johansson are cast against type in less-than-thrilling sibling rivalry. while the Usually excellent Bana (as the King) simply looks fed up. But rather than the cast it's probably Peter Morgan's undercooked adaptation of Philippa Gregory's overheated novel that's to blame. Selected release. Our Brand is Crisis (ti) (Rachel Boynton. US. 2005) 87min. Rachel Boynton‘s documentary examines the repercumons of American political campaign marketing tactics. and in particular the role ()f American mercenary consultants in the 2002 Bolivian Presidential Campaign. A(’l-.'. Iidinlnagh. Pathology ( )8) (Marc Schoelermann. US. 2008) Milo Ventimiglia. Lauren Lee Smith. Alyssa Milano. 94min. Drama about a group ()f medical students engaged in a deadly game to see who can devise the perfect murder. Preview screenings. Reviewed next issue. General release. Penelope (U) 0... (Mark Palanski. UK/US. 2006) Christina Ricci. James McAvoy. (‘atherine ()‘Hara. 89min. With her moneyed background and good sense of humour Penelope (Ricci) should have been a bit of a catch. Sadly. she has a pig's snout for a nose. and. not only do her swinish features send the boys running. they also confine her to dating the landed gentry. Penelope is characterised by its subtlety. rejecting easy plot tums and .S'hrek-esque pop culture commentary. its individuality and intelligence making it a bit ()f a hybrid freak. ()deon At The Quay. Glasgow; ()deon: Braehead. Renfreii'.
Race ( I2A) (Abbas Mustan. India. 2008) Saif Ali Khan. Akshaye Khanna. Anil Kapoor. l53min. Bollywood movie about
YouTubed. The dramatisation of the rape and murder of an Iraqi child by American soldiers pulls no punches in locating the blame with l'ncle Sam. taking pot-shots at the military. the media and feminism. Filmhouve. Edinburgh. Rendition ( l5) 0. (Gavin Hood. l'S/South Africa. 2007) ()mar Metwally. Reese Witherspoon. Aramis Knight. Jake (iyllenhaal. l22min. An expansive but small-minded exploration of the phenomenon of 'cxtraordinary rendition' r the ('lA's practice of transporting prisoners to countries will) dubious human rights laws to be detained without trial and tortured. Burdened with good intentions. Hood's first Hollywood film has too many extraneous stories and not enough lows on real political context to reveal anything meaningful about its subject. l'ue l-Idinburgh Ocean. Edinburgh. Scottish Screen Archive on Tour (PG) (Scotland. Various). 90min. SSA liducation and Outreach ()fl'icer Ruth Washbrook presents a special screening of key moments of Scottish history on film. vv ith rarely seen footage of the evacuation of St Kilda. the launch of the Queen Mary and the limpire Exhibition of l938. l’ilmhouse. Edinbia'gh. The Searchers (l') ooeo (John Ford. US. l‘)56) John Wayne. Vera .‘vliles. Jeffrey Hunter. Natalie Wood. l l()min. ()ne of Ford's fittest Westerns has Wayne as the obsessive lithan lidwards. a man whose five-year quest to hunt down the Indians who murdered his wife and captured his young daughter has developed into a thirst for murderoUs revenge. With Wayne at his most intense. this is one of old Hollywood's darker. richer moments. Pan of Print the Legend season. Film/muse. Iz'dinbia'gh. Shine a Light ( IZA) so (Manin Scorsese. US. 2008) l22min. See review. page 44. Selected release. Singin’ in The Rain (U) oooee ((iene Kelly/Stanley l)onen. US. l‘)50) (iene Kelly. l)onald ()'(‘onnor. Debbie Reynolds. (‘yd ('harisse. l()2min. Hollywood undergoes the transition from the silent era to the talkies and reputations rise and fall. Absolutely wonderful musical entertainment. with the slickest of snappy dialogue. enduringly catchy numbers. a cast of genuine charisma. and an engaging picture ()f the industry in transition into the bargain. Quite splendid. Part ()f the Glasgow Subway Festival. Glasgow l’ilm Theatre.
Son of Rainbow ( I2A) eooo
((ianh Jennings. France/UK. 2008) Zolia Brooks. Neil Dudgeon. Tallulah Evans. 95min. Troubled child and wannabe filmmaker Lee (‘arter (Poulter) enlists Will (Milner). a member ()f a fundamentalist Christian Evangelical family. as a stuntman for a remake of Rambo: First Blood in this patchwork of beguiling surreal comedy and eccentric but darkly pertinent family drama. An absolute joy. General release. A Special Day ( l2A) (Ettore Scola. Italy. 1977) Sophia Loren. Marcello
it Scottish Screen Archive on Tour
fl
Thanks to an injection of cash from the
Heritage Lottery Fund which has allowed a large number of old reportage films to be restored and transferred onto accessible formats, it's now possible to watch the remarkable films in this archive. This specially compiled hour-and-a-half programme features evacuation of St Kilda footage, plus amazing images of the launch of the Queen Mary and the Empire Exhibition of 1938. The archive’s education officer Ruth Washbrook will be on hand to guide the audience through the stories behind the images. Glasgow audiences can also enjoy the programme
when it heads west in May. I Filmhouse. Edinburgh, Sun 73 Apr.
Strange Wilderness ( IS) oo
(Fred Wolf. US. 2008) Steve Zahn. Allen Coven. Jonah Hill. 84min. See review. page ~16. ('ineworld Rea/rew Street. Glasgow: Shatt'ease Cinema. Paisley. Paisley.
Street Kings ( l5 ) ooo (David Ayer. US. 2008) Keanu Reeves. Hugh Laurie. Forest Whitaker. l08min. See review. page 44. General release/ram Fri I 8 Apt: Summer Rain ( I5) (Antonio Banderas. Spain. 2006) Albeno Amarilla. Maria Ruiz. Felix (iomez. I20min. (‘oming of age 70s summer film set in Banderas' native Malaga. The central character has just come out of hospital and with his hean set on becoming a poet. embarks on a summer of fun with his pals. Shot with a suitably poetic intensity. one of his friends unravels emotional problems. which upset the equilibrium ()f the group. Pan of Viva! Spanish and Latin American Film Festival. Glasgow I-‘ilm Theatre.
Sunflower (PG) (Yang Zhang. Hong Kong/China/Netherlands. 2005) Joan Cheng. Zhang Fan. Ge (iao. l29min. Riding on the back of new wave (‘hinese cinema. Zhang combines personal memories with pertinent moments in modem history to
of New Zealand. rainforests of Australia and the desens of India. This film features music from Simply Red's Dave ('layton. Followed by Q&A. Free event. Glasgow Film Theatre.
Taxidermia ( l8) 0... ((iyorgy Palli. llungary/AUstria/France. 2006) (‘saba (‘zene. (lergo Trocsanyi. Marc Bisci‘off. ()lmin. A twisted gross-out llick about the men in one family who ejaculate fire. eat grotesque amounts and compulsiver embalm animals. Think Svankmajer. early Lynch and a touch of Tinto Brass and you will be prepared. Recommended for those with strong stomachs. Pan of New liurope Film Festival. Film/rouse. lz'dinburgh. 10,000 BC ( l2A) 0. (Roland limmerich. l7S/New Yealand. 2008) Steven Strait. (‘amilla Belle. ('Iiff ('unis. I09min. Roland Independence Dav limmerich‘s new blockbUster is a cross between Apm'alvpto and .S'partaeus’. but it seems to have been written by a three-year-old and is performed by the prettiest but very worst actors. Things are saved from total tedium by some pretty good action sequences featuring sabre-tooth tigers. mammoths and their ilk. General release.
There Will Be Blood (15) cases (Paul Thomas Anderson. US. 2007) Daniel Day-Lewis. Paul Dano. Kevin J O'Connor. I58min. Silver prospector Daniel Plainview (Day-Lewis) and his adopted son move to the impoverished evangelically centred town ()f New Boston and finds himself in a battle of wits against sleazy child preacher Eli Sunday (Dano) over oil. ethics and the American Dream. Utterly riveting and with Day Lewis playing a wonderful pan with a
memorialise the significance of the family unit in (‘hinese culture. Revolving around a central concept ()f change. Sunflower traces a torrid and troubled father-son relationship spanning 25 years. Pan of New (‘hinese Cinema season. Filmhouse. Edinburgh. Suspect Nation (E) (Neil FergUson. UK. 2006) Henry Poner. Adam Laurie. 47min. In this hard-hitting documentary Observer joumalist Henry Poner explores surveillance technologies currently being
Mastroianni. John Vemon. l()6min. This elusive political melodrama centres around two characters (Loren and Mastroianni) left in a building in Rome when all its other inhabitants have gone to a rally to celebrate Hitler's visit to Mussolini on 8 May I938. With strong lead perfonnances. Scola's film is greatly praised for its deliberate rendering of the nuances of time and place. Pan of Marcello Mastroianni season. Film/rouse. Edinburgh.
two brothers who live life on the edge of the South African horse racing circuit. ()deon A! The Quay. Glasgow.
Rambo ( l8) 0.. (Sylvester Stallone. US. 2008) Sylvester Stallone. Julie Benz. Matthew Marsden. 90min. Failing to repeat the success of resurrecting the Rocky franchise. this founh instalment in the Rambo series is predictably disappointing. Our man is living in isolation on the border of Bumia when his peace is disturbed by a
group of Christian Missionaries and the channs of a beautiful woman (Benz). With no real rational or moral core to the
The Spiderwick Chronicles (PG) 0”. (Mark Waters. US. 2008) Sarah Bolger. Freddie Highmore. Nick Nolte.
used in the UK and US. Security expen Adam Laurie also demonstrates how ineffective and insecure many of these
poisonoUs zeal. Anderson finally returns to Puneh Drunk Love fom). Selected release. The 39 Steps (U) oooe (Alfred
Hitchcock. UK. I935) Roben Donal. Madeleine Carroll. Godfrey Teale. 85min. See review. page 43. Filmhouse. Edinburgh.
technologies actually are. ACE. Edinburgh. Taking Liberties (12A) coo (Chris Atkins. UK. 2007) l()5min. Atkins'
narrative this is cinema as computer game. but for die-hard fans Stallone still delivers action by the bullet-load. Vue Edinburgh
95min. Upon moving into the dilapidated Spiderwick Estate. siblings Jared (Highmore). Simon (Highmore) and
Omni. Edinburgh.
[REC] ( l8) oeoo (Jaume Balaguero/Paco Plaza. Spain. 2008) Javier Botet. Manuel Brochud. Martha C arbonell. 85min. See profile. page 44 and review. page 45. Selected release.
Redacted (IS) oooo (Brian De Palma. US/Canada. 2007) Sahar Alloul. Eric Anderson. Lara Atalla. 90min. Setting itself up as a collection of found footage from various sources. Redaeted is a disturbing account of how the war on terror has been
Mallory (Bulger) find a guide to a fantastical world of faeries and creatures in this adaptation of Holly Black and Tony DiTerlizzi's series. They mUst battle against Mulgarath. however. the evil shape-shifting ogre who is also after the key to the fantasyland of faeries. General release. Step Up 2 the Streets (PC) so
(Jon M Chu. US. 2008) Roben Hoffman. Briana Evigan. Will Kemp. 97min. Stupid sequel to 2006‘s dance romancer Step Up. General release.
documentary looks at the infringements on civil libenies that he believes have been taken by New Labour: from freedom of speech to prohibition ()f tonure. With contributions from Tony Benn. Boris Johnson and Mark Thomas. AC E. Edinburgh.
Tao of the 'n‘aveller (tbc) (Robin Ramsay. Various) Clarke Peters. Lucinda Drayton. Tamasin Ramsay. 64min. A traveller (Ramsay) embarks on a spiritual joumey of discovery through the mountains
Three Musketeers (U) (Janis Cimerrnanis/Gen Fredholm. UK/Denmark. 2006) Voices of Kevin McKidd. Andy Gray. 75min. A retelling of Alexander Dumas‘ swashbuckling tale using puppetry. stop motion animation and some famous Scottish voices. Pan of Puppet and Animation season. Filmhouse. Edinburgh.
21 (IZA) O. (Roben Luketic. US. 2008) Kevin Spacey. Kate Bosworth. Jim Sturgess. 123min. See review. page 46. General release.
10-24 Apr 2008 Till LIST 53