www.list.co.uk/film www.list.co.uk/film
Films screening this fortnight are listed below with certificate, star rating, credits, brief review and venue details. Film index compiled by Paul Dale ✽✽ Indicates Hitlist entry Age of Stupid (12A) ●●●●● (Franny Armstrong, UK, 2009) Pete Postlethwaite, Piers Guy, Jamila Bayyoud. 90min. Marrying Britain’s honourable tradition of dystopian sci-fi with the eco documentary form, Armstrong’s film is an aesthetically pragmatic, ethically dogmatic attempt to save the world. More or less a documentary study telling six stories from four continents, the film’s strength lies in their variety, and the compelling use of sci-fi as a framing device, with Postlethwaite playing a character looking after the Global Archive in the future. Part of Edinburgh International Science Festival. Filmhouse, Edinburgh. Agora (12A) ●●●●● (Alejandro Amenábar, Spain, 2009) Rachel Weisz, Max Minghella, Oscar Isaac. 126min. See Also Released, page 48. General release from Fri 23 Apr. Alice in Wonderland 2D (PG) ●●●●● (Tim Burton, US, 2010) Mia Wasikowska, Johnny Depp, Helena Bonham Carter. 108min. A sequel of sorts that takes in elements of both Lewis Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland and Through The Looking Glass, this finds Alice (Wasikowska) as a teenager returning to Underland, which has long since fallen into the tyrannical grip of the Red Queen (Bonham Carter). Dark and visually arresting, yet not quite as emotionally involving as Burton’s very best work. General release. Alice in Wonderland 3D (PG) ●●●●● (Tim Burton, US, 2010) Mia Wasikowska, Johnny Depp, Helena Bonham Carter. 108min. See above. Selected release. American Psycho (18) ●●●●● (Mary Harron, US, 2000) Christian Bale, Chloe Sevigny, Willem Dafoe. 101min. Harron does away with the outward excesses – murder, torture, misogyny – of Bret Easton Ellis’ 1991 novel about the previous money- obsessed decade and serves up the essence of the novel in a more palatable form. That doesn’t mean her film is soft – it certainly isn’t. But where Ellis pushed his readers away, the director draws the audience in by encouraging us to collude with her satirical standpoint. Late night screening. Glasgow Film Theatre. Angadi Theru (12A) (Vasanthabalan, India, 2009) Mahesh, Anjali. 125min.
Realist Tamil-language film about a boy trying to support his family in a poor area of Chennai. Cineworld Renfrew Street, Glasgow. L’armata Brancaleone (12) ●●●●● (Mario Monicelli, Italy/France/Spain, 1966) Vittorio Gassman, Catherine Spaak, Folco Lulli. 120min. Rarely screened, this Italian comedy sees a group of vagabonds steal a scroll granting the bearer ownership of Aurocastro in Apulia. A swashbuckling tale which sees the shaggy troupe head off in search of these riches. Part of Italian Film Festival. Glasgow Film Theatre; Filmhouse, Edinburgh. Astro Boy (PG) ●●●●● (David Bowers, US, 2009) Voices of Nicolas Cage, Kristen Bell, Freddie Highmore. 93min. A popular manga in Japan since 1952, and a cult TV show in the US since the early 1980s, Astro Boy makes a bid for worldwide domination in this flashy but flatly realised animation. A robot child cloned by Dr Tenma (voiced by Cage) from the DNA of his dead son, the titular space age Pinocchio (Highmore), is rejected by his father and banished to the robot graveyard that surrounds the city. Selected release. Avatar 3D (12A) ●●●●● (James Cameron, US, 2009) Sam Worthington, Sigourney Weaver, Michelle Rodriguez. 166min. Set in 2154, Cameron’s much- hyped Avatar focuses on a paraplegic marine named Jake Sully (Worthington), who arrives on the distant moon of Pandora with a mission to help displace its indigenous population. But, after winning their trust, Jake finds his allegiances gradually shifting. High on technical flair but short on storytelling ambition, this visually stunning sci-fi epic sadly remains deeply flawed. Vue Omni, Edinburgh. Bank Robbery (15) (Andrus Tuisk, Estonia, 2009) Hannes Kaljujarv, Henri Kuus, Karin Tammaru. 93min. Having just finished a ten-year jail sentence, Madis (Kaljujarv) is keen to get hitched and stay out of trouble. When he plans to leave town to join his bride-to-be however, his bullied and scared young nephew is desperate to tag along. Part of New Europe Film Festival. Filmhouse, Edinburgh. Black Sea (15) (Federico Bondi, Italy, 2008) Ilaria Occhini, Dorotheea Petre, Vlad Ivanov. 95min. Bondi’s first feature chronicles the changing relationship between an elderly widow and her young Romanian caretaker, touchingly portraying divides of age and culture. Part of Italian Film Festival. Glasgow Film Theatre. The Blacks (18) (Goran Devic & Zvonimir Juric, Croatia, 2009) Ivo
New Europe Film Festival Relative European Union newbies Poland, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia,
Hungary, Slovenia, Croatia and Romania show what they’ve got in new cinema terms. Opening with Polish Cold War illicit romancer Little Moscow, highlights include Goran Devic and Zvonimir Juric’s The Blacks (pictured) – a dark portrait of the Balkan war, and the kinetic, post- modern rendering of Warsaw’s seedy underbelly Snow White and Russian Red. Gytis Luksas’ austere, old-fashioned drama Vortex is also worth a look, as is a showcase of the work of Latvian animator Signe Baumane. Ticket offers available. ■ Filmhouse, Edinburgh from Fri 16-Wed 28 Apr.
Gregurevic, Kresimir Mikic, Franjo Dijak. 78min. A study of the unbearable pressures faced by the soldiers of the Balkan War, The Blacks focuses on elite paramilitary unit commander Ivo and his decision to defy a ceasefire and take the surviving members of his squad out to blow up a dam. Part of New Europe Film Festival. Filmhouse, Edinburgh. The Blind Side (12A) ●●●●● (John Lee Hancock, US, 2010) Sandra Bullock, Tim McGraw, Kathy Bates. 128min. Based on the moving true story of Michael Oher, a black teenager from the Memphis projects with burgeoning sporting talent, who is adopted by WASPs, led by Leigh Ann (Bullock). It’s been a huge success stateside, hailing from a mildly offensive line of American sports films, blandly but effectively directed by Hancock with Bullock valiantly delivering some of the worst dialogue ever uttered south of the Dixie line. General release. The Bounty Hunter (12A) ●●●●● (Andy Tennant, US, 2010) Jennifer Aniston, Gerard Butler, Christine Baranski. 110min. Comedy about a bounty hunter who is assigned to hunt down his bail-jumping ex- wife. General release.
✽✽ Cemetery Junction (15) ●●●●● (Ricky Gervais/Stephen Merchant,
UK, 2010) Jack Doolan, Tom Hughes, Christian Cooke. 95min. Largely free of the excruciating irony that has dominated their TV work, Gervais and Merchant’s story of three friends living in suburban England in the 1970s is a tender, touching tale that’s unashamedly feel good. Romance drives the plot but there are also lashings of teenage angst. General release. Centurion (15) ●●●●● (Neil Marshall, UK, 2010) Michael Fassbender, Dominic West, David Morrissey. 97min. See review, page 45. General release from Fri 23 Apr.
✽✽ City of Life and Death (15) ●●●●● (Lu Chuan, China, 2009) Liu
Ye, Hideo Nakaizumi, Fan Wei. 135min. See review, page 48. Glasgow Film Theatre.
Index Film Clash of the Titans 2D (12A) ●●●●● (Louis Leterrier, US, 2010) Sam Worthington, Liam Neeson, Ralph Fiennes. 105min. Classic Greek myth gets the modern special effects treatment. General release. Clash of the Titans 3D (12A) ●●●●● (Louis Leterrier, US, 2010) Sam Worthington, Liam Neeson, Ralph Fiennes. 105min. See above. General release. Constantin and Elena (12A) (Andrei Dascalescu, Romania/Spain, 2008) 102min. A love story set in a Romanian village about an elderly couple who have been happily married for almost 55 years. Part of New Europe Film Festival. Filmhouse, Edinburgh. Cosmonauta (12A) (Susanna Nicchiarelli, Italy, 2009) Pietro Del Giudice, Susanna Nicchiarelli, Marianna Raschillà. 87min. Early 1960s-set story of two young siblings who are eagerly following the progress of the space race, urging on the Soviet cosmonauts. The pair grow older and apart, and when the assertive Luciana (Raschillà) starts dating, her odd brother proves to be a hindrance. Part of Italian Film Festival. Glasgow Film Theatre; Filmhouse, Edinburgh. Crying with Laughter (18) ●●●●● (Justin Molotnikov, UK, 2009) Stephen McCole, Malcolm Shields, Andrew Neil. 93min. See review, page 47. Selected release. Date Night (15) ●●●●● (Shawn Levy, US, 2010) Steve Carell, Tina Fey, Mark Wahlberg. 88min. Comedy royalty Carell and Fey play a couple from the ‘burbs who decide to escape the kids for an evening and head for a trendy Manhattan eatery. Problems start when they get mistaken for a pair of thieves being hunted down by two corrupt cops – a hit-and-miss adventure follows and a rather formulaic outlook ensures it’s all rather forgettable in the end. General release.
Grey granite. Red sandstone. Quartz. Gneiss. Schist. The Cuillins. The Cairngorms. An Teallach. Marischal
College. The Wallace Monument. The Forth Bridge. The Old Man of Hoy. Devil’s staircase. Rannoch Moor.
Glencoe. The Skye Bridge Song (Speed bonnie bus). Caledonia. (Old stories. Old songs). Caledonian
word
antisyzygy. A drunk man, a thistle. Solidarity. Divided
self. Red Clydeside. Shipbuilding. Silver darlings. The People’s Palace. Poets' Pub. The Hampden Roar. The
final score. Last extra final times. The Declaration of
Arbroath. A Forfar bridie. The Falkirk Wheel. A UNIVERSITY OF ABERDEEN 10th WRITERS FESTIVAL
Glasgow kiss. Inverness Caledonian Thistle. T in the 14 –16 MAY 2010
Park. Haggis pakora. A pie and a pint. A pudding readings books debatemusic science exhibitions filmopera
supper. Full Scottish Breakfast. (Deepfry the lot in
North Sea Oil). A hardened artery. A blackened lung.
A pickled liver. A broken heart. A happy hour. Over 100 events for all ages, packed into one fun filled weekend! Many events free.
A bridge to nowhere. Now. Here. Northern Lights.
Holy Loch. The West Highland Way. Murrayfield. Book your tickets now! www.abdn.ac.uk/word
Meadowbank. Banks and braes. Scottish bank notes. Box Office +44 (0)1224 641122
Scottish banks. Flowers o the forest. A parcel of
rogues. The Scottish Parliament. An upturned boat.
15–29 Apr 2010 THE LIST 49