Film INDEX
Robocop (18) ●●●●● (Paul Verhoeven, US, 1987) Peter Weller, Nancy Allen, Ronny Cox. 103min. Slick and stomach-churningly violent futuristic thriller blending elements of Dirty Harry, Frankenstein and The Six Million Dollar Man. When diligent policeman Weller is shot to pieces by vicious hoods, his remains are mechanically reconstructed into a hi-tech law enforcement officer, but the human desire for revenge still beats beneath his mechanical exterior. Cameo, Edinburgh. Royal Ballet: La Fille Mal Gardée (E) (UK, 2012) 105min. The Royal Ballet performs Frederick Ashton’s delightful 1959 version of this chipper two-act comic ballet, whose title translates as The Wayward Daughter. Selected screenings on Wed 16 May. The Royal Tenenbaums (15) (Wes Anderson, US, 2002) Gene Hackman, Anjelica Huston, Gwyneth Paltrow. 110min. The Tenenbaums are no ordinary family. Descended from a long line of overachievers, these New York geniuses are now in stultifying decline. Odd tale of an awkward family and its members’ impossible magnetic attraction to each other. Part of the Cameo’s Wes Anderson retrospective. Cameo, Edinburgh. Rushmore (15) ●●●●● (Wes Anderson, US, 1998) Jason Schwartzman, Bill Murray, Olivia Williams. 93min. Bright, bespectacled and geeky, Max Fischer, scholarship boy at the exclusive Rushmore Academy in Houston, is irritating and endearing in equal measures, while his self-belief is awesome. In Bill Murray’s self-loathing millionaire steel tycoon, Max finds a soul mate, but when they both fall in love with the new teacher, Miss Cross (Williams), their friendship turns sour. In Wes Anderson’s quirky, original comedy, Murray gives his best performance in years, while film debutante Schwartzman is simply astonishing. Part of the Cameo’s Wes Anderson retrospective. Cameo, Edinburgh. Safe (15) (Boaz Yakin, US, 2012) Jason Statham, Catherine Chan, Chris Sarandon. 94min. Former elite agent Luke Wright (Statham) must rescue a young Chinese girl abducted by the Triads, using a safe combination to outwit a number of criminal masterminds. General release from Fri 4 May. Safe House (15) ●●●●● (Daniel Espinosa, US/South Africa, 2012) Denzel Washington, Ryan Reynolds, Robert Patrick,. 115min. Rookie CIA agent Weston (Reynolds) is caretaking a safe house in South Africa when spook-turned-fugitive Frost (Washington) turns up carrying dangerous secrets. Assassins and mayhem follow. It doesn’t always make sense but Espinosa directs in muscular style, with a cracking car chase and some fine acting. A weak ending lets it down. The Hippodrome, Bo’ness. Salmon Fishing in the Yemen (12A) ●●●●● (Lasse Halström, UK, 2011) Ewan Mcgregor, Emily Blunt, Kristin Scott Thomas. 111min. A nerdish fisheries expert (McGregor) and a sophisticated legal aide (Blunt) are recruited by an angling-obsessed sheik (Waked) to realize the vision of the title. What worked on the page is an insubstantial muddle on film, thanks to an unfocused script and Hallström’s preference for broad emotions over subtlety and complexity. General release. Scotland by Train: Programme 1 (U) 92min. This collection of short films celebrates Scotland’s railways in conjunction with the National Museum of Scotland’s exhibition of Scottish railway posters. Filmhouse, Edinburgh. Sea Rex 3D: Journey to a Prehistoric World (U) (Ronan Chapalain, Pascal Vuong, UK/France, 2010) uillaume Denaiffe, Norbert Ferrer, Chloe Hollings. 41min. Documentary about the Got an opinion? You can now Comment on all our articles at list .co.uk
72 THE LIST 26 Apr–24 May 2012
huge creatures that ruled the seas before the time of the dinosaurs. IMAX Theatre, Glasgow. The Seventh Seal (PG) ●●●●● (Ingmar Bergman, Sweden, 1957) Max Von Sydow, Gunnar Bjornstrand, Bibi Andersson. 90min. Bergman’s hugely iconic and sustained meditation on the inevitability of death and suffering in the Middle Ages makes a more than welcome return to the big screen courtesy of this lovely new print. Part of the Antonioni & Bergman season.. Filmhouse, Edinburgh. She Monkeys (12A) (Lisa Aschan, Sweden, 2011) Mathilda Paradeiser, Linda Molin, Isabella Lindquist. 83min. A film about two girls involved in equestrian vaulting (gymnastics on horseback to you and me) and the physical and psychological power struggle between them as they face each other in competition. Selected release from Fri 18 May. Silent House (15) ●●●●● (Chris Kentis, Laura Lau, US, 2011) Elizabeth Olsen, Adam Trese, Eric Sheffer Stevens. 85min. See review, page 63. General release from Fri 4 May. The Skin I Live In (La piel que habito) (15) ●●●●● (Pedro Almodóvar, Spain, 2011) Antonio Banderas, Elena Anaya, Jan Cornet. 117min. A pioneering plastic surgeon keeps his human guinea pig imprisoned in his home, his ever more appalling experiments masking a hauntingly sad backstory. Gothic horror served with an icy precision by the restrained Spanish master, who constantly works against the grain, casting the dashing Banderas as a modern monster and staging poisonous plot twists with deadpan aplomb. Introduced by Dr Christopher Gow. Glasgow Film Theatre. The Source (La source des femmes) (tbc) (Radu Mihaileanu, Belguim/Italy/France, 2011) Leila Bekhti, Hafisa Herzi, Biyouna. 135min. Comedy drama in which the women in a North African village decide to withhold sexual favours from their menfolk in response to having to fetch water from a distant well. Glasgow Film Theatre. Southside Film Festival In its second year now, this grassroots film festival screens a range of local and international films all across Glasgow’s Southside in some pretty unique places, such as clubs, boat sheds and a disused swimming pool. As well as screenings there are also workshops and seminars on filmmaking and activities for children and young people. Southside, Glasgow, Thu 17–Sun 20 May, see southsidefilmfestival.net for programme information from Tue 1 May. The Spiderwick Chronicles (PG) ●●●●● (Mark Waters, US, 2008) Sarah Bolger, Freddie Highmore, Nick Nolte. 95min. Upon moving into the dilapidated Spiderwick Estate three siblings find a guide to a fantastical world of faeries and creatures in this adaptation of Holly Black and Tony DiTerlizzi’s series. The Hippodrome, Bo’ness. Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope (U) ●●●●● (George Lucas, US, 1977) Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher. 121min. Luke Skywalker sets out on a mission to save Princess Leia from Darth Vader in the second best Star Wars film. Sloans, Glasgow. Strippers vs Werewolves (15) (Jonathon Glendening, UK, 2012) Steven Berkoff, Robert Englund, Lysette Anthony. 93min. After the chief of werewolves is accidentally killed in a strip club, the girls working there find out they have until the next full moon to prepare for the revenge of his wolf pack. Selected release from Fri 27 Apr. Symbiopsychotaxiplasm: Take One (tbc) (William Greaves, US, 1968) Patricia Ree Gilbert, Don Fellows, William Greaves. 70min. Greaves’ one-of-a-kind fiction- documentary hybrid is three films in one: a screen test for a movie, a documentary about the making of the screen test, and a third documentary about the making-of documentary, in which Greaves himself plays the apparently unfocused and inept director. The result is a hair-raisingly circular and uproariously funny comment on what we now recognise as reality TV, made 30 years before the fact. One of the rediscovered masterpieces of the American avant-garde. Selected by Rob Kennedy to accompany the exhibition Is there anything to do here, is there anything to see?. CCA, Glasgow. Tales of the Night (Les contes de la nuit) (U) (Michel Ocelot, France, 2011) Voices of Julien Beramis, Marine Griset, Michel Elias. 84min. Six exotic fables from different periods and countries, rendered in beautiful animation. The Hippodrome, Bo’ness. Taste the Waste (E) (Valentin Thurn, Germany, 2010) 92min. EU guidelines dictate that a huge amount of food is discarded for being the wrong size or shape. With people choosing to dispose of food as soon as it reaches its best before date, this documentary aims to change those habits. Part of the Green Film Festival UK. Glasgow Film Theatre. The Terminator (18) ●●●●● (James Cameron, US, 1984) Arnold Schwarzenegger, Michael Biehn, Linda Hamilton. 107min. In 2029 machines have all but conquered the planet but a saviour is at hand in the form of a new human leader. The machines respond by sending Schwarzenegger’s cyborg back in time to 1984 on a mission to kill the future leader’s mother. Inventive, excitingly paced science fiction adventure with a notable performance from Arnie in his first villainous role. Cameo, Edinburgh; Glasgow Film Theatre. The Thing (18) ●●●●● (John Carpenter, US, 1982) Kurt Russell, Wilford Brimley, David Clennon. 108min. Excellent 1982 monster flick revived on digital big screen projection. Cameo, Edinburgh. This Means War (12A) ●●●●● (McG, US, 2012) Reese Witherspoon, Chris Pine, Tom Hardy. 97min. Action comedy as two CIA agents (Pine and Hardy) realise they are dating the same woman (Witherspoon). The Hippodrome, Bo’ness. Tiny Furniture (15) ●●●●● (Lena Dunham, US, 2010) Lena Dunham, Laurie Simmons, Grace Dunham. 98min. Writer/director Dunham stars as Aura, a frumpy film studies graduate who moves back in with her mother (Simmons, Dunham’s actual mother) while pondering the next step. A bit aimless but acerbic and realistic, with bags of charm and some brilliantly observed scenes: Woody Allen meets Judy Blume. Glasgow Film Theatre. Titanic (12) ●●●●● (James Cameron, US, 1997) Leonardo DiCaprio, Kate Winslet, Billy Zane. 194min. Love blossoms as the ship goes down, now rendered in 3D for extra spiky-looking icebergs. General release. Trishna (18) ●●●●● (Michael Winterbottom, UK, 2012) Freida Pinto, Riz Ahmed, Roshan Seth. 117min. A transposition of Tess of the D’Urbervilles to modern-day India. Trishna (Pinto) falls in love with wealthy, British-raised Jay (Ahmed), but their relationship soon fractures. Hardy’s themes of sexual hypocrisy and the clash of tradition and modernity make sense in this setting, but the film ultimately lacks emotional force. The Hippodrome, Bo’ness. Trnka Shorts for Adults (15) (Jiri Trnka) 93min. A selection of five shorts from the Czech puppet animation pioneer. Part of the Jiri Trnka season. Glasgow Film Theatre. Trnka Shorts for Children (U) (Jiri Trnka) 72min. A collection of five Jiri Trnka short puppet animations. Suitable for under 10s. Part of the Jiri Trnka season. Filmhouse, Edinburgh; Glasgow Film Theatre. Tron (PG) (Steven Lisberger, US, 1982) Jeff Bridges, Bruce Boxleitner, David Warner. 96min. One of the first films about computer gaming, this classic thriller sees Bridges’ games designer ripped off by his boss and subsequently sucked into a virtual world where he must play against his own programmes to survive. Cameo, Edinburgh. Tsar (15) (Pavel Lungin, Russia, 2009) Pyotr Mamonov, Oleg Yankovskiy, Ramilya Iskander. 116min. Pavel Lungin’s historical saga follows the unstoppable force that is Ivan the Terrible, as he commands absolute
power over the Russian people. KinoKlub screening. Filmhouse, Edinburgh. 21 Jump Street (15) ●●●●● (Phil Lord/Chris Miller, US, 2012) Jonah Hill, Channing Tatum, Ice Cube. 109min. Revamp of 80s TV series: youthful cops (Tatum & Hill) go undercover at a high school in order to break up a drugs ring. Directors Lord and Miller tease genre conventions and Hill and Tatum form a strong comic partnership. What might have been yet another buddy movie is surprisingly hilarious. Selected release. 2 Days in New York (15) (Julie Delpy, US, 2011) Julie Delpy, Chris Rock, Albert Delpy, Alexia Landeau, Alex Nahon. 95min. In this sequel to Two Days in Paris, Delpy’s highly-strung Marion has broken up with Jack and now lives in New York with their child and new squeeze Mingus. When her oh-so-French family visits, the mixture of her American boyfriend, eccentric father and bad-tempered sister makes for a heady brew of inter-cultural tension. General release from Fri 18 May. Two Years at Sea (tbc) (Ben Rivers, UK, 2011) 88min. Ben Rivers’ début feature documentary follows a man living a life of solitude in a remote forest in rural Scotland. Winner of the FIPRESCI Prize for best film at Venice Film Festival 2011. Dundee Contemporary Arts; Glasgow Film Theatre. Underworld (Les bas-fonds) (tbc) (Jean Renoir, France, 1936) Jean Gabin, Suzy Prim, Louis Jouvet. 90min. Jean Gabin plays a working-class hero who stands up to a man exploiting his community in Jean Renoir’s heady left-wing drama. Filmhouse, Edinburgh. Vicky Donor (tbc) (Shoojit Sircar, India, 2012) Yami Gautam, Annu Kapoor, Ayushmann Khurrana. Fertility rom com in Hindi, about a failing sperm bank owner’s efforts to sign up a good-looking Punjabi boy as his star donor. Odeon at the Quay, Glasgow. Voices from the Shadows (E) (Josh Biggs, Natalie Boulton, UK, 2011) Documentary about the plight of ME sufferers. Screening by edmesh (Edinburgh ME Self Help Group). Followed by a Q&A with eminent researchers and medics working in the field of ME. Tickets free but must be booked in advance. Cineworld Fountainpark, Edinburgh. We Bought a Zoo (PG) ●●●●● (Cameron Crowe, USA, 2011) Matt Damon, Scarlet Johansson. 124min. The clue is in the title: recently widowed father-of-two Benjamin (Damon) quits his job and sets about saving a dilapidated zoo. The sharp humour and unique characterisation that characterised Crowe’s best work seems to have been vetoed; great actors are wasted in empty roles and the result is broad, sentimental and dishearteningly average. macrobert, Stirling; The Hippodrome, Bo’ness. What to Expect When You’re Expecting (tbc) (Kirk Jones, US, 2012) Cameron Diaz, Matthew Morrison, Dennis Quaid. Based on the New York Times best seller of the same name, this comedy focuses on five couples about to have children. Celebrity couple Jules and Evan, author Wendy and her husband Gary and potential adopters Holly and Alex are among the pairs whose lives intertwine on the road to parenthood. General release from Wed 23 May. Wrath of the Titans (12A) ●●●●● (Jonathan Liebesman, US, 2012) Sam Worthington, Liam Neeson, Rosamund Pike. 99min. Perseus (Worthington) comes out of retirement to save the planet from vengeful titans. Liebesman tries to compensate for a lack of story and poorly defined characters with a bombardment of blurry CGI set- pieces; the result is a pointless cash-in that fails to respect the original mythology in any way. General release. You’ve Been Trumped (E) ●●●●● (Anthony Baxter, UK, 2011) Michael Forbes, Donald Trump. 95min. Documentary charting one of the US’s most famous hairpiece models, aka Donald Trump, as he moves to build an enormous golf and residential development on land in the north east of Scotland, much to the dismay of the local populace. Paisley Arts Centre, Paisley.