| |
| LIFE
IS BEAUTIFUL |
| 010199 |
| Conjuring keys and hats out of thin air, Guido
(Roberto Benigni), a clever Jewish-Italian waiter, successfully
courts Dora (Nicoletta Braschi), a beautiful local woman, in
Fascist pre-WWII Italy. His life, however, is turned upside
down a few years later when he, Dora, and their young son, Giosué
(Giorgio Cantarini), are sent to a Nazi concentration camp.
Refusing to give up hope, Guido tries to protect his son's innocence
by pretending that their imprisonment is just an elaborate game,
with the grand prize being a tank. |
 |
| |
| WHAT
DREAMS MAY COME |
| 010799 |
| Four years after the tragic death of their
children in a car accident, Dr. Chris Nielsen (Robin Williams)
is estranged from his wife, Annie (Annabella Sciora), a painter
who finds solace in deep and mystical expressionist landscapes.
When flustered Annie calls him for support, he rushes out to
help and is killed in a road accident. His ghost is greeted
by an old mentor, Albert (Cuba Gooding Jr.), who leads him in
Ghost-of-Christmas-Past-style to Annie's side. But when Chris
realizes that his adherence to the corporeal world is torture
to himself and the living Annie, he breaks free of his Earthly
bonds and dives into the visual smorgasbord that is the afterlife.
There he splashes though clouds and gobs of technicolor paint
in breathtaking landscapes suggested to him by Annie's paintings.
From there, to grandiose Romanesque cities of flying children,
Chris and his old dog are met by a gorgeous stewardess, who
reveals herself as a nearly forgotten face from his past. As
Chris reconciles with his children in a world where imagination
is his palette, in the real world Annie becomes sicker and sicker,
and finally enters the afterlife herself. Due to the myriad
rules of the Other Side, she is unable to join Chris or her
children, and Chris begins a fight for his future with his soul
mate. |
|
| |
| ELIZABETH |
| 010199 |
| The story of Queen Elizabeth I, from her days
as an innocent young woman to her coronation, up to the formation
of her reputation as England's stern "Virgin Queen".
A lush portrait of history, full of pomp, intrigue, and romance
and anchored by Blanchett's award-winning performance and colorful
direction from Indian newcomer Kapur. Academy Award winner for
Best Makeup, Nominations for Best Picture, Best Actress, Cinematography,
Art Direction/Set Direction, Costume Design, Dramatic Score. |
|
| |
| 54 |
| 010899 |
| This broadly drawn fable takes place at the
height of legendary Studio 54's delirious heyday. A cast of
attractive youngsters portrays fictionalized employees and clientele
of the glitzy urban playland. |
|
| |
| AMERICAN
HISTORY X |
| 010899 |
| Edward Norton gives an impassioned performance
as Derek Vinyard, a Southern Californian skinhead who must do
time after committing a hateful murder. Once in jail, his mind
opens and he sees the error of his ways. Upon reentering the
real world, he must now turn his attentions to his younger brother
Danny, who is swiftly heading down the same path as his brother.
Controversy surrounded the film when director Tony Kaye disowned
it, claiming that Norton had the film re-edited without Kaye's
permission. Norton still got an Oscar Nomination for his intense
performance. |
|
| |
| WAKING
NED DEVINE |
| 010899 |
| A comedy about the inhabitants of Tulley More,
a small Irish town with a population of fifty-two and dwindling.
When Jackie and Michael discover that someone in their town
has won the national lottery, they intend to uncover the lucky
individual and talk him into sharing the jackpot with them.
Trouble arises when they discover it's good old Ned Devine,
and no longer is he one of the living. The citizens must band
together and fool the authorities into believing that Ned is
still alive, in order for them to receive the money and share
it amongst themselves. |
|
| |
| THERE'S
SOMETHING ABOUT MARY |
| 010899 |
| No-holds-barred comedy tour de force in which
30-something Stiller locates and courts his high school dreamgirl
(Cameron Diaz), unwittingly enlisting the help of some of her
more hilariously psychotic suitors. In-your-face sight gags
and unapologetic raunchiness disguise a riotously funny love
story that is actually very sweet. Be amazed at the impeccable
casting and stellar performances of the supporting players. |
|
| |
| RONIN |
| 011599 |
| David Mamet wrote this screenplay under the
name Richard Weisz, as a gun for hire, much like the masterless
samurai of the film's title, who roamed Japan in the 19th Century,
loyal only to themselves. A group of men with highly developed
skills are called to a meeting in a deserted warehouse in Paris.
Sam (Robert De Niro), an American, may be ex-CIA. Vincent (Jean
Reno), the terminally cool Frenchman, is a mystery. Russian
computer whiz Gregor (Stellan Skarsgaard) is presumably ex-KGB,
and Spence (Sean Bean), a British demolitions man, and Larry
(Skipp Suddith), another Yank, round out the team. They've been
hired by the IRA, through liaison Deirdre (Natascha McElhone),
to steal a briefcase of unknown contents somewhere in Europe.
As the unit races from one spectacular location on the French
Riviera to another, the Tec-9 reigns, the body count mounts,
some Russian gangsters get into the act, and the betrayals come
fast and furious. In a rare comic moment, Sam stitches up his
own bullet wound, an act of tongue-in-cheek Hemingwayism, and
asks a friend to finish before he passes out. RONIN features
an exceptional cast, sumptuous locations, and the kind of realistic,
high-coefficient-of-adversity car chases and action scenes that
one expects from a director of John Frankenheimer's skills. |
|
| |
| THE
HORSE WHISPERER |
| 011599 |
| A terrible horseback riding accident has left
14-year-old Grace MacLean (Scarlett Johansson) emotionally and
physically scarred for life, and has left her prized horse,
Pilgrim, permanently spooked. Grace’s mother, Annie (Kristin
Scott Thomas)--a high-powered New York magazine editor--is unwilling
to believe that Pilgrim is beyond help and is desperate to help
her daughter recover from the trauma. Annie drives across the
country to Montana, with daughter and horse in tow, in search
of Tom Booker (Robert Redford) a horse whisperer with a special
gift for communicating with troubled horses. With Tom’s
help, both Grace and Pilgrim begin to deal with the aftermath
of the accident. Annie, meanwhile, begins to reevaluate the
choices she has made in life as she becomes enamored with both
Booker and life on a Montana ranch. Sam Neill plays Robert MacLean,
the husband and father left behind in New York when mother and
daughter make their trek. Directed by Redford (ORDINARY PEOPLE,
QUIZ SHOW) and based on Nicholas Evans’s popular novel
of the same name, the film features sweeping Montana vistas,
earnest performances, and impressive horseback riding and training
sequences. |
|
| |
| WATER
BOY |
| 012299 |
| Adam Sandler is charming and disarming as
he dusts off and mashes together his beloved SNL charcters Cajun
Man and Canteen Boy to create Bobby Boucher, the sweet-tempered,
simple-minded, bayou man-child who relishes his job of eighteen
years as the much-abused waterboy for the local "good"
(well-funded but nasty of spirit) university's football team.
True to the appropriate cine-formula, there is also a nearby
"bad" (under-funded but generous of spirit) university
where Bobby seeks tenure after finally being driven away from
his long-time place of employment by the relentless cruelty
of those whom he seeks only to refresh and hydrate. It is under
the kindly tutelage of the "lesser" university's down-and-out
football coach (Henry Winkler phones it in, but warmly) that
Bobby realizes his unusual athletic prowess and develops some
basic people skills. Kathy Bates has an enormous amount of fun,
and is a laugh riot, as Bobby's earthy, over-protective, swamp-shack-dwelling
mom; and Fairuza Balk is accessibly luscious in a Daisy Mae
turn as Bobby's resourceful, tomboyish, creole-cutie sweetheart.
Deadpan delivery, satisfying sight gags, and "elbow-your-neighbor-and-point-at-the-screen"
cameos make this an attractive option for fans of the genre. |
|
| |
| PRACTICAL
MAGIC |
| 012299 |
| This romantic comedy, which is based on Alice
Hoffman's best-selling novel, introduces the Owens sisters (Bullock
and Kidman), who try to use their hereditary gift of witchcraft
to help them find love. Collector's Edition includes documentary
featuring behind the scenes interviews with the filmmakers and
stars. |
|
| |
| ANTZ |
| 012999 |
| In an anthill with millions of inhabitants,
Z 4195 is a worker ant. Feeling insignificant in a conformity
system, he accidentally meets beautiful Princess Bala, who has
a similar problem on the other end of the social scale. In order
to meet her again, Z switches sides with his soldier friend
Weaver - only to become a hero in the course of events. By this
he unwillingly crosses the sinister plans of ambitious General
Mandible (Bala's fiancé, by the way), who wants to divide
the ant society into a superior, strong race (soldiers) and
an inferior, to-be-eliminated race (the workers). But Z and
Bala, both unaware of the dangerous situation, try to leave
the oppressive system by heading for Insectopia, a place where
food paves the streets. |
|
| |
| PLEASANTVILLE |
| 012999 |
| Two modern American teenagers are sucked into
their television set and end up living in a black-and-white
fifties sitcom. Bewildered by their new world's naivete and
innocence, they slowly start to add color and spice to the town's
life. Eventually, however, they begin to question their influence,
wondering if their advanced 90's attitudes are really that much
better than those of the innocent past. Sterling effects and
stand-out performances make this commentary on modern life a
poignant, entertaining effort. |
|
| |
| HILLARY
AND JACKIE |
| 020599 |
| The story of the brilliant concert cellist
Jacqueline du Pre, seen from the perspectives of her sister
Hilary and brother Piers. While Jackie gains international fame
and fortune, she secretly longs for the stable, normal life
and family Hilary has built. Watson and Griffiths deliver impassioned,
unforgettable performances as the troubled sisters. Based on
the autobiographical novel "A Genius in the Family." |
|
| |
| HURLY
BURLY |
| 021299 |
| A relentless black comedy with an amazing
ensemble of actors. Based on a play by David Rabe which chronicles
the non-events in the lives of a group of fast talking, narcissistic,
L.A. based professionals, who can't seem to slow down long enough
to breathe, let alone make sense of their lives. |
|
| |
| ORGAZMO |
| 021299 |
| SOUTH PARK creator Parker stars as Joe Young,
a Mormon missionary in Los Angeles who stumbles into the porn
industry, where he's offered the part of sexual superhero Orgazmo.
Joe stays so that he can raise enough money to marry his sweetheart,
Lisa, but complications ensue when Orgazmo turns out to be a
hit and Lisa discovers the hidden truth. A wacky farce for juvenile
adults. |
|
| |
| GODS
AND MONSTERS |
| 021999 |
| Based on Christopher Bram's novel FATHER OF
FRANKENSTEIN, Bill Condon's semi-fictional 1998 sleeper stars
Sir Ian McKellen in a fantastic performance as director James
Whale (FRANKENSTEIN, BRIDE OF FRANKENSTEIN, SHOW BOAT). It is
1957, and Whale is living in semiseclusion in Southern California
with his scrutinizing maid, Hannah (Lynn Redgrave). His health
is failing, and he is able to do little but lounge around and
contemplate his younger days--his many male loves, his days
in WWI, and the film world that has forsaken him. When Whale
first gazes upon his musclebound gardener, Clay (Brendan Fraser),
however, it is the beginning of an unusual (and platonic) friendship.
Seasoned with multiple flashbacks to the sets of his films and
to the battlefield, GODS AND MONSTERS is a haunting and touching
look at the life of a man who was at the top of the Hollywood
hierarchy but soon found himself out of favor--and the offbeat
friendship he formed in his final days. McKellen and Redgrave
were both nominated for Oscars, and the film garnered one statue
for Best Adapted Screenplay. |
|
| |
| DANCING
AT LUGHNASA |
| 022699 |
| A young boy tells the story of growing up
in a fatherless home with his unmarried mother and four spinster
aunts in 1930's Ireland. Their lives are interrupted by the
arrival of two men - the boy's long-lost father, who is off
to Spain to fight the war against Franco, and an elderly uncle
who has "come home to die" after a lifetime in America.
Although life goes on as before for the boy and five sisters,
something will happen that will destroy their peaceful existence
as they once knew it. |
|
| |
| AFFLICTION |
| 030599 |
| Based on the novel by Russell Banks, AFFLICTION
is a sobering, absorbing psychological study of the precarious
relationship between an abusive father and his two sons. Wade
Whitehouse (Nick Nolte) is a middle-aged ineffectual sheriff
in a small New Hampshire town, where he and his brother, Rolfe
(Willem Dafoe), were raised. When events shatter the quiet of
his small town, Wade is forced to confront the past and reexamine
his life, attempting a reconciliation with his abusive, alcoholic
dad, Glen (James Coburn), by moving back home to look after
him. This quietly intense, haunting, and beautifully filmed
story unfolds against the harsh snow-white backdrop of a town
where everyone knows each other. But more than anything, it
is the brilliant performances of its cast that mark this film. |
|
| |
| ENEMY
OF THE STATE |
| 030599 |
| Robert Dean (Will Smith) is a labor lawyer
who is unknowingly in possession of evidence related to a serious
politically motivated crime. Government agents eager to hide
their guilt believe that Dean is on to them, and proceed to
turn his life upside-down, ruin his reputation, and frame him
for various incidents, thanks to the latest in high-tech government
surveillance techniques. In an attempt to clear his name and
reclaim his life, Dean teams up with the reclusive Brill (Gene
Hackman), a former federal employee who has as much high-tech
equipment and expertise as the government itself. Hackman's
role is an extension of Harry Caul, the character he portrayed
in Francis Ford Coppola's brilliant 1974 film, THE CONVERSATION.
Smith scores as a man who is desperate to reclaim his identity
and prove his innocence. This intense technological thrill-ride
from director Tony Scott questions how much access the government
should have to the communications of private citizens, and leaves
the viewer with the unsettling feeling that Big Brother is definitely
watching. Watch for the uncredited appearances of Jason Robards,
Seth Green, Tom Sizemore, and Philip Baker Hall. |
|
| |
| VARSITY
BLUES |
| 030599 |
| Jon "Mox" Moxon (James Van Der Beek,
TV's DAWSON'S CREEK) is the second string quarterback of the
Coyotes of West Canaan, Texas. When the star quarterback (Paul
Walker) suffers a knee injury just as the team is about to win
their 23rd championship in 30 years, Mox is in the hot seat.
Mox, however, is more interested in getting accepted to Brown,
a view which is at odds with that of the pigskin-crazy town
as well as that of militaristic Coach Kilmer (Jon Voight). But
when Mox becomes a town hero for his football prowess, will
his sights be swayed from his academic pursuits? This surprise
hit from MTV Pictures was directed by Brian Robbins (HARDBALL). |
|
| |
| CIVIL
ACTION |
| 031299 |
| Jan Schlichtmann, a tenacious young lawyer,
is confronted with the litigation of a lifetime in this unbelievable
real-life story. Several families in the small town of Woburn,
Massachusetts, have suffered the tragic losses of their children
to the rare cancer known as leukemia. After having their claim
rejected by most law firms in town, these citizens approach
Schlichtmann with the possibility that the deaths of their children
may have had to do with Woburn's drinking water supply being
contaminated by a couple of local businesses. The rub lies in
the fact that these businesses are offshoots of two of the most
powerful national corporations in the country! Schlichtmann
must push his skill and craftiness as a lawyer to the limit
in order to oust his opponents, who are working with a limitless
bankroll. Based on the great fact-based novel. |
|
| |
| THE
THIN RED LINE |
| 031299 |
| Terrence Malick returns to Hollywood after
a two-decade hiatus with this adaptation of the classic WWII
novel by James Jones. The story follows the efforts of an army
platoon to capture the Japanese-controlled island of Guadalcanal
in the Pacific Ocean, which will have a major effect on the
outcome of the war. The members of C-for-Charlie Company are
all fighting for different reasons: Some to achieve glory, some
to fight for democracy, and some simply to remain alive. They
spend the quieter moments reflecting upon their existence, searching
for meaning amid the senselessness of war. |
|
| |
| CENTRAL STATION |
| 031999 |
| Fernanda Montenegro's affecting performance,
nominated for a Best Actress Oscar, is the centerpiece in this
acclaimed Brazilian film. In the bustling heart of Rio de Janeiro,
a young boy witnesses the accidental death of his mother. When
a lonely, retired schoolteacher (Montenegro) reluctantly agrees
to care for the boy, they begin a journey across the countryside
on which they learn valuable lessons about each other and the
human spirit. |
|
| |
| STAR
TREK |
| 031999 |
| The first of the nine STAR TREK films to feature
largely computer-generated special effects and is again directed
by Number One, Jonathan Frakes. While on a survey mission, Captain
Picard and the crew of the Enterprise stumble on a conspiracy
originating high up the Starfleet chain of command that involves
a distressing plan of ethnic cleansing. On a remote planet,
a small, peaceful race of human-like beings called the Ba'ku
seems to be immune to the ravages of aging. Head bad-guy F.
Murray Abraham leads another race for which exposure the planet's
radiation is the only cure for an advanced state of degeneration,
and, using clandestine Starfleet connections, arranges to wipe
out the Ba'ku unless the Enterprise has anything to say about
it. |
|
| |
| TRAINSPOTTING |
| 031999 |
| A kinetic, intimate look inside the subculture
of heroin abuse, this acclaimed adaptation of Irvine Welsh's
novel follows the misadventures of Renton, a brash, twenty-something
Edinburgh junkie, and his nihilistic chums Tommy, Spud, Sick
Boy and Begbie. Alternately comic and off-putting, the film
ultimately comes down to Renton's choice between self-destruction
or life. The stellar soundtrack should not be missed. |
|
| |
| UP
IN SMOKE |
| 032699 |
| Cheech and Chong's first "hit" movie
is a popular comedy for the red-eyed generation. The outrageous
pair begin their search for green pastures and good grass. After
several wacky adventures and close shaves ensue, the comedic
duo end up at L.A.'s Roxy Theatre to perform a hilarious final
scene. Without giving away too many clues, it can be said that
a pink tutu and a red quaalude are involved. ITA winner. |
|
| |
| YOU'VE
GOT MAIL |
| 032699 |
| Kathleen Kelly, owner of a little and famous
bookstore for children's books, has an affair. Being together
with Frank Navasky, a well-known journalist, she betrays him
by e-mailing secretly and anonymously with a (also betraying)
man whom she met in a chat room. Suddenly, her business gets
endangered by the opening of Fox Books discount store just "around
the corner". She meets Joe Fox, son of the owner, and soon
gets annoyed by his arrogant way of managing business matters.
Although getting advice by her anonymous mail-pal, she has to
close down her store. But Joe Fox's life suddenly gets out of
control when he learns that his anonymous mail-pal is nobody
other than Kathleen Kelly. |
|
| |
| 8MM |
| 040299 |
| Cage plays Tom Welles, a straight-laced surveillance
specialist. His innocent, naive world begins to unravel when
he is hired by the widow of an industrialist to investigate
what she has shockingly discovered in her late husband's safe.
It appears to be a snuff film of a young girl being murdered.
In order to discover the truth, he must enter the city's seedy
underworld, guided by porn-store clerk Phoenix. |
|
| |
| THE
GENERAL |
| 040299 |
| Born into poverty in the slums of Hollyfield,
Cahill ends up in reform school after robbing a local merchant.
Given his abilities, his rise in the world of crime is swift,
abetted by a violent streak that has him nailing a partner to
a pool table when he mistakently suspects him of talking to
the cops. His creative domestic arrangements have him married
to Frances (Maria Doyle Kennedy) while also begetting children
with her sister, Tina (Angeline Ball). Although he enjoyed mocking
every form of authority from the church and the government to
the IRA, he had an unspoken bond with police inspector Ned Kenny
(Jon Voight), who curses himself for allowing this latter-day
Celtic chieftain to charm even a cop. A completely engrossing
film anchored by the brilliant Gleeson and a terrific supporting
cast, THE GENERAL was shot by director John Boorman in color
and printed in crisp black and white. |
|
| |
| SHE'S
ALL THAT |
| 040299 |
| An modern retelling of George Bernard Shaw's
story PYGMALION. Prinze stars as a high school stud who makes
a bet with a friend that he can transform the hopelessly geeky
Cook into a Prom Queen. It turns out the transformation is even
more successful than he could have imagined. Before he knows
it, he's fallen in love with her himself. |
|
| |
| CRUEL
INTENTIONS |
| 040999 |
| Director Roger Kumble transfers the DANGEROUS
LIASONS tale to Manhattan, where wealthy prep school student
Kathryn (Sarah Michelle Gellar) bets her stepbrother Sebastian
(Ryan Phillipe) that he can't deflower the virginal Annette
(Reese Witherspoon) before the school year begins. If he fails
to accomplish this task, Kathryn gets his Jaguar Roadster; if
he succeeds, he gets an evening of pleasure with Kathryn. |
|
| |
| LOCK
STOCK AND TWO SMOKING BARRELS |
| 040999 |
| A brutally comic tale about a group of London
friends who find themselves deep in debt to an East End tough,
LOCK, STOCK AND TWO SMOKING BARRELS is quick-paced, stylized,
and highly entertaining. In his debut feature film, director-writer
Guy Ritchie weaves a tangled web of shady, blithely eccentric
characters and several storylines, all of them coming together
in a gleeful explosion of murder and mayhem. When streetwise
charmer Eddy (Nick Moran), the son of steely bar owner JD (Sting),
botches a gambling scheme with his dad’s nemesis, porn
king Hatchet Harry (P.H. Moriarty), he’s got one week
to come up with 500,000 pounds or he loses his fingers--and
so do his friends Tom (Jason Flemyng), Bacon (Jason Statham),
and Soap (Dexter Fletcher). While the pals scheme to make the
money, Harry indulges his penchant for valuable antique shot
guns, stolen for him by a couple of inept burglars. Soon the
missing guns, a paranoid group of marajuana growers, a mean-spirited
debt collector (Vinnie Jones) and his young son, and a violent
bunch of thugs, are all thrown together in this tightly-woven,
genuinely funny story that takes its inspiration from old British
comic gangster flicks like THE LEAGUE OF GENTLEMEN and more
recent films like RESERVOIR DOGS and THE USUAL SUSPECTS. |
|
| |
| OFFICE
SPACE |
| 040999 |
| Peter (Livingston) is an office drone who
feels that every day of his life is the worst yet. After an
incident involving a hypnotist, Peter stops caring about his
job, ignoring his work and goofing off. When office consultants
find out, they see his attitude as proof that Peter is management
material. Director Judge (of BEAVIS AND BUTT-HEAD and "KING
OF THE HILL") makes a surprisingly intelligent, hysterical
commentary on office life, and this memorable picture firmly
establishes Judge as a voice to pay attention to. |
|
| |
| A
SIMPLE PLAN |
| 041099 |
| Raimi breaks out of genre films with this
tight, effective thriller. When two brothers, Hank (Paxton)
and Jacob (Thornton), and their friend Lou (Briscoe), find 4.4
million dollars inside a crashed plane, they believe they've
found the financial answer to all their problems. All they have
to do is keep it a secret until the plane is discovered and
any investigations are completed. This proves to be easier said
than done, however, when the three men (as well as Hank's wife,
Sarah, played by Fonda), each with their different reasons,
begin to lose trust in the others. When an FBI agent comes to
town, the tension becomes explosive resulting in deceit and,
ultimately, murder. Raimi makes brilliant use of icy Minnesota
locales. Thornton's performance was recognized by the Academy
with a nomination for Best Supporting Actor. The script, by
Smith from his own novel, was also nominated for Best Adapted
Screenplay. |
|
| |
| BREAKFAST
AT TIFFANY'S |
| 041699 |
| Blake Edwards's adaptation of Truman Capote's
classic novella is ideally cast with Audrey Hepburn in the role
of Holly Golightly. The free-spirited gamine darts about New
York, feted by wealthy men drawn to her megawatt charm and elegance,
hoping that the party will never end. After "shopping"
in front of Tiffany's window, she meets aspiring writer Paul
Varjak (George Peppard), and they begin a platonic friendship.
"Sponsored" by an older woman (Patricia Neal) whose
interest in the young man is more than literary, he can identify
with her experience better than most, taking it upon himself
to protect her from the worst aspects of city life. But she
seems to need little protection from such friends as incarcerated
mob boss Sally Tomato (Alan Reed), who pays her to carry messages
to Sing Sing. With her infectious joi de vivre, she helps Paul
break through a paralyzing case of writer's block. But when
the genial Doc Golightly (Buddy Ebsen) appears in New York in
search of Holly, the sources of her gossamer lifestyle suddenly
become clearer. Edwards's lighter-than-air romantic comedy,
set in a fantasy New York, rides on the irresistible charm of
Hepburn at her peak, as well as a memorable score by Henry Mancini.
Although George Axelrod's screenplay is as different from the
original story as George Peppard is from the young Capote, the
film succeeds on its own terms. |
|
| |
| LAST
DAYS |
| 041699 |
| A powerful Holocaust documentary that uses
actual testimonials from survivors to recreate the horrors and
tragedies that occurred during Hitler's reign. Haunting, inspiring,
and brutal. Winner of the Academy Award for "Best Documentary." |
|
| |
| THE
CORRUPTOR |
| 042399 |
| Chow Yun-Fat is Nick Chen, a severe New York
Chinatown cop who is having a tough time keeping peace on the
streets after a turf war breaks out between the triads and a
street gang. Mark Wahlberg is Danny Wallace, another cop brought
in to help with the peacekeeping effort. When he realizes that
Chen's ties to the criminals go even deeper than he suspected,
things get very violent and complicated. |
|
| |
| TANGO |
| 050799 |
| In Carlos Saura's TANGO, a well-known theater
director, Mario (Miguel Angel Solá) attempts to produce
a tango extravaganza in Argentina. He wants to show the breadth
and depth of tango--both the music and the dance--not just in
isolated music and dance numbers, but with a story that shows
the way the tango is woven into the very fabric of Argentinean
life. Mario is beset with problems in his personal life and
interference from political officials that prohibit him from
making the film. His wife has just left him for another man.
He falls in love with a beautiful young dancer, Elena (Miá
Maestro), but after very brief fling she dumps him. The Mayor
wants him to put his mistress in the show and, along with the
producers, wants him to cut a sequence that dramatizes the horrors
of the time of the military dictatorship and the plight of the
families of the "disappeared." In a voice-over Mario
reveals the depth of his feelings about art and love while also
expressing his severe self-doubt. |
|
| |
| 200
CIGARETTES |
| 042399 |
| Set in Manhattan on New Year's Eve 1981, this
comedy features a revolving cast of characters fumbling their
way around the East Village on their way to and from various
parties. As the night gets underway, two girls from suburban
Long Island, Val (Christina Ricci) and Stephie (Gaby Hoffman),
fall in with a crew of punk rockers, while the bubbly Cindy
(Kate Hudson) has a date from hell with the aloof Jack (Jay
Mohr). As others are added to the mix, the night only gets weirder.
200 CIGARETTES also stars Janeane Garofalo, Ben Affleck, Casey
Affleck, Courtney Love, Dave Chappelle, Paul Rudd, and Martha
Plimpton. And watch out for appearances by Elvis Costello and
David Johansen. The film's time-capsule soundtrack features
Blondie, the Cars, the Go-Go's, Bow Wow Wow, the Ramones, Kool
& the Gang, Roxy Music, Elvis Costello, Nick Lowe, and more! |
|
| |
| EEL |
| 043099 |
| With THE EEL, director Shohei Imamura shows
that eels are not just a tasty sushi treat but also a symbol
of the human condition. Yamashita (Koji Yakusho) kills his unfaithful
wife and turns himself in to the police. Eight years later he
is paroled and must try to find redemption. Setting up shop
as a barber, he encounters several unusual characters, including
a young man who hopes to attract UFOs and a woman with a troubled
past who tries to reel him in with delicious lunch boxes. Yamashita,
however, is obsessed with his pet eel, his only companion during
his years in prison. In his previous films (THE INSECT WOMAN,
BALLAD OF NARAYAMA), Imamura has often suggested the closeness
between humans and animals; in THE EEL, he takes the connection
one step further, having his main character carry on hilarious
dialogues with his pet. Based on the novel YAMI NI HIRAMEKU
by Akira Yoshimura, the film marks Imamura's triumphant return
to filmmaking after an eight-year break. When the film won the
Palme d'Or at the 1997 Cannes Film Festival, Imamura became
one of only three directors to have won the honor twice. |
|
| |
| GODS
AND MONSTERS |
| 043099 |
| Based on Christopher Bram's novel FATHER OF
FRANKENSTEIN, Bill Condon's semi-fictional 1998 sleeper stars
Sir Ian McKellen in a fantastic performance as director James
Whale (FRANKENSTEIN, BRIDE OF FRANKENSTEIN, SHOW BOAT). It is
1957, and Whale is living in semiseclusion in Southern California
with his scrutinizing maid, Hannah (Lynn Redgrave). His health
is failing, and he is able to do little but lounge around and
contemplate his younger days--his many male loves, his days
in WWI, and the film world that has forsaken him. When Whale
first gazes upon his musclebound gardener, Clay (Brendan Fraser),
however, it is the beginning of an unusual (and platonic) friendship.
Seasoned with multiple flashbacks to the sets of his films and
to the battlefield, GODS AND MONSTERS is a haunting and touching
look at the life of a man who was at the top of the Hollywood
hierarchy but soon found himself out of favor--and the offbeat
friendship he formed in his final days. McKellen and Redgrave
were both nominated for Oscars, and the film garnered one statue
for Best Adapted Screenplay. |
|
| |
| THE
HARMONISTS |
| 050799 |
| This biographical picture traces the birth
of the Comedian Harmonists, the creation of 27-year-old drama
student Harry Frommermann. A German singing group modeled after
the American acapella group The Revellers, the six male vocalists
quickly became household names, until Hitler's rise in power
threatened to tear them apart forever (three the members in
the group were Jewish). An inspiring tale featuring original
recordings from the legendary vocalists. Winner of the 1998
Award for Outstanding Feature Film at the German Film Awards. |
|
| |
| RUSHMORE |
| 050799 |
| Director Wes Anderson's follow-up to the acclaimed
BOTTLE ROCKET is a funny, warmhearted, and extremely sharp American
response to the English "Angry Young Man" films of
the 1960s, right down to its British Invasion soundtrack. Newcomer
Jason Schwartzman creates a classic protagonist in Max Fischer,
a sophomore at Rushmore Academy. He excels at every extracurricular
activity in school, from theater to beekeeping. Gradewise, however,
he's failing. He has few friends outside school save for wealthy
but depressed industrialist Herman Blume (Bill Murray), father
of obnoxious twin boys who also attend Rushmore. Enter Rosemary
Cross (Olivia Williams), a beautiful young widowed teacher at
Rushmore Elementary. While Max is immediately smitten with Miss
Cross, she finds comfort in the company of the emotionally frazzled
Blume. But Max won't let Blume have Miss Cross without a fight. |
|
| |
| SLC
PUNK |
| 050799 |
| Stevo becomes a punk rebel in Reagan-era Salt
Lake City. His ex-hippie father sees his lifestyle as a rite
of passage and urges him to attend Harvard Law School like himself-
not to sell out to the system, but to buy in. For Stevo, underneath
the mohawk haircuts, earrings and leather, the idea, painfully,
has some merit. |
|
| |
| HURLY
BURLY |
| 051499 |
| A relentless black comedy with an amazing
ensemble of actors. Based on a play by David Rabe which chronicles
the non-events in the lives of a group of fast talking, narcissistic,
L.A. based professionals, who can't seem to slow down long enough
to breathe, let alone make sense of their lives. |
|
| |
| MIDSUMMER
NIGHT'S DREAM |
| 051499 |
| The classic Shakespearean romantic comedy,
featuring Pfeiffer and Everett as the King and Queen of the
fairies, as well as a pair of confused lovers falling in and
out of love in a magical forest. Raves for Kline's performance
as the donkey-headed Nick Bottom. |
|
| |
| CHILDREN
OF HEAVEN |
| 051499 |
| In this simple family drama from Iran, two
children invent an intricate plan to conceal the loss of a pair
of shoes. Ali (Amir Farrokh Hashemian) and his sister Zhara
(Bahare Seddiqi) are living in a poor neighborhood. Their mother
is suffering from illness and their father is overworked and
underpaid. When Ali is sent out to pick up his sister's shoes,
a blind street peddler accidentally swipes them. Afraid that
he will get a beating if his parents find out, he and Zhara
concoct a plan by which she will wear Ali's sneakers to school
in the morning and he will wear them to school in the afternoon.
But the plan has its flaws because Ali is late to school everyday
and his principal threatens to expel him. In a final act of
determination, Ali enters a race to win the third place prize,
a new pair of sneakers. Majidi's acclaimed film is an example
of a current trend in Iranian cinema where children are used
as central characters in order to circumvent censorship issues.
His later film THE COLOR OF PARADISE about a little blind boy
received similar international critical attention. CHILDREN
OF HEAVEN received an Academy Award Nomination in 1998 for Best
Foreign Film. |
|
| |
| ED
TV |
| 051499 |
| A normal video store clerk, Ed (McConaughey),
doesn't realize what he's getting himself into when he allows
a television executive (DeGeneres) to begin filming his life
24 hours a day. The resulting media circus makes for an entertaining
social commentary about how important (and, perhaps, detrimental)
an issue television has become in our lives. |
|
| |
| THREE
SEASONS |
| 052199 |
| Vietnamese-American Tony Bui's film THREE
SEASONS has the distinction of being the first American production
to shoot in Vietnam since the war. A cinematic tone-poem that
works more as a reflective mood piece than a traditional story,
Bui's lyrical script and Lisa Rinzler's magical cinematography
combine to create an original, lasting motion picture. Set in
modern-day Ho Chi Minh City, the film is a triptych of stories
about characters dealing with loss and redemption: an American
veteran (Harvey Keitel) searches for a daughter he fathered
during the Vietnam War; a young woman harvests lotus blossoms
for a reclusive leper-poet; and a lonely cyclo driver offers
love to a world-weary prostitute. The three stories subtly converge
to deliver a portrait of a strife-worn society attempting to
heal itself. |
|
| |
| PAYBACK |
| 052199 |
| Mel Gibson is Porter, a ruthless criminal,
who is gunned down by his wife and friend after they rob an
Asian gang. When Porter survives the attack, he makes it his
mission to exact revenge on his friend, who has used the robbery
money to buy his way into a powerful syndicate. Added to the
mix are crooked police officers, members of the syndicate, and
the Asian gang, who are out for a bit of revenge themselves.
Based on the series of novels by Donald E. Westlake, which were
translated to the screen previously in John Boorman's POINT
BLANK (1967). |
|
| |
| PUSHING
TIN |
| 052899 |
| Nick and the other boys (and Vicki Lewis)
working the hotspot of air traffic control in New York are impressed
with themselves, to say the least. They thrive on the no-room-for-error,
fast-paced job and let it infect their lives. The undisputed
king of pushing tin, "The Zone" Falzone, rules his
workplace and his wedded life with the same short-attention
span that gets planes where they need to be in the nick of time.
That is, until Russell Bell, a new transfer with a reputation
for recklessness but a record of pure perfection shatters the
tensely-held status quo. The game of one-upmanship between the
two flies so high as to lead Nick into Russell's bed with his
wife. His sanity slipping just as fast as his hold on #1, Cusack's
controller is thrown out-of-control when Thornton's wanderer
quietly leaves town. Nick must now find a way to regain his
sanity and repair his marriage before he breaks down completely. |
|
| |
| DREAM
LIFE OF ANGELS |
| 052899 |
| A powerful drama about two very different
women who meet and befriend. Isa is an optimistic wanderer;
Marie, a rebellious pessimist. Gradually, a close friendship
forms and the two become roommates, but when Marie falls into
a passionate affair with a cocky young man, the friendship deteriorates...
with tragic results. An acting tour-de-force by Bouchez and
Regnier. |
|
| |
| 10
THINGS I HATE ABOUT YOU |
| 052899 |
| The story of high school newcomer Cameron
James, and his pursuit of Bianca, the girl of his dreams. His
plans are thwarted when he finds out he cannot date Bianca until
her older sister, the social outcast Kat, has a boyfriend. A
witty high school re-telling of THE TAMING OF THE SHREW. |
|
| |
| NEVER
BEEN KISSED |
| 060499 |
| Drew Barrymore portrays a newspaper editor
who goes undercover at a high school to find out what the "cool
kids are into." In the process, she redeems her first go
'round, which was nerdy, awkward and unbearable. |
|
| |
| TWIN
DRAGONS |
| 060499 |
| It is a tradition in the Hong Kong film community
for actors and directors to donate their time and the profits
from a film in order to raise funds for various causes. TWIN
DRAGONS was part of an effort of the Hong Kong Directors Guild
to build a new headquarters. Ringo Lam and Hark Tsui split the
director’s job and Jackie Chan splits the lead in two
by playing twins separated at birth. They are brought back together
when the nonviolent concert pianist John Ma comes to Hong Kong
and becomes involved in the life of his streetfighting twin,
Boomer. Although it is conceived as a comedy and an obvious
satire of Jean-Claude Van Damme’s own twin brother film,
DOUBLE IMPACT, there is plenty of action, including both car
and boat chases. A complicated love story develops, with the
usual mistaken identity problems, when Tammy (Nina Li Chi) and
Barbara (Maggie Cheung) keep wondering why their boyfriend’s
personalities keep changing. Cheung, who is best known for her
stunning performance in Wong Kar-Wai’s IN THE MOOD FOR
LOVE, plays the foil to both characters with her usual sparkle.
Chan provides the well-choreographed fights. Directors Lam,
Tsui, and John Woo make cameo appearances. |
|
| |
| BIKE
THIEF |
| 060499 |
| The recipient of international acclaim, Vittorio
de Sica's Italian Neorealist masterwork, THE BICYCLE THIEF,
is a treasure of world cinema. After nearly two years of unemployment,
Antonio (Lamberto Maggiorani) finally finds work posting bills.
But he needs a bicycle to do the job. Unfortunately, he was
forced to pawn his own bicycle long ago. In a humbling, tragic
scene, Antonio exchanges his family's linen for his bicycle.
But when the bike is stolen on his first day of work, he must
comb the streets of Rome in search of the bike: his family's
only means to survival. After three days of hunting, Antonio
and his son, Bruno (Enzo Staiola), find the thief (Vittorio
Antonucci)--but without witnesses or evidence, the police are
unwilling to help Antonio. Hopeless, Antonio and Bruno wander
aimlessly through Rome, landing outside of a soccer stadium
where hundreds of bicycles are parked. His will broken, Antonio
attempts to steal a bike but is caught in the act. |
|
| |
| FORCES
OF NATURE |
| 061199 |
| Ben Holmes, a soon-to-be-hitched batchelor,
is unable to fly to Savannah for his wedding (due to a careless
seagull and an approaching hurricane). He must share a rented
care with Sara, a kooky character who clashes with him in every
way. What's that saying: opposites attract? Of course they do.
Especially in these types of movies. |
|
| |
| WINSLOW
BOY |
| 061199 |
| Based on an actual trial that created a media
frenzy in WWI-era London, THE WINSLOW BOY might have been conceived
as a standard courtroom drama. Instead, director David Mamet
(working from the play by Terence Rattigan) focuses on a family
pushed to the limit by its fight for justice. The trouble begins
when Ronnie Winslow (Guy Edwards), a 13-year-old naval cadet,
is accused of, and subsequently expelled for, stealing a five-shilling
postal order. The boy's father, Arthur (Nigel Hawthorne), believes
his son's protestations of innocence and sets in motion an expensive
fight against the immense bureaucratic machinery of the crown.
The expense and publicity imperil the family--costing Arthur's
suffragette daughter, Catherine, a suitor, for example--even
as the case becomes a national cause célèbre.
The story captures a period of intense social change; charts
an early example of the "media trial"; and asks the
very human question, What is one's good name worth? Excellent
performances abound in the film, especially from Jeremy Northam
as the charismatic lawyer Sir Robert Morton; and Mamet's wife,
Rebecca Pidgeon, as Catherine. |
|
| |
| ANALYZE
THIS |
| 061199 |
| Mob boss Paul Vitti (Robert De Niro) is having
heart attacks. At least that's what he thinks. When his doctors
inform him that he is suffering from anxiety attacks, he is
forced to track down a shrink to help him get to the bottom
of the problem. Billy Crystal costars as neurotic psychiatrist
Ben Sobol, who is manipulated into treating the macho Mafia
man, with hysterical results. Just as Ben and eager fiancée
(Lisa Kudrow) are about to enter nuptial bliss, they are suddenly
faced with a 24-hour responsibility to a mobster who won't take
no for an answer. The hilarious hijinks ruin their first wedding
and threaten to ruin the relationship as Paul battles his personal
demons with the help of the initially unwilling shrink. As the
two men's professional and private worlds collide, they are
forced to realize their similarities as they join forces to
battle the FBI and the impending threat of a Mafia takeover.
Director Harold Ramis has crafter an intelligent, witty comedy
that shows off the comic instincts of De Niro as never before. |
|
| |
| HIDEOUS
KINKY |
| 061899 |
| With her two precious daughters in tow, free-spirited
Julia flees her stifling life in London for the promise of excitement,
freedom and self-discovery in exotic Marrakech. In her single-minded
quest for enlightenment and escapism, Julia falls into a steamy
relationship with a handsome street performer, but her selfish
determination may actually cause her to lose what she loves
most. |
|
| |
| PEE
WEE'S BIG ADVENTURE |
| 061899 |
| Pee-wee's bicycle, a material object he desires
above all human relationships, is stolen. The journey he is
forced to make exposes him to the land that suburbia forgot,
a mythical working-class America filled with truck stops, waitresses
and runaway convicts. This is Tim Burton's remake of Vittorio
De Sica's Italian neo-realist classic, The Bicycle Thief. middle
class in America. |
|
| |
| 13TH
FLOOR |
| 061899 |
| Computer scientist Hammnod Fuller has discovered
something extremely important. He's about to tell the discovery
to his colleague, Douglas Hall, but knowing someone is after
him, the old man leaves a letter in his computer generated paralell
world that's just like the 30's with seemingly real people with
real emotions. Fuller is murdered in our "real" world
the same night, and his colleague is suspected. Douglas discovers
a bloody shirt in his bathroom and he cannot recall what he
was doing the night Fuller was murdered. He logs into the system
in order to find the letter, but has to confront the unexpected.
The truth is harsher than he could ever imagine. |
|
| |
| LIMBO |
| 070999 |
| Set in Alaska, where the rugged lifestyle
of fishermen and cannery workers is gradually giving way to
tourism and museums, LIMBO features a colorful cast of characters--a
fisherman who has lost his boat, lesbians who own a profitable
Alaskan lodge, bar patrons reflecting on the transformation
of the state into one huge theme park. The narrative soon focuses
on an itinerant lounge singer (Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio)
who begins a romance with a local handyman (David Strathairn),
much to the chagrin of her moody teenage daughter (Vanessa Martinez). |
|
| |
| SPIKE
AND MIKE'S SICK AND TWISTED ANIMATION FESTIVAL |
| 062599 |
| The new Spike & Mike's short-animation
anthology is being billed as "The Classic Festival of Animation."
To let you know it's different from Spike and Mike's "Sick
and Twisted" anthologies, it's also being billed as family-friendly.
However, features a short called VXH/CarrHot, from Canada. If
your kid asks why the grown-ups are laughing, you'll find yourself
having to explain how a vegetable could be pornographic. |
| |
| |
| ENTRAPMENT |
| 070299 |
| Sparks fly as Catherine Zeta-Jones, an insurance
agent, charms her way into doing business with Sean Connery,
an aging thief. In preparation for their latest heist, Connery
has her suffer through a rigorous training camp. Promises begin
to blur and dwindle as romance introduces itself into the picture,
building up to a payoff that's sure to disappoint one of the
involved parties. |
|
| |
| BESIEGED |
| 070299 |
| In BESIEGED, Bernardo Bertolucci returns to
the taut, slow-burning intimacy of LAST TANGO IN PARIS; this
film is predicated on smaller victories, however. Heroine Shandurai
(Thandie Newton) left Africa when her husband was made a political
prisoner, and she numbs her grief in Rome by keeping busy at
medical school. By day she earns her keep cleaning house for
Mr. Kinsky (David Thewlis), the classical pianist who inherited
the villa in which they both live. When Kinsky finally admits
his infatuation with his downstairs tenant, she shocks him by
demanding that he free her husband. What follows is a profound
sacrifice that reminds these two frightened people that the
differences between them need not be insurmountable. BESIEGED
is partly about getting to know people by looking at them, and
the film itself seems nearly wordless. Bertolucci charts emotion
in handheld close-up shots and wraps his principals in rich
color, texture, and music. Rome is modern and sumptuous at the
same time, just as the villa is nestled between a busy subway
station and the Spanish Steps. The small-narrative feel is no
accident; the film is based on a short story by James Lasdun. |
|
| |
| ELECTION |
| 070299 |
| Director Alexander (Citizen Ruth) Payne's
second film, based on the novel by Jim Perotta, takes the scandal
and mudslinging associated with presidential elections and transposes
them to a high school election for student council president
in Nebraska- with impossibly sharp, satirical results. Matthew
Broderick, in a reversal of Ferris Bueller, plays Jim McAllister,
a teacher who will stop at nothing to prevent perfect Tracy
Flick (Reese Witherspoon), who is running unopposed, from winning
the election. Jim, who bears a personal grudge against Tracy,
goads a popular but dim football player into running against
her. This spurs on a series strange events, (both madcap and
surprisingly sexual) which add up to an uncommonly funny high
school film for grown ups. Performances are great all-around
and Payne uses shifting-narration and a series of freeze frames
which give the film a rich and layered feel. |
|
| |
| MATRIX |
| 070999 |
| In the near future, a computer hacker named
Neo (Keanu Reeves) discovers that all life on Earth may be nothing
more than an elaborate facade created by a malevolent cyber-intelligence,
for the purpose of placating us while our life essence is "farmed"
to fuel the Matrix's campaign of domination in the "real"
world. He joins like-minded Rebel warriors Morpheus (Laurence
Fishburne) and Trinity (Carrie Ann Moss) in their struggle to
overthrow the Matrix. |
|
| |
| GET
REAL |
| 070999 |
| This tenderly romantic film tells the story
of Steve, a young man in a British prep school, as he struggles
with coming out and falling in love with the class jock, John...
who, amazingly, falls in love with him as well. |
|
| |
| RED
VIOLIN |
| 071699 |
| Following the unusual journey of an original
and unique violin (painted red with the blood of his beloved
and deceased wife), as it survives three centuries to a present-day
auction in Montreal. The violin weaves a Svengali over all those
who play it and becomes the subject of passion, deception and
destruction. It passes through the hands of traveling Gypsies,
a famous concert violinist in England to near-confiscation in
Communist China, the violin manages to survive the different
lives of those it touches.In present day it again becomes the
subject of fascination for a violin historian, played by Samuel
L. Jackson. On discovering that he has stumbled upon the much
sought after 'Red Violin', he considers instigating a deception
of his own kind. |
|
| |
| THIS
IS MY FATHER |
| 071699 |
| Caan portrays a disillusioned Chicago high-school
teacher who decides to make a pilgrimage to Ireland to learn
the truth about his father, whom he never met. He takes along
his troubled nephew, who spends his days falling in love with
a local school girl. The film shifts between the present and
the past, as we learn the story of what happened to Caan's father.
A Quinn Brothers trifecta (Paul wrote and directed, Aidan acted,
and Declan photographed), this is a personal - though not autobiographical
- tale that rises above Clicheland due to the subtle, heartwarming
performances. |
|
| |
| CHALK |
| 071699 |
| Kelvin Han Yee is the hero and Don Bajema
the anti-hero in this complex story of a contentious pool game
on which everything rides. Paul Newman's 1963 film The Hustler
serves as an interesting contrast to this shadowy neon-lit series
of vignettes exposing the lives of a group of Bay Area players
living close to the street. The relentless high pressure of
the big upcoming game alternates with the sadness felt by the
people surrounding these two players. |
| |
| |
| TIME
BANDITS |
| 071699 |
| Plunging headfirst into history, director
Terry Gilliam fearlessly brings the logic of children's fairy
tales to bear as he navigates through myth and legend in a bizarre,
ingenious retelling of THE WIZARD OF OZ. A boy and six good-natured
little persons careen through time-twisting interactions with
Napoleon, Robin Hood, and Agamemnon, among others, with a map
the little people stole from their employer, the Supreme Being.
But their intention is to rob their way through the past, which
does not make their boss happy. Meanwhile, Evil is after the
map in order to become the Supreme Being himself. The result
is an extraordinarily visual extravaganza that overflows with
Gilliam's ecstatic vision. The film is shot from a child's viewpoint,
both through the character of Kevin and the placement of the
camera. One of the morals of this thoroughly enjoyable, charming
fantasy is that heroes aren't always all they're cracked up
to be. Fun special effects and great supporting performances
abound, including terrific turns by Ian Holm, John Cleese, Ralph
Richardson, and especially David Warner as Evil. |
|
| |
| LOSS
OF SEXUAL INNOCENCE |
| 072399 |
| The ambitions announced in the title THE LOSS
OF SEXUAL INNOCENCE are realized in the concept of the film
itself--the tale of a modern man intercut with scenes of Adam
and Eve's fall. Writer-director Mike Figgis charts episodes
in the sexual life of Nic (played as an adult by Julian Sands),
a filmmaker who seems a lot like Figgis himself. (Nic, like
Figgis, is raised in Africa and lives in England as a teenager.)
As these episodes build to form a psychological portrait of
Nic, Figgis flashes to a naked Adam being born from the center
of a lake, then to the birth of Eve, their discoveries of the
world, Eve's encounter with the serpent, and their expulsion
from the garden. The modern story and the biblical one are not
necessarily parallel, but their grim conclusions are inextricably
linked in a universal cycle of sin and retribution. The film
is almost wordless, relying instead on striking imagery and
beautiful 16mm handheld camerawork. Figgis fades to black within
scenes to create the pulsing effect he employed in MISS JULIE;
he also uses title cards to play with the narrative and heighten
the allegorical nature of this challenging film. |
|
| |
| TREKKIES |
| 072399 |
| Denise Crosby hits the conventions in this
documentary that runs the gamut from Starfleet jurors to miniature-golfing
Klingons. Offers a breezy and off-kilter look at the fans referred
to as Trekkies. |
|
| |
| IDEAL
HUSBAND |
| 073099 |
| Sir Robert Chiltern (Northam) is a successful
Government minister with a loving wife. He is threatened when
a lady (Moore) appears with damning evidence of a past misdeed.
Sir Robert turns for help to his friend Lord Goring (Everett),
an apparently idle philanderer, who takes matters in hand in
this wicked yet touching comedy, based on the play by Oscar
Wilde. |
|
| |
| ARLINGTON
RD. |
| 073099 |
| Arlington Road follows in the grand tradition
of Hollywood suspense thrillers that pit a lone man against
a vast, hidden conspiracy--or is it a conspiracy? Jeff Bridges
plays Michael Faraday, who starts out as a loving, caring father
and teacher but slowly turns into a desperate, crazed man searching
for answers in a suburban world that has been turned upside
down. |
|
| |
| A
WALK ON THE MOON |
| 073099 |
| During the tumultuous and revolutionary summer
of 1969, a devoted New York housewife sets off on her annual
vacation with her two children to the Catskills. Life takes
an unexpected turn when she is seduced by a hippie shirt peddler
who helps her explore uninhibited sexuality and express free
love at Woodstock. She is faced with the difficult decision
of returning to her husband and family or continuing her own
sexual revolution. |
|
| |
| EXISTENZ |
| 080699 |
| A renowned international virtual reality game
designer (Leigh), creator of a new interactive game called eXistenZ,
becomes the target of an assassination plot by a group of religious
fanatics. She is forced to go into hiding with a novice security
guard (Law) sworn to protect her. However, during the chase
the two of them experience a world where the boundaries of fantasy
and reality are blurred and nothing is as it seems. A psychosexual
mindbender from director Cronenberg. |
|
| |
| SUMMER
OF SAM |
| 081399 |
| SUMMER OF SAM, Spike Lee's sizzling interpretation
of the summer of 1977 in New York City, when thermometers shattered
and a serial killer terrorized the city, focuses on an Italian-American
community in the Bronx--specifically, Dionna (Mira Sorvino)
and Vinny (John Leguizamo), a couple whose marriage is threatened
by Vinny's obsession with other women. After Vinny returns home
one night to find a killer has murdered two local women, he
promises to mend his cheating ways, albeit unsuccessfully. As
the media exploits the murders and a blackout threatens to unleash
anarchy on the city, its inhabitants begin to look for a scapegoat
who will release them from the reign of terror created by the
chilling figure known only as the Son of Sam (Michael Badalucco).
Lee’s ambitious film does more than re-create the events
that unfolded during the summer of 1977; in addition to being
an entertaining time capsule, it also deals graphically with
the concept of the mob mentality. |
|
| |
| MY
SON THE FRANTIC |
| 081399 |
| A bittersweet story about a Pakistani taxicab
driver in London who learns the hard way that "multiculturalism"
is a myth. Actor Om Puri, typically the villain in Indian cinema,
is likeable as the innocent Parvez, who for the first time in
his life raises questions about the life he has made for himself
and his family in England. The film centers around his relationship
with a prostitute (Griffiths of HILARY AND JACKIE). Over time,
he seeks refuge in his friendship with Bettina from his estranged
family. At the same time, his only son is zealously embracing
his Muslim heritage in an effort to fill the void left by his
disenchantment with Western ideals. All of these come to a head
in this marvelously acted, beautifully written film. |
|
| |
| SCHOOL
OF FLESH |
| 081399 |
| Don't be fooled by the soft-porn title, this
film offers a tender, fresh interpretation of the archetypal
May/December love story, focusing on the complexities and contradictions
of the characters, and the quirky nature of relationships. An
intense physical attraction makes lovers of Dominique, a poised,
sophisticated career woman, and Quentin, a handsome, streetwise
young hustler. She gives him shelter and nurturing, and he gives
her youth, beauty, and excitement. But can their passion support
the emotional weight of love? |
|
| |
| AUSTIN
POWERS 2 |
| 081399 |
| In his second screen adventure, groovy superspy
Austin Powers (Mike Myers) returns to 1969, where one after
another hilarious gag is worked into a silly, stumbling, knee-slapping
plot. This time around, Austin Powers' arch-nemesis Dr. Evil
(also Myers) is joined by a midget-sized clone of himself, Mini-Me
(Verne Troyer). Having successfully stolen Austin's "mojo"
(his libido), Dr. Evil can concentrate on his ultimate mission
of destroying the world. Meanwhile, Austin, with the help of
gorgeous agent Felicity Shagwell (Heather Graham), must now
not only contend with Dr. Evil, but also the small but vicious
Mini-Me. Also in this installment, Evil's son, Scott (Seth Green),
finds out who his mother is, and Mike Myers stars as a third
character--rotund and truly disgusting Scotsman Fat Bastard.
More raucous fun in the spirit of its 1997 smash predecessor,
AUSTIN POWERS: THE SPY WHO SHAGGED ME once again thrills audiences
with its inexhaustible humor. |
|
| |
| RUN
LOLA RUN |
| 082099 |
| Set against the gritty urban scenescape of
Berlin and a pounding techno soundtrack, RUN LOLA RUN is a frenetic,
inventive existential thriller that explores the life-altering
impact of seemingly inconsequential actions. Beautiful, hip,
and young, poor Lola has but 20 minutes to locate a missing
bag containing 100,000 Deutsche marks or come up with the money
some other way--if she can't, gangsters are going to kill her
boyfriend. A pulse-raising race against time, the film employs
a startling array of innovative techniques to present three
separate scenarios, all departing from a single split-second
decision Lola makes. Franka Patente, who also sings on the soundtrack,
is mesmerizing as Lola. Winner of the Audience Award at the
Sundance Film Festival; Best Film, Best Supporting Actress,
Best Supporting Actor, Best Director at the German Film Awards;
1998 Bambi Award; and the Golden Space Needle Award for Best
Film at the Seattle International Film Festival. |
|
| |
| AUTUMN
TALES |
| 082099 |
| In Eric Rohmer's AUTUMN TALE, two match-making
schemes go awry, both at the expense of Magali (Béatrice
| | |