rjnoe@ihlts.UUCP (Roger Noe) (12/12/83)
"Gorky Park" is the title of an Orion Pictures release scheduled to hit
theatres later this week. It is based on the novel of the same name
written by Martin Cruz Smith. This film looks likely to be one of the
season's hits because of the acting, direction, story, and sets.
William Hurt stars as the Moscow militia chief homicide investigator
Arkady Renko. While the film's Renko cannot possibly match the novel's
Renko for depth and complexity of character, Hurt's acting technique
lends an astonishing sense of realism to the character. Many other actors
would turn the fascinating, somewhat enigmatic Renko into an unsympathetic
character. Hurt seems absolutely unable to perform in any way but
excellently. Yet he does not steal the whole picture because of Lee
Marvin's fine portrayal of American furrier Jack Osborne. Marvin has all
but perfected his craft in translating the ice-cold Osborne from paper to
screen. These actors are well cast into their respective roles. So is
Brian Dennehy as New York city detective William Kirwill. Ian McDiarmid
has some of the funnier lines in the picture as Professor Andreev. It is
disappointing that Joanna Pacula, as Irina, cannot match these actors in
terms of developing an interesting character.
For all the acting talent in the film, one must not neglect to applaud the
outstanding direction of Michael Apted. These two factors, acting and
direction, will determine the ultimate success or failure of this film,
as they so often do.
The story revolves around the investigation of the murders and mutilation
of three people in Gorky Park, within Moscow. Arkady Renko suspects that
the KGB killed these people and removed their faces and fingertips. This
presents Renko with a dilemma in that he must investigate the murders but
puts himself in the hazardous position of investigating the KGB. The
funniest line in the film occurs in connection with this. Arkady remarks
that the KGB must not be above the law or they will be "little better than
the CIA." A complex plot weaves around the other main characters and some
furry animals that does not see a resolution until the last scenes of the
film. Dennis Potter's screenplay keeps the story adequately taut, but does
not do justice to Smith's novel. One warning: one of the credits at the
end of the film states, "Cadavers by . . . Carl Fullerton Company".
Most of all, the picture is very enjoyable to look at. Filmed entirely
on location in Finland and Sweden, the exteriors are breathtakingly
beautiful. And I personally enjoyed James Horner's music quite a lot.
My rating is 3.5 stars out of 4.
PARTIAL CAST
Arkady Renko William Hurt
Jack Osborne Lee Marvin
William Kirwill Brian Dennehy
Iamskoy Ian Bannen
Irina Joanna Pacula
Pasha Michael Elphick
Anton Richard Griffiths
Pribluda Rikki Fulton
General Alexander Knox
Golodkin Alexei Sayle
Professor Andreev Ian McDiarmid
KGB Agent Rurik Niall O'Brien
PARTIAL CREDITS
Directed by Michael Apted
Produced by Gene Kirkwood and
Howard W. Koch, Jr.
Executive Producer Bob Larson
Screenplay by Dennis Potter
Based upon the novel by Martin Cruz Smith
Music Composed by James Horner
Director of Photography Ralf D. Bode, A.S.C.
Production Designer Paul Sylbert
Costume Designer Richard Bruno
Film Editor Dennis Virkler
Casting by Mary Selway
Set Decorator Michael Seirton
--
Roger Noe UUCP: ihnp4!ihlts!rjnoe
ARPA: ihnp4!ihlts!rjnoe@BERKELEYwhm@arizona.UUCP (01/15/84)
I recently saw Gorky Park with a friend, and we were arguing about a scene
in the movie. Specifically, there's a scene where Renko meets Osborne in a
restaurant and in the background, couples are dancing. The question is:
what's the dance that the people are doing. I speculated Samba because it
looked a little bit like Samba, and Samba is mentioned in the book; my friend
strongly disagreed, but couldn't offer an alternative. Is anyone willing
to venture a semi-authoritative statement on what the dance is?
Thanks,
Bill Mitchell
whm.arizona@rand-relay
{kpno,mcnc,utah-cs}!arizona!whm