oscar@utcsrgv.UUCP (Oscar M. Nierstrasz) (09/23/83)
Final installment of capsule reviews ...
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This Island Earth (Newman, Joseph; USA; 1955; 87m) **
Good silly science fiction entertainment from the 1950s. Tech-
nicolor is good and so are the special effects...
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Alsino y el Condor (Littin, Miguel; Nicaragua/Cuba; 1982; 89m)
BOMB
Another Kay Armatage selection ... I *really* should have known
better. This is a "politically correct" (fictional) film about
how nasty those American are, and what are they doing in Ni-
caragua. I lasted 10 minutes.
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God's Angry Man (Herzog, Werner; Germany; 1983; 46m) ***
All about Eugene Scott and his television station for God.
Herzog's documentaries always treat you to the bizarre. Much of
the film was humourous, but unfortunately some members of the au-
dience treated the film as a comedy. Herzog is not laughing at
Scott. This is not "Mondo Herzog". This is a very unusual and
disturbing slice of Americana. See it if you can.
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66 Scenes from America (Leth, Jorgen; Denmark; 983; 43m) ** 1/2
This is not a movie so much as a photo album. Each "photograph"
is a scene lasting an average of about 45 seconds (obviously!),
but the photographs move and change slightly while you watch
them. A few are scenes with a fair bit going on in them, but
each of them captures a "moment", much as a photograph does. A
great idea, this film partially answers those questions that you
ask when you see an interesting photograph: what happened next;
what if he took that shot a second later ... As I said, it's a
great idea, but the "photographs" are only average "ooh, ahh" ma-
terial.
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Dernier Combat, Le (Besson, Luc; France; 1983; 90m) ** 1/2
A low budget science fiction film -- the 24 year-old Besson's
directorial debut about post-apocalyptic life. The film is al-
most entirely without dialogue (there are two whispered "bon-
jours"). The film has a few embarrassing moments but is general-
ly fairly original and manages to sustain your interest. Curi-
ously, except for some desert scenes, the entire film was shot on
location in Paris.
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Rabid (Cronenberg, David; Canada; 1977; 91m) **
Good tacky horror film with porno star Marilyn Chambers as the
woman with a strange growth in her armpit that lusts for blood
and gives people a peculiar strain of rabies. See it for 99
cents on the quadruple bill at the Rio.
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Zero de Conduite (Vigo, Jean; France; 1933; 42m) ***
Classic surrealist film about unruly schoolboys.
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Age d'or, L' (Bunuel, Luis; France; 1930; 63m) ****
From the master of surrealism himself ... Essential viewing.
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Tomorrow (Anthony, J.; USA; 1972; 103m) *** 1/2
*Great* low-key film starring Robert Duvall as a backwoods boy
who takes in a deserted pregnant woman and protects her. Based
on a short story by William Faulkner. This is Duvall's personal
favourite amongst his own films.
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Merry Christmas, Mr Lawrence (Oshima, Nagisa; GB; 983; 122m) *
Facile, pretentious, obvious, vapid, pompous, puerile, tedious
and interminable. Absolute schlock. This is archetypal British
"stiff upper lip" with nothing to say. David Bowie is merely
adequate, but should not be blamed for this abomination. The
whole project is a dead loss. Jay Scott (Toronto Globe and Mail
reviewer) understated that the flashback in "Merry Christmas"
would be less objectionable if it were merely redundant. Utterly
embarrassing.
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Filmmaker: A Diary by George Lucas (Lucas, George; USA; 1968-82;
33m) **
This is of value as a curiosity item. Lucas made this film about
his employer and buddy Francis Ford Coppola while he was working
on "The Rain People". Unfortunately the result is mediocre.
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Ballad of Narayama, The (Imamura, Shohei; Japan; 1983; 129m) ***
1/2
Set in Northern Japan of 100 years ago, this is about life in a
small village where those of seventy are carried into the moun-
tains to "meet Narayama". The film is a collection of dramatic
and humours incidents that give us a picture of what life must
have been like. Imamura is no Kurosawa, but he has made a very
entertaining film.
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Don't Look Now (Roeg, Nicholas; GB; 1973; 110m) ***
From the director of "Performance", "Bad Timing" and "Walkabout".
This gripping horror/suspense/occult film stars Donald Sutherland
whose dead daughter is apparently trying to "reach him" and warn
him while he and his wife (Julie Christie) are in Venice.
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Planet "Tailor", The (Domaradzki, Jerzy; Poland; 1983; 83m) **
Neat little picture about a Tailor who survives a kidney opera-
tion after being declared clinically dead, and develops a fasci-
nation for astronomy. He becomes an avid amateur astronomer to
the amusement of fellow villages and the dismay of his wife.
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Heart Like a Wheel (Kaplan, Jonathan; USA; 1983; 115m) ***
This film was reviewed earlier in net.movies. "Heart Like a
Wheel" is an excellent "bio-pic" about racing-car champion Shir-
ley Muldowney. It has thrills, chills, laughs and tears an'
everything. Good acting and good scripting too. Opening soon at
a theatre near you!