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~event) G.l. Jane
us
(1997)
Dlr: Ridley Scott Odeon - now s howing
n all-time classic film can hardly be expected from a film called G./. Jane, but Ridley Scott's latest falls far, far short of previous epics such as 8/aderunner, Alien, and Thelma and Louise. A cross between Private Benjamin and Full Metal Jacket is perhaps a more accurate description of what's on offer here , though Scott's movie lacks the humour of the former and the action of the latter Dem1 Moore stars as Jordan O'Neill, a tough , ambitious woman determined to survive the rigorous training of a Navy Seal. She is the first woman to ever be involved in such training, which inevitably stirs up resentment f1vm both fellow
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Dlana Goodman hits the floor and gives us 10 of the best Apocalypse Now (1979) Capt. Willard (Martin Sheen} gets sent deep into gook territory to kill the crazed Col. Kurtz (Marlon Brando). Born on the Fourth of July (1989) it's Tom Cruise! And he's acting! Ron Kovic {Tom Cruise} has his innocence destroyed by the Vietnam war. Bridge on the River Kwai (1 957) Col. Nicholson (Aiec Guinness) leads a troop of British POWs who are duped into building a bridge for the Japanese. it's time for director David Lean to be canonised. Catch-22 (1970) No good guys. No bad guys. The point is that
Seven Years in Tibet
us
(1997)
Dir: Jean Arm and Odeon - now showing
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his film is trying very hard to do something that has just been done: epic landscapes, wo rld war background, macho overtones, solitary mai n character, and a few dodgy European accent. Ring any bells? Sadly, this film is not The English Patient. Even more sadly, it thinks it is, to the extent that it indulges itself with a 131 minute running time. This could have been perfectly acceptable Hollywood entertainment: two wars, blizzards on
anted for offences such as rape , use of drugs and sodomy, director Roman Polanski fled the US 20 years ago, but now, wi th his career as shaky as ever, Polanski seems to be making the move to cut a deal with US law enforcement and return to his short but glamorous career in Hollywood. The case was re-opened by the LA district attorney last week, and talks will undoubtedly be lengthy. Polanski might want to consider heading to Britain as the national industry re-emerges. Figures from the Office of National Statistics show that the British film industry as a whole turned a cool £91 million profit in
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soldiers and high ranking officials. But, as always, Demi struggles through enduring weeks of physical and emotional hell to become the first woman Navy Seal. In portraying the ambitious, determmed O'Neill, Demi produces an average performance, as does Anne Bancroft, the manipulative senator. lt seems strange that the talents of these actresses, and the direction of Ridley Scott, combine to make such a dire movie. Relentless scenes of Demi doing press-ups, pushups and sit-ups are unnecessary, and the whole G I. Jane versus the G. I. Joes scenario becomes tiresome and annoying. There are certain scenes that do work Very well, and believably portray the training of a Navy Seal. Despite this, it's hard to believe that such an uninspiring film took eight months to research . lt is of little surprise that its intended release .n America was delayed in an attempt to save Demi Moore s career after Striptease. Sadly, though, G. I. Jane might well put the final nail in Demi's Max Dunbar box office coffin .
everyone IS insane and nothing IS fair. Courage Under Fire (1996) An undeservedly ignored film in which Meg Ryan gets angry and shoots at a few people. From Here to Eternity (1953) Best known for the famous beach scene with Deborah Kerr and Burt Lancaster. Oh, and Frank Smatra can act, but it's hard to take him seriously. Glory (1989) Whites and blacks and racial tension and the American Civil War. Maybe a little too melodramatic. The Great Escape (1963) lngemous, brotherly and noble Allied POWs versus those naughty Nazis. Is it humanly possible for Steve McQueen to be more cool? M*A•s•w (1970) Wacky surgeons break the rules as much as they like as long as the job gets done. Great, but really episodic. No wonder it made a good TV show. 1941 (1979) The com manding officer cries at the cinema while watch1ng Dumbo. Even Steven Spielberg can make a turkey.
mountains, people escaping from a POW camp, and the inevitable emotional redemption of the formerly committed Nazi. Unfortunately, JeanJacques Annaud wanted more than your average Hollywood fi lm , so we are shown repeated examples of the saintliness of the Tibetans and the error of Western ways, as Pitt's Nazi gym teacher boasts about his Olympic gold medal. The scenes between Pitt and Jamyang Jamtsho Wangchuk (the Dalai Lama at 14} are quite horribly sentimental. They save one another from loneliness, and bad macho Brad learns about love and friendship . This is all rather amusingly simple in an obviously big budg et film . Sadly, this is another example of Hollywood tryi ng to tackle 'issues' and fai ling miserably. Hopefully Martin Scorsese's Kundun, which also covers the life of the Dalai Lama, will prove to be Mo Herdman more intellectual fare.
1996 (that's pre-Fully Monty but postTrainspotting, mind you} and a significant improvement on the £1Omillion loss in 1995. Tibetan monk Penor Rinpoche has announced that he has concluded that muttering action hero Steven Seagal is, in fact, the reincarnated spirit of Buddhist sage Chung-rag DorJe. Seagal first met Rinpoche in 1996 when the monk was highly impressed by Seagal's aura. Not surprisingly, the announcement has upset and/or confused many devout Buddhists. Writer/director Quentin Tarantino got into a row at a posh restaurant with producer Don Murphy, after Murphy said some highly unflattering things about the making of Natural Born Killers. Tarantino and Murphy first clashed on the set of NBK over Tarantino's screenplay, which ended up as the basis for he Oliver Stone film, but was never filmed itself. The fight was described as everyth1 ng from a brawl to a bout of slapping. Nice.