Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SATURDAY, October 16, 1993 TAG: 9312030383
SECTION: EXTRA PAGE: B12 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: MIKE MAYO
DATELINE: LENGTH: Long
It's never been that simple, of course, and it certainly doesn't hold true in the freewheeling world of home video, where the characters involved are apt to be any combination of human, supernatural or whatever, and sexual orientation is not to be taken for granted either.
``Dust Devil,'' for instance, is a love/horror story with a sharp political edge. The setting is the Namibian desert, when that country was ruled by South Africa. Wendy (Chelsea Fields) is a South African woman who's running away from her abusive husband (Rufus Stewart). On a lonely road she picks up a strange hitchhiker (Robert Burke). She should have been tipped off by his ugly sideburns. He's the title character, a spiritual creature who is endlessly rejuvenated by ritual murder.
The only person who has any understanding of what he's doing is a black policeman, Sgt. Ben Mugurobe (Zakes Mokae). The twist here is that this demon kills only people who have reached a point of spiritual despair - those who are about to commit suicide - and he even develops an emotional attachment to them.
In terms of tone and style, ``Dust Devil'' is similar to the sleeper ``Candyman.'' Both try to tell a horror story within a realistic contemporary context, and both feature well-developed characters. Writer-director Richard Stanley does tend to get too tricky and inventive for his own good toward the end, and at times the film threatens to become a spaghetti western. But it's still a cut above the norm. Recommended for horror fans.
``Sex, Love & Cold Hard Cash'' is a fair little thriller about an ex-con and a call girl. Colson (Anthony John Denison) has served 10 years of hard time for armed robbery. He didn't rat on his pals because he knows there's a million waiting for him when he gets out. Sara (JoBeth Williams) is an expensive prostitute who has managed to save $750,000 over 10 years and is ready to retire.
Each of them gets a nasty surprise. After some twists that don't make much sense, they find themselves partners in another scheme that might be much more profitable.
The mechanics of writer-director Harry S. Longstreet's plot are clumsy. In that regard, the film is never particularly involving. The slowly developed love story is much more interesting than the crime story. JoBeth Williams is very good as a flinty pragmatist. If Denison seems too distant and cold, he gives his character the sense of off-balance uncertainty that must be a part of someone who's just been released from an institution.
As these two are getting to know each other, the story has the unpredictability of a good Elmore Leonard novel. If that quality had been carried over to the rest of the film, this one would be a real hit, despite its made-for-cable production values. Still, it rates a qualified recommendation.
``Desire'' is an extremely European, extremely literary love story about a French girl, George McEwan (Greta Scacchi), who falls for a Scottish fisherman, Gavin McCall (Vincent D'Onofrio). The story begins with her attending his funeral and then flashes back to their first meeting as teen-agers when she spent her summers in Scotland. Can an intellectual and a working man find happiness together?
It's tough. On their first date she quotes Matthew Arnold. Then a few years later she discovers existentialism, and after that she becomes a feminist college professor. Over the years and through various marriages and children, they find time for the occasional long weekend of passion together in scenic locales.
Writer-director Andrew Birkin does handle the story and the characters seriously, but it's not particularly compelling. The lovers remain distant and their allegedly overpowering desire seems forced.
``Three of Hearts'' is an off-beat, flawed romantic comedy that never really found an audience in theaters earlier this year. Now it arrives on home video after a curious twist.
It's the story of a New York phone sex hustler, Joey (William Baldwin), who finds himself caught in the middle of a serious lovers' quarrel between Connie (Kelly Lynch) and Ellen (Sherilyn Fenn), who has walked out of their relationship. But Connie still loves her. When Joey boasts, ``Any woman, any time, any place, guaranteed,'' Connie hires him to seduce and abandon Ellen, thereby winning her back.
As a romantic comedy, the film has some good moments. An uneven tone is balanced against three good performances by the leads. Perhaps because the filmmakers were a little uncertain about how to handle these unusual characters, they made two endings.
Before the movie was released on tape, video retailers and distributors saw both endings and voted for their favorite. They did the right thing and retained the original, despite the fact that it contains a blatant continuity error. Note how Baldwin's T-shirt miraculously changes color during the last scene.
\ The Essentials:
Dust Devil: *** Paramount. 87 min. Rated R for graphic violence, sexual content, brief nudity, strong language.
Sex, Love & Cold Hard Cash: ** 1/2 MCA Universal. 86 min. Rated PG-13 for violence, sexual content.
Desire: * 1/2 Academy. 103 min. Rating not yet determined, probably PG-13 for sexual content, language.
Three of Hearts: ** 1/2. Columbia TriStar. 105 min. Rated R for subject matter, strong language, some violence.
\ New releases this week:
The Sandlot: ***
Starring Karen Allen, Tom Guiry.
Written and directed by David Mickey Evans. FoxVideo. 110 min. Rated PG for some cussing.
This sweet-natured kids' movie attempts to do for pick-up baseball what ``Matinee'' did for horror movies. It's a nostalgic celebration of growing up in small-town America in the early 1960s, playing summer games and lusting after older girls. Anyone who can go with David Mickey Evans' flow will have a fine time. Recommended for kids - boys in particular.
Cop And a Half: **
Starring Burt Reynolds, Norman D. Golden II. Directed by Henry Winkler. MCA/Universal. 87 min. Rated PG for a little bathroom humor, mild violence.
This well-intentioned, poorly made kids' movie is a combination of ``Home Alone'' and ``Lethal Weapon'' without the violence. The characters
are thin stereotypes; the plot contains no surprises or suspense; overall, the film has a low-budget, almost made-for-TV look to it. Burt Reynolds is his familiar self, and his pint-sized co-star, Norman D. Golden II, is cuter than cute.
by CNB