Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SATURDAY, September 17, 1994 TAG: 9410240006
SECTION: EXTRA PAGE: 12 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: MIKE MAYO
DATELINE: LENGTH: Long
"Jamon, Jamon" is almost impossible to describe in a review. For most of its running time, this Spanish film is an earthy, bawdy, realistic story about two young lovers, Silvia (Penelope Cruz, from "Belle Epoque") and Jose Luis (Jordi Molla). But there's also a strong satiric streak that shows up at the most surprising times. And finally the ending is so unexpected and so offbeat that it's almost a comic tragedy.
The setting is a grim, dusty industrial area where most activity revolves around bullfighting or the two local industries - ham and men's underwear. Silvia works at the underwear plant. Jose Luis' mother and father (Anna Galiena and Javier Bardem) own it. When Mom learns that Silvia is pregnant and that her weak-willed son wants to get married, she refuses to discuss the matter.
Instead, she hires Raul (Javier Bardem), a mercenary hunka-hunka burnin' funk, to seduce Silvia away from Jose Luis. Silvia's mother, Carmen (Stefania Sandrelli), tells her daughter not to get her hopes up for the rich boy. Carmen should know; she's the town madame.
Of course, nothing works out exactly as planned. But writer-director Bigas Luna is up to something more than a conventional sex farce. A constant undercurrent of social comment occasionally rises to the surface, though the film is not overtly political. Despite the cultural differences, it's easy to imagine the same story being set in this country - in the rural South or the rustbelt North.
It would be more difficult, if not impossible, to translate Luna's ribald barnyard humor, and that's the most enjoyable part of the film. Though this one has been compared to "Like Water for Chocolate," it's really much more similar to the work of Luna's countryman, Pedro Almodovar ("Tie Me Up, Tie Me Down"). "Jamon Jamon" is not a romance. Anyone who expects the lyrical sweetness of "Chocolate" will be disappointed. Those in the mood for something different with a spicy Spanish flavor are in for a treat.
Two asides: There may be some errors in the cast credits listed earlier; the credits are in Spanish and do not list the characters by name. Second, sound is important to the film, and the stereo reproduction on this tape is exceptional.
"Love Cheat and Steal" was produced for the Showtime cable network. It's a decent little noir-ish thriller of the "Body Heat" school that succeeds through savvy casting.
John Lithgow is the semi-prodigal son who's just returned home to a small California town to take over his father's (Dan O'Herlihy) bank. He brings along a lovely young wife (Madchen Amick) he met on holiday in Mexico. She, however, has another husband, Eric Roberts. He's a bank robber who's in prison because she abandoned him after a botched job. At about the same time, he sees her picture on the society page and we learn that the bank has sizeable unexplained cash deposits on hand. You can guess where it's all headed.
Throughout, the production values are first rate. If the performances aren't inspired, they're properly understated. Lithgow, as usual, steals the show. Writer-director William Curran tells the story competently, though he may have one twist too many in the last reel. But don't worry about that. For what it is, "Love, Cheat and Steal" is lots of fun.
"A Streetcar Named Desire" has just been released in "The Original Director's Version." In this case, that's not studio hype. Right before the film's 1951 release, three minutes were cut in an attempt to overcome objections by the Hays Office and the Catholic Church's Legion of Decency. Those included the climactic rape of Blanche (Vivian Leigh) by Stanley (Marlon Brando), other bits of dialogue and references to homosexuality.
The most important deletion, though, may well have been something that's less tangible than a single word or act. It's the staircase scene, one of the most famous moments in American film. Everyone knows it: Brando in the torn T-shirt yelling "Stella! Stella!" like a wounded beast; Kim Hunter in her nightgown descending the stairs to comfort him.
But director Elia Kazan meant for the focus of the scene to be equally divided between the two. In this version, Kim Hunter does a long, slow, sexy stroll down those stairs, with Alex North's smokey jazz score prominent in the background. The scene was good before. It's so hot now that it'll flat curl your hair.
Of course, the whole film has been restored. The black-and-white photography is crisp. The soundtrack matches it. Highly recommended.
"Boys Night Out" is a 1962 movie that treats infidelity as a joke. Today, it's more enjoyable as a look back at different sexual attitudes than as a comedy. It's about three married men - Tony Randall, Howard Duff and Howard Morris - who talk their single pal James Garner into renting an apartment in New York, complete with compliant blonde Kim Novak, for a sort of "time-share" arrangement. She, however, is a psychiatrist studying marital relations, and knows how to lead each of them on.
The film does score a few satiric hits, but now it's hard to fully enjoy for two reasons. First, there's a cloying quality to the romantic side when Garner and Novak smirk and smile at each other. Second, the treatment of women is patronizing and stereotyped. It may be a reflection of early '60s attitudes, but it's still not easy to take in light entertainment.
THE ESSENTIALS:
Jamon Jamon *** Academy. 95 min. Unrated and R-rated for nudity, strong language, sexual content and humor, comic violence and lots of other stuff.
Love, Cheat and Steal ** 1/2 Columbia TriStar. 95 min. Rated R for violence, sexual content, strong language, brief nudity.
A Streetcar Named Desire: The Original Director's Version. **** Warner Home Video. 125 min. Rated PG for subject matter, violence, rape.
Boy's Night Out. ** MGM/UA. 115 min. Unrated, contains no offensive material.
by CNB