ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Saturday, February 17, 1996 TAG: 9602200024
SECTION: EXTRA PAGE: 10 EDITION: METRO
COLUMN: It Came from the Video Store
SOURCE: MIKE MAYO
Reviewers and actresses regularly decry the lack of strong roles for women in films, and they're right. In the freewheeling world of home video, however, things are different. This week, we have four new releases, all featuring assertive women who - for better and for worse - take charge and get things done.
Not to be confused with Albert Camus' novel of the same title, "The Stranger" is a feminist action/biker flick. It's also an unembarrassed rip-off of Clint Eastwood's "High Plains Drifter," but so what? It's still a ton of fun.
The title character (Kathy Long) is The Babe With No Name. She rides her Harley into a dying desert town that's run by Angel (Andrew Divoff) and his ruthless motorcycle gang. In her black bustier and leather jeans, "she looks like a `Cosmo' Don't." That's the opinion of one local (Ginger Lynn Allen), but anybody who messes with this woman or calls her the B-word is immediately dispatched.
Fans of the genre will be one step ahead of Gregory Poirer's plot all the way through, but again, that's fine. Director Fritz Kiersch creates a terrific lonely sense of place, and he spent his limited budget wisely. There's hardly a wasted word or frame of film. Kathy Long seems comfortable with the martial-arts scenes, but most of the dramatic heavy-lifting is left to Divoff as the scene-stealing villain.
"Hourglass" is a fair noir-ish thriller with a few sharp touches...until the last 20 minutes or so. Then it moves into another dimension. The humor is bright and unexpected and the characters are well-observed, but the budget's on the thin side and the plot is familiar.
It has to do with Michael Jardine (C. Thomas Howell, who also directed and co-wrote), L.A. fashion honcho. His Hourglass clothing company is about to get an infusion of Japanese money and he's on top of the world. Then he bumps into the exotic Dara (Sofia Shinas), and bumps into her again and again. As she leads him on, other parts of his life suffer.
To reveal any more would spoil the fun, but getting back to those last 20 minutes, let's just say that some women will really enjoy them. In fact, the conclusion could generate an unusual cult following for "Hourglass." It's also worth noting that Howell, who's done a lot of work in video originals, plays skillfully with several conventions of the medium. And within the limitations of his budget, he creates some striking visuals.
Seen as a guilty pleasure, "Playback" is more enjoyable for its casting and outrageous performances than for anything else. It's a sexy "Executive Suite" about corporate treachery, lechery and double-dealing. George Hamilton is terrific as smarmy boss Gil Braman. In fact, he's only a short step away from the self parody that Leslie Nielsen has used to jumpstart his career as a comic star. Our hero is David Burgess (beefy Jimmy Johnson lookalike Charles Grant). While Braman tries to put some none-too-smooth moves on David's wife, Sarah (Tawny Kitaen), his wicked co-worker Karen (Shannon Whirry) is undermining his newest project. The final ingredient is unscrupulous private detective Harvey Fontenot (the ever-reliable Harry Dean Stanton).
Mix 'em all together and you've got grand cheesy fun.
To call "Bloodknot" "The Last Seduction"-lite gives it too much credit, but it's still a fair suspense film with a feminine slant. From the get-go, we know that Connie Alexander (Kate Vernon) has it in for some or all of the Reaves family. She arrives in their sleepy Southern town (actually Canada), and persuades everyone that she's the fiancee of the eldest son, recently killed while he was stationed overseas. Mom (Margot Kidder) takes some convincing, but her son Tom (Patrick Dempsey) is easy. His girlfriend Julie (Krista Bridges) doesn't buy the act for a second.
Writer Randy Kornfield manages to slip a few surprises into the formula story, but director Jorge Montesi never establishes the right mood of edginess, and in the key roles the acting is flat.
Next week: Home video goes international!
Got a question about home video or film? Contact Mike Mayo at P.O. Box 2491; Roanoke, VA 24010, or by e-mail at 75331.2603compuserve.com
New release this week:
To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything, Julie Newmar **1/2
Starring Patrick Swayze, Wesley Snipes, John Leguizamo. Directed by Beeban Kidron. MCA/Universal. 108 min. Rated PG-13 for subject matter, strong language.
This curious comedy about three drag queens stranded in the sticks is aimed at a mainstream audience. It doesn't mean to challenge viewers; it means to reassure them. In doing so, it reduces drag to nothing more than a slightly unconventional lifestyle choice. The story of sophisticated city folks teaching country rubes what life is all about is standard Hollywood fare. Cute, but not really for younger audiences. M.M.
Copycat
Starring Harry Connick Jr., Holly Hunter, Sigourney Weaver. Warner. Rated R for language, violence and graphic pictures of nude murder victims. 123 min
Crooner Harry Connick Jr. is a bad guy in this pedestrian but well-acted serial-murder story. Holly Hunter's terrific as the efficient, funny cop on the case, and Sigourney Weaver gives a knockout performance as the consulting criminologist. The script gives both actresses great dialogue, but it's not always coherent. The plot gets a little goofy in spots. ``Copycat'' succeeds because the puzzle becomes more interesting as the pieces come together. Knight-Ridder/Tribune
Hackers **1/2
Starring Jonny Lee Miller, Angelina Jolie. Directed by Iain Softley. MGM/UA. Rated PG-13 for profanity. 112 mins.
If you don't expect it to make sense - and prepare for an empty feeling as you leave the theater - you can enjoy this fast-paced teen thriller about a reformed hacker named Dade (Jonny Lee Miller) who falls in with a group of elite hackers upon moving to New York. The love interest is Angelina Jolie, daughter of actor Jon Voight, but she's no match talent-wise for Miller, who looks like Chris O'Donnell but is way more interesting. Think of them as Power Rangers With Powerbooks and you've pretty much got the idea. Katherine Reed The Essentials
The Stranger *** Columbia TriStar. 97 min. Rated R for violence, strong language, brief nudity, sexual content.
Hourglass *** LIVE 91 min. Rated R for subject matter, sexual content, violence, strong language, brief nudity.
Playback *** Paramount. 91 min. Rated R for sexual content, brief nudity, strong language, some violence.
Bloodknot ** Paramount. 98 min. Rated R for strong language, violence, sexual content, nudity.
LENGTH: Long : 121 lines ILLUSTRATION: PHOTO: Ed Begley Jr. (left) and C. Thomas Howell star inby CNB``Hourglass.''