ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Saturday, July 27, 1996 TAG: 9607290006
SECTION: EXTRA PAGE: B-12 EDITION: METRO
COLUMN: IT CAME FROM THE VIDEO STORE
SOURCE: MIKE MAYO
This week, home video gets serious with one charitable enterprise that deserves special mention and three new releases.
Fast Forward to End Hunger is the video industry's summer campaign to help feed hungry kids. It's a nationwide project with individual video stores collecting donations and running public service announcements. In this part of the world, the participating stores are Backstage Pass in Stuart and all Blockbusters. The money they bring in will go directly to the Blue Ridge Area Food Bank in Verona and Second Harvest of Southwest Virginia in Roanoke.
This is a worthwhile effort, an opportunity for every videophile to do something about childhood hunger. So, as if you didn't need another reason, now is the time to put down the remote, head on over to the video store, rent some tapes and drop a couple of bucks in the bucket. (If any other stores in the area are taking part in FFEH, contact one of the addresses at the end of the column and let me know.)
Now, back to our regular scheduled programming:
On one level, it's easy to see why "The Crossing Guard" didn't catch on in a limited theatrical release. The story of two parents' reaction to the death of a child is nobody's idea of a good time at the movies. And "a good time at the movies" is what we've come to expect all films to be.
Freddy (Jack Nicholson) hangs out in strip joints, drinks too much and is obsessed with revenge. His ex-wife, Mary (Anjelica Huston), goes to group therapy sessions and seems to be over the worst of her grief. Then Booth (David Morse), the drunken driver who killed their daughter years before, is released from prison. Freddy decides to kill him.
Those are the bare bones of writer-director Sean Penn's story. At the film's best, Penn and Nicholson are able to make Freddy's dislocation, anger and frustration seem absolutely real. As characters, Booth and Mary are almost as strong, but the film belongs to Nicholson. Freddy and his demons are the focus.
For the most part, Penn handles things well. He makes mistakes in little things - over-relying on cigarettes as props at the big emotional moments and stretching too far for an ending that will strike some as false. But even if it's not perfect, the film is still worth watching, particularly for fans of the cast. By the way, Bruce Springsteen's theme, "Missing," isn't up there with "The Streets of Philadelphia," but it's better than "Dead Man Walking."
The seamy underside of the film business is such familiar territory that one more expos shouldn't surprise anyone, but "Heidi Fleiss: Hollywood Madam" is still an eye-opener. This video tabloid is a noir-ish documentary that manages to be just as sleazy as its subject - perhaps even sleazier, though opinions will differ on that.
Most people probably know that Heidi Fleiss was arrested for pandering in 1993. She ran a prostitution ring with a clientele list that included some of the movies' most important names. A year after the arrest, producer-director-narrator Nick Broomfield arrived in Tinseltown from England with a camera and a fistful of dollars. He was prepared to buy the story of anyone who had inside knowledge of the case - anyone from hookers to ex-Police Chief Daryl Gates, who picks up his cash payment on camera. In doing so, Gates simply underscores what everyone else in the film understands: Money is the only thing that counts in that town.
The main players are Fleiss herself, a flint-hard chippy; Ivan Nagy, an ex-lover who swears he didn't introduce her to the business; and the aging Madam Alex, Fleiss' convicted competition. Taken as a group, they're about as distasteful a bunch as any you'll ever see - and that includes Broomfield himself who dives into their world with unseemly enthusiasm for the most depraved details of his often inconclusive interviews. Their complicated, vapid tale is filled with backbiting, lies and self-serving evasions. In the end, about the only person involved who retains any integrity is porn star Ron Jeremy. He neither hides what he does nor tries to make himself more important than he is.
Though the tape is compelling and watchable all the way through, it's also so sordid that you'll want to clean the heads on your VCR as soon as it's over.
From the box art to the casting to the story, it's obvious that the producers of "Jack & Sarah" were hoping to re-create the success of "Four Weddings and a Funeral." But that elusive cinematic chemistry has to begin with a solid script, and the film has one big strike against it. The subject is death and grieving, and the filmmakers' approach is sometimes comic, sometimes dramatic, sometimes uncomfortable.
Jack's (Richard E. Grant) wife (Imogen Stubbs) dies giving birth to their daughter, Sarah. He falls into drunken depression, unable to have anything to do with the baby or his half-renovated London town house. Before long, of course, he comes around and hires Amy (Samantha Mathis), an enthusiastic but completely inexperienced nanny. That side of the story contains few surprises, and the baby stuff is equally familiar. One saving grace is another brilliant supporting performance from Sir Ian McKellen as William, an unexpectedly versatile alcoholic. Overall, writer/director Tim Sullivan got good performances from an able cast. Combined with the London locations, they give the film an undeniable attractiveness. And despite the formulaic nature of the material, it's enjoyable enough to earn a qualified recommendation.
Next week: From serious to soft-core, the triumphant return of the Guilty Pleasure Index!
Got a question about home video or film? Contact your favorite video columnist at P.O. Box 2491; Roanoke, Va. 24010-2491, or by e-mail at 75331.2603compuserve.com.
New releases this week:
Diabolique HH1/2
Starring Sharon Stone, Chazz Palminteri, Isabelle Adjani, Kathy Bates. Directed by Jeremiah Chechik. Warner Home Video. 105 minutes. Rated R for subject matter, violence, sexual content, brief nudity.
Stated simply, the basic message here is: "Men are scum." And though this remake of a 1955 French thriller is something of a muddled mess, its case is persuasive. Palminteri has created one of the most delightfully despicable villains of recent years. Arrayed against him are one weak sister (Adjani) and two formidable females (Sharon Stone and Kathy Bates). | - Mike Mayo
Homeward Bound II HHH
Starring the voices of Michael J. Fox, Sally Field and Ralph Waite. Buena Vista/Disney. 85 minutes. Rated G.
A bona fide kid pleaser. Disney live-action adventure about three pets separated from their owners and the animals' many adventures during their attempts to get home. | - Katherine Reed
Othello HH
Starring Laurence Fishburne. Directed by Kenneth Branagh. Columbia TriStar. 123 minutes. Rated R.
Branagh walks off with this silly film adaptation of the Shakespeare tragedy, starring Laurence Fishburne as ``The Moor.'' Partly because of Fishburne's flat performance and partly because director Oliver Parker makes no commitment to an interpretation of the play, this ``Othello'' makes little impression - except when it is being unintentionally funny. | - KR
The Essentials:
The Crossing Guard HHH Miramax/Buena Vista. 111 minutes. Rated R for strong language, some violence, brief nudity.
Heidi Fleiss: Hollywood Madam HHH BMG Independents. 106 minutes. Unrated, contains strong subject matter, language, nudity.
Jack & Sarah HH1/2 PolyGram Video 110 minutes. Rated PG for subject matter, strong language.
LENGTH: Long : 142 lines ILLUSTRATION: PHOTO: Jack Nicholson and Anjelica Huston play grieving parentsby CNBin ``The Crossing Guard,'' which was directed by Sean Penn.