THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Tuesday, January 9, 1996 TAG: 9601090028
SECTION: DAILY BREAK PAGE: E1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: Craig Shapiro
LENGTH: Long : 176 lines
YES, WE SAID the same thing last year about this time, but our half-dozen or so new readers need to know that the following is not a complaint. It's just the facts.
Break it down anyway you want - 480 hours, 20 days, over two-thirds of February - the tireless staff of Videomatic burned a boatload of midnight oil in 1995.
How do we figure?
Like this: Take 288 (the number of videos we saw) and multipy by 100 (the average running time). You get 28,800 minutes. Now, divide by 60 (the number of minutes in an hour) or 1,440 (the number in a day). Ba-da-bing.
(It would be a complaint if we'd had to leave the home office to see all those vids. Did we tell you the final tally was 288?)
We then go over the log, week-by-week, to come up with our 10 favorite videos released in 1995. Videomatic policy is to skip the high-profile titles like ``Interview With the Vampire,'' ``Quiz Show,'' ``Ed Wood,'' ``Forrest Gump,'' ``Apollo 13,'' ``The Mask,'' ``Dumb and Dumber'' and ``Pulp Fiction.'' A few would've made the cut, but so what? Everybody has already seen them.
Besides, the list is what it says - our favorites.
That doesn't make it easier. Now, a favorite 30 or 35 would be a snap, because we could mention ``White,'' ``Red,'' ``It Could Happen to You,'' ``Princess Caraboo,'' ``Nobody's Fool,'' ``Vanya on 42nd Street,'' ``Friday,'' ``Tales from the Hood,'' ``The Scent of Green Papaya,'' ``Kiss of Death,'' ``A Great Day in Harlem'' and ``Delores Claiborne,'' which, if you didn't notice, we just did. Slick, eh?
So, what were The Fave 10? Thought you'd never ask.
I Like It Like That'' (Columbia TriStar). A vibrant, assured slice of life from first-time writer/director Darnell Martin. Lauren Valez is Lisette, who musters the chutzpah to break the home-girl cycle when her well-meaning husband is jailed. Richly comic, yet deeply rooted in reality.
``Once Were Warriors'' (New Line). Explosive and draining, this film centers on a Maori family displaced in contemporary New Zealand. Violence tears from all sides. Rena Owen, as the courageous mother, and Temuera Morrison, her brutal husband, give no-holds-barred performances.
``The Professional'' (Columbia TriStar). French director Luc Besson beats his U.S. counterparts at their own game, creating an actioner that's as stylish as it is original. The bond between a hit man and a girl orphaned by corrupt DEA agents is the heart of the story.
``Heavenly Creatures'' (Miramax). A murder that shocked New Zealand in the 1950s is the focus of director Peter Jackson's haunting film about obsession between two schoolgirls. Blurring the line between fantasy and reality, he shows style to spare, Melanie Lynskey turns in a chilling debut.
``Burnt By the Sun'' (Columbia TriStar). Nikita Mikhalkov's Oscar winner is an unforgettable, deeply moving look at the sins of Stalinism. He plays a Bolshevik hero whose idyllic life is destroyed. His own young daughter co-stars, lending the story a rare poignancy.
``A Man of No Importance'' (Columbia TriStar). The great Albert Finney plays a kindly bus conductor in 1963 Dublin determined to direct ``Salome,'' despite the protests of friends and family. Watching him handle the subtle complexities of the role is a joy. The supporting cast is superb.
``Don Juan DeMarco'' (New Line). Johnny Depp is perfect as a dashing stranger claiming to be the great lover. There's no denying his lust for life, and it rekindles a spark in his doctor. Marlon Brando clearly has fun with the part; he and Depp also generate real chemistry.
``Mrs. Parker and the Vicious Circle'' (New Line). Jennifer Jason Leigh absorbs the role of Dorothy Parker, the caustic, tragic wit who held court at the famed Algonquin Roundtable. It's not a pretty picture, nor is it for every taste, but the impression it leaves is indelible.
``A Little Princess'' (Warner). The team behind ``The Secret Garden'' (1993) again taps the Frances Hogdon Burnett library. The fairy-tale look is flawless and the message - magic has to be believed for it to be real - is universal. It gets a bit dark, so parents, sit in.
``Rob Roy'' (MGM/UA). Liam Neeson is larger-than-life as Robert Roy McGregor, the 18th century Scot who defied the crown. Director Michael Caton-Jones serves up an old-fashioned adventure, one that doesn't lose its characters among all the sweep. Mucho fun.
Close seconds: ``Fear of a Black Hat,'' ``Fresh,'' ``Imaginary Crimes,'' ``Little Odessa,'' ``Clerks,'' ``Cobb,'' ``The Underneath,'' ``Before Sunrise,'' ``The Secret of Roan Inish,'' ``Temptation of a Monk''
Big stinkers: ``Congo,'' ``Disclosure,'' ``Judge Dredd,'' ``The Specialist,'' ``John Carpenter's Village of the Damned''
Kids' stuff: ``Tall Tale: The Unbelievable Adventure,'' ``A Goofy Movie,'' ``The Little Rascals,'' ``Rudyard Kipling's the Jungle Book,'' ``The Pebble and the Penguin''
Fave Star: Alyssa Milano. She grew on TV's ``Who's the Boss?'' but shed that goody-goody image, in every sense, in the embraceably bad ``Embrace of the Vampire.'' Her latest, ``Poison Ivy 2: Lily,'' is out next week.
PRICED TO GO: Deals, deals, deals.
New Line: ``Poison Ivy,'' ``Blink,'' ``The Rapture'' ($14.98), ``Death and the Maiden,'' ``Embrace of the Vampire,'' ``Bitter Moon'' ($19.98)
Columbia TriStar: ``Poetic Justice,'' ``Mississippi Masala,'' ``Zebrahead'' ($14.95), ``Higher Learning'' ($19.95), a Sidney Poitier set.
TOP TAPES (in Billboard):
Sales: ``Apollo 13,'' ``The Santa Clause,'' ``Star Wars Trilogy,'' ``Batman Forever,'' ``Cinderella''
Rentals: ``Apollo 13,'' ``Crimson Tide,'' ``Congo,'' ``Species,'' ``Die Hard With a Vengeance''
The Couch Report
``The Net'' (Columbia TriStar, 1995). It's ``1984'' again. A computer analyst becomes the target of corporate bad guys when she gets wind of a new program that's bad news. She's left without an I.D., resources or friends, setting up an oft-used premise: How will she beat the odds? The down-to-earth appeal of Sandra Bullock gives this thriller a big lift. One thing's certain, it won't encourage you to hop on the web. Videomatic says: B
(CAST: Sandra Bullock, Jeremy Northam, Dennis Miller, Diane Baker. RATED: PG-13 for violence, language, adult situations; 114 mins.)
``Martha & Ethel'' (Columbia TriStar, 1995). Martha, Teutonic to the core, is a formally trained nanny who left Hitler's Germany. Ethel, warm and giving, comes from rural South Carolina. But this delightful, reaffirming documentary is more than a portrait of these exceptional ladies, now in their 90s. Produced by two of the women they raised, it redefines ``family'' as it documents the last 50 years of social evolution. Videomatic says: B+
(RATED: G; 80 mins.)
``Bhaji on the Beach'' (Columbia TriStar, 1995). Three generations of Indian women take a day trip to the British seaside resort of Blackpool. Think of it as a cultural and social travelogue. One woman has left her abusive husband; another is pregnant by her Jamaican boyfriend; a third is torn between tradition and the modern world. Sound familiar? The ensemble cast is splendid. There's not an off-note anywhere. Videomatic says: B+
(CAST: Lalita Ahmed, Kim Vithana, Shaheen Khan, Sarita Khajuria. RATED: R for ; 101 mins.)
``The Incredibly True Adventures of 2 Girls in Love'' (New Line, 1995). Don't be put off by the title. The girls are from wildly different backgrounds, but the first love they share is pure and true. As a writer, Maria Maggentis is funny and insightful. As a director, she gets fine performances from her young stars and strong supporting cast. Warm and irresistible. Videomatic says: B+
(CAST: Laurel Holloman, Nicole Parker, Nelson Rodriguez. RATED: R for language, nudity; 94 mins.)
``The Glass Shield'' (Miramax, 1995). If not for headlines about racism and brutality, this drama, based on the experiences of the first minority officer in an all-white L.A. sheriff's station, might be dismissed. Writer-director Charles Burnett makes the story more compelling by keeping it straightforward. Michael Boatman does a good job as the idealistic deputy. Videomatic says: B
(CAST: Michael Boatman, Lori Petty, Richard Anderson, Bernie Casey. RATED: PG-13 for violence; 110 mins.)
``Amanda and the Alien'' (Republic, 1995). ``Clueless'' meets ``Species''? Hardly. This dud would have to be witty and sexy. Instead, it's Acting 101 and dime-store FX as a lonely artist tries to help her horny E.T. make it home. Videomatic says: F
(CAST: Nicole Eggert, Michael Bendetti, John Diehl, Stacy Keach. RATED: R for violence, language, nudity; 94 mins.)
Also: Beau and Lloyd Bridges in ``The Outer Limits: Sandkings,'' the premiere episode of the Showtime series (unrated), and ``Above Suspicion,'' an HBO mystery with Christopher Reeve, Joe Mantegna and Kim Cattrall (R)
Next Tuesday: ``Nine Months,'' ``The Indian in the Cupboard,'' ``Clive Barker's Lord of Illusions,'' ``Poison Ivy 2: Lily,'' ``Anatomy of Love,'' ``Street Fighter II: The Animated Movie,'' ``The Courtyard,'' ``Night of the Scarecrow'' ILLUSTRATION: HEAVENLY CREATURES
THE FAVE 10: Best videos of 1995
Heavenly Creatures
I Like It Like That
Once They Were Warriors
The Professionl
Burnt By the Sun
Rob Roy
A Man of No Importance
Don Juan DeMarco
Mrs. Parker and the Vicious Circle
A Little Princess
ON THE SHELF
The Net
Martha & Ethel
Bhaji on the Beach
Above Suspicion
The down-to-earth appeal of Sandra Bullock gives techno-thriller
``The Net'' a big lift. Videomatic gives it a B.
by CNB