September 28 - October 4, 1995

Crumb. The unusual life of comic-book artist Robert Crumb gets dissected in this rewarding documentary by Crumb's friend, Terry Zwigoff. Without passing judgment or drawing conclusions, the movie takes an in-depth look into Crumb's dysfunctional childhood family and contrasts it with the dark, psychologically unnerving stories in his cartoons. The details that emerge are painful, sad, and often funny; Crumb turns out to be the sort of character whose idiosyncratic life and work connect in several dimensions, many of them hidden, all of them fascinating.

Desperado. Richard Rodriquez, in his $7 million sequel to the $7 thousand career-making actioner El Mariachi, has crafted a funny, enjoyably senseless tribute to the over-the-top violence of directors like John Woo. And he's found the most attractive of leads: Antonio Banderas stars as the dark, vengeful loner with a guitar case full of guns, and Salma Hayek plays the shapely love interest who stitches up his many wounds. Offering their comic services, independent film icons Steve Buscemi, Quentin Tarantino and the shifty-eyed Cheech Marin make valiant efforts, but Rodriguez makes one unfortunate mistake: He kills them off too soon, leaving the second half of his film without much personality. As a friend said, "Good gunplay, bad screenplay."

Jeffrey. Based on the play by Paul Rudnick (the scribe behind the wildly funny Libby Gelman-Waxner movie reviews in Premiere), this tale of love and sex in the age of AIDS has caustic wit to spare. The movie becomes stale, however, whenever the love story between Jeffrey (Steven Weber) and HIV-positive Steve (Michael Weiss) receives focus; the sparks don't fly and you become too aware you're watching a stage adaptation. If only Jeffrey had concentrated a little more on Rudnick's rude, crazy comedy, it would have been a great film--the kind of entertainment that could break down barriers between straights and gays with laughter. Also starring Sigourney Weaver, Nathan Lane and Patrick Stewart, whose supporting performance as an intelligent, tough-minded decorator couldn't be more perfect.

Lord of Illusions. A Manson-esque cult leader with supernatural powers, a world-famous magician with an ill-timed sword trick, a New York detective who is "drawn to the dark side," a love interest/potential victim who wears sheer garments with no bra, and more violent impalings than you can shake a stick at... What more could you ask for from a Clive Barker horror flick? Well, for starters, you might ask for a plot that makes sense, intelligent characters or scares that don't become increasingly dull and hokey as the film progresses. A few more impalings wouldn't hurt.

Mortal Kombat. There's nothing like 90 minutes of karate matches and techno music to make you feel stupid. This expensive and admittedly well-made advertisement for the Mortal Kombat video game doesn't have enough thrills to keep the simplistic comic-book story interesting, and you're left wondering why so many video games center around competitive brutality in the first place. The film is actually rather harmless, though, and good for a laugh or two, so if you're into fight choreography it might be worth a look. Just be warned: No one who sits through the film will be able to get the cheesy title song out of his head for at least a week.

Showgirls. With this heavily hyped NC-17 travesty, Robocop-director Paul Verhoeven has created a new type of robo-erotica where robocharacters have robosex in the roboscummiest areas of that robocity they call Las Vegas. Roboscreenwriter Joe Eszterhas fills his inane, behind-the-scenes roboexposé with gobs of crude robosub-plots and robodialogue, creating plenty of excuses for roboactress Elizabeth Berkely and others to bare their robobreasts and robopelvises with increasing regularity. If you're a robot, you'll no doubt be turned on. (All others stay away.)

Something To Talk About. From the screenwriter who gave us Thelma & Louise comes this insightful yet directionless tale of a Southern wife (Julia Roberts) who has to re-think her life when she learns her husband (Dennis Quaid) has been having several affairs. Crisp direction by Lasse Hallestrom, warmly vibrant cinematography and a handful of fun performances (by Kyra Sedgwick, Robert Duvall and Gene Rowlands) keep the film enjoyable long after the story has lost sight of a point. And Roberts is surprisingly good--after years of limited performances in dumb roles, she really seems to be blossoming.

Unstrung Heroes. Diane Keaton directed this quirky nostalgic tale about a young boy whose troubles dealing with the death of his mother (Andi Macdowell) are exacerbated by the cold, scientific mentality of his father (John Turturro). Ironically, the boy finds emotional release by staying with his two crazy uncles, played by Maury Chaykin and Michael Richards (a.k.a. Seinfeld's Kramer). The result is a low-key, subtly magical-realist film with a welcome European flavor. The film works very well in its modest terms, though viewers should be warned that the picture is as much a weepie as it is a comedy.

Special Screenings

GERMAN FILM SERIES. The following documentaries will screen at 7:30 p.m. in the Modern Languages Building auditorium on the UA campus: September 28, Rauliens Revier (Raulien's Beat), a day in the life of policeman Hans Raulien on his Duisburg-Bruckhausen beat in the heart of Germany's industrial region. Admission is free. All films have English subtitles.

THE ANIMALS' FILM. Still unmatched in its exhaustive coverage of the many aspects of animal exploitation, this is the film to see for those new to or curious about the animal rights movement. The Animals' Film screens at 7 p.m. October 5 and 6 at The Screening Room, 127 E. Congress St. Tickets are $4, with proceeds from Friday's show benefiting Voices for Animals, Tucson's oldest and largest animal rights group. Call 623-3101 for information.

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