Film Dictionary

September 9, 1990

Le Chateau de ma mère (1990) ***

Beautiful film set in the south of France.

Rosencrantz And Guildenstern Are Dead (1990) ***

A deconstruction of "Hamlet". Witty and clever. Winner of the Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival.

A Chinese Ghost Story 2 (1990) ***

A spectacular sequel to the 1987 hit movie from Hong Kong.

Cry-Baby (1990) ***

A musical blend of fifties nostalgia, iconoclastic irreverance and pure campiness, courtesy of cult director John Waters. The film stars Johnny Depp as a punky rebel from the wrong side of the tracks. Songs include:

"Cry Baby" **
"Sh Boom" **
"A Teenage Prayer" *
"King Cry Baby" **
"Teardrops Are Falling" *
"Doin' Time For Bein' Young" *
"Mister Sandman" **
"Please Mister Jailer" **
"High School Hellcats" *

The Freshman (1990) ***

An off-beat comedy about a film student (Matthew Broderick), who's hired by a mafia boss (Marlon Brando) to transport a giant lizard.

Gremlins 2: The New Batch (1990) ***

This sequel to the 1984 hit is a hugely entertaining comedy/horror/satire about a bunch of vicious monsters taking over a New York high-rise. It's more ambitious, louder and scarier than the original. It's also more self-reflexive. It parodizes everything and everyone from Donald Trump and Leonard Maltin to Hulk Hogan, Busby Berkeley and Rambo. Great fun.

The Hunt For Red October (1990) ***

A taut and exciting adaptation of Tom Clancy's bestselling novel about a senior Soviet naval commander (Sean Connery) trying to defect with his state-of-the-art nuclear submarine.

Joe Versus The Volcano (1990) ***

Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan star in this quirky pastiche of Hollywood romances.

Ju Dou (1990) ***

Imaginative, visually splendid Chinese melodrama about an abused wife who seduces her husband's nephew. The film was banned in China not so much for its sexual content (quite tame by Western standards), but rather for its clear political interpretations (old senile Communists destroying young people's dreams of democracy).

The Reflecting Skin (1990) ***

Very unusual, psychological horror film about a young boy suspecting his brother's girlfriend of being a vampire.

Ripoux contre Ripoux (1990) ***

A hilarious action comedy starring Philippe Noiret and Thierry Lhermitte as a pair of slightly corrupted cops fighting against their more corrupted rivals. Full of side-splitting verbal repartees, memorable one-liners, fast-paced action scenes and many surprising plot twists. A very entertaining film, with a dark and very cynical sense of humor.

Simon les nuages (1990) ***

An excellent kidpic from Quebec.

Swordsman (1990) ***

An excellent example of "wu xia pian" genre. Producer Tsui Hark and action director Ching Siu-Tung are credited as co-directors, along with Raymond Lee, Ann Hui, Andrew Kam and King Hu.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (1990) ***

Surprisingly good martial arts film about four huge turtles living in New York severs. Far superior to its sequels.

Tiger Cage 2 (1990) ***

Entertaining chop socky film from Hong Kong. Borrowing from Hitchcock, it's a fast-paced, exciting film.

Tremors (1990) ***

A small Nevada desert town is terrorized by four gigantic worms that crawl underground and devour people by sucking them with their snake-like tentacles. Produced by Gale Anne Hurd ("The Terminator", "Aliens"), "Tremors" is a first-rate horror film, exciting and funny.

The Gods Must Be Crazy II (1990) ***

A sequel to the 1983 hit from South Africa.

Longtime Companion (1990) ***

The Witches (1990) ***

Impressive fantasy film about evil witches persecuting children.

White Hunter Black Heart (1990) ***

Story of John Huston's adventures in Africa, shortly before the filming of "The African Queen".

Vincent And Me (1990) ***

Detective story for kids about a stolen painting by Vincent van Gogh.

Uranus (1990) ***

Fascinating drama set in France after the end of World War II, when people justly or unjustly accused of collaboration found themselves persecuted by Communist vigilantes.

Reversal Of Fortune (1990) ***

True story of Claus of Bulow (Jeremy Irons), whose murder conviction was overturned on appeal by Alan Dershowitz (Ron Silver) and a team of his students and ex-students.

The Rescuers Down Under (1990) ***

A sequel to "The Rescuers" (1977), set in Australia.

Mr And Mrs Bridge (1990) ***

Paul Newman and Joanne Woodward star in this excellent drama directed by James Ivory.

Misery (1990) ***

Superlative adaptation of a Stephen King's novel.

Miller's Crossing (1990) ***

Stylized, noir-ish gangster film from the Coen Brothers.

Korczak (1990) ***

Life of the famous writer and physician.

King Of New York (1990) ***

Curious gangster film starring Christopher Walken as a New York mafia boss.

Home Alone (1990) ***

Very entertaining comedy starring Macaulay Culkin as a little kid left at home my mistake. There is a hilarious mock trailer that suggest a completely different film.

Une Histoire inventée (1990) ***

An original and surrealistic comedy from Quebec.

La Gloire de mon père (1990) ***

French drama adapted from a novel by Marcel Pagnol.

Barbarian Queen 2 (1990) ***

The Sheltering Sky (1990) ***

Pump Up The Volume (1990) ***

August 8, 1990

Nouvelle vague (1990) ***

Jean-Luc Godard en mode mineur, mais avec des mouvements de caméra splendides et une trame sonore hors pairs.

La Baule-les-Pins (1990) ***

A bittersweet, nostalgic film about two young girls coping with their parents' divorce during the summer vacations in 1958. With Valeria Bruni Tedeschi.

Tatie Danielle (1990) **

A mean old woman makes life miserable for all her relatives.

Daddy nostalgie (1990) *

A typical French film, a bit more boring than the average.

Le Mari de la coiffeuse (1990) **

Sexy, but ultimately disappointing film about nostalgia and desire.

La Désenchantée (1990) ***

Interesting French film directed by Benoît Jacquot.

La Vengeance d'une femme (1990) *

Boring drama about a wife and a mistress talking about the man they both loved. Very French and very tedious.

Nikita (1990) ***

Nuit d'été en ville (1990) ***

July 7, 1990

Ay Carmela (1990) **

Days Of Being Wild (1990) **

Wong Kar-Wai's second film is a slow-moving melodrama.

God Of Gamblers 2 (1990) *

Andy Lau and Stephen Chow star in this film about Hong Kong gamblers.

The Little Devil (1990) **

A sympathetic devil tries to enjoy himself after escaping from Hell. Director Roberto Benigni plays the title role.

The Match Factory Girl (1990) ***

A minimalist Finnish film about a young girl looking for love and only finding rejection.

A Moment Of Romance (1990) *

A gangster falls in love with a girl he took as a hostage. Weak melodrama from Hong Kong.

La Voce della luna (1990) *

Federico Fellini's last film and possibly his worst.

Song Of The Exile (1990) *

A Chinese girl from Hong Kong accompanies her Japanese mother on a visit to her homeland. **

Taxi Blues (1990) **

A friendship between a Moscow taxi driver and a musician.

Dreams (1990) *

This esoteric film consists of eight segments. It begins with a little boy sent away from home by his mother. In the second episode, another little boy cries, because his favourite peach trees have been cut down. The third one is set during a terrible blizzard. The following segment shows an officer walking through a tunnel, where he meets his dead comrades. Martin Scorsese plays Vincent Van Gogh in the fifth episode, while the next segment shows exploding nuclear power plants around Mount Fuji. The last two episodes contrast the harsh reality of a nuclear winter with a quiet life in a simple village. Directed by Akira Kurosawa, it's among his weakest films.

Island Of Fire (1990) *

Directed by Chu Yin-Ping. With Tony Leung Kar-Fai, Jackie Chan, Andy Lau, Samo Hung). A prison drama from Hong Kong.

Journey Of Hope (1990) *

Turkish peasants try to immigrate to Switzerland. Predictable film that undeservedly won the Oscar for best foreign film over such masterpieces as "Cyrano de Bergerac" and "The Nasty Girl".

Man Behind The Sun (1990) *

At first, it looks like a serious drama about atrocities commited by the Japanese Army in Manchuria during World War II. Later, however, the film becomes increasingly exploitive in nature. It's like watching "Schindler's List" morphing into "Ilsa, She-Wolf Of The SS". The torture scenes are unbearably gruesome.

Nanni Moretti (1990) *

The portrait of the famous Italian filmmaker.

Tilai (1990) **

Beautiful, but difficult film from Burkina Faso.

Ucieczka z kina "Wolnosc" (1990) *

Confusing, self-reflexive satire about Communist censorship. An unsuccessful pastiche of Woody Allen's "The Purple Rose Of Cairo" (1985).

Puta del Rey (1990) ***

Forbidden Love (1990) ***

Porno (1990) ***

Pont de Varsovia (1990) ***

Erotic Ghost Story (1990) **

Halfaouine l'enfant des terrasses (1990) ***

The Ages Of Lulu (1990) ***

June 6, 1990

Beautiful Dreamers (1990) ***

The Big Steal (1990) ***

H (1990) ***

May 5, 1990

Cargo (1990) *

Trois survivants d'une tempête sont recuillit a bord d'un mysterieux bateau de cargaison. Un film étrange, presque surréaliste.

Le Party (1990) ***

April 4, 1990

Vogue (1990) ****

David Fincher directed this music video from Madonna.

Turbocharged Dream (1990) ***

Directed by Ridley Scott.

The Lunch Date (1990) ***

Amusing, Oscar-winning short about an old lady who sees a black man eating her salad.

Nothing Compares 2 U (1990) ***

12:01 PM (1990) ***

An inspiration for "Groundhog Day".

Groove Is In The Heart (1990) ****

A Deee-Lite music video. It received five MTV Video Music Awards nominations.

Freedom 90 (1990) ***

There are many supermodels in this excellent music video. The lyrics were sufficiently cryptic for most people not to realize George Michael was coming out of the closet with this song. It received five MTV Video Music Awards nominations.

The Evil Cameraman (1990) ***

New Shoes (1990) **

Directed by A.M.Fleming. A woman is talking about her crazy boyfriend.

Dear Rosie (1990) **

Oscar-nominated short film.

Escapades Of The One Particular Mr Noodle (1990) **

Directed by Lee Sook-Yin. Short film about a working girl. Length: 11 min.

Le Baiser (1990) **

Directed by Pascal Ferran. Facial expressions of people who are kissing.

Bronx Cheers (1990) *

Short film about a returning soldier befriending a boxer.

Fierrot le Pou (1990) *

A white basketball player is trying to impress a black girl.

Creature Comforts (1990) ****

Hilarious interviews with zoo animals, who complain about their treatment, but are weary about returning to the wilderness. The animation of clay figurines is excellent and the film is a deft parody of journalistic interviews with "real" people. An Academy Award winner.

Roller Coaster Rabbit (1990) ****

Roger Rabbit takes Baby Herman to an amusement park.

The Prince And The Pauper (1990) ****

It's a 24-minutes short subject adapted from Mark Twain's famous story about a pauper changing places with his royal look-alike (Mickey Mouse plays both roles). Wandering among his subjects, the prince discovers the injustices commited in his name, while the pauper in the palace is blackmailed by a ruthless guard captain (as usual, PegLeg Pete plays a heavy). Instead of comedy, the film focuses on action and suspense. The villains are truly evil as they try to crown the wrong prince and imprison the rightful heir to the throne. The only comic bits come from pauper's frantic efforts to avoid being crowned during the climactic ceremony, but justice ultimately prevails and the evil guard captain is defeated by the prince (with some help from ice-cream vendor Goofy, servant Donald and dog Pluto).