Reviews

Kevin Smith goes mature and mainstream

Stanley Kramer's star-studded 1961 version of the Nuremberg Trials sees Burt Lancaster as a German collaborator, Spencer Tracy as a US judge, and has cameos for practically everyone else: Marlene Dietrich, Richard Widmark, Montgomery Clift and Judy Garland. The latter two, emaciated and tattered, provide unintentionally ghoulish viewing, but the flick itself is a tad worthy.

Possibly the best John Grisham-based flick since The Firm: OK, the rest were lousy, but Gary Fleder rattles this courtroom thriller along with pace and panache, and a stellar cast. Lawyers Dustin Hoffman (anti-guns) and Gene Hackman (pro-his own fat pay cheque) face off as a widow claims damages for her husband's shooting. But jury rigger John Cusack and his moll RachelWeisz are the wild cards. Classy potboiler.

A debut from 24-year-old Jérôme Bonnell that suggests he could well be the heir to Eric Rohmer. The Frenchman boasts a subtle eye beyond his years, as this love story-disguised as a coming-of-age melodrama-slowly develops from The Hairdresser's Husband-style infatuation to genuine insight and intimacy. Olga's chignon is a red herring; it's the pair at the film's heart that you'll watch. And it's some heart.

Concussive debut album from New York avant-rockers

The Korgis' bittersweet 1980 hit "Everybody's Got To Learn Some Time", and 1998's future of rock'n'roll, Beck. What could they have in common? Well, Beck has wised up and done a cover of said narcoleptic nugget. And in this intelligent, melancholy film, it sounds every bit as affecting as intended. Jon Brion, the man behind the score to Magnolia, contributes the bulk, while The Polyphonic Spree chime in with "Light And Day". If you enjoy the Spree un-ironically, you'll also love ELO's "Mr Blue Sky", here in all its bombast.

Stadium-techno heavyweights bow out in style

Garage-punk supergroup do garage-punk supergroup. Go figure

Evan Parker ought to be knighted for re-mastering and reissuing this, one of the great British orchestral jazz records. Utilising stalwart British jazzers alongside wildcard improvisers like saxophonist Parker, guitarist Derek Bailey and percussionist Tony Oxley, Wheeler brilliantly fuses gorgeously limpid melodies ("Ballad Two") with free-form interludes. Great cliffs of brass echo Gil Evans, but note the subtle nod to electric Miles (those two electric pianos) and the inspired use of Norma Winstone's voice as an instrument.

Alec Baldwin excels in this impressive tale of monstrous Vegas gangsters and their victims