John Waters' first 'mainstream' film from 1988 was to be the last bow for underground star Divine, on epic form as the mother of the rebellious Tracy Turnblad (Ricki Lake, making her debut), who becomes a dance star on a teen TV show circa 1962 before transforming into a beatnik civil rights activist. Also featuring extraordinary cameos from Pia Zadora, Debbie Harry and Sonny Bono, this is an utter delight.
Ten-year-old Paul (Harry Eden) is at home in a world of pimps and pushers, bargain basement hookers and fly-blown market cafés. He has to be—since his widowed mother traded mourning for a regular numbing dose of heroin, it's been Paul who has kept the family running, even if that means fetching Mummy her 'medicine'. Gillies Mackinnon's drama is admittedly bleak, but excellent performances and restrained direction make this a rewarding, if heart-wrenching, experience.
Vincente Minnelli's heart-breaking, life-affirming 1944 musical. It's 1903, and as the World's Fair unfolds in their rosy little town, young Judy Garland's family face moving to the Big Apple. One of the great musicals; and as a movie about childhood, it's up there with The Night Of The Hunter and, as a lament for changing times, ranks alongside The Magnificent Ambersons and... The Wild Bunch. Kind of.
When kiddie TV host Rainbow Randolph (Robin Williams) is convicted of corruption, the network demands that his replacement be squeaky clean and beyond reproach. Enter Smoochy the Rhino (Ed Norton), who's so 'PC' it hurts. Can Smoochy learn to cope with the sleazy world of TV, or will Randolph kill him first? Despite a strong cast and Danny DeVito in the director's chair, this fails to spark.
Luchino Visconti's kitsch allegorical melodrama is set in Germany in 1933 and describes the corruption of the wealthy Von Essenbeck family in the face of the Nazi menace. And so, within a few short scenes, they go from fireside home recitals to transvestitism, rape, murder, same-sex orgies, massacres and motherfucking (literally). Made in 1969, it's clearly very political. But that's no excuse.
Affectionate, often very funny Christopher Guest comedy that gently sends up the American folk scene that Dylan fiercely put paid to. It's no Spinal Tap and probably not as hilariously fresh as Best In Show, but Guest and his familiar repertory company—co-writer Eugene Levy, Michael McKean, Harry Shearer, Catherine O'Hara and Parker Posey among them—turn in typically irresistible performances.
Hunter S Thompson, that is. Wayne Ewing shot the bulk of this loose but extremely entertaining documentary during the pre-production for Fear And Loathing In Las Vegas. The author wavering between guru and asshole, and Johnny Depp getting into character by following Thompson around like a groovy little monkey, are good value. For fans of Dr Gonzo, a must-see. (Available exclusively through www.breakfastwithhunter.com)
This 1978 throwback to the all-star men-on-a-mission genre of the late '60s delivers a cracking carbine-load of ripe boys' own adventure, mainly thanks to the quartet of scenery-munching hambones (Richard Burton, Roger Moore, Richard Harris, Hardy Krüger) cast as the eponymous squad of cigar-chomping Africa-bound mercenaries.
This one proves Tim Burton's an absolute master. Billy Crudup hears his dying dad (Albert Finney) recount his implausible life story. Ewan McGregor embodies the young Finney as these tall tales are realised with wow-factor wizardry: a giant, a war, a circus—it's Fellini with a colour box. The climax skilfully plays your scepticism off against your dreams, somehow allowing both to win. Small ponds of audience tears ensue.
The small transit town of Nouadhibou lies between the desert and the sea in the African state of Mauritania. Here, Mauritanian director Abderrahmane Sissako explores the tug between modernity and tradition, adopting an image-heavy poetic style to examine themes of migration and exile, centred around the character of Khatra, a young man caught between two cultures.
