Don't You Just Hate Moral Crusaders? No?
The Age
Friday April 30, 1999
A Civil Action (115 mins) M ***
Based on a controversial true story, Jan Schlichtmann (John Travolta) is the hotshot personal injury lawyer whose devotion to his small firm's clients is pretty much determined by the size of the potential payout. The case of a small town with a high disability and mortality rate because of contaminated drinking water doesn't interest Jan much until - yeah! - he finds that golden corporate bad guy responsible who will pay through the nose to keep the lawsuit from going to trial. As he gets his partners deeper and deeper into debt over the case, a likeable courtroom rival (played superbly by Robert Duvall) tries to dissuade Jan from his increasingly moralistic crusade. Written and directed by Steve Zaillian, who also wrote the screenplay for Schindler's List, the only real problem with the film is similar to the main problem with Schindler's: we see the central character undergo a lifealtering change of heart, but we are given insufficiently compelling insight into how and why he has gone from selfish to selfless. Not great, but a good, solid yarn, well told.
Divorcing Jack (106 mins) M ***
Quickwitted, effective political black comedy about the complicated troubles in Northern Ireland. David Thewlis is Dan Starkey, a raggedy journalist for a lowrent humor magazine who unwittingly becomes embroiled in a funny, dangerous plot involving the IRA, the Government, murder, exploding cars and a nurse who works parttime as a NunOGram (Rachel Griffiths). Features one of the more jolting gear changes to a film plot in recent memory.
Simon Birch (115 mins) PG **?
Overlong, oversentimental and unremittingly mawkish, this mercilessly cute comedy/drama about a tiny boy, Simon Birch (impressively played by 11yearold Ian Michael Smith), who is born ``a little different" does make an impression. Though it is not the deeply moving, spiritually uplifting experience writerdirector Mark Steven Johnson clearly had in mind, he does sometimes get under your guard. Wearily predictable and slow as it often is, the lines that Simon spouts are often funny and, dammit, just when you're about ready to dismiss the whole shebang as a misfired piece of wellmeaning, overcooked schmaltz, they go and give you one of those corny, heroic finales that almost has you standing in your seat yelling, ``Go, Simon! You can do it, kid!" It'll make you feel tingly all over.
Redball (91 mins) MA ***
Strong, very well acted characterpropelled detective drama about the hunt for a serial killer in Melbourne. Shot on video and transferred to film, the fractured narrative contrasts the emotional effect the investigation has on Detective Jane Wilson (Belinda McClory) with the callousness and corruption of many of her fellow officers. The portrayal of the corrupt police officers has attracted some very understandable criticisms, with one scene featuring how beat cops can apparently be readily corrupted by a few wise words from their more seasoned superiors. That aside, it is a challenging film, a triumph of lowbudget film making by writerdirector Jon Hewitt, and a showcase for the remarkable talents of Belinda McClory, who is outstanding here.
The Craic (90 mins) M **?
Comedian Jimeoin and friends take us on a modestly mounted, mildly amusing road comedy about a couple of likeable Irish lads who run from trouble in Ireland to the sunny shores of Australia, in the late 1980s.
It is not the jokefest one might have expected, and the trailer for this film gives too much away (it really is a dying art, isn't it?) but the romantic entanglements, chase scenes and the affectionate Perfect Match sendup keep things snapping.
Reviews by Jim Schembri
***** masterpiece, **** excellent, *** very good, ** not bad, * not good, X here boy!
TOP 10 at the box office 1 Matrix 2 The Other Sister 3 8mm 4 Patch Adams 5 Cruel Intentions 6 Message in a Bottle 7 She's All That 8 At First Sight 9 Rugrats 10 Extreme
© 1999 The Age
Share This