Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SATURDAY, March 11, 1995 TAG: 9503160004
SECTION: EXTRA PAGE: 12 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: MIKE MAYO
DATELINE: LENGTH: Long
Though Robert Bolt may have been best-known as a playwright and Calder Willingham as a novelist, both wrote memorable scripts for some of the most important movies of the 1960s.
Bolt won an Academy Award for his adaptation of his play ``A Man for All Seasons.'' His best work was done with director David Lean on ``Lawrence of Arabia,'' ``Doctor Zhivago'' and the underrated ``Ryan's Daughter.'' He also wrote the equally underrated 1984 historical drama, ``The Bounty.''
Calder Willingham could take credit for the screenplay for ``The Graduate'' and two influential Westerns, Marlon Brando's ``One-Eyed Jacks'' and ``Little Big Man.'' He was also behind the wonderfully entertaining ``The Vikings'' and a little-known film that many fans rate among Robert Altman's best, ``Thieves Like Us.''
Though both men did their best work for ``big-screen'' entertainment, they were always good storytellers, so their movies are still enjoyable on home video, and are well worth another look. (Videographies follow.)
Anyone who's gone into a video store recently - or a drug store or department store ... whatever - has noticed that ``The Lion King'' has arrived. The price seems to vary from $17 to $19, not counting the usual ridiculously complicated rebate come-ons, so the theatrical juggernaut is certain to be equally popular on video. And it should be.
Yes, the film does lose something on the small screen, but that's certainly not going to bother the small-fry, who'll want to park themselves two feet from the tube and crank up the volume. More importantly, the Disney people have done their usual careful work with the transfer to video. The clarity of image and sound is first-rate. The opening ``Circle of Life'' montage is one of the most impressive combinations of music and animated image that anyone's put on film.
In short, ``The Lion King'' is going to be a huge hit - maybe the biggest ever, or until April 28 when ``Forrest Gump'' arrives in video stores.
``Sports Illustrated 1995 Swimsuit Video'' isn't getting as much shelf space as Simba and Mufasa, but like the magazine issue it's based on, it's become something of an institution. It's open to the same criticisms, too - sexist, ageist, shallow, demeaning, stereotyped, etc. But this is such a frivolous exercise in commercialism that it seems pointless to make too much of it.
Apparently taking their cue from the ``up close and personal'' approach of network sports personality profiles, the producers have made this a smooth piece of self-congratulation. Everyone involved is insufferably effusive in praise of co-workers' dedication, humor and friendliness. The only moment that really rings true is when veteran editor Jule Campbell says that her long-time model Cheryl Tiegs is ``just a good-looking dame.'' And that's certainly the truth. At 46, Ms. Tiegs, of the famous fishnet suit, is still a real looker.
So is Marjean Holden, the star of ``Ballistic.'' It's a low-budget martial arts movie that could be the beginning of a fair series. The main reason is the spirited leading lady. Otherwise the film has a no-surprises plot and seen-it-before fight choreography. The story concerns policewoman Jesse Gavin (Holden) whose father (Richard Roundtree) was framed for drug charge by corrupt cops years before. Jesse is working with some of the same guys as she tries to get her dad out of prison. The relaxed presence of fellow B-movie stalwarts Charles Napier and Sam Jones helps considerably. Again, though, the key is Marjean Holden who has that indefinable chemistry or ``likeability'' that can carry a picture.
Dean Cameron makes a similar contribution to ``Ski School 2.'' It's an amiable ``Porky's''-on-the-slopes teen comedy with lots of brightly lit skiing scenes that are eminently fast-forwardable. Just a few years ago, it would have been easy to dismiss this kind of goofy little movie as forgettable fluff. But considering the current popularity of ``stupid'' comedy - ``Dumb and Dumber,'' ``Billy Madison,'' ``The Jerky Boys,'' et al - in theaters, ``Ski School 2'' is now more comparable to Noel Coward and Moliere.
Next week: Beyond the video store!
New release
StarGate ** 1/2
Starring James Spader, Kurt Russell, Jaye Davidson. Directed by Roland Emmerich. LIVE. 119 min. Rated PG-13 for language, effects, violence.
This lumbering science-fiction epic became a sleeper hit in theaters last year. Though it starts stronger than it finishes, it's still fun for fans. Imagine a Cecil B. deSpielberg production of ``Close Encounters with the Ten Commandments.'' The sets and special effects are the real stars of the piece. The actors, particularly Spader, do well with limited material.
VIDEOGRAPHIES
ROBERT BOLT
The Bounty'84(LIVE)
Doctor Zhivago '65 (MGM/UA)
Lady Caroline Lamb '73 (Prism)
Lawrence of Arabia '62 (Columbia Tristar)
A Man for All Seasons '65 (Columbia Tristar)
The Mission '86 (Warner)
Ryan's Daughter '70 (MGM/UA)
Without Warning: The James Brady Story '91 (HBO)
CALDER WILLINGHAM
The Graduate '67 (New Line)
Little Big Man '70 (FoxVideo)
One-Eyed Jacks '61 (Paramount)
Paths of Glory '57 (MGM/UA)
Rambling Rose '74 (MGM/UA)
The Vikings '58 (MGM/UA)
THE ESSENTIALS:
The Lion King *** 1/2
Walt Disney Home Video. 93 min. Rated G, contains some violence.
Sports Illustrated 1995 Swimsuit Video. * 1/2
SITV. 50 min. Unrated, contains no objectionable material, but several barely covered rear ends.
Ballistic ** 1/2
Imperial. 86 min. Rated R for violence, strong language, brief nudity, mild sexual content.
Ski School 2 **
Monarch. 92 min. Rated R for brief nudity, strong language, subject matter.
by CNB