The Courier-Journal from Louisville, Kentucky • Page 11

MOVIE REVIEW DEVIL IN A BLUE DRESS 1 Ai nnnr 11 ffiffi TOP I MIT i its i I By JUDITH EGERTON Staff Critic The elegantly handsome Denzel Washington carries "Devil in a Blue Dress," a jazzy mystery set in Los Angeles, on his muscular shoulders and he does it with sultry style. Carl Franklin's adaptation of a Walter Mosley mystery takes viewers into the black neighborhoods of Los Angeles in 1948. It's a time of segregation, illegal after-hours clubs and corrupt politicians. For Washington's character, Eze-kiel "Easy" Rawlins, an amateur detective, it turns out to be a time for blackmail and murder. Franklin, who won acclaim for his first feature film, "One False Move," transformed four blocks of Main Street into Central Avenue, the heartbeat of LA's black community.

Using a directory of black businesses in the 1940s, he created storefronts with real names the Bluebird Market, Lovejoy's Breakfast Club and Waters Sons Record Shop. As the movie opens, Hudsons and Packards cruise Central Avenue and middle-class blacks, who moved to California to work in aircraft and other factories, shop and socialize. We find Rawlins, a World War II veteran who has just lost his job, in Joppy's Bar. He's slugging down a drink and searching the classifieds. Determined not to miss a payment on his bungalow, Rawlins accepts a job offer from a gangster called Albright (Tom Sizemore).

All he has to do is find Daphne Monet (Jennifer Beals), who has disappeared. Rawlins schmoozes with friends at an illegal after-hours nightclub and solicits a tidbit of information about 1 i liiii nihil Denzel Washington confronts Jennifer Beals In the mystery drama "Devil In a Blue Dress." the bluesy soundtrack that includes early L.A. rhythm and blues makes this film even more pleasurable. "Chinatown" propelled Jack Nicholson to a higher level of stardom, and "Devil in a Blue Dress" should do the same for Washington, who's already an Oscar winner earning $10 million per movie. At the Dixie Dozen, River Falls Cinemas, Showcase Cinemas.

Rated Profanity, sexuality, violence. (1 41 min.) triggers on his stash of weapons. Don Cheadle's portrayal of Rawlins' deadly friend adds some high-spirited fun. Franklin's movie stays true to Mos-ley's story and social commentary. Washington plays Rawlins as a man who overcomes his owns fears, which are rooted in being a black person in a white-dominated society, to establish his rightful place in it.

The scenery, the costumes and acting except for Jennifer Beals' performance are top-notch. And Monet from Coretta (Lisa Nicole Carson). But before he gets the story on Monet, Coretta wants payment of her own resulting in a steamy, realistic sex scene between Washington and Carson that surpasses the hot encounter between Kathleen Turner and William Hurt in "Body Heat." Turns out that people connected to Monet end up dead, and Rawlins looks like the perfect fall guy. When events turn bloody, Rawlins calls on an old friend, Mouse, an impulsive hothead who can't wait to pull the MOVIE REVIEW STEAL BIG, STEAL LITTLE 12 1 jj 1 til Nr fl if flR (Mil By JUDITH EGERTON Staff Critic Andrew Davis, director of "The Fugitive," should have stuck with action flicks. "Steal Big, Steal Little," his attempt at a lively comedy, is neither spirited nor funny.

It's a leaden bore. Andy Garcia plays twin brothers, Ruben and Robbie. As both, he looks as if actually hurts to smile. And he sounds as bored as the audience will be by this overly long, disjointed tale of brothers fighting over a vast and valuable ranch in Santa Barbara, Calif. Ruben is the gentle good-hearted Robbie is the evil, selfish, scheming twin.

Isn't it always that iway in the movies? Although Garcia attempts to make the polar-opposite brothers seem less one-dimensional, the script overrides his effort by forcing the characters to behave in stereotypical ways. Ruben, the good brother, inherits the ranch from his stepmother, who has cut Robbie out of her will. In order to steal the land for a real-estate Robbie and a diverse pack of rich, obnoxious big shots turn Ruben in to the Internal Revenue Service and immigration officials. Ruben's legal fight runs smack into a corrupt judge, he and his self-appointed guardian and partner, Lou Perilli, devise their own scheme to hold onto the ranch. Frank Tidy cleverly photographed and seamlessly edited the scenes of the twins together.

And he made the most of the Andy Garcia battles in court over land ownership In "Steal Big, Steal Little," a romantic comedy about a family, a feud and an enormous fortune. Southern California coastline and ther empathy for the characters nor sented in the movie, farmland, but it won't keep you laughter. "Steal Big, Steal Little" has ele- awake. And neither will this drawn- Thank goodness for Alan Arkin as ments of "The Milagro Beanfield out story. Perilli.

His character is the only one War" and "The Sting," but it's far At least half of the movie could who hits the right note. less endearing than the former and have been cut without sacrificing any As an opportunistic former Chica- lacks the roguish wit of the latter, amusing lines or- critical plot seg- go cop, Perilli makes a living playing At Green Tree 10, Oxmoor Cine- ments. For too long, the shenanigans a few con games of his own. Whether mas, Showcase Cinemas. Rated PG- play on with a confusing tone of seri- he will remain loyal to Ruben is one 13: Mild profanity, sexual references, ousness and farce that induces nei- of the few interesting questions pre- (2 14 min.) MOVIE REVIEW THE BIG GREEN I 1 "7- fc TWA fVII By STEPHEN HOLDEN New York Times News Service Does a ragamuffin children's soccer team from a one-horse town stand a chance against a big-city outfit with a mean, high-powered coach? That is the not-so-suspenseful question posed by "The Big Green," an innocuous family comedy about a crumbling Texas village that regains its self-respect through Little League soccer.

This being a Disney film involving sports, miracles are not merely possible but they are to be expected as well. If the heavenly forces guiding the team that calls itself The Big Green aren't visible the way they were in "Angels in the Outfield," their presence is still palpable. Soccer comes to the backwater vil- lage of Elma, Texas, with the unlikely arrival of Anna Montgomery (Oli-! via d'Abo), an attractive Englishwom-an who appears out of the blue as part of a teachers' exchange pro-; gram. Quickly realizing that her students are determined not to learn anything, she gives up pushing academics and introduces them to soccer. The next thing you know, she and Tom Palmer (Steve Guttenberg), the sheriff's yo-'kel of a deputy, are coaching the world's most inept soccer team.

The Big Green's prospects seem hopeless until an athletically gifted Mexican-American student named Juan (Anthony Esquivel) appears and propels the team into contention for the junior division state champion- ship. Complications arise when a rival coach (Jay 0. Sanders) learns that Juan's mother is an illegal immigrant. "The Big Green," written and directed by Holly Goldberg Sloan, relies on formulaic devices, such as sped-up photography and a pounding score. Most of the movie's charm lies in its portrayal of the children as an adorable, if exasperating, multicultural version of Our Gang.

The fumbling Big Green soccer team finds a star player in their midst, Anthony Esquivel, left With a lot of practice and luck, the team, Including Patrick Renna, second from left, and Billy L. Sullivan, center, and coaches Olivia d'Abo and Steve Guttenberg, at right, make a play for the state title. MOVIE CAPSULE 'HALLOWEEN 6 Nothing quite tops the whimsical opening scene in which three boys dash into an open field, pour Cheetos over themselves and wriggle around gleefully as a flock of pigeons swoops down and nibbles at them. And anyone can identify with Larry (Patrick the team's chubby, freckle-faced goalie. As the rival team thunders in his direction, threatening to kick the ball into his face, he has elaborate fantasies of being overrun by knights on horseback, ninja warriors and a band of pirates.

At Corydon (Ind.) Cinemas, Dixie Dozen, Green Tree 10, Oldham 8, Showcase Cinemas and Stonybrook Cinemas. Rated PG. Rough-and-tumble soccer. (1 40 min.) You can buy The Courier-Journal at hundreds of locations throughout your area grocery stores, liquor stores, pharmacies, and many others. So next time you want the news at your It's nearly Halloween, the time of year for jack-o'-lanterns, candy corn and a homicidal maniac named Michael Myers.

"Halloween 6. The Ce of Michael Myers" is the to 1978 horror film i- ed by John Carper? vi. This time, six year-. since Michael was presumed Killed in a fire, and the town of Haddonfield is about to celebrate Halloween once again. But Michael, who is impossible to kill, is coming back to his hometown for the party.

That means more terror zing of teen-agers and lots of bloody hacking and slashing This version of "Halloween" is by Joe Chappelle, a gml. western University I i a winner ot a i 'wst short film ai the A.re-r, ial Film Festival for his iiK1 Descent." At Dixie Dozen, Green Tree 10, Oldham 8, Showcase Cinemas and Stonybrook Cinemas. Rated R. (1 28 min.) i convenience, pick up The if rmiripr-Tnurnal You'll WmfrdtVtWa find it for sale everywhere! 4tfWNwwwi-.