Hartford Courant from Hartford, Connecticut • 248

D4 THE HARTFORD COURANT: Saturday, Otttmbtr 17, 1988 Showtimes Flawless acting in 'Rain Man' Hoffman performance is a career highlight I 1 4 A i v. 1 i "p- f-15 Mystic Pizza (R) 7:10, 9:25. A Cry in the Oark (PG-13) 7:20. 9:35. NEWINGTON Cinema 1, 1 ft I Cocktail (R) 12.45, 2.50, 5 10, 7 30, 9:40, 11:35 Mystic Pizza (R) 12:30, 2:40, 5, 7:20.

9:30, 11,30 Ernest Saves Christmas (PG) 1, 3. 5:20, 7:40, 9:45. 11:40. Newingtea Theater The Accused (R 7, 9:15. OLD SAYBROOK The Saybreea.

Twin Cinemas The Land Before Time G) 1:30, 3. 4 The Naked Gun (PG-13) 2:10, 7:15, IS. My Stepmother Is an Allen (PG-13) 7:20, 9.20. Saybreok Cinemas 4 Twins (PG) 1:30, 3:30. 7:20, 9:20.

Scrooged (PG-13) 1:45, 4, 7, 9 30 Oliver ft Company (G) 1, 3. 4:45, 7, 10. requlla Sunrise (R) 4:10, 7:15.9:30. SUFFIELD The Village Cinema Mystic Pizza (R)7: 15, 15. Ernest Saves Christmas (PG) 2, 3:40.

TORRINGTON Holiday Cinemas The Naked Gun (PG-13) 12:20, 2:40, 4:45. 7, 9:15. Rain Man (R) 1, 4, 7, 9:40. Oirty Rotten Scoundrels (PG) 12. 10.

2:30. 4:40. 7:20, 9:40. Cocoon: The Return (PG)9. Oliver ft Company (G) 1,3, 5.

7 Twins (PG) 12:15. 2:20, 4:30, 7:15, 9:35. Scrooged (PG-13) 17:05. 2:10. 4:35.

7:10. 9:30. Parkade Cinema My Stepmother Is an Alien (PG-13) 7, 9 The Land Before Time (G) 1, 3. 5. VERNON Cine I ft I The Accused (R) 2, 4:30, 7, 9:30.

A Fish Called Wanda (R) 1:30. 4:15, 7:05. They Live WALLINGFORO Ceteny Cinemas 1 1, 4 ft 5 Oirty Rotten Scoundrels (PG) 12, 2:15, 4:30, 7:10, 9:35 My Stepmother It an Alien (PG-13) 12:10, 2:25, 4:40, 7:05. 9:15. Fresh Horses (PG-13) 12:05, 2:20, 4:35, 7:20, 9:30.

Oliver ft. Company (G) 1, 5. 7, 9. Child's Play (R) 12:20, 2:20, 4:25, 7:15,9:20. WATERBURY General Cinema 1, 1 1 ft 4 Twins (PG) 12:30, 2:50, 5:05.

7:25, 9:45. Cocoon: The Return (PG) 1:15, 4:10. 7, 9:30 Tequila Sunrise (R 12:45, 3, 5:15, 7:35, 9:55 The Land Before Time (G) 1:30, 3:15, 5, 7:10, 9. Plaza Clnema.VslJ ft 4 Schedule unavailable. WEST HARTFORD Elm 1 ft 2 The Accused (R) 2, 4:15, 7, 9:30.

Willow (PG) 2, 7. A Fish Called Wanda (R) 4:15, 9:30. WILL IMAM TIC A. The Cinemas Twins (PG) 12:30, 3, 5:30, 7:30, 10, 12:15 Scrooged (PG-13) 1, 3:30, 7, 9:30, 12. Rain Man (R) 4.

9:45, 12:10. Tequila Sunrise (R) 12, 2:30, 5, 7:30, 10, 12. WINDSOR Plaza Closed Fridey through Dec. 22. WINSTED Gitson Cafe and Cinema Everybody's All-American (R) 7, 9:30.

la Massachusetts IN HARTFORD An Cinema Fsrepler 5 IS, 7 25, Sooper-manXI2, 4:15, 1:40. Cinema City Sham (R) 1:30, 4:15, 7:15, Crossing Oelancey IPG) 1:10, 3 55. 7 05, 9 40 -Myitic Pizza (R) 1:20, 3:45, 4:45, Imagine (ft) 1, 4:55. U2 Rat tle and Hum (R 4:05, 30 Cinestudie Mr. North (PG) 7:30.

Dead Ringers R) 30. IN OTHER TOWNS BERLIN Cin 1 1 The Accused (R) I 4:30, 7, 9:30 A Fish Called Wanda (R) 1:30, 4:15, 7:05. They Live (R 19:30. BRISTOL Bristol Cinemas 1-0 Dirty Rotten Scoundrels (PG) 12:10. 2:25, 4:40.

7:20, 9:45 Ram Man (R) 1, 4, 7, 9:40. My Stepmother Is an Alien (PG-13) 7:10, 9:40. The Land Before Time (G) 12:30, 2:30, 4:30. Cocoon: The Return (PG) 9. Oliver ft Company (G) 1, 3, 5, 7 Twins (PG) 12.10, 2:20, 4:35, 7.

9:30 Tequila Sunrise (R) 12:05. 2:25, 4:50, 7:20, 9:50 The Naked Gun (PG-13) 12:25, 2:30, 4:35, 7:15, 9: 15. Scrooged (PG-1J) 12:15,2:25,4:45,7:30,9:50. CHESHIRE Cinema Schedule unavailable. DERBY Valley Cinema 1 ft 1 without a Clue (R) 7, freih Horses (PG-13) 7:15, 9:15.

EAST HARTFORD Poor Richard's Pub ft Cinema Iran Eagle II (PG) 7:30, 30. 12. Shewcase Cinemas 1-t0 My Stepmother Is an Alien (PG-13) 1, 3:10, 5:15, 7:45, 10:05. 12 Child's Play (R) 12:10, 2:15. 4:20, 7:10, 9:20, 11:20 Tequila Sunrise (R) 12 40.

3. 5:15, 7:50, 10:10, 12:15 Oliver ft Company (G) 12:10, 1:50, 3:25, 5, 7, 1:30, 10, 11:30 Scrooged (PG-13) 12:40, 2 55, 5:05, 7:45, 10:10, 12:20. Rain Man (R) 1:30, 4:15. 7:15. 9:55, 12:25.

The Naked Gun (PG-13) 12:15, 2:10, 4, 5:35. 7:30. 9:45. 11:50 Twins (PG) 12:30, 2:45, 5. 7:30.

9:50, 11:55 The Land Before Time (G) 1, 3, 4:30, 4 Cocoon: The Return (PG) 7:25, 10, 12:15. Dirty Rotten Scoundrels (PG) 12:25. 2:40, 4:55, 7 10, 9:40, ENFIELD Cine Enfield -Tequila Sunrlse(R) 10:30. 1:25,4,7:30, 9:50. The Land Before Time (G) 10:15, 12:15,2:15,4:15, 4.

Cocoon: The Return (PG) 9:10. Oliver ft Company (G) 10 45, 12:40, 2:50. 4:55, 7 My Stepmother Is an Alien (PG-13) 7:45. 10:10. The Naked Gun (PG-13) 10:35, 1:55, 4:10.

7:15, 9:40. Twins (PG) 10:40, 1:40, 4:20, 7:20, 10 Oirty Rotten Scoundrels (PG) 10:50, 12:45. 3:55. 4:40, 9:55 Rain Man (R) 10, 12:30, 3:40, 4:20, 9:20 Scrooged (PG-13) 10:25, 1:30, 3:50, 4:50, 9:25. ESSEX Essex Junction Dirty Rotten Scoundrels (PG) 7, 10 GROTON UA Graten Cinemas Ernest Saves Christmas (PG) 12:15, 2.

4, 5:45, 7:30, 9:15. Cocoon: The Return (PG) 12. 2:30, 5, 7.30, 10 Rocky Horror Picture Show (R) mtdnigth. U2 Rattle and Hum (PG-13) midnight. LITCHFIELD Cinema IV The Last Temptation ol Christ (R) I.

MANCHESTER UA Theaters East The Accused (R) 2, 4:25. 7 10, 9:30 Iron Eagle II (PG) M0, 4:30, 7:15, 9:40 Who Framed Roger Rabbit (PG) 2:15, 4:40. Ole Hard (R) 7, 9:35. MERIDEN Mertden Cinemas The Naked Gun (PG-13) 1:10, 3.10. 5:10.

7:10. 9:10, 11:10. The Land Before Time (G) 1:30, 3:30, 5:30. 7:30, 30. 11:30.

Rain Man (R) 1, 4, 7, 9:45, 12:10. Cocoon: The Return (PG) 1, 4:15, 7:20, 9:40, 11:45 A Cry in the Oark (PG-13) 1:15, 4:10, 7:10, 9:15. 12 Ernest Saves Christmas (PG) 1:15, 3:15, 5:15, 7:15, 9:15, 11:15. The Accused (R) 12:30, 2:50, 5:10, 7:30.9:50, 11:50 Twins (PG) 12:30, 2:45, 7:15, 9:30, 11:30. Tequila Sunrise (R) 12:45, 4:15, 7:10, 9:40, 11:50.

Scrooged (PG-13) 12:20, 2:45, 5, 7:25, 9.50, 12. MIDDLETOWN The Mevienouse Dirty Rotten Scoundrels (PG) 12:10, 2:20. 4:35, 7, 9:15 Scrooged (PG-13) 12:30, 2:35, 4:45,7:15,9:25. NEW HAVEN York Square Cinemas Spike of Bensonhurst (R 7, United Artists By MALCOLM L. JOHNSON Courant Film Critic With his concentrated, unshowy, truthful, sensitive rendering of the title character in "Rain Man," Dus-tin Hoffman puts his "Ishtar" fiasco behind him and delivers one of the best performances of an imaginative and distinguished career.

Partnered with Tom Cruise as his character's long-lost younger brother, Hoffman also shows just how much he can bring up a fellow actor. Cruise has his limitations, especially in the scenes he must play at a high pitch, when his voice goes all squeaky and powerless. But in his key emotional scenes, he develops considerable poignancy. He also plays gently and humorously with Hoffman, displaying a hitherto hidden range. As directed by Barry Levinson from a screenplay by Ronald Bass and Barry Morrow, "Rain Man" shifts between touching moments and sequences that don't really work.

Despite the strengths of the acting by Hoffman and Cruise, an unsettling schematic feeling pervades too much of the film. And its sad, yet unconvincing ending seems too pat. Yet the finer elements of this tale of brotherhood prevail over its more manipulative side. "Rain Man" takes its name from a childhood confusion. Charlie' Babbitt, the wheeler-dealer Los Angeles slickster played by Cruise, never talks about himself.

But when his father dies after years of estrangement from his son, Charlie opens up for a fleeting moment and tells his Italian girlfriend, Susanna, played with rueful sweetness by Valeria Go-lino, about growing up with a cold and demanding single parent. As a very little boy, he says, his only comfort came from an imaginary friend he called "Rain Man." Like "Rosebud" in "Citizen Kane," "Rain Man" holds the key to unlocking a childhood trauma. And the solving of the mystery for Charlie gives the film its most brilliant and affecting passage. After learning of his father's death, Charlie takes Susanna back to his childhood home in Cincinnati, where he learns he has been disinherited. The senior Babbitt's harshly worded will leaves Charlie only some prize-winning roses and a mint Dustin Hoffman and Valeria Golino in "Rain AGAWAM Twin Cinemas Route 75, Suffiefd Street (413-709- 1939) Closed for the winter.

WEST SPRINGFIELO Showcase Cmemas 1.14 Rain Man (R) 1:30, 4:15, 7:15. 9:55, 12:25 The Naked Gun (PG-13) 12:30. 2:15, 4, 5:40, 7:30, 9:30, 11:30 Tequila Sunrise (R) 12:15, 2:30, 4:45, 7:15, 9:40, The Return (PG) 12, 2:20, 4:40,7:15,9:45, 11:55. The Land Before Time (G) 12:30, 2:05. 3:40, 5:15, 7.

35, 10:10, 11:40. My Stepmother Is an Alien (PG-13) 1. 3:10, 5:15, 7:25, 9:30, 11:45. Scrooged (PG-13) 12:45, 2:50, 5, 7:45, 10, 12 Oliver ft Company (G) 12:15, 1:50, 3:25, 5, 7, (:. 10, 11:35 Twins (PG) 12:30, 2:40.

4:50, 7:30, 9:55, 12 Child's Play (R) 1:30,3:30, 5:15, 10, 11:45 Oirty Rotten Scoundrels (PG) 12:45, 3, 5:10, 7:30, 9:45, 11 50 Ernest Saves Christmas (PG) 1, 3, 5, 7:15, 9:30, 11:30. (Schedules are published as received tram the theaters. The Courant is not responsible for last-minute changes ar incomplete listings.) Film review Skip presents; babies like paper RAIN MAN, Directed by Barry Levinson; screenplay by Ronald Bass and Barry Morrow, from a story by Morrow; director of photography, John Seale; music composed by Hans Zimmer; production designer, Ida Random; edited by Stu Under; produced by Mark Johnson; executive producers, Peter Guber and Jon Peters. An MGMUA Distribution Company release, playing at Showcase Cinemas, East Hartford. Running time: 133 minutes.

Raymond Babbitt Dustin Hoffman Charlie Babbitt Tom Cruise Susanna Valeria Golino Dr. Bruner Jerry Molen John Mooney Jack Murdock Vern Michael D. Roberts Lenny Ralph Seymour Iris Luanda Jenney Sally Dibbs Bonnie Hunt Small-Town Doctor Kim Robillard Farmhouse Mother Beth Grant Kelso Ray Baker Excellent; Very Good; Good; Fair; Poor At its best, Levinson's film lives up to its aim of revealing the mysteries of the human mind and heart and the meanings of family. As it moves across country, it also gives director of photography John Seale the opportunity to capture vivid images of country roads winding through sunny prairies or an adobe roadside store set into a whorled outcrop of rock. Levinson does his best to give "Rain Man" sweep and intimacy, but while the Babbitt brothers' voyages of discovery are sometimes deeply moving, they also sometimes seem mechanical.

Hoffman may well be to blame for causing too much tinkering with the screenplay. But his acting is flawless, as his fixed, elusive stares, stiff, ungainly postures and abrupt rages of terror draw a complex, withdrawn and strangely wonderful human being, once called "Rain Man." Rated this film contains a scattering of obscenities, one rather sexy, it ungraphic bedroom scene, and flashes of nudity. father's permission, his father had him arrested and held for two days. When he was released, Charlie ran away, and never spoke to his father again. In death, the old man took his revenge, leaving his $3 million estate to a trustee.

Journeying to an institution for the mentally retarded run by the trustee, Charlie discovers Raymond Babbitt, the older brother he never knew existed. To get his share of the $3 million, Charlie kidnaps Raymond, carrying him westward in the car that forms the only common bond between them. "Rain Man" thus becomes a Road-master picture, focusing on the difficult relationship between the brothers, and what Charlie learns from it. Raymond perhaps learns a few things too, but he cannot really connect them. An autistic savant, he can instantly compute impossible multiplication problems, count a scatter of toothpicks in a second or two, and most importantly, remember and count cards which comes in very handy in the film's key Las Vegas sequence.

Parents should also be aware that a few weeks' difference in the age of an infant can make a big difference in how they join in the holiday spirit "While the 5-month-old will enjoy simply watching the lights on a tree or a twirling ornament, many 8-month-olds can use a large gift box as support when trying to stand," the professor says. "The 10-month-old might want to push that same box around the floor, and the 13-month-old would probably enjoy carrying presents to other people in the room." Axtmann cautions parents that family celebrations may be hectic for a baby, especially if they involve traveling to a new place and seeing new faces. Associated Press Families should splurge on the wrappings and skimp on the gifts for a baby's first Christmas, says Annette Axtmann, an expert on infants. "Babies are more interested in ribbons and bows and pretty paper than what is actually in most packages," says Axtmann, director of the Center for Infants and Parents at Teachers College of Columbia University in New York City. "What is important for a baby is participation in the joy of holiday giving." Babies should be included in unwrapping presents for themselves and other family members.

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