Screen Scene

Friday, March 13, 1998

Screen Scene

"Four Faces of Eve"

Directed by Kl Kam, Jan Lamb and Eric Kot

Starring Sandra Ng

In the tragicomic "Four Faces of Eve," a daring, fervid and
intoxicatingly melodic announcement of what visionary cinema can
achieve, popular Hong Kong actress Sandra Ng ("Young and Dangerous
IV") has four different faces in four different short stories, each
one touching a separate contour of the female complexion: rough,
smooth, dry and, around the softest areas, wet with the sting of
salt.

The first story is about a prostitute who has fallen in love
with her therapist. With quick, violent cuts we see her crying in
horrific agony from the sexual pummeling of one particular client;
we assume that degradation is the cause for her neurosis. However,
we later find out that she enjoys the pain, and that one of her
problems is that she can’t find enough men who can make her cry. As
we see more of this strange woman at work, the story reveals a kind
of grungy sophistication in its perception about certain women,
giving us a clue (some will find it a warning) that the rest of the
film won’t be serving up the typical platitudes about
Mother-Courage righteousness.

The movie moves forward to a delightfully absurd piffle about a
domestic slave; her wretched life revolves around her abusive
husband, his crazed mistress, their children and her mother-in-law.
It’s a profanely corrupt throwback to the screwball comedies of the
silent era – hardly any dialogue is spoken, though you’ll dig the
songs, including a Chinese version of "Moon River" that will
inexplicably bring tears to your eyes.

The filmmakers saved their best for third, called "Twins." It’s
about a woman who, as a child, didn’t want to dress like her twin
sister, and so she started dressing like a boy. As an adult, she
dresses like a man and is totally estranged from her sister, who is
terminally ill. One night while visiting her sister, who has been
bed-ridden for years, she gets drunk and puts on a sexy red dress
with lipstick to match. Then something wonderful happens, in a
sequence that’s sentimental but dreamily so. She will never see her
sister again. The tale is an absolutely hypnotic experience, mostly
due to the disarmingly visceral patchwork of famed cinematographer
Christopher Doyle ("Temptress Moon" and "Chunking Express").

The last installment, where a couple is put on a wicked game
show to testify to their love, is the least impressive: it’s a bit
snide and bitter for all the romping it does. But it has the
funniest bit in the entire movie (the woman recalls her first
romantic meeting with her husband as him stalking her and then
shooting her to bits in sublime, comic slow-mo). And the last story
has an unforgettable last frame of Ng’s face, an insanely gorgeous,
and sad, farewell for a movie that, surprisingly, (considering all
the wild experimentations it imposes) rarely ever wears out its
welcome.

"Four Faces of Eve," unfortunately, only plays for one week, at
Laemmle’s Grand in Downtown Los Angeles.

Tommy Nguyen

Grade: B+

"The Man In the Iron Mask"

Directed by Randall Wallace

Starring Gabriel Byrne, Gerard Depardieu, Leonardo DiCaprio,
Jeremy Irons and John Malkovich

Through the success of his Oscar-nominated script for
"Braveheart," Randall Wallace won the opportunity to direct such a
fine ensemble of actors in "The Man in the Iron Mask." But his
obvious skill for creating epic heroes does not translate well into
this hokey, light-hearted treatment of the Dumas classic.

Wallace’s directorial debut documents the last chapter of the
Three Musketeers legend. The trio attempts to rescue a masked
prisoner from the Bastille in the hopes of overthrowing a
tyrannical king. They are aided by D’Artagnan, played excellently
by Gabriel Byrne – the king’s aide – whose internal struggle
between duty and conscience eventually makes him a hero.
Unfortunately, he is the only character the audience actually cares
about.

While musketeers Jeremy Irons, John Malkovich and Gerard
Depardieu play well off each other, the viewer never believes in
their characters. Their interaction resembles a forced three
stooges routine, except it’s not funny. The only thing more
ridiculous is their obvious inability to sword-fight. But this
creates an unintended comedy that becomes the highlight of this
Leonardo DiCaprio teenage-girl-lust spectacle.

In playing twin brothers, King Louis XIV and his masked brother
Philippe, DiCaprio proves that his weak performance in "Titanic"
was not a fluke. The youngest and most recent addition to the
$20-million club was unconvincing in his dual roles, making it
twice as painful for the viewer. Lines such as "I am a young king,
but I am still king," echo the "Titanic" groaner, "I’m the king of
the world."

Here are some hints for Leo: find a better script, stop
pretending that you’re the king of the world and return to your
acting roots. For your next acting part, play a psychologically
complex character like Arnie Grape from "What’s Eating Gilbert
Grape" – the only character you have ever done that has truly
displayed your talent.

Though "The Man in the Iron Mask" proves that great actors can’t
save a terrible script, the film will still pull in the bucks. But
with lavish visuals, a soaring score and the leading man of the
next millennium, "Iron Mask" will most likely knock off DiCaprio’s
unsinkable "Titanic" from the No. 1 box office spot for the first
time.

Bill Weesner

Grade: C-Sandra Ng stars in "Four Faces of Eve."

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