WHO TO CALL:

Entertainment Editor
Layne Christensen

985-2131 (147) 985-2131 (118) Fem

Community Editor
Andrew McCredie

[ER asinine ehh cot at Seno ties MRR aR AS Ae

ELENA BONHAM Caner’s deli-

cate, translunary beauty makes her

the perfect choice for the period
films she’s done —~ Lady Jane. A Room
With A View, Howards End — but she is
weary of being typecast as the quintessen-
tial English rose.

By Julie Crawford
Contributing Writer

Enter Salt Spring Island producer/director
Mort Ransen with the pani of Margaret MacNeil: a
runny-nosed, eccentric, acerbic young woman in
1940s Glace Bay, Nova Scotia. Not a glamorous
role, but Bonham Carter jumped at the part.

“I’m proud of it. It was a great script and a
great part. 1 was so lucky to get it sent to me,” the
petite Bonham Carter says, lounging on a couch in
-her Vancouver hotel room.

The comparatively small budget of Margaret's

_ Museum, masterfully shot by Lion's Bay resident
Vic Sarin and the winner of six Genie awards,
_ wasn’t a problem either.

“On the whole the rnore interesting parts do
come in the lower-budget films, particularly for
women,” Bonham Carter says.

“¥ don’t mind working for virtually nothing to
be in something good.”

Helena Bonham Carter started working afer
she won a poetry contest at age 13 and used her
prize money to put her photograph in a casting
directory. (The poem “was about rumors, and how
out-of-proportion they get. Little did I know... ")

Convincing her family came next. “They were
bemused. They thought it was going to be a

Bonham .Carter’s great-grandfather was
English Prime Minister Lord Asquith. Her grand-
mother, Lady Violet Bonham Carter, was a mem-
ber of the House of Lords, and her maternal grand-

father was the Spanish ambassador to Canada, the U.S. and

Norway.

Though a tife in politics was not to be, her parents “haven't

been at all discouraging. They enjoy it.”

~ Roles in Lady Jane, A Koom With A View, Where Angels Fear
to Tread, as Ophelia in Met Gibson’s Hamier, and as the emanci-

"pated Helen Schlegel in Howards End followed.

20% OFF ALL STOCK
JANUARY 24328

ofease note that
special orders,

reserved copies
and magezines

will remain at “BOOKS MAIL ORDER

regular prices,

LIBRARY SQUARE» MANHATTAN BOOKS |

MAGAZINES - TECHNICAL & PROFESSIONAL

ek eS a Ca6 be BAU arash a

But Margarer's Musewn brings the actress into the 20th cen-
tury.
It’s the story of one woman's struggle against the coa] mine,
which has already claimed the lives of her father and brother. She
finds a gentle giant of a husband (played by Scotsman Clive
Russell) who promises to stay out of the pits, but the frequent
sirens signalling trouble in the mines and her grandfather's slow

death due to black lung are ever-present reminders
of the mortal toll paid by the townspeople.

How alike are Helena and Margaret?

“I guess I'm quite eccentric.” Bonham Carter
muses, in between drags of a cigarette. “She's defi-
nitely an eccentric and she's sort of an outcast.

“She's got a temper... she knows her mind and 1
guess | do too. I’m quite stubborn.”

Bonham Carter's respect for Margaret. whose
act of defiance at the end of the film is a cathartic,
rather than irrational, act, is evident.

Margaret's bold statement saves her from her
mother's fate (convincingly acted by Canadian Kate
Nelligan) — that of a helpless, embittered older
woman. By expressing her anger Margaret
“emerges at the end, her spirit quite free,” according
to Bonham Carter.

It's a remarkable film that is largely due to
Bonham Carter's performance, though she is the last
to credit herself: when asked if she is a good actor,
Bonham Carter replies “I’m getting better. I'm
hyper self-critical. i wouldn’t say I’m a great actress
by any means.”

She pauses, then smiles. “I’m OK at the
moment.”

Margaret's Museum opens at Vancouver Centre
Jan. 26.

HELENA BONHAM Carter won a Best
Actress Genie for her portrayal of
Margaret, a young woman living In the
shadow of the Glace Bay ccai mine.

UNCLE RANDY PRODUCTIONS

Presents

THE HIT MUSICAL

Music and Lyrics by STEPHEN SONDHEIM — Book by JAMES LAPINE
Originally Directed on Broadway by James Lapine

Special Preview Thursday February 1 at 8 pm
February 2, 3, 4, 8, 9, and 10 at Spm
Matinee February 4 at 2 pm
Box Office 984-4484 — Groups Call 980-7950

Centennial Theatre, 2300 Lonsdale Avenue, North Vancouver

north shoré

O.EM,
HARDWARE

hea 1 Boe deat Mates,

Langtry.

s. //femco

| | . MARTIN ELECTRONS

2 Mosene & Bes C/S Auto Group —MAaKETa Con.
Landscaping Mth. Corvette Speciattios.

Into The Woods is presented through special arrangement with and ali authorized performance materials are supplied by
Music Theatre International, 545 Eighth Avenue, New York, NY, 10018