ess tha

© The Muse k&& Sharon Stone and Andie
MacDowell. Directed by Albert Brooks.
Opens today.

Julie Crawford
Film Reviews

PEOPLE in southern California will
believe anything.

In any other part of the world a woman
receiving along fine of gentlemen callers
bearing those coveted blue ‘Tiffany's boxes
would be called something else. In
Hollywood she’s called a Muse.

Screenwriter Steven Phillips (Albert
Brooks) thinks he’s on top until a cocky
Paramount exee cuts his three-picture deal,
saying Steven’s lost his “edge.” Steven is even
jealous of Jack Nicholson's character in The
Shining. “At least he had one good line,”
Steven laments.

Hc is inconsolable until he visits his suc-
cessful friend Jack (Jeff Bridges) who lets him
in on a little secret. Jack's Oscar is all duc to
Sarah (Sharon Stone), a Muse who has boost-
ed the careers of directors ail over the city.
Sarah agrees to make Steven the next benefi-
ciary of her genius.

Steven is so desperate that he’s willing to
put Sarah up in a suite at the Four Seasons,

stock her fridge with organic groceries, and
fetch Waldort salads tor her at 2 a.m. She's a
goddess, after all.

Soon, however, Steven suspects Ubat
Sarah’s inspiration is being sucked dry by his
wite (played by Aadie MacDoweil), who
becomes the cookie czar of Hollywood, and
various directors desperate tor Sarah's creative
inpuc.

Cybill Shepherd, Lorenzo Lamas, Jenniter
Tilly, Wolfgang Puck, Rob Reiner, James
Cameron, and Martin Scorsese all appear in
cameos,

Ong of the funniest scenes in the movie
involves Scorsese in a panic, wanting to run
an idea past Sarah: he’s planning a remake of
Raging Bull, only with “a really thin guy.”

Albert Brooks is master of the whiny
underdog rote, which he provides effortlessly
here, Ciever writing and Brooks’ deadpan
delivery keep things moving through what is
oftentimes a redundant plotline.

Stone saunters about like she owns the pic-
ture, and is fabulous as the would-be daugh-
ter of Zeus. Andie MacDowell, on the other
hand, is dull in the role of Laura, Steven’s all-
too-accommodating wile.

The Muse has a tew downright hilarious
scenes and some snappy one-liners, bur overall
it feels fess than inspired, especially given its
mythical title.

Park & Tilford Cineplex
200 — 333 Brooksbank,
North Vancouver (985-
3911) -

The Muse (PG) — 7:29,
9:30 p.m. plus

Eri /Sat/Sun/Mon 1:30 p.m.

The Biair Witch Project
(14A) — 7:36, 9:40 p.m.
plus Fri/Sat/Sun/Mon 3:40

p.m.
Dudley Do-Right (G) —
6:50, 8:45 p.m. plus

Fri/Sat/Sun/Mon 1:50 p.m.

Brokedown Palace (PG) -—
7:15, 9:25 p.m. plus
Sat/Sun 1:20 p.m.

The Astronaut’s Wife
(14A) — 7, 9:35 p.m. plus
Fri/Sat/Sun/Mon 1 p.m.
Bowfinger (PG) — 7:10,.
9:20 p.m. plus « -

Fri/Sat/Sun/Mon 1:10 p.m.

@ Esplanade 6 Cimenias
200 W. Esplanade, North
Vancouver (983-2762)
The Sixth Sense — Fri/
Sat/Sun/Mon 1:50, 4:50,
7:30, 10:10 p.m.
Tue/Wed/Thu 7:30, 10:10

p.in.
Mickey Blue Eyes —Fri/

’ Sat/Sun/Mon 1:40, 4:10,
7:20, 9:45 p.m. Tuc /Wed/
Thu 7:20, 9:45 p.m.

Chill Factor — Fri/Sot/
Sun/Mon 2, 4:40, 7:40,
10:05 p.m. Tes/Wed/Thu
7:40, 16:65 p.ni..

The 13th Warr or — Fr:/
Sat/Sun/Mon 2.10, 4:55,
7:15, 9:40 p.m. 1.2¢/Wed/
Thu 7:15, 9:40 pn.

The Thomas Crown Affair
—- Fri/Sat/Sun/Mon 1:30,
4, 7, 9:30 p.m. Tue/Wed/
Thu 7, 9:30 p.m.

Runaway Bride — Fri Sat/
Sun/Mon 4:30, 7:10, 9:50
p.m. Fue/Wed/Thu 7:10,
9:50 p.m.

The Iron Giant —- Fri/Sat/
Sun,/Mon 2:20 p.m.

M@ Caprice Park Royal
South
West Vancouver (926-6699)

An Ideal Husband (Pa) —
7:05, plus Sat/Sun/Mon
2:05 p.in.

Eyes Wide Shut (18A) — 9
p.m.

CN iMAX

201-999 Canada Place (682-
4629)

Extreme — 1:15, 3:30, 9

_m.
Alaska: Spirit of the Wild
— noon, 6, 8 p.m. daily
Island of the Sharks —
2:15, 4:45, 7 and 10 p.m.
Special screenings of T-Rex:
Bacx to the Cretaceous in
IMAX 3D daily at 11 a.m.

B Fifth Avenue Cinemas
2110 Burrard at Sth,
Vancouver (734-8700)
Better Than Chocolate
(184) — 7, 9:35 p.m. plus
Sat/Sun/Mon 1:30, 4:10
p.m. and Tue 4:10 p.m.
Buena Vista Social Club
(G) — 7:05, 9:30 p.m. plus
Sat/Sun/Mon 1:45, 4:20
p.m. and Tus 4:20 p.m. (No
7:05 p.m. show on Wed,
Sept 8)

My Son the Fanatic (sub-
ject to classification) — 7:20,
9:20 p.m. plus Sat/Sun/
Mon 2:39, 4:40 p.m. and
Tue 4:40 p.m.

My Life So Far (PG) —
7:15, 9:25 p.m. plus Sat/
Sun/Mon 2:15, 4:30 p.m.
and Tue 4:30 p.m.

The Dinner Game (PG) —
7:10, 9:15 p.m. plus Sat/
Sun/Mon 2, 4 p.m. and Tue
4 p.m. (No 7:10 p.m. show
on Thu, Sept 9)

B Park Theatre
3440 Cambie at 18th,
Vancouver (876-2747)

The Muse (PG) — 7,9 p.m.
plus Sat/Sun 4 p.m.

Hollywood Theatre
3123 West Broadway,
Vancouver (738-3214)
Office Space (14A) — 7:30

p.m.
Notting Hill (PG) — 9:15
p.m.

B Pacific Cinematheque
1231 Howe St., Vancouver
(684-3456)

Marcello Mastroianni:
The special retrospective on
actor Marcello Mastroianni
continues this weekend with
Ettore Scola’s A Special Day
(1977) Friday at 7 :30 p.m.
and Saturday at 9:30 9.m.;
Zurlini’s Family Diary
(1962) Friday at 9:30 p.m.

and Monday, Sept. 6 at 7:20

p.m.; Facnza’s According to
Pereira (1996) (Sat. at 7:30
p.m. and Mon., Sept. 6 at
9:35 p.m.).

Nations, Pollinations
and Dislocations —
Changing Imaginary
Borders in the Americas:
Revolution and its
Aftermaths: Chile, A Case
History: a series of short
films on Chile screens
Sunday, Sept. 5 at 7:15 p.m.
with The Spiral (France
1975) at 9 p.m.

Universal Noir:
Thursday, Aug. 26 new
35mm prints of Stuart
Heisler’s The Glass Key
(1942) Wed Sept. 8 at 7:30
p.m. and Thu Sept. 9 at 9:65
p.m. and the rare Blast of
Stlence (1961) Wed Sepr. 8
at 9:10 p.m. and Thu Sepr. 9
at 7:30 p.m. written, direct-
ed and starring Allen Baron.

Home Furnishings
Leather Work
Car und Boat
Antiques
Refinishing and Repairs

Inspector Gadget (PG} —
7:10, 9 p.m. plus
Sat/Sun/Mon 2:10 p.m.
Notting Hill (PG) — 9:05

p.m.
Dog of Flanders (G) —- 7
p.m. plus Sat/Sun/Mon 2
p.m.

Tho Dao
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SHARON Stone stars as Sarah

in Albert Brooks’ new comedy The Muse.