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Show CINEMA Solid cast keeps ‘Asylum’from driving viewers nuts Robert W. Butler THE KANSASCITY STAR merthat would be unbearable if not for the excellence ofseveral of its cast members. Set in a gray ‘50s Britain where psychological repression is practically the national pastime, director David Mackenzie'sfilm is a modern- repair a decrepit greenhouse behind the Raphaelhome, Stella begins fantasizing about the man. He's Edgar Stiles (Marton Csokas),a sculptor with burn(Hugh Bonneville), who has ing eyes who some years ago just taken a new job at a sooty old facility right out of a Bronte killed and beheaded his wife in a jealous rage. Now he’s considnovel. Max has his eye on becoming the next director of the ered docile enough to perform - chores outside the main facility. place, and he expectsStella to Any sane person would keep play the good faculty wife as Edgar at arm'slength and then they establish themselves in dress variation on Flaubert’s this insulated community. 6A. ly insane,and the wife's new lover is one of the inmates. Natasha Richardson plays Stella, the still-beautiful-in-middle-age wife of Max Raphael sylum’is a glum bum- some.But Stella is nurturing But Stella is bored and miser- “Madame Bovary,” with an unhappydoctor’s wife throwing herself into a self-destructive affair. The twist hereis that the doctoris a psychiatrist at a stateTun institution for the criminal- able. She quietly loathes Max and his ambitions, not to mention the smug, chirpy wives of other staff members. When her young son Charlie (Gus Lewis) befriends a patient assigned to her own madness — for her this dangerous-but-seductive Review € Asylum Director: David Mackenzie Cast: NastashaRichardson, Marton Csokas, lan McKellen, Hugh Bonneville Running time: 1 hr., 39 min. Rated: R for strong sexuality, someviolence and brief language Location: Opens Friday in Salt LakeCity manrepresents a possibility for escape. Their torrid affair, played out underthe noses of the guards and Stella's family, gives Edgar an opportunity to Win a $1,000,000! in the flee to London.Stella follows to share an abandoned warehouse with her fugitive lover. It doesn't takelong for her to realize that Edgar’s madness: . never went away andthat she could soon meet the fate ofhis first wife. “Asylum”has plenty of Gothic atmosphere and director Mackenzie seems to be having great fun playing with imagery involving widows, brokenglass andreflections. Butthe film's great strength is a cast of supporting players who steal sceneafter scene from their leading lady. Csokas is the realfind. His Edgaris so compelling and haunting, such a potent blend of sexuality and dangerthat even whenhe's not on the screenhis presence permeates every scene. at The |,jnksat Sleepy Ri dge September22 @ 4 p.m. Million Dollar Shootout will be broadcastlive from 4-6 p.m. on 1280 The Zone. 5 e Daily Herald, Thursday, September 1, 2005 Here's how to enter: 1. Play The Links at Sleepy Ridge,700S. steepy Ridge Drive, 434-GOLF (4653) now through Sept. 15. Each time you play, your namewill be entered into the drawing. 2. Visit the Sequoia Builders (sequoiabuilders.net, 376-5345)sales office during the same time and your namewill also be entered in the drawing. On September22, 10 lucky contestantswill have a chance to win $1,000,000. Nine names will be drawn from those who haveplayed golf at Sleepy Ridge orvisited the Sequoia Builders sales office through Sept. 15. The final contestant will be selected from those in attendance at the shootout on Sept. 22. Bonneville is just aboutper- fect as Stella's long-suffering husband, who sees both his professional and personal life dissolving around him yet still takes his wife back for the sake oftheir son. And Ian McKellenis absolutely in his element as a smug psychiatrist who clearly relishes the power he wields over Hollywood and TV together on screen again And again and again Joe Neumaier NEW YORKDAILY NEWS t's hard to imagine now, but whentelevision first came to prominence, Hollywood viewed it as competi- tion for movies. How times change. Now,films made from TV showsare commonplace.But as this summer has shown, what works on the small Only “The Dukes of Hazzard” proved to be a success,updating its ‘80s humor for a new audience, This fall will see “Serenity”(the cinematicleap of the failed TV series “Firefly"), and next year will bring “Miami Vice,”starring Colin Farrell and Jamie Foxx. Also in the works:“Get Smart,” starring Steve Carell, and “I Dream of Jeannie.” While the trend can be traced backto successful transitions like “Dragnet” (1987), “The Untouchables” (1987) and “The Fugitive” (1993), a flop like “Bewitched” showsthe danger of overestimating audience affection for oldtitles. “A lot of these showsare badly dated, and thoughthey mayhave worked in the 1960s or ‘70s, when they're Richardson simply seems too strong,too assertive to be the updated they just seem irrelevant,” says BruceFretts, senior correspondentfor TV Guide.“Plus, people are used to seeing these shows-on the small screen. You haveto have something really special to justify transplanting them to the movies.” “Movies and television basketcase the story pres- showsare two completely ents.I'm not surethis is her fault — Stella is an impossible character, a womanof raging sensuality whois on onelevel different species,” says Frank sophisticated,intelligent and movie), whose new fall series, sardonic, and on another a psychologicalchild whogets intosituations even a thick teen “The Night Stalker,” is an updateof a cult program from his captive patients. The film's main flaw is that Spotnitz, an executive produc- er and writer on “The X-Files” (both the show and the 1998 the early "70s. “But to movie studios,it’s a hugehelp to haveatitle everyone knows, formance, and Richardsonis to cut throughthe clutter of particularly good at expressing the marketplace. Stella's long-muffled sexuality. “When le see a TV Butthe actress hasn't been able show title from their youth, In the event no ace is scored, 1st place wins $1000, 2nd place wins $500 and 3rd place wins to reconcile these twosides they're looking fora piece of gT Ee Calloway Irons. The remaining contestants will receiveprizes of balls, foursomes of golf, hats, etc ofStella's personality — intelthat old experience to come Last place receivesfree lessons. ligence and mindless passion back,andthe truthis, they'll — creating an emotionaldisneverrecaptureit,” he said. ZPORTSRADICy TheMillion Doltar Grand prizeis paid as a connect wherethefilm's heart Just don’t expect Holly40-year annuity. AMooo should be. wood to stop trying to make 1 vit BARREN. (cae onwist =P aw VA Oe 2. iruyd Spo AWWe i vai ane 6 SPRUE Seed be From 150yards, the 10 contestants get one shot only! A holein one wins the $1,000,000! Daily would avoid. It’s not a disastrous per- |