FILM / Critical Round-Up

ROBIN HOOD: MEN IN TIGHTS

'Endless flat jokes about private parts, laborious displays of bad taste, and limp parodies of other movies . . . The central flaw, though, is the humour's sheer redundancy.' Geoff Brown, Times

'To say it's feeble would be to give it the benefit of quite a few doubts . . . It's almost like an amateur pantomime which seems forgivable only because you know the people on stage.' Derek Malcolm, Guardian

'He (Brooks) is still hitting us with the same old jokes like a jester who has lost control of his bladder.' Nigel Andrews, Financial Times

'Dotty scenario with several intermittent tee-hees but a lot of sags and bags.' Angie Errigo, Premiere

'The jokes are on one level only - throwaway - and the plot (such as it is) never builds up to anything more than another series of cheap, quick gags.' Nigel Kendall, Time Out

'Lavatory-pan humour that all too rarely raises itself above the rim.' Emma Norman, Daily Mirror

CINEMA PARADISO: SPECIAL EDITION

'Enjoyable, warm-hearted, shallow story . . . The new footage tends to magnify faults, not virtues . . . For all but the most diehard fans, the shorter, not-so-special edition of Cinema Paradiso should suffice.' Geoff Brown, Times

'What's been added is what should have been taken out in the first place.' Derek Malcolm, Guardian

'If the earlier film was a retarded, runaway charmer . . . the new film dares to bring in subjects like Sex, Age and Disenchantment . . . Looks more like the masterpiece for the history books.' Nigel Andrews, Financial Times

'Still captivates, but Tornatore (director) is clearly not familiar with the expression Always Leave Them Wanting More.' Angie Errigo, Premiere

'. . . alters the whole tone of the film, darkening it considerably in effective counterpoint to the occasional slushiness of the central flashback.' Trevor Johnston, Time Out

'It was always good stuff and now it is even better.' Emma Norman, Daily Mirror

THE METEOR MAN

'A fantasy comedy low on jokes . . . Too bland and dishevelled to make much contact with the young black audience it needs.' Geoff Brown, Times

'Meteor Man winds up stranded in its own schmaltzy orbit.' Ray Douglas, Time Out