Jungle Fever (1991): review: 6/10

A married black architect begins a relationship with his temp, a woman of Italian origins: this annoys both his wife, and his paramours family. He also leaves his job on failing to be promoted to the partnership.

The various narrative lines are slickly knitted together to illustrate the effect of racism on romantic relationships.

But the message of the film is too obvious to form the basis of a feature film , and therefore leaves one with the suspicion that it was made more to provoke debate in secondary schools than to entertain the wider public.

Dogfight (1991): review- 2/10

Marines on leave in San Francisco, prior to leaving for Vietnam, invite girls they find unattrarctive to a party for an "ugliness contest".

The main protagonist, however, decides that he actually likes the girl he invited.

The protagonist is callow and his change in attitude to his invitee is not really explained, and the film seems mostly to be a justification of nastiness.

Grand Canyon (1991): review- 3.5/10

Ensemble piece set in LA, featuring blacks of the working classes, various whites -usually wealthy- and the charmless progeny of both races.*

This eliptical fim attempts to make some sort of moral-existential point, but fails: the sort of parables as comprise films such as these demand a dramatic energy that is missing here.

This could be because the script lacks a clear central ethical dilemma, or because the characters are suffocated by a worthiness (suffocated by the sentimental presence of de-liturgicised religion- "spirituality", constantly exhorted by the director to Do Good) that reduces the scope of choices available to the the characters, sapping their spirits.

Indeed, probably, the only characters in the film who get any real fun out of life are the robbers at the start.

And you always know to be wary when humour is completely absent in a narrative art work; because where humour is absent, mawkishness or moralism enter.

*Quite why do Americans have such atrocious table manners? Could it be the cowboy legacy, when meals were eaten in the dark round a campfire after a hard days droving, and none of your fellows could see how you chewed with your mouth open and waved your fork around like a fly swat?

Frankie and Johnny (1991): review- 7/10

Johnny is an ex-con with a zeal for self-improvement. While working as a chef in an NY short order restaurant he falls for a waitress with a sour demeanor, Frankie; he pesters her into dating him.

Generally enjoyable.