Entertainment

Cold Comfort Farm in rural Sussex is the sort of place where the pigs eat better than the people. Their conversation and manners also are demonstrably superior, and the farm is a disorderly house much in need of correction. If it is not obvious to the Starkwadder family, an eclectic selection from Britain's densely populated lunatic fringe that has lived on Cold Comfort Farm for generations, it is painfully clear to Miss Flora Poste.

Choose life. Choose a job. Choose a career. Choose "Trainspotting" to watch this summer. By now, this thoroughly engaging British import - which has enjoyed nearly as much hype as the recent Beatles reunion - is coming at us with few surprises left attached. So let's tackle the film's most controversial aspect right off. First, a fact: Yes, "Trainspotting" portrays heroin addiction.

Once upon a time, a film that arrived in video stores without the pedigree of a theatrical release was treated with the suspicion of a beggar in a royal palace. Disney Home Video is trying to change that reputation. And the entertainment giant has a magical genie to make this wish come true. So when the Robin Williams-powered "Aladdin and the King of Thieves" debuts Tuesday, there will be no long lines at the movie theaters. Instead - poof - it appears in thousands of video outlets, for a retail price of $24.99.

Here from his Austin, Texas, stomping grounds, W.C. Clark will perform the kind of music that makes his albums "Heart of Gold" and "Texas Soul" standouts.

There was a time, not long ago, when the closing credits that follow movies were predictable and relatively brief. You got your writer, director, cinematographer, your cast of characters, technicians and finally song credits.

Joan Baez is living life with a lot more laughter and creativity these days.

Theresa Randle is the star in Spike Lee's "Girl 6."

Victoria Foyt stars in and Henry Jaglom directs "Last Summer in the Hamptons."

Kathy Mattea, who plays the Sandpoint Festival's mainstage at Memorial Field at 7:30 tonight, is one of the undisputed class acts of country music. She makes pure American acoustic music, the best of folk, country and roots music combined.

Six films from the 1949-1962 era, movies that still pop up in conversations and comparisons with more-current major performances, are part of the Vintage Classic video series that arrived at video stores this week. The films are screen masterpieces from the vaults of MGM/UA that bring back brilliant performances by some of yesteryear's greatest stars: Spencer Tracy in "Bad Day at Black Rock," Burt Lancaster in "Birdman of Alcatraz," Frank Sinatra in "The Manchurian Candidate," Robert Ryan and Harry Belafonte in "Odds Against Tomorrow," Gregory Peck in "On the Beach" and James Cagney in "White Heat."

Three classics concerts are scheduled for The Festival at Sandpoint this week. The Spokane Symphony will be joined Saturday night at 7:30 at Memorial Field by pianists Alexander Toradze and Vakhtang Kodanashvili and violinist Kelly Farris in works by Tchaikovsky, DeFalla and Paine. Gunther Schuller will conduct.

Robin Williams says he's giving up man-child roles. But not just yet. Starting Friday, he'll be seen in the title role of Francis Ford Coppola's "Jack," playing a 10-year-old boy in a 40-year-old man's body. The character, who is aging four times as fast as normal, is trying to pump himself up for a big adventure - going to school with kids he had previously seen only through his bedroom window.

The upcoming week at the Sandpoint Festival. Festival tickets are available at the Memorial Field box office; the festival office, 305 N. Second, or call 235-4554 or, toll-free, (888) 265-4554. Schedule Kathy Mattea - today, 7:30 p.m., Memorial Field, $19 general admission, $26.50 reserved seating. Spokane Symphony - with Alexander Toradze on piano, Saturday, 7:30 p.m., Memorial Field, $19 general admission, $26.50 reserved seating.

It's a conspiracy. You may not have been aware of it. You may have thought "Phenomenon" was just another schmaltzy, Spielbergian fantasy.

Kurt Russell plays Snake Plisskin again.

George Lucas pioneered modern special effects in "Star Wars" with his Industrial Light and Magic.

After a bad dream, Jack (Robin Williams) snuggles into bed between his parents (Brian Kerwin and Diane Lane).

(scene from movie 'Twister')

Sunday's 7 p.m. concert by the The Brian Setzer Orchestra is the most eagerly anticipated concert of the entire Festival at Sandpoint season. The Memorial Field show promises to be an exhilarating combination of big-band swing, rock 'n' roll and rockabilly. Setzer, the guitarist with that early '80s phenomenon, The Stray Cats, put this 17-piece jazz orchestra together in 1994 and became an L.A. sensation. Expect to hear some Count Basie numbers, Louis Jordan jump blues, some Bobby Darin-style '50s swing and even some straight ahead rock 'n' roll.