Inquisition, Plague, Royal Intrigue: 16th Century Was A Barrel Of Fun

Set in the late 1500s, the French historical saga “Queen Margot” is an opportunity for us to look back with relief at what we don’t have to face today - plagues, religious intolerance, conniving political types…

On second thought, maybe there isn’t much difference between then and now, except for the degree to which such societal currents affect the overall population.

Millions died from the plagues of the 16th century. Thousands more died from the lingering effects of the Inquisition. And those left were prey to the machinations backing this or that royal personage.

Director and co-screenwriter Patrice Chereau does a decent job of re-creating the streets of Paris in the year 1572. And he manages a rather hard-to-watch depiction of the infamous St. Bartholomew’s Day Massacre, during which Catholics ripped apart some 6,000 Protestants in a nightlong orgy of religious persecution. The acting is fine, especially by Jean-Hugues Anglade as the demented Charles IX, Daniel Auteuil as his eventual successor Henry of Navarre, and Virna Lisi as scheming Catherine de Medici.

What is missing, though, is any real reason to follow the fortunes of the title character (played by French beauty Isabelle Adjani) and her lover, the commoner la Mole (Vincent Perez).

The characters are secondary to the historical events, and both actors tend to coast by on the strength of their good looks.

Rated R ** 1/2

Disclosure

**

Give Barry Levinson credit. By using a movie set that is thrilling to look at and which provides Levinson’s script with its ironic twist (damaging secrets being passed around in a glass-lined enclosure), he manages to make something interesting out of this otherwise numbing adaptation of the Michael Crichton best-seller. The very theme, that of a man accusing his woman boss of sexual harassment, is used only as a cover for what really is a tale of corporate intrigue. Michael Douglas portrays his typical sexually troubled self (a la “Fatal Attraction” and “Basic Instinct”) and Demi Moore’s character, a sexy troubleshooter for a Seattle computer firm, is about as fully developed as a 3-inch floppy. The movie is a cheat, albeit an occasionally entertaining one.

Rated R

Drop Zone

**

Wesley Snipes continues to be better than the material he takes on, though that can’t last forever. Here, he plays a federal agent who joins the exclusive club of skyjumpers in search of the man (Gary Busey) who killed his brother. The story is illogical to the extreme, using every excuse imaginable - and some that are beyond imagination - to get the actors up in small planes so that they can throw themselves out into space. The good news is that those scenes, at least, are entertaining.

Rated R

Far From Home

**

Much of this movie is directed as a true-life adventure that combines Disney sentimentality with Boy Scout manual-type messaging (always remove your wet clothing, our soaked protagonist tells us, or you’ll get hypothermia).

A young boy and his dog, lost at sea, must struggle to survive.

They do, only to get separated, leading to a fantasyland ending straight out of “The Incredible Journey.”

The chief attractions are the setting (Vancouver Island) and the dog. But while this might entertain a younger crowd, anyone older than 10 deserves a more plausible finale.

Rated R

, DataTimes MEMO: This sidebar appeared with the story: WHAT’S NEW TO VIEW Available this weekend: “Disclosure” (Warner), “Drop Zone” (Paramount), “Far From Home” (Touchstone), “Queen Margot” (Miramax). Available on Tuesday: “Little Women” (Columbia TriStar), “Streetfighter” (MCA/Universal), “Dumb & Dumber” (New Line), “Slam Dunk Ernest” (Touchstone), “Camilla” (Touchstone).