Gentle 'Endurance' By Jane Horwitz Special to The Washington Post Friday, May 21, 1999

Also Playing PG-13s, Art Films for Teens "The Winslow Boy" (G). Family in 1913 England risk all to clear name of son expelled from school in handsome but emotionally arid adaptation by writer/filmmaker David Mamet of 1946 Terence Rattigan play. Characters smoke, drink. Would bore preteens. "Trekkies" (PG). Eccentric, witty, documentary about Star Trek fans who attend conventions, obsess over costumes, paraphernalia, characters of original show and its offshoots, sometimes meeting real "Trek" stars. Brief sexual innuendo. For adults, teens with sense of irony. "Tea With Mussolini" (PG). Judi Dench, Maggie Smith, Joan Plowright as ladies in 1930's Italy facing Fascist thuggery, war, in sentimental but diverting tale. Rare profanity; drinking, smoking; unwed characters' trysts; illegitimate child; mild sexual innuendo; hint of male nudity. "William Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream." Whimsical, earthy, take on play, prettily set in Tuscany, circa 1900, with Kevin Kline as droll Bottom. Brief semi-nudity; mild sexual situations, innuendo; scatological humor. "Entrapment." Sean Connery as art thief pursued by Catherine Zeta-Jones as insurance investigator in slick but less than zippy romantic thriller. Rare profanity, mild sexual innuendo, muted love scenes; implied semi-nudity; hashish or opium use; bloodless violence. "Three Seasons." Lives of several people, among them Harvey Keitel as U.S. veteran, intersect in modern Vietnam, in exquisite, touching film by Vietnamese American Tony Bui. Child struck; boy drinks beer; sexual innuendo. Not for preteens. In Vietnamese with subtitles. R's "Trippin'." High school senior won't get serious about college in good-natured urban message comedy. Profanity, sexual innuendo; steamy, non-graphic sexual situations; scantily-clad women; anti-female lyrics; gun threats; teens drink, make drug, condom, suicide jokes. Older high-schoolers. "Election." Matthew Broderick as teacher tries to stop Reese Witherspoon as smug student from winning school election in smart, cynical adult comedy. Graphic sexual situations; gay themes; semi-nudity; verbal sexual innuendo; profanity; marijuana; teacher's affair with student. Older high-schoolers. "The Matrix." Keanu Reeves as computer hacker freeing mankind from controlling super computers in neat mix of cyber punk, martial arts, mythology, sci-fi. Bloodless shootouts, fights, belly bug extraction, needles; mild sexual innuendo; profanity, smoking, drinking. Teens. – Jane Horwitz

"Endurance" (G)
Children 8 and up will see more than the reenacted story of a world-class athlete in this gentle, unusual docudrama. They'll have their eyes opened to life in the Third World, and some kids may be upset by it. "Endurance" contains no offensive material, except for dusty, fly-ridden poverty, which in part is what makes Ethiopian Olympic gold medalist Haile Gebrselassie's personal triumph in Atlanta in 1996 so moving. Filmmaker Leslie Woodhead uses relatives of the runner to portray him and his family. He plays himself as an adult. In an intense scene, young Haile's mother collapses, dying. The boy weeps at her funeral.

"Star Wars: Episode I: The Phantom Menace" (PG)
Kids will see it anyway, but the Family Filmgoer must go on record: This first installment of George Lucas's long-planned prequel to the "Star Wars" trilogy is quite dull – visually rich but lifeless. Kids 8 and up will doubtless find joy in the mere continuation of the "Star Wars" myth. Only parents will wonder why the villains seem to have Asian accents, and silly, servile characters like the unfunny Jar Jar Binks sound Caribbean and African American, or why the whimsical aliens and breathtaking architectural settings look so sterile (many were created on computers).

The violence is nearly bloodless, though loud and fast. There is a light saber impalement and a sad moment when young Anakin Skywalker (Jake Lloyd) must say goodbye forever to his mother. Some may find the more bizarre alien creatures too creepy.

Lucas directs actors heavily. Liam Neeson as Jedi master Qui-Gon Jinn, Ewan McGregor as the young Obi-Wan Kenobi and others speak as if under hypnosis. Even Yoda, R2-D2 and C-3PO aren't much fun. May the Force be with Episode II.

"The Love Letter" (R)
A determinedly cute wisp of a romantic comedy, "The Love Letter" (based on Cathleen Schine's novel) will charm only dreamy-eyed teen (and preteen) girls. The rating reflects two steamy but non-graphic sexual situations, one out-of-focus hint of nudity and rare profanity.

Kate Capshaw plays the divorced, uptight owner of a bookstore in a postcard-perfect New England town. When she finds a passionate, unsigned love letter, she assumes it's intended for her and begins to fantasize about who sent it. But the letter floats around and others decide it was meant for them. A sudden affair combusts, as do misunderstandings among Capshaw and friends (Ellen DeGeneres, Tom Selleck and Tom Everett Scott). Teen audiences will warm to Scott and Julianne Nicholson as college kids working at the bookstore.

"Black Mask" (R)
In this bloodier-than-usual Hong Kong martial-arts thriller, Asian star Jet Li plays a superhuman genetically engineered ex-cop who's become a pacifist librarian. When his unhinged former robo-colleagues go on a killing spree, he dons the mask of the title and helps stop them. High-school martial-arts buffs will probably find the ultra-mayhem in "Black Mask" a trip, but it's really not for younger teens. It earns its R with graphic shootings, knifings – even lethally hurled compact discs. The rest is profanity and a scene with sadomasochistic sexual innuendo. "Black Mask" is so incessantly violent it's often incoherent. When things quiet down the cast proves likable. The dialogue is well dubbed and translated in a crisp, cynical film noir style.