the screen

Last of Sheila. Slick but interesting. A murder mystery on a yacht. Don't even try to figure out the plot, which is convoluted almost beyond the limits of credibility. Most of the fun comes from watching James Coburn, Richard Benjamin, Dyan Cannon, James Mason, and Raquel Welch play themselves, with plenty of witty Hollywood quips and elaborate sets. Cheri 3. 1, 3:15, 5:30, 7:45, 10.

Live and Let Die. See it only if you're a diehard James Bond freak-and even then you'll probably be disappointed. Roger Moore is too weak to pull off the 007 role, and the movie survives by showing off its stunts. Lots of busted up cars, villians with arms shaped like lobster claws, and absurd amphibious chase scenes. Music Hall. 10, 12:30, 3, 5:30, 7:45, 10.

The Hireling. British class war in a limousine. Robert Shaw is the chauffeur, and Sarah Miles is Lady Franklin, the cultured English lady who is the object of his desires. Shared the Cannes 1973 Best Film Award, but it is often dull stuff, with overplayed melodrama. Abbey. 1:30, 3:10, 4:50, 6:30, 8:10, 9:50.

Mary Poppins. Well well. It made a lot of money, and got Julie Andrews an Oscar. Animated talking pigs may be a lot of fun, especially if you're stoned. Paramount. 10, 12:30, 3, 5:30, 8.

A Touch of Class. Sometimes fun. Glenda Jackson and George Segal in a film that can't decide whether to place itself in the thirties or the seventies, as far as sex roles are concerned. Jackson is a divorced English dress designer, and Segal is a confused American (aren't we all?). Charles. 2-10, every 2 hours.

Blume in Love. By Paul Mazursky, who did Bob and Carol and Ted and Alice, which was a better movie. This sometimes incisive work is a tale of undying love that sends George Segal from Los Angeles to Venice in search of his divorced wife, beautiful Susan Anspach. It won't take you quite as far. Cheri 2. 1:30, 3:35, 5:45, 8, 10:05.

Forty Carats. What do you say to a boy half your age who says that he loves you? If this question interests you, see Forty Carats. With Liv Ullmann, Eddie Albert, Gene Kelly. A re-make of a Broadway play. Paris Cinema.

L.R.C.

O Lucky Man. Directed by Lindsay Anderson, and starring Malcolm McDowell who is credited with coming up with the gem idea for this movie. Bet he got it making Clockwork Orange. Anderson, who claims he hasn't seen a movie in five years, certainly would never know the difference. And his movie barely acknowledges one. A pretentious effort at a mod Pilgrim's Progress with a moral any child could draw. An empty, empty movie. Cinema 57. 10-10, every three hours.

Klute. A thriller about a call girl beseiged by a crazy breather. Starring Jane Fonda and Donald Sutherland. Fonda has never been tougher, and she is tough. Watch her hands talk when she visits her psychoanalyst--it is eloquence in action. Garden Cinema. 8.

King of Hearts. The only reason for writing this clip is to tell you-if you are still debating whether or not you want to find out what all the fuss in Central Square has been about every Saturday night for who knows how long--not to bother. Central Cinema I. 6:30, 9:45.

State of Siege. Costa-Gavras's latest political drama (following Z and The Confession) written by Franco Solinas who scripted The Battle of Algiers. Yves Montand has the sort of impeccably cool, unimpeachable face which is perfect for the part he plays. His role is recognizably based on the life and death of assassinated AID official Dan Mitrione, who was trained in the U.S. to operate in close undercover conjunction with the repressive police in Brazil and Uruguay. Montand is perfect because this dream of a family man, whose actions are propelled by a pure form of bourgeois liberalism, is so unconscious an oppressor. Charles West. 2:30, 5, 7:45, 10.

-E.A.F.

The Harder They Come. Starring Jimmy Cliff. The movie-is already something of a cult phenomenon. And why shouldn't it be? It's got everything: Set in a Jamaican ghetto under sunny blue skies, the movie looks like a rough etching for a travelogue; a reggae singer on the up and up is bullied and spat down by the local fat king of the record business; he falls for a young sweet 'n innocent ward of the neighborhood preacher, and then shows up all preacher's God-stricken ranting and moaning and raving and groaning as simple lechery; his ambition as a rock star thwarted, he joins the genga trade--shots of blitz-eyed traders; wearing sunglasses and a leopard skin vest he twirls two pistols in parody-the old Hollywood style Western hero has become the outcast; on the run, a wanted man, his record becomes a super hit; a doomed man, he reaps a martry's glory--at this point the movie gets boring--he makes fools out of the cops a bit longer and then gets shot up on the beach. Orson Welles. 4, 6, 8, 10.

Killing of Sister George. 4 or 5 years ago-I can't remember-the movie was faintly intriguing because it was about Lesbians, but that interest could have been the voyeurism that comes out of adolescent inexperience. Perhaps Brookline has asked the movie back for its topical value. Too bad. For the movie twists its material out of shape. The gay scene here looks mean. Symphony Cinema II.

The Candidate. With Robert Redford. The movie is much like Downhill Racer: Redford spends it getting to the top, gets there and finds it a rather meaningless place. Coolidge Corner Theatre.