Conjoined Twins Find Intimacy

How close can brothers be? The Falls boys, Blake and Francis, couldn’t get any closer.

Blake and Francis are conjoined twins in the offbeat “Twin Falls Idaho,” now in an exclusive engagement at Edwards Town Center in Costa Mesa. Connected at the hip, they share limbs, blood, thoughts and even love.

When Francis (Michael Polish) decides to celebrate the twins’ 25th birthday by getting a hooker (Michele Hicks) for Blake (Mark Polish), the film’s unusual course is set.

Identical twins Michael and Mark Polish co-directed and wrote the low-budget movie, which was hailed at the Sundance Film Festival. The Polish brothers have said in interviews that “Twin Falls Idaho” was inspired by the legend of Chang and Eng Bunker, the Siamese twins who were a hit traveling around America in the 19th century. The Bunkers married sisters and fathered 22 kids, proving that intimacy can be defined in many ways.

The prostitute, Penny, raises the question of intimacy in “Twin Falls Idaho” as she develops a strong relationship with Blake and Francis. As Times reviewer Kevin Thomas noted: “You get the feeling that Penny and the Falls twins just might have it in them to work out something romantically . . . but you can’t actually guess where the film is ultimately taking us.”

Thomas praised the dexterity the Polishes show as directors, writers and actors in their first full-length effort.

“The brothers are as persuasive behind the camera as in front of it. . . . [They] eschew the bizarre and sensational entirely and go instead for a sensitive, poignant tone,” he wrote. “What [is explored] is the paradox that conjoined twins represent: the eternally alternating impulse for dependence and independence within human relationships.”

* “Twin Falls Idaho” is at Edwards Town Center, 3199 Park Center Drive, Costa Mesa. Running time: 1 hour, 40 minutes. Rated R, for language and mature themes. (714) 751- 4184.

‘Shrunk’ and ‘Slickers II’ at Newport Dunes

Remarkably small children and impossibly citified cowboys are the featured attractions as the Newport Dunes Resort in Newport Beach continues its Family Flicks summer series.

The program, which presents movies outdoors on a 9-by-12-foot screen near the beachfront, will screen Disney’s “Honey, I Shrunk the Kids” (1989) Friday and the Billy Crystal dude ranch epic “City Slickers II: The Legend of Curly’s Gold” (1994) on Saturday.

In the former, Rick Moranis stars as a geeky but lovable scientist (is there any other kind in Disney films?) who ends up with tiny kids after an experiment goes awry. Just how tiny are they? So tiny they can hitch rides on the back of gentle ants.

And does tiny make for a good movie? This is what Leonard Maltin says in his “Movie and Video Guide”: “Cute comedy-fantasy about a quartet of kids who accidentally trigger Moranis’ experimental ray-gun . . . enjoyable family fare with engaging special effects.”

As for “City Slickers II,” Crystal and sidekick Daniel Stern are back in the desert pretending to be cowpokes. This time around, the plot has Crystal and Stern searching for gold supposedly hidden by Curly, played by the ever-growling Jack Palance.

Maltin gives it a mixed review: “A contrived sequel if there ever was one. . . . Lack of plot and purpose are balanced by magnificent Moab, Utah, scenery--and a lot of genuine laughs.”

* “Honey, I Shrunk the Kids” screens at dusk Friday at Newport Dunes Resort, 1131 Backbay Drive, Newport Beach. Rated PG. Running time: 1 hour, 33 minutes. “City Slickers II: The Legend of Curly’s Gold” screens at dusk Saturday. Rated PG-13. Running time: 1 hour, 56 minutes. Parking is $6 per car. (949) 729-DUNE.