FREEZE FRAMES

CANNIBAL TOURS - Waving cameras and hunting for souvenirs, Western tourists invade the South Pacific region as if it were an exotic shopping mall. This biting documentary captures all the ironies of the situation with rueful wit and insight. Directed by Australian filmmaker Dennis O'Rourke, an expert in the study of cultural clashes. (Not rated) CASUALTIES OF WAR - In the brutal surroundings of the Vietnam war, a sergeant masterminds the abduction, rape, and murder of a Vietnamese woman. Only one member of his squad refuses to participate in this atrocity, and when it's over, he has to face his conscience: Should he turn in his former buddies, or keep quiet about the event, as even his superiors hope he will? In cinematic terms, the drama is a rich example of classical Hollywood filmmaking. It's excruciatingly violent, though, and director Brian DePalma errs by making the Vietnamese woman a completely passive victim instead of a three-dimensional character. The screenplay is credited to David Rabe. (Rated R)

THE LITTLE THIEF - She's only 16 years old, but she steals love as well as material things, and her sexually active adventures take her from an unhappy family life to a stay in reform school. This is the last movie co-written by the great French filmmaker Fran,cois Truffaut before his untimely death, and his former assistant Claude Miller has directed it with a bittersweet energy that the master would surely have approved. Charlotte Gainsborough gives a delicious performance as the title character, although her story is not very memorable in the long run. (Not rated)