September 25, 1992

MOVIES have never been more self-conscious about their history. If one had to choose a defining phrase for the mood of world cinema today, "esthetic self-awareness" might be the most pertinent. And this sense of an art refreshing itself by rummaging through its past runs through many of the 26 programs in the New York Film Festival, which opens tonight at Lincoln Center with Agnieszka Holland's psychological drama "Olivier, Olivier." In its 30th season, the festival is presenting films from 18 countries, including Iran, which is represented (for the first time) by Abbas Kiarostami's "And Life Goes On." A look at the devastating effects of an earthquake, the film will be shown tomorrow and Sunday.

The turmoil in the European currency markets abated somewhat today as a joint effort between France and Germany succeeded in stabilizing the value of the franc. Analysts said the volume of buying and selling in the foreign exchange markets slowed substantially, and that the odds were improving that Europe's tattered monetary system would hold together.

The "squeeze" on the Treasury's seven- and 10-year notes has become tight enough to prompt the Federal Reserve Bank of New York to collect information on dealer positions and study the dynamics of the shortage of securities. A squeeze, which forces some traders to pay very high premiums to borrow the securities they want, is not necessarily illegal. But it can be if there is collusion involved in creating a shortage of securities.

In a blistering critique of the Navy's inquiry into sexual assaults at an aviators' convention last year, a Pentagon report made public today says that senior Navy officials deliberately undermined their own investigation to avoid negative publicity. The report said some admirals had sabotaged their agents' efforts because of their own hostility toward women. It is the first time the Pentagon has directly accused senior Navy officials of suppressing their own investigation into the assault of at least 26 women, including 14 officers, at the Tailhook Association convention in Las Vegas, Nev. Internal Bickering The report portrays a leaderless inquiry mired in internal bickering that failed to grasp the scope of the crisis. At one point, the report said, the commander of the Naval Investigative Service, Rear Adm. Duvall M. (Mac) Williams Jr., and the Assistant Navy Secretary for Manpower and Reserve Affairs, Barbara S. Pope, had a "screaming match" in a Pentagon corridor about female aviators, with Admiral Williams comparing female Navy pilots to "go-go dancers, topless dancers or hookers."

Tactics of the Siege In the Bosnian capital of Sarajevo, electricty and water are in such short supply that nightfall turns the city back to the 19th century, the aim of the Serbs who besiege it. Page A10. Mayor Bradley Won't Run Saying, 'The time for change has come," Mayor Tom Bradley of Los Angeles announced that he will not seek a sixth term.Page A12. Vote to Restore Leaves The Senate voted to override a veto of a bill mandating leaves for family emergencies. But the House seemed unlikely to follow suit. Page A16. The Cubs Finally Win One Baseball dropped its order to realign the National League, which would have switched the Chicago Cubs to the West against their will. Page B9. Child v. Parent A lawsuit by a 12-year-old boy who wants to choose his parents went to trial in a case that could alter the legal rights of children. Page A20.