THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS

40 Friday. July 27. 1984

Friday, July

27,

1984 41

THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS

ALTERNATIVE MOVIE
ALTERNATIVE MAN

tl 11 , 1)1) tit II \

eim's passion tor
. . -)p-notch cinema is good news
or Detroit audiences tired of the
kitsch being served up at their
local shopping-mall theaters.

1 . 1!

!

!!'

his job at Channel 1! tough but 1 1 1-
1,1 arding. - On television. you've gut
90 s e c onds to do it I i he reVit , V, 1. Pitts.

rum from
uno•ilie , and include
))rnerof
e).
),[e,-
and lesser
rIca )n
hich
.;:: ,.)11 an film,

.

1;1)
lot(

a.

youve got to show .1 ChP f!'nnl 1111'
movie. So you're really talkiim about
maybe a minute of time. Its an in-
credible challenge to write that short

.1 ling red basis, or
bane
not al all. in Iht. 1(.0.111111 111 1 1 . :1

and say something intelligent.
penetrating, funny and, at the same
time, enlightening. -
Last vear, Wilhelm was nomi-
nated for a local Emmy award in the

1111 . 10 11:1.- het 11 1111.-: 111 .1S('1111Cep -

-

h,il in)). it! \le show is a
Swedish film about knights
ctless yviih death. - the 1)1'1' director
tit, not neces-
niov
said
sarily deal w 11111111 . dii si problems

'pin I

writing category for his review of

First Mom/. It was the first time .1

television movie review was 1111111I '

of mankind A steady (het of I hat will
make violins' as ill as a steady (het (II
nothing hut 1..11.vision

Witted 1011 1-411:11 :111 :1W:11 1 ( 1.
Although he refuses to criticize
other local television movie critics by

for this reason that \Villlelin
It
Include.- movie. Ilk , . \
th,•

•iti(iV

larland

T111.:11..r

:111 11111 1 11.111 -

and commerce. Part
H1,11!I .! 1;
)moter HET programs 11:1).:4 . ;11

! , •111 .111/H . 111:111(01e 1111111011 people

..:1

•

1:1;1., 11:111

film critic Itelev

l

n. radi),. magazine) and part
))a)ron ofthe arts, Elliot \Villielin
))•.en local movie goers a chance to
estape the Hollywood - numbers .

.:!,tme which often prompts such

iiiind-haggling questions as: 1)0 we
see Cannonball burl 11 at the Tel-Ex

∎ /(// 'S

3-/) at the Towne

Four?
The concept of - alternative -
m)vies in Detroit is not a new one.
\\Then theaters like' the Variety and
the l'oronet, which thrived showing
classic and lOreign films during the
19 , 1(1s and 1 9[A)s, began to fold as

their audiences. moved to the sub-
urbs, the tit mho Theater chain
nicked up the mantle. But as multi
1111111)1eXe.-1 sprouted and sdiop-

,..ang centers took hold of the movie
, , Hiness• large chains would hook.)(
s,•reens at a time, according to
- locking out - high-quality
Films ,,vitich weren't considered "box

•ffice
The economics which eventually
!„reed the Studio Theaters to change
ow nership and Piing philosophies,
gulag from art films to pornographic
ones, also left 1)et rollers with an
entertainment gap. Into this void

stepped Elliot a movie jun-

--', 111C ,. cI1111111!!0(1

I mig hi

I

who had been 11 1-

:H news ,girl 'tor for

I
the National Endo ■ yni•nt for lite Arts
-see d !none% i11e Del pat institute
the
hired \1' l lh e l plin /,97:i
-) dIreeter
the
the vet

r , ),) ye.)1ive knew

had been built in 191).7 and included a
balcony and ;In organ - TIK. marl:et -

mg of movies has become a K-111:111
type operat ion. where you buy a
windier of screens. as cheaply a.
at once. But the .11.1
possible,

theaters used to hand-pick their
movies. present them in an intimate
at inosphere. -
Places such as the Studio Thea-
ter would offer free coffee to patrons
and the manager was akvays there to
discuss t he evening's feat u re,

touches has picked up and
incorporated into the 1)1.'1' expert

Along with creatmg an atin(ls-
to
duality
conducive
phere

entertainment. feels diver-
sity has been one of the keys to th e
film 1 Ileat(9 - 's success The program.
since its in('eption, has •tm ■ veckend

evenings ■■ ith a different film fea-
tured each Friday, ;-;:ittird.iy and
Sunday . . The 112 movies presented

1)v the 1)FT each year cover t he

mat•

o, Litt t.,li ,1
).or the svcond

Him
Lao) Ill. c , irr•m

\Vl1, h In 1)1; I Ike, pre.-;ented
,I11 .1e\\
number , )1
topics di:iv:mi - i h.. pa-1
t ions are V I(I mi merit aloni
international
\Villielin 1.11d

WitHftti it,

stage ul t h e nluslueln r 1 11( , ;11cr, \vlio

(11;11)1)!1,

111t..;!)111.1...-! ■ •11! ■ 11:.1

C.1 1 1;11:.1,

peopi ,

F \

), ear-old
\v h-, i ) kind of

1 . 11:11111 .

111.111);('

ti•Ir() ,

-4(+11.11111.:

ill I

He is. Ilk. 1 111. 111 (1 \1 1 'S Ill:, 1)1 . 11 1 1)11

Hanle, \Vilhelm is no fa n of t he
show-hiz style of rev iewing which
local audiences often see - 1 think

.vsti

ICrinini:

111)1)n tit (IC

nUi10'

111(11

Hit' H(11 , 111.11 1 '

:\1 ■ 1\

\dil(1) reVlik s ('

an'nund ?he Ilt.11•;ms1 such as iti/(/)._!/,

).‘ Oh

lots of chase :11

,\I!en ' s

Atinie 11(X. u film feat i;

lots of sensitive lathe!"
dialogue and little action which

ill.netheless, won a .;101,c uI AC:1(1( . 111y
AW:11 1 11:-; in 1978, including Best Pic-

Lost

ture.
\Wilhelm's office, overlooking the

of Lourse, - the Film theater s
director said "liiit none (dour liook-
ings are !mule on all ideological

art institute's serene Kresge Court
cafe, is a kind oldisheveled tribute to
the man's passionate attachment to
film. Movie auId film festival posters

1341)/!' .112, /. 2.■ '/'

!l'ulan(1).

1'`I'W1( (!! - H.tvc a special

nil Ise.

1)tisis.

1)etroit Filni
rare f„ r II". f -Irs t time may he

talien aback by \yliat constitutes
modern foreign filn -1, according to
\Wilhelm. The old standard ofgoing to
.\ merican ilioy1(' to 1.-114. 1111s of 111:-
11011, \\inke attending a foreign film
for subtleness and intiillacy with the
subject matter. doesn't really apply

anymore, he said.

- 1)ifferences het \yeen American
mid European films and dir.•..1 ors
have largely eroded - film styles
have become nai•e homogenize(i. -

*Hie 1)1 1- 1' director cited last
Year's Caesar award winner from
France, A Buhl/ICC, a police thriller

From day one, movie- , have
a profit-making enterprise. The
having artists work within

.1,\ . !.!;;!\

line three of the four walls, with a
hokease dominat ing the fourth. 'rm.

office library? No surprises there,
just hundreds of volumes detailing
every isp•ct ofcelluloid history, from
Thomas. Edison's invention of the
motion picture camera, to Steven
Spielhe•g's knock-your-socks-off spe

cial effects
\Vhile he admits that the fib»

theater's programming has changed
- substantially over the years be-
cause audiences hav6 l become mop)

sophisticated, Wilhelm feels drastic
changes in Hollywood, even during
the past few years, have had . just as

much an effect on the movies he
chooses as any other factor.

his

mediutn has always heed looked

.)) `,)y tho 1.1ollywood establishment as
Ind of a screwball notion. Now. yy ith
he cost of producing ail average

movie $10.5 million, you've got a con-
between the people
unt

cow rid t he money and the
isionaries who want to make great

movies.
That establishment, Wilhelm
st.ill sees the art. aspect of films
in terms of Samuel (;oldwyn's credo:

-

You want to send a message, call

\Western (union.-
—rile trick (for directors) is to

L'Invirice thi-qh that You'r). going 1 "
make a commercial film that's giant),
to make money. Rut, ‘when 1!)) . :re

wit looking, !urn it into )). IC
art the DET director says, 011!.. half

The studios have a unique,

i-hate relationship with the ar-
t Isis they employ, according to
\\ ilhel in. As long as the money is rol-

ling in, a director is touted as Hol-
lywood's newest wunderkind. But

when a filmmaker goes off on a tan-
gent, with ;1 movie that no one seems
to understand, or, worse yet no one
feels will make any money. Ile be-
comes an outcast and is treated like a

leper.
" Fort u mit ely, according to
Wilhelm. - Hollywood has a very

short memory. Michael Cimino is
working again ( fidlowing the $40

Wilhelm is no fan of the
show-biz style of movie
reviewing which local
television audiences
often see.

mu (lion Hcouen's Gate

debacle).

Francis Coppola, after all the ups and

downs he has had and his reputation
for not coming in on time, or On

budget, is making Cotton Club, the
most expensive musical ever filmed. -

Wilhelm, whose eyes seem to
open wider with amazement the

more he talks about movies, thinks
its phenomenal that movies ever
come out al ;ill, let alone as often. and
usually, as well as they do.
That, in fact, may be one of the
reasons why the Di ■ "1' administrator

aborted a moviemaking career at Ili,
even though his only effort on a
prize for 8inni films at the Ann Arbor
Film Festival. Wilhelm jokes about
- retiring undefeated - from his brief

career as it producer-director, but the
"director's beard - which he has
sported since 1977 and the wistful

look in his eyes, are perhaps, more
revealing than his words.
His success with the DFT has
opened other doors for Wilhelm. He
does a Weekly movie review (Friday

afternoons) on \\'•1K radio, is the film
critic for Monthly Detroit magazine

and does reviews on a freelance basis
for W.IBK-TV (Channel 2t. The re-
viewing assignments do give both
Wilhelm and the film theater a
higher profile but mostly, he finds
that "expressing my feelings about
movies in any way, shape or form is

enjoyable. -
Wilhelm finds the restrictions of

there is a \yily with same degree
drama and theater, hut without I,„, k
ing, like a clown, to get across Ilkit
there is something to a p a rticular
movie without simply recommending
that people should see it iir stay
home. I never present reviews that
are designed to he quoted in adver-
tisements - 'four stars ... the best
that
movie you'll see all summer'

kind of thing doesn't tell anybody
about what s happening on screen. -
Wilhelm, yvho attended Cass

Tech High School and Wayne State
University, feels that viewers and
readers spinet mes look fort he wrong
tlungs in a movie review. "What vou

want out of a r1111Vie critic is 111)1
son -10)0(1V who will 11'11 yOU whether

you should see the new Clint
Eastwood picture. What you want, is
somebody to help you see movies over
the long run, in a way you didn't see
them before. To discover how they
work, to learn what it is that makes
them exciting or depressing. -

The film theater director and his
wife, Hannah, live in Birmingham.
She works part time in the library at
Cong. Shaarey Zedek and shares his
fondness for films, though not quite
at \Wilhelm's passionate level.
"I could go to the movies every
single night, - Wilhelm said. - The

ability to see things through someone
else's eyes and hear through someone
else's ears is to me, a t.hrilling con-

cept.-