A Year End Look At
Entertainment: 1995
I
t was quite an entertaining year, indeed. And to provide you with a recap of the picks and pans
for '95 — what was good and what was schlock — we've brought together our entertainment ex-
perts to offer their insights.
Some have based their critiques on The Jewish News Bagel Barometer; others have offered
commentary in their own unique way. But no matter how you slice it, '95 has forged the way
for a cultural arts explosion in '96.
PHOTO BY BRIAN HAMILL
Above: Jimmy McQuaid, Woody Allen and Helena
Bonham Carter in Allen's Mighty Aphrodite.
J EW IS H N E WS
Left: Michael Douglas: The first Jewish president.
Film Fest '95
DICK ROCKWELL SPECIAL TO THE JEWISH NEWS
T
hree to five films open each week in
the metro Detroit area, so it's virtu-
ally impossible for anyone, save the
most ardent film enthusiast or com-
pulsive critic, to view them all, let alone
remember them. Here are some of my rec-
ollections from the past year.
Bagel, Lox and Cream Cheese
Toy Story — state of the art computer
animation rendered with consummate
care for story and detail.
Get Shorty — Movie-loving gangster
Chili Palmer (John Travolta), as a loan
shark adrift in the Hollywood producers'
pool. A definite Oscar contender for Best
Picture, Oscar caliber performances by
Travolta and Gene Hackman, plus the
best Elmore Leonard novel-to-script adap-
tation ever.
Sense and Sensibility — Emma Thomp-
son's letter-perfect adaptation of the Jane
Austen novel. An intelligent and witty
script with exquisite performances in every
role. Isn't it ironic that foreign director,
Ang Lee, could capture the sense and sen-
sibility of the English language and its
customs?
Mighty Aphrodite — If you've ever won-
dered what your life would sound like if it
had a movie soundtrack accompaniment,
consider Woody Allen's with a Greek cho-
rus that sings Gershwin showtunes.
Woody is, in my opinion, a quadruple
N
threat — actor, writer, director, and mu-
sician, in short, a dirty old "Renaissance"
man. Mighty Aphrodite is a mighty good
film. Mia Sorvino deserves a Best Sup-
porting Actress nomination.
The American President — What can I
say? At last, a Jewish president. I'd vote
for him, although his climactic press- con-
ference speech was full of fuzzy logic.
N
That's some mighty fine hairsplitting to
be a card-carrying member of both the
ACLU and NRA.
GoldenEye — Pierce Brosnan renews
the franchise and remakes James Bond
in his own image. Superlative stunts and
more than adequate acting by the volup-
tuous villains.
The Postman (Il Postino) — Best For-
eign Film nominee. A sweet film made all c\/
the more touching by the sad passing of
its leading man.
Mini-Bagels — Kids Flicks of '95
I know why all the studios are making
movies for the family — repeat business
video sales. Kids will watch any film, no
Dick Rockwell is a video producer instructor for the Royal Oak Schools. He teaches
video production at DAFT's summer Focal Point Film and Video Workshops at
Cranbrook and has taught filmmaking and film study at Oakland Community College.