Juliette Lewis, as a teen-ager in a spiritually challenged family, defends herself
from the hordes of the undead in Dusk to Dawn.

ter you're likely to hear in films
this decade. The main attraction
is a dancer named Satanico Pan-
demonium. Bar patrons include
Tom Savini, master of horror
makeup, whose pop-up pistola
speaks volumes about his man-
hood, and former pro-football
player Fred Williamson, who

body-slams vampires to stake out
his territory.
Killers without a conscience
and a timid family of lost souls at-
tempt to fight their way out of a
bar swarming with vampires.
Severed heads are kicked around
the floor like balls at a soccer
camp. Vampires burst into flames

VARIOUS ARTISTS: Saturday
Morning Cartoons' Greatest Hits
(MCA)

girl group nirvana on "Josie and
the Pussycats."
Frente! turns in an unapolo-
getically sweet
rendition of
"Open Up Your
Heart and Let
the Sun Shine In"
from "The Flint-
stones," while the
Murmurs give
the "H.R. Pufn-
stuf' theme a run
through the punk
mill. The Ra-
mones do the
same for a faith-
ful delivery of
"Spider-Man,"
and if you're not
on your way out
to pick this one
up yet, you ough-
ta be ashamed.

Oh, those crazy modern rock-
ers. They'll sing anything —
Leonard Cohen, Kiss, the Car-
penters. The latest tribute-style
album is a footsy pajamas spe-
cial, 19 classic themes from Sat-
urday morning and after school.
It's cheesy, cheeky and altogeth-
er delightful, a nostalgic grinfest
that never tries to elevate itself
toward grand statement.
But there are a few
cuts not to be missed. Liz
Phair and Material Issue
team up for a buoyant rendition
of "The Tra La La Song" from
"The Banana Splits." Helmet de-
livers "Gigantor" with appropri-
ately tongue-in-cheek metal
menace. Reverend Horton Heat
fuses "Jonny Quest" and "Spot
That Pigeon" into a frantic med-
ley, while Juliana Hatfield and
Belly's Tanya Donnelly deliver

as they are diced, sliced, cross-
bowed, shot-gunned, pool-cued,
and hit with everything but the
kitchen sink.
All the action and gore is
played out in a cacophony of vio-
lence accompanied by a kick-butt
Tex Mex soundtrack. Vampires'
hearts pierced by stakes don't
have the only holes in this plot.
Even in the Bela Lugosi Dracula
movies of yesteryear and '60s
Hammer Horror films, one could
imagine a suave, mysterious
vampire seductively preying on
the residents of an unsuspecting
city. How in the world could such
an enormous conclave of vam-
pires exist and supply their col-
lective appetites without drawing
some attention to themselves?
Imagine the missing persons re-
port that must come with the ter-
ritory. It's not really necessary to
answer these types of questions
in a film that expects you to check
your brain at the door.

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1 /
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Dick Rockwell

still three guys manipulating the
keyboards, including Wonder;
and while the orchestrations flesh
out some of the arrangements,
there are plenty of songs — "Su-
perstition" and "Higher Ground,"
for instance — that get by just
fine without them.
From the bold opening of
"Dancing to the Rhythm," one of
Natural Wonder's three new
songs, to the barrage of the ex-
plosion of hits that populate the
rest of the album, Wonder daz-
zles. "Master Blaster (Jammin')"
and "Higher Ground" are rock-
solid jams, while the live setting
only enhances the hushed beau-
ty of "Rocket Love," "Love's in
Need of Love Today," "Ribbon in
the Sky" and "Pastime Paradise."
Natural Wonder may get a bit
soft near its end —"I Just Called
to Say I Love You" is still a rea-
son to hit the fast forward — but
the album showcases an ample
STEVIE WONDER: Natural talent who, when playing at the
top of his game, is untouchable
Wonder (Motown)
Stevie Wonder's first hit —
I 1 /2
® (4!..) Q!).
"Fingertips, Part 2," in 1963 —
was a live cut, curiously low-fi but
—Gary Graff
frenetic and abundant in spirit.
Everybody say "Yeah!" and clap
Editor's note: Gary Graff pro-
your hands just a little bit loud- vided album reviews in last
er. It's time to say "yeah" week's issue of JN Entertain-
again; 22 years later,
Wonder has returned to ment.
the live forum with Nat-
ural Wonder, a monumental 24-
song concert album recorded in
Osaka, Japan, and Tel Aviv.
Outstanding
The title refers to the album's
approach; natural in this case is
Very Good
Wonder accompanied by a 30-
piece orchestra, replacing the lay-
Good
ers of synthesizers with the "real"
thing. It's a nice gimmick, but
Fair
don't believe the hype: there are

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