"A delightful tour of Jewish humor, language, and music" JN Entertainment - New York Newsday Congregation Binai Moshe presents 'Trees Lounge' PHOTO BY NAOMI KALTMAN Avi Floffrnat‘'s "TOO JE KW. Bill (Bronson Dudley) and Tommy (Steve Buscemi) contemplate life while spending time in Trees Lounge, the neighborhood bar in Buscemi's bleak comedy of the same name. Rated R n his short but accomplished ca- reer, actor Steve Buscemi has had the opportunity to work un- der the guidance of an elite group of writers/directors, such as Martin Scorcese (New York Stories), Jim Jarmusch (Mystery Train), Quentin Tarantino (Reser- voir Dogs) and the Coen brothers (Barton Fink, Fargo). With Trees Lounge, - MOVIES Buscemi has the opportunity to write, direct and act for the first time in a full- length feature. If nothing else, this film proves that genius isn't con- tagious. Set in Valley Hills, N.Y., the movie studies the interplay of a swarm of barflies who frequent a local dive called, naturally, Trees Lounge. Buscemi plays the cen- tral figure, Tommy Basilio, a clas- sic underachiever who can't hold a job or a girlfriend, but can sure hold his liquor. As Basilio goes about his hum- ble endeavors, we are introduced to a varied array of characters that all seem to have something that he's lacking, be it intangibles like direction, drive or a sense of belonging, or more tangible things like reliable transportation, jobs and income. To his credit, Buscemi man- ages to parade a fairly diverse slew of role players in and out of the story as a means of compar- ing and contrasting Basilio's predicament. Although many fa- miliar faces appear, including Ca- role Kane, Debi Mazar, Anthony LaPaglia and Samuel Jackson, it is some of the lesser-known actors that have a greater impact, espe- cially Chloe Sevigny, as a 17-year- old family friend who innocently leads Basilio into temptation. Solid performances notwith- standing, Trees Lounge does not aspire to great storytelling, seek- ing instead to succeed as a study in characters and, therein, lies its undoing. While Buscemi has as- Exclusive Detroit performance! sembled a fairly impressive num- ber of characters to study, few seem worthy of our prolonged at- tention. Yes, many of the charac- ters feel real; the problem is they are not real compelling. Hosted by Congregation B'nai Moshe 6800 brake Road, West Bloomfield MI 48322 dt —Richard Halprin 'Below The Belt' I n Richard Dresser's viciously funny play Below the Belt, the humor is both scathing and sophomoric, and quite often, the Theatre Company's produc- tion, running through Dec. 8, aims below the belt, and hits the funny bone. The characters are checkers, one boss, two underlings, and they check the units being pro- duced by the company. "What are these units?" the newcomer, Dob- bit, asks. And no one answers. Hanrahan is his partner, cohabit- THEATER ing in a tiny, des- room. perate Their sad reveries about their wives recounted at a hilarious holiday party are like Murray Shisgal's great scene in Luv. Merkin, the supervisor, is as mean-spirited a boss as possible, the Scrooge in this tale. Ryan Carlson is nastily effective as a bureaucratic victimizer. Played by David Ross, Dobbit is eerily nice and a goody-two- shoes. David Regal plays Hanrahan and as usual has the power to convince and create some pow- erful life on stage. The fourth star of the show is Melinda Pacha. Her set is like a character, allowing director Ar- thur J. Beer to commodiously shuffle his men on Dresser's an- guished chessboard. SUNDAY, DECEMBER 15 ❖ 7:00 PM Tickets $20, $15, $10 ❖ Order now! MasterCard, Visa, and Discover accepted Phone (810) 788-0600 tIP Fax (810) 788-0604 PROCEEDS BENEFIT THE SHUL Here's a rare opportunity For Detroit to see an extraordinary collection of treasured possessions that immigrants brought from their homelands! BECOMING AMERICAN WOMEN: Clothing and the Jewish Immigrant Experience 1880-1920 This unique exhibition was created in Chicago and has been seen in only a few cities. This showing in Detroit is the last of the tour, so don't miss it! There is also a special section - a collection of photographs or those who came to Detroit to find a better life: The Jewish Immigrant Experience in Michigan NOW OPEN FOR A LIMITED TIME! Detroit Historical Museum 5401 Woodward at Kirby Detroit For hours and information, call (313) 833-1805 1D' 112 (1 ) 1- '6 \101 — Michael H. Margolin Anna Steinberg Prenti.s. circa 1914.