'Lost Highway'

Rated R
which appears to show the aftermath of
espite David Lynch's reputation as an Fred's brutal murder of his wife, and which
eccentric who makes "cult" films, un- touches off a series of events that simulta-
fairly relegating them to a small, se- neously seem to contradict and mimic each
lect audience, his movies are routinely other throughout the rest of the film.
Most notable, and unexplainable, is the
romantic (Wild at Heart), sentimen-
apparent transformation of Fred
tal (The Elephant Man) and sus-
into Pete, played by Balthazar
penseful (Blue Velvet); albeit, these
MOVIES
Getty (Lord of the Flies, White
films all are given his unique cre-
Squall), a young auto mechanic with
ative tweaking.
In Lynch's new film, Lost Highway, his no recollection of his recent past, but whose
predilection for the mysterious and the ir- life is just as skewed (in opposite ways?) as
rational now becomes the driving force in Fred's.
While this film is at times interesting
what he and co-screenwriter Barry Gifford
have called a "21st-century noir horror and has moments of nightmarishness, it
film." Unlike the thrill of watching Blue refuses to answer any question it raises,
Velvet, though, we have to watch a film making it a frustrating and sometimes ex-
without the assurance that its director tremely indulgent experience. As more and
more mysteries are added, the plot, we re-
knows where it's leading.
Lost Highway begins as the story of Fred alize, has slipped away. Are we watching
(Bill Pullman) and Renee (Patricia Ar- the inner workings and hallucinations of
quette), a jazz musician and his wife, whose Fred's mind? Pete's mind? David Lynch's
anxiety-laden relationship and unsettling mind, probably.
Although many theories are likely to
home life turn more frightening with the
arrival at their doorstep of anonymous, arise about how, exactly, the knot can be
untangled, I prefer to think the strings are
alarming videotapes.
But the film's true nightmare begins all dead ends. A disappointing experiment
with the arrival of the third videotape, from a director who is capable of changing
the course of the art of filmmaking.
Jeffrey Hermann is former co-editor of Film
Threat, an LA-based magazine.
— Jeffrey Hermann

Jim Shanley, Adam Rochkind and John Michael Manfredi in JET's production of Unexpected
Tenderness.

'Unexpected Tenderness'

srael Horovitz's play Unexpected Ten- loll Forte's straightforward direction and
derness is a robust piece of playwriting, some terrific performances.
Adam Rochkind as Roddy the younger
and the Jewish Ensemble Theatre has
simply exists. This is a kid role that could
given it a fine, well-acted production.
The play shares the notion — with a veer to smart aleck or smarmy, but
couple of Neil Simon plays and the stage Rochkind just walks the walk and talks
adaptation ofAnne Frank — that a bare- the talk and avoids the cracks in the
sidewalk.
ly formed adult, a teen, can lead
John Michael Manfredi was the
us through his experience into
toast of the JET season last year
THEATER
an understanding and aware-
in Torch Song Trilogy. Here his
ness of life. In this case, the guide
fine madness is willfully exploited as
is Rodney Stern, or Roddy, the precocious
teen-ager in a three-generation house- he plays a character of vivid, terrifying
dimension. He is like a heroic tenor — he
hold.
Set in early-'50s New England, the hits and sustains the high notes. If only
small, fairly comfortable Stern homestead he could go all the way down to pianissi-
is composed of Haddie and Jacob Stern; mo without biting off the phrases. Small
their son Archie and his wife, Molly; and quibble on a first-rate performance of a
their two children, Roddy and Sylvie. Ear- man in the grips of his fear. •
The rest of the cast is equ2lly at home
ly on, we discover that Roddy Stern as an
adult and Roddy's father, Archie, are in this family, including Henrietta Her-
played by the same actor: John Michael melin Weinberg and Roy Dennison as the
Manfredi. The younger Roddy is played grandparents and Hilary Hernandez,
who gives a sensitive reading as Sylvie.
by Adam Rochkind.
As Willie, the loony sidekick, Jim
As the play moves between the Eisen-
- hower era and the present, we are not Shanley is deliciously hateful as a yahoo
confused.. The pairing and interchanging with his white socks down around his an-
Bill Pullman and Patricia Arquette in David Lynch's Lost Highway.
of the three characters/two actors is elo- kles.
That brings us to the talented Susan
quent, as is the playwright's telling of the
Arnold. She plays, as well as she can, Mol-
Stern men's story.
They are all crazy, says Haddie. Jeal- ly — wife and victim, mother and daugh-
ous of their wives, paranoid, violent. And ter-in-law. The one fault in Horovitz's
so, as the young and adult Roddy tell us, play is that Molly remains all these but
this is not going to be a happy family com- never emerges as a character.
Horovitz found the guts to confront his
edy.
There are laughs. Even human suf- fears in Roddy and Archie but was un-
fering may be leavened by laughter, and able to find out what makes Molly tick.
Horovitz makes us laugh a little and feel It's the one dim moment — aside from
■
that spot dead-center stage that stayed
Li., deeply.
The play is all in the seeing and be- underlit — in a play.that lights up the
lieving. What makes it believable is Ran- sky.
Q4). si
ca
Michael H. Margolin writes about the
arts.
— Michael Margolin

DETRO IT JEWISH

I

08

Bagel Barometer

.........Outstanding

®

Very Good
IOC') ........... . . .. . ...Good
Fair
No
...... .

PHOTO BY SUZANNE TENNER

D

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