'Send In The Clones'

'Ulee's Gold'

Rated R
omplex and re-
served, Ulysses
(Ulee) Jackson (Pe-
ter Fonda) is a man
of few words because he
has seen too much.
As a war veteran, he
has survived the rav-
ages of battle un-
scathed. As a widower,
he is still reeling years
after his wife's death.
For Ulee, the title
character in Ulee's
Gold, the pleasures of
life can be found within
the marshes of the
Florida Panhandle,
where he keeps his
bees, and within the
walls of his rural home,
where he tends to his
two granddaughters.
The film opens in the
quiet aftermath of the
collapse of the Jackson
family, as Ulee prepares
mass orders of honey for
local merchants and
bakers. Quickly, his
character is established
as the gently heroic
type, and we learn that
he has assumed the role
of caretaker to his
grandchildren because
his only son, Jimmy
(Tom Wood), is serving
PHOTO BY JOHN BRAMLEY
a lengthy prison sen- Peter Fonda plays a beekeeper in Ulee's Gold.
tence for robbery, while
their mother, Helen
(Christine Dunford), has more or less aban- functional small-town life.
No, Ulee's Gold won't be nominated for
doned them for no good reason.
any Academy Awards, but it does
The Jackson household oper-
provide a nice opportunity to get
ates in a deliberate, routine man-
MOVIES
reacquainted with a Fonda who has
ner, just the way Ulee likes it,
spent too much time away from in
until Jimmy calls from prison with
information on Helen's whereabouts and front of a camera.
indicates that Helen is in trouble.
.0
6' • 1/2
Now, Ulee doesn't necessarily think too
highly of Helen, but fierce loyalty to his
— Richard Halprin
grandchildren and the ideals of right and
wrong send Ulee on a mission to extricate
her from the clutches of a pair of ex-cohorts
ofJimmy's. When Ulee brings Helen into
his home, he also opens the door to trou-
ble, as the thugs follow in pursuit of some
old robbery money, believed to have been
stashed away by Jimmy before his arrest.
If you think this sounds like a set-up for
an action picture, you couldn't be more
wrong. Like the honey referred to in the
film's title, Ulee's Gold moves slowly but
sweetly. Fonda's performance is under-
stated and assured, reminiscent of the
work of Clint Eastwood and even Henry
Fonda.
Strolling along casually, the pacing and
mood calls to mind the vastly superior
Sling Blade, which also dealt with the is-
sues of family and loyalty amidst dys-

(

en two fat men portraying les- this one — which is reprised to less ef-
bians take off their shirts in an fect in Part II — is aiming for some
attempt to seduce a straight new, higher ground, with targets that
woman — played, oddly enough, are not so easy.
Some scenes are not funny enough
by a woman — and then embrace each
yet,
but may be just a step away from
other, finishing with a kiss to the
mouth, the well-known phrase "the love more character comedy: There are a
that dares not speak its name" has def- few repeat Second City actors who may
initely gone somewhere south of be gifted in developing funny charac-
ters. Margaret Exner — an audience
"Ellen." To say the least.
In Second City's Send in the Clones, favorite — is moving in that direction
with her oh-so-haute-city-official-lady
the above-mentioned scene is one
type.
of the highlights: If Meadow
Joshua Funk — one of the
THEATER
Brook's Jest a Second pushed
lesbians — has a talent for mu-
your tolerance button, then
sical mockery which comes to life
Bring in the Clones is not for you.
For the rest of us, though, it's the fitfully as Pavarotti in a three tenor
most promising show yet in the Second send-up and as one half of a folkie duo
City oeuvre. Another example: Two named Cappuccino Journey. Funny
middle-class African-Americans have regulars are joined by newcomer Bran-
raised their Caucasian child as black. don Johnson, who is a great homeboy
When he learns of his heritage, they in the counselor skit.
As director, John Hildreth is more
take him to the White Trash Museum
laissez-faire
than he should be. He
for an education. It's underwritten by
Stroh's. Alas, he comes away hanker- needs to get some of those gaps filled
ing to go to Taylor. No matter their and hone, hone, hone the longer pieces.
One of the better efforts yet (and the
race, all children are ingrates.
best
improv I've seen from the compa-
There is new life afoot at Second
City. More edge, not just the usual pa- ny — especially the orchestrated set in
per cuts. Some skits work really well, which the conductor creates a musical
like the Marine Corps Marching Band piece with actors as instruments, riff-
or the rap group satire. Short, to the ing on themes called out by the audi-
ence).
point, punchy.
I wonder if I should have called out
Others, such as the crazy high school
counselor, meander, overreach. Still "Three bagels."

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Richard Halprin is an attorney I film critic.

Michael Margolin writes about the

— Michael H. Margolin

PHOTO BY CHRISTOPHER LARK

arts.

Joshua Funk
and Catherine
Worth in
Second City's
Send in the
Clones.