PAGE TWO THE MICHIGAN DAILY PAGE TWO THE MICHICAN DAILY ..... . FILMS Dassm Transforms 'Phaedra' From Tragedy to Epic Mockery The Inspector General' Plays Primarily to Young at Heart UNIVERSITY REFORMED CHURCH 1001 E HURON-across from Rockhom "POWER FOR LIVING" Dr. Calvin S. Malefyt 7 P.M. SERVICE ALSO "THE NEXT STEP"-Richard Peterson, By WALTER SHAPIRO Let's play pretend: you're a director and you 've decided to film a hot classical property with a racy almost-incest theme (the act is there, it's the relationship that's almost). How are you going to do it? You can always play it as an epic tragedy in modern dress. Or you can take the dra- matic idea and characters and transform them into a' new drama with a vibrancy all its own. The trouble with Jules Dassin's 'Phae- d ra' is that it tries to combine the two. And merely succeeds in bringing out the worst features of both'. The opening scene is a dire warning of how badly Dassin is going to muff it. The movie opens to bands playing, flags waving, 'and scores of well-dressed, happy people looking joyously affluent. They're going to launch a ship, a very Greek thing to do. The ship is called the S.S. Phaedra- a very un-Greek thing to do. It's not that Dassni has neglect- ed the characters. There's Phae- dra-Melina Mercouri with her deep Greek voice which is. sup- posed to be "oh so alluring," but merely comes out "oh so indis- tinct." And Euripides' Hippoly- tus has become modernized into Alexia-Tony Perkins whose in- sipid face has never totally lost the maniacal, glint of Alfred Hitchcock's 'Psycho.' Super-Abundant Storyline The ,classical storyline is super- abundantly there as well. Phaedra- falls in love with her step-son. They have an affair. The step- son, Alexis, feels. a little remorse. Phaedra's p a s si o n eventually overwhelms her and she lets the deep, dark secret out. At the end all is tied up into a neat bundle as Phaedra commits suicide, while Alexis gaily' drives his shiny new car straight into the path of an oncoming truck. What is lacking is perceptive characterization. The tragic fig- urines of Euripides have become cardboard mock-ups. D a s s i n seems to believe that the mere presence of the traditional char- acters and actions are sufficient to provide a cohesive dramatic structure rich with tragic content. And he is sadly mistaken. The best example of Dassin's failure is provided by the cli- mactic love scene between Phae- dra and Alexis. The screen be- comes alive with a shimmering succession of images of fire, sta- tues of Aphrodite, blurred and entwined figures, and the fire again-all to symbolize this tragic linkeage. And all for naught. For the union is premised on the flimsiest- of motivation. Phaedra is the bored wife of a busy in- dustrialist. And the only real ex- planation for Alexis lies in his look of horror when Phaedra asks him if he has a girl. A final word should be said about the few awkward tragic elements that -Dassin leaves lit- tered about. The best example is the silent Greek chorus which does its best to look tragic. Instead it emerges as a pathetic cross be- tween a nun and one of Mac- Beth's witches. In the final an- alysis Dassin's 'Phaedra' doesn't even fare this well. By DAVID MELLINGER It is a pity when old Danny Kaye movies begin to lose their charm, but eventually this starts to happen. After a while the pleasure of the joyful clowning, witty songs, and warm spirit which pervade his movies begins to fade. These qualities, which still so delight children, aren't enough to make "The Inspector General" a really worthwhile ex- perience for people who have viewed delightful slapsticks for ten or more years. a It can succeed in producing the warm, happy feeling which is the object of Danny Kaye films only for those viewers who haven't been brought up on this kind of comedy. Kaye's films have charm, and Danny is still the king of happy moile clowns, but his material is too familiar to be great. "The Inspector General" re- mains a very pleasant and enjoy- able film. Georgy (Danny Kaye) Is the star of The Great Yakov's medicine show. After the people of one of the small Austrian towns where they play unmask Yakov's crooked racket, he and Georgy flee to the town of Brotny, where Georgy is mistaken by the town's corrupt mayor and council for the Inspector General of the Napol- eonic Empire. Kaye's performance as the counterfeit Inspector General who can neither read nor write is de- lightful, and Walter Slezak does a great job as the fat and avari7 cious Yakov. Though their gags are old, they are frequently still a pleasure to watch. The music (this is a musical) is full of spirit, and the photography is well done. The warmth which pervades his film sometimes threatens to break down into ouright disturb- ing sentimentality, but generally manages to avert it 'in the nick of time. Thus, "The Inspector General" remains a fine movie for viewers who are still young and fresh in spirit, and a pleasant one, never- theless, for those who are not. y Graduate School of Social Work ^°cscxa::S I------------ --- --- --*--* -*---------*------- - Spending the Summer in Ann Arbor? ENJOY IT MORE with UNIVERSITY PLAYERS!Y ' 1 MELIHIGANf NOW DIAL 5-6290 p'fDAILY OFFICIAL BULLETIN The Daily Official Bulletin is an official publfiatioi of the Univer- sity of Michigan for which The Micbiganl laily assumes no editor- ial responsibility. Notices shouldbe sent in TYPEWRITTEN form to Room 3564 Administration Bldg. be- fore 2 p.m. of the day preceding publication and by 2 p.m. Friday for Satrday and Sunday. General Notices may be published a maxi- mum of two times on request; I)ay Calendar items appear once only. Student organiz tiop notices are not aeepted for pubictiation. For more information l17824-010IO SATURDAY, MAY 20 Day Calendar Cinema Guid-"The Inspector Ghen- eras": Architecture Auds, 7 and 9:05 pUni- ORGANIZATION NOTI CES USE OF THIS COLUMN FOR AN- NOUNCEMENTS is available to officially recognized and registered student or- ganizations only. Forms are available in Room 1311 SAB. University Lutheran Chapel, 1511 Washtenaw, Sun.. May 21, 9:45 a.m. worship service, Pastor Kapfer preach- ing, 11 'a.mn.'Bible study, and 6 p.m. 'upper, Lutheran Student Chapel, Hill St. at Forest Ave., Sun., May 21, 10 a.m. worship service, 5:30 p.m. supper and program at Campus Chapel, 1236 Wash- tenaw: "Ecumenicity?" - the Rev. Charles Gensheimer and Gordon Jones, speakers. B'nai B'rith Hillel Foundation, Picnic celebrating Israel's Independence Day, Sun., May 21, 1-5 p.m., Dexter-Huron- Metro Park. Everybody's bringing his own food-but dessert, Israeli food spe- cialties, music are provided. If weather is- uncertain, phone Hillel (663-4129) by 11 a.m. If raining, eat at home end come to Hillel at 2 p.m. for free music, dancing, Israeli food specialties, dessert and coffee. Phone 434-0190 EMAan4COIs CARPENTER ROAB OPEN 7:00 NOW SHOWING Shown at 8.0 5& 11:40 ALSO... General :Notices Computing Center Course: The Com. puting Center announces a short'course "The Use of the IBM 360/67 MTS Sys- tem, including Fortran IV.' Fri., May 26, 1"3 pm., Room 1400 Chemistry Bldg. Registration not necessary. Inquiries may be addressed to Prof. Bernard A. Caller. Zoology Seminar: Room 1139 Natural Science Bldg. Dr. J Woodland Hast- ings, Department of Biology, Harvard University, will speak on "Biolumin- escence" on Mon., May 22, at 4 p.m. Doctoral Examination for Terry Dean Cornell, Education; thesis: "The Ef- fects of Teacher Reinforcement on the Performance of Children with Vary- ing Degrees of Internality and Test Anxiety," Mon., May 22, Room 4209 School of Education, at 10 a.m. Chair- man, N. A. Flanders., Doctoral Examination for Margaret Elzada Beard, Zoology; thesis: "Char- acterization of the Micr9body of Kid- ney of the Rat: Comparison with Other Subcellular Organelles," Mon., May 22, Room 2111 Natural Science Bldg., at 1:30 p.m. Chairman, J. M. Allen. Doctoral Examination for Paul Wem- pie Brubacher, Education; thesis: "A Study of the Effects of the College Entrance Examination Board Advanced Placement Program upon Student Aca- demic Experiences at the University of Michigan," Tues., May 23,' Room 4018 UHS, at 9 a.m. Chairman, J. I. Doi. Placement POSITION OPENINGS: National Safety Council, Chicago, 111. --Oper. Res. & Syst. Anal.-BS/MS Math, Set., bkgd. statistical methods Publications Specialist--Journ., Engl., adv. major. Technical writer - some college and/or exper., interest in tech- nical journ. Writer-degree Engl., Jour- nalism, pref. Editor-degree pref., for top occupational magazine. Rowe Furniture Corp., Arlington, Va. -Sales training division, completed col- lege 4 yrs. ago or ,later, appearance and presentation important, selling ex- per helpful. Large manufacturer of upholstered living room furniture. Union Carbide, Nuclear Division, Oak Ridge, Tenn. - Mechanical, Ceramic, Chemical, Nuclear, Metallurgical, Elec- trical, plant, design, dev., operations, manuf., res. areas. Experienced and un- exper., all degree levels in science and engineering curriculum. Harshaw Chmical Co., Div. Kewanee Oil Co., Cleveland, Ohio-Infrared Phys- icist, 21-35 yrs. old, limited travel job in infrared and ultra-violet optics. BS phys., optics, chem. with strong as- tronomy bkgd - Laser beam research helpful, exper. desired, not necessary. Rochester Post-Bulletin, Rochester, Minn.-Assistant women's editor on 30,- 000 circulation p.m. daily, women's dept. of 3 persons. Prefer woman from smaller daily, familiar with layout, editing, headlines, writing. * * * For further information please call 764-7460, General Division, Bureau of Appointments. 3200 SAB. SPECIAL SELECTIVE ENGAGEMENT NO SEATS RESERVED Every Ticketholder Guaranteed a Seat The Most Popuar Picure Of Our Time! 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VIIETNAM SUMMER AN EXERCISE IN PRACTICAL DEMOCRACY The Vietnam Summer Project is a concerted national effort to reach out to the now silent Americans who are growing more and more worried about the Administration's war in Vietnam. VIETNAM SUMMER WILL BE thousands of people in neighborhoods all across the country stimulating discus- sion, debate, education and action. VIETNAM SUMMER WILL INVOLVE students, workers, professionals, the poor and the middle class. } HEL OVER4th EEK., I JAMES, BOND 007* I 4i TWN RICHRDSON'S6 KMADEM0RE JANINE MOREAIIW PAJAVIrA WMGfA L M ccwPR1Ono Shown at 9:50 Only Plus--WATERCOLOR HOLIDAY COLOR CARTOON C SNO ROYALE 00 -9 h 10 i WINNER OF 6 ACADEMY AWARDS INCLUDING BEST PICTURE OF THE YEAR! 1 :30 4:05 ti.? GET WITH THE GORGEOUS JAMES BOND GIRLS YOU SAW IN LIFE. LOOK AND PLAYBOY! t 4. .C v C .. 1J- i ) CH !ES K. FELDMAN s-snw 7PETE. 2LE!S -1"LA - D. 0 NIVEN -WOODY ALLEN JOANNAPETTET-ORSON WELLES-DALIAHLAVI-DEBORAH KERR-WILIAM HOLDEN-CHARLESBOYER .ElAN PAUL BELMCI 20 -GEORGE RAFT-JOHN HUSTON -TERENCE COCPER - BARBARA 50U.::ET f. VIETNAM SUMMER WILL ORGANIZE petition drives, grass-roots congressional hearings, draft resistance, and referenda on the wer.