PAGE TWO
THE MICHIGAN DAILY
SATURDAY, MARCH 11, 1967
PAGE TWO TilE MICHIGAN DAILY SATURDAY, MARCH 11, 1967
AT CANTERBURY HOUSE:
Welsh Folksinger Paul Phillips Charms
Audience Mixed Old, New Music
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By MERYL SACKS
Paul Phillips is here singing
folk songs at Canterbury House
through Sunday night. Charming
last night's audience with his in-
formality, this young Welshman
exuded spontaneity, warmth, and
happiness as he zipped through
vocalizations on everything from
flowers to politics to sex.
As he bounded on to the stage
with seemingly endless vitality and
energy, Phillips established an im-
mediate rapport with the audience.
Obviously enjoying himself and
his own sense of humor, he began
the evening by speaking about
Wales and Britain with such com-
ments as "Wales is the place that
the rest of Britain is attached to."
This led into a song about Chris-
tine Keeler, whose best-selling
book, Phillips claims, should be
entitled "How to Prime A Min-
ister."
As the evening progressed, Phil-
lips' happiness became more ap-
parent to everyone. His little-boy
charm made a contrast to his dry
and original wit. At one point he
asked the audience "Feel like sing-
ing? You sure as hell will!" And
the entire group joined enthusias-
tically in singing his original
"happiness" song.
Phillips' technique on his two
instruments, guitar and banjo, is
outstanding. The arrangements for
his songs are original, each one'
different in mood and harmonyl
to fit the individual song. His
guitar playing is especially excel-
lent,utilizing intricate fingerwork
on the neck as well as in picking.
His versatility on banjo was ex-
hibited in fast songs as well as
in an instrumental piece, "Pat-
terns," which he wrote for the in-
strument.
Phillips, who came to America
three years ago, has sung in many
of the major coffeehouses in Can-
ada and the United States. One of
his most interesting experience
was his job at Disneyland, where
he worked as a singing pirate for
over a year, complete with cutlass,
patch, and concertine. He has also
recorded one album for Folkways,
entitled "Folksongs rand Ballads
of the British Isles." However,
Phillips' performances are more
contemporary than traditional. As
he puts it, "I want to do what's
happening, not be an anachron-
ism."
Phillips, besides having written
several pieces solely for his own
repertoire, wrote and performed a
song, "Roses and Willows" which
he believes Judy Collins will soon
be recording.
Besides being a polished per-
former, Phillips has a sideline. As
he puts it, "I do anti-missionary
work. I want to follow Billy Gra-
ham and bring people back from
God."
Phillips' voice is not a trained
one, but, this hardly detracts from
his entertaining performance. A
smooth voice is not mandatory for
a folk-singer to communicate with
his audience (look at Bob Dylan),
but enthusiasm is. Phillips defi-
nitely has that, besides a stage
presence that wraps the audience
in his warmth and exuberance.
SAT. & SUN. ONLY
CINEMA II
presents
Tennessee Williams'
NIGHT OF
THME IGUANA
RICHARD BURTON
DEBORAH KERR
AVA GARDNER
TONIGHT AND SUNDAY ONLY
DELI HOUSE
Sunday, March 12, 5:30 P.M.
Visitation:
Student Members of President's Commission on
DECISION MAKING
/111/el
Delicatessen Supper-$1, $1.25
1429 Hill Street
Is Paris Burning': Patriotism Cannot
Make Up for Incompetent Filmmaking
7 and 9:15 P.M.
Auditorium A,
I .D. Required
50c
Angell Hall
HELD OVER-SECOND WEEK!
L
siiss
JI
By MARGARET WARNER
Patriotism has its place. But an
audience can not be expected to
carry the whole weight of an in-
sipid movie on the basis of
patriotism.
"Is Paris Burning?" is an
account of the French resistance
at the very end of World War II
in Paris. The allied army had de-
cided to drive directly from Nor-
mandy to the Rhine, leaving Paris
under the malevolent care of the
Germans until some more conven-
ient time came for liberation.
(Several problems enter. The
Parisians are an exceptionally
proud people and will not wait
forever. The Germans, bitter at
their impending defeat and under
the command of an insane Hitler
plan to destroy Paris, cathedrals
and all.) The resistance forces
unite Paris in fighting the Ger-
man occupation and convince the
allies to liberate' Paris on their
drive to Germany.
It is also difficult to avoid the
conclusion that the emotions of
the audience are being played with.
Each scene is produced to create
the most audience reaction with
the least cinematic effort. There
are few historic situations more
easily presented in black and
white terms. The French love
Paris. The Americans admire the
French. They all hate the Ger-
mans, although the attrocities are
not entirely the fault of the Ger-
mans since Hitler is insane.
The dialogue and the action of
* 't
"Is Paris Burning?" are both em-
barrassingly predictable. The re-
sistance forces participate in a
series of daring, clever, and dan-
gerous exploits as they fight the
impersonal, well equipped, cruel
German forces. The French troops
under De Gaulle are eager to get
back to Paris and talk sentiment-
ally of their relatives. One resist-
ance leader in Paris loses hope
and says "I'm afraid we'll have to
quit. No ammunition." His col-
league, with true French invin-
cibility says, "We'll find some."
And, they do.
The production tries to shore up
the sagging slot in three ways.
First, the movie is psrinkled liber-
ally with name actors (Kirk Doug-
las, Belmondo, Tony Perkins, Se-
more Signoret, to name a few) who
very effectively divert the audience
from the issue at hand by their
short appearances. If the audience
doesn't get the emotional message
of the movie any other way, it is
pounded into them with the unre-
lenting and often deafening inser-
tion of drums, cymbals, trumpets,
violins, and flutes. Finally, no
audience can fail to be at, least a
little bit interested in a visual trip
through Paris-even if it is in
black and white. (The credits show
color shots of Paris).
The failure of the movie lies in
the apparent philosophy of the
producers that by picking an issue
with which virtually no one in the
audience disagrees, the filmmak-
ers are relieved of all the awesome
responsibilities involved in making
a good movie. The problem is that
nothing was attempted, and, as a
result, nothing was gained.
HOLDING FOR
A THIRD WEEK!
4.J j~'I
A Carlo Ponti Production
DIAL 8-6416
BEST
FILM
OF
1966!"
National
Society
of Film Critica *
"A GREAT
PICTURE!"
LOS ANGELES
HERALD EXAMINER
OPEN CITY
with Anna Magnani
De Cicca's
BICYCLE
THIEF
Brought back by special
arrangements . Regular
admission $1 .25
Complete Shows:
Fri. 7:00. 10:25
Sat. 5:00, 8:25
Sun. 3:00, 5:25
Mon. 7:00, 10:25
Ann Arbor, Michigan
x10 S. Fifth Avenue
761-9700
of
TODAY AT
7 & 9 P.M.
Shows at
1:00-3:35
6:20 - 8:Ss
-- - - - ------------ wommmmm - N , mme N N I N WA
COMING
"The SHAMELESS
OLD LADY"
Phone 434-0190
Enstuvce Or CARPENTER ROAD
OPEN 6:30 P.M. FIRST RUN
NOW SHOWING
EDT MEShown at 7:15 & 1025
STORY
but
NOT cnc
Also-
JM E~PAD AND INOW
shown at iTOusE 1T)
9 PM. Only
'Pus--"WATER COLOR HOLIDAY"
Color Cartoon
Michelangelo Antonioni's
first English language film.
starring
Vanessa Redgrave
BLOW-UP
co-stormng
David Hemmings
*Time Mogazine, NeSwee.olra Sarah Miles
Review, Lie gzn MogazinE. tV., The
Now Yorker Commonweal. The
New Republic, The V lage Voice. o R
COLOR
The New LAoders
Reamdareae ~lr~ A Premier Productions Release
PAUL HUU INID-DSCARN HDMDIKA - ERVAbRI
pm..wh wCHARLES KASHER- . .,wGUY HAMILTON-
ECHNICOLOR*- PANAVISION*
Feature Times at
1:15-3:15- 5:15-7:20-9:20
COMING NEXT...
Peter O'Toole - Omar Sharif
"THE NIGHT OF THE GENERALS"
Dial NO 2-6264
TATE
~ic.
4
a
UN ION-LEAGUE
Something To Swap?
Try Daily Classifieds
Daily Classifieds Get Results
presents
A Poetry Reading by
GERARD MALANGA
poet, dancer, film-maker,
film star, special juror of the
Fifth Ann Arbor Film Festival
4:00 Sunday, March 12
in the UGLI multipurpose room
ADMISSION FREE
_I
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m
I
SOLD OUT!
"THE TOUCH OF GREATNESS!
N.Y. TIMES
The University of Michigan
PROFESSIONAL THEATRE PROGRAM
Production of
An4i Evnin Frost
By DONALD HALL
Directed by MARCELLA CISNEY
I
A
I
Starring
WILL GEER
4
featuring
Anne Gee Byrd - Thomas Coley -
Jack Davidson I-
4: J P.%.I