Page Two

THE MICHIGAN DAILY

Tuesday, November 2, 1971

PageTwoTHE ICHGAN AIL Tusday Noembe 2,197


'Cry
By PETER MUNSING
I guess it was inevitable, what
with the greening of America
and everything, that somebody
would try to make a candidly
funny skin flick -- pornographic
burlesque. By candidly funny I
mean wholeheartedly funny, not
snickering, cheap half-assed hu-
mor like porno books-"Jane or-
dered a pizza but she wanted
more than double cheese and
anchovies . . . and so did the
pizza man." (Granted, this is
often a result of having to pay
lip service to the concept of re-
deeming social value - in the
front they have to say some-
thing like "Skin and Cunt Hairs
Quarterly is a scientific, cul-
tural, and sociological publica-
tion -produced and distributed in
o r d e r to illuminate ongoing
changes in societal behaviour,
etc.") Which brings us to camp
humor. Unfortunately, this is
largely unintentional, and for the
most part snide-we dig Brother
Bogel because we're too sophis-
ticated to take that evangelical
crap. OK, there's more to it
than that, but camp humor is
largely patronizing and it gets
boring after a while-it's second
best; the hamburger rather than
the steak of humor.
While burlesque involves a
little of both forms of humor,
it's less snide because there is
no patronizing air to it-every-
body knows what's coming off
(no pun intended). People con-
nect burlesque with strip shows
and }expect -porn; however it's
hard for burlesque to be porno-
graphic. Porn, or erotica if you
feel above that, involves sexual
excitement. Whether it's plain
intercourse or sensuous sugges-
tiveness it takes a while - you
have to build up to it. Burlesque,
however, involves sight gags and
rapid fire jokes, and (like sex) a

Uncle:
sense of rhythm and mood. Now realizes
if you take ten or so minutes less sk
for your erotic skin scene it which i
breaks up this mood and rhythm. thought
You can start again, but this those u
gives the film a jerky quality- hard w
humorous coitus interuptus. sex is
John Avildsen (director of Joe) purpose.

Porno-Bu

this and has opted for
in and better humor,
is fine with me, out I
I'd better mention it for
who thought they'd get
atching Cry Uncle. The
incidental-it serves the
of humor-after all, you

can't have dirty jokes without it.
Most of these are in the form of
sight gags-a couple inavolved in
intercourse on a couch while the
late show preacher give3 the
sermon "Do unto other3 as you
would have them Jo unto you
it is always better to give

rlesq
than to receive." After the pro-
tagonist is knocked Gut while
making love, the girl says
"Will you get his prick out of
me?" There's also a masochistic
transvestite (who looks like
Buster Keaton), some masturba-
tion, and a star-spangled dildo
amongst other things.
The plot is also subordinated
to humor-it gives a beginning,
an end, and a reason for the
jokes, but is not crucial. Like
most burlesque, it's hard to keep
up the pace after fifteen min-
utes or so, anl it's only in these
brief lags in the humor wnile it
regathers momentum that you
remember there is an unsolved
crime. The story, based on Live
a Little, Die a Little, involves
private eye Jack Masters (Allen
Garfield) who is hired by a mil-
lionaire to clear him of a murder
rap and extortion (involving a
porno film, what else). Masters
is potbellied, a consummate slob,
Planfield High's Most Improved
Athlete of 1950, and "a great
lay." Garfield's the only actor I
can think of who could have a
beautifully funny look of anguish
and disappointment when he
finds he's been buggering a

ie

is

corpse (he thought she was out
on smack).
Cry Uncle is narrated by a
cross between Walter Cronkite
and Gary Owens (Laugh In),
with more double entendres than
Carter's has pills. There are the
usual stock jokes: "He accepts
her without questioning," "I find
her quite acceptable," "I usually
come off like a tiger," "If you
come off at all." It's iianny

buck
throughout, though the hunor
isn't all that deep - I wouldn't
go see it twice, which, after all
is the test of anything that's
really good. The camera work
(also Avildsen) and music are
pretty crappy, but then you
don't exactly e x p e c t Ingmar
Bergman. What more can I say
about a movie with a character
named Larry Caulk? Think about
it.

DIAL 5-6290
ENDS WEDNESDAY
"I wouldn't say McCABE is more
enjoyable than M*A*S*H; it is
simply richer and better, a clas-
sic of its kind . . . be forewarn-
ed: the trick of appreciating
McCABE & MRS. MILLER is to
settle back and let it gurgle
over you."
Neal Gabler--Michigan Daily
P6C


Held Over
AGAIN!

4-T

Shows Tonight
At7&9

I HELLSTROM CHRONICLEI

WARREN
BEATTY
JULIE
CHRISTIE
MCCABE &
MRS. MILLER

I

DAILY CLASSIFIEDS BRING RESULTS--USE THEM

I

CAST AND CHORUS, technicians and central committee of soph show, get ready to present "Pa-
jama. Game" The show opens Nov. 4 at the Power Center for Performing Arts and runs through
Nov. 6. Tickets are available in the fishbowl and at the Power Center.

the ann arbor film cooperative presents

BRIAN DE PALMA'S
("H I, MOM"/)

GREETINGS

f "GREETINGS flaunts a genuinely youthful spirit, antisocial but not misanthropic, sassy but not ma-
licious; pessimistic but not morbid."-Andrew Sarris, The Village Voice
" "An outrageous satire, the main target of which is the Vietnam War, but which also makes fun of
sex, movies, computer dating, paperbacks, voyeurism, the Warren Report and its critics, and pornog-
raphy . . Its occasional anarchy and chaos serve to underscore the violent, destructive society it
portrays."-Distributor's catalog.
TUESDAY-NOVEMBER 2nd-ONLY!

kZ
z

Ulue Mone' -
Is honest, tittflating. '
It gives the audience 'K
what it paid tose e-
****** -N.Y. Times
THIS QRATED FILM IS
HIGHLY RECOMMENDED
BY THE MANAGEMENT
* Pius 2nd feature *

auditorium a-angell hall

COLOR

7 & 9:30 p.m.-still only 75c


COMING

THURSDAY-FRANCOIS TRUFFAUT'S THE WILD CHILD


U

I

IKE &

UAC-DAYSTAR presents
F RIDAY, NOV 19th
TUNA TI
REVUE
Plus SHADOW FAX
TICKETS $3.50-4.50-5.50

IRNER

I

Dial 662-6264
At State & Liberty
ENDS WEDNESDAY!
OPEN 12:45
SHOWS AT
1,3,5, 7,9:05
WED. 1-6 P.M.' LADIES
PAY ONLY 75c
CuA RLTON
HESTON
TH(
QMEGA
MAN
--STARTS THURSDAY-
Frank Zappa's
"200 MOTELS"


A
*4

SATURDAY, NOV. 20th

JEFFERSON AIRPLANE
AND

I

HOT TUNA
$3.50-4.50-5.00

Both Shows 9 P.M.

Crisler Arena

i

All Tickets Go on Sale MON., Nov. 8 at 10:00 a.m. in the Mich.
Union-A Limit of 25 Tic. per Person-
BUY A $3.50 TICKET TO EACH SHOW AT THE SAME
TIME AND SAVE 50c PER TICKET
Also Sponsored by Project Community, Trotter House, and ICC

I



A

THEY'RE COMING!
}..f .. .. THE 10WA SCOTTISH HIGHLANDERS*
.r-s
,.-S. } .:'"'"THE MICHIGAN MEN'S GLEE CLUB**
IN
B/. JOINT CONCERTS
f----- - af-