I
Page Two
THE MICHIGAN DAILY
Wednesday, November 17, 1971
----
Dude plays 'Misty'
with a twist
I_
w;rc Da-I Calend
Wednesday, Nov. 17
tar Maureen Forrester to
replace Shirley Verrett
By RICHARD GLAIZER
The Dude figure has been with
us in movies for some time now,
and he's beginning to grate on
my nerves a bit. Bogart, yes-
he's so cool he's believeable. But
the plethora of cheap imitation
Dudes, those beady-eyed greasy
.guys that can walk into a bar,
wink, and have three voluptuous
females in their laps before their
drink is ready, is downright an-
noying.
It's nice, therefore, to see a
clever variation -on the Dude
character. To some extent, John
and Mary pulled me off. Here's
nebbishly Dustin Hoffman, the
antithesis of Dudedom,. walking
into 4 singles club, walking out
with Mia Farrow, and going to
bed with her before finding out
just what a great girl she really
is. Finally, one of us average
guys wins out too.
Coming two years after John
and Mary, Play Misty for Me, in
its first few, minutes, seems to
be reactionary. Dave Garver
(Clint Eastwood) is Ed Dude
himself; he struts around in
body shirts, drives his groovy
convertible, and is a poetry-read-
ing D.J. on an AM station who
says things like, "Here's a pretty
one for lonely lovers on a cool,
cool night." So when Dave am-
bles into the Sardine Factory, his
favorite bar, it's only natural
that the sole woman in the joint,
Evelyn Draper (Jessica Walter),
comes to sit next to him. And,
later in the evening, when Evelyn
implies there are no strings at-
tached, the couple beds down
for the night. So far, so typical.
Like Hoffman in John and
Mary, Dave, though uninterested
eventually finds out just what
Ev is all about. Things start
String quartet shows
Czech spirit, genius
looking unpleasant for our Dude
when he discovers Evelyn is the
woman who has been calling him
up regularly on the show to ask
that he play "Misty." And things
look even more unpleasant when
Ev drops in on Dave unexpected-
ly to cook him a steak, when
this women w h o supposedly
didn't want to complicate her
life makes - it obvious she would
like to move in with Garver. You
see Ev's not really your bar-
stool nympho. She's just a thirty-
ish, neurotic, not all that good-
looking woman, who, like many
thirtyish, not all that good-look-
ing women, is out to trap a guy.
And once she's got her claws
into as suave a catch as East-
wood, she's not about to, let go.
So our Dude has finally gotten
what he deserves - not one of
those unbelieveable Hollywood
creations that accommodate slick
men and say good-bye in the
morning, but a real, unliberated,
assumingly marriage - obsessed
woman. Great !
But this is only the premise of
Play Misty for Me, and a pre-
mise doesn't make an entire
movie. It could have been incor-
porated into several different
sorts of films-I personally would
have liked to have seen a low-
keyed human comedy, but an
Alfie-ish drama in which Dave
realizes what a jerk.he is is not
totally inconceivable. One genre
of movie this premise is not
suited for, however, is a thriller.
yet Misty, under the confused,
imprecise direction of Eastwood,
tries to be just that.
You see, Evelyn eventually
turns homicidal. But Ev, thanks
to a good performance by Jessica
Walter, is just too human and
too silly a character to be the
really scary maniac this sort
of horror movie needs. We know
the babe's a loser from the start'
and, as such, she's somewhat
charming. So when, after being
rejected once too often, she final-
ly gets around to flailing the
deep end, screaming a more ter-
rified than terrifying scream,
running from the scene of the
crime before any irreparable
damage has been done, is as in-
effectual and pathetic a loony as
I've ever seen.
Once Ev takes the part of the
villain (and the Dude that of our
hero) Play Misty for Me becomes
a hazy, uncertain, and unsatis-
fying movie. There is some sus-
pense and one or two surprises
(the greatest of them when Eve-
lyn actually manages to kill
someone), but Misty, neverthe-
less, is pretty much a failure.
As a Psycho type chiller, there's
just too much talk and charac-
ter development early in the
movie for sufficient excitement.
And yet it was just that talky
beginning of the film that I en-
joyed most. What really bothers
me about Play Misty for Me is
not that it's mediocre thriller,
but that such a fine twist on
your typical Dude situation has
been frittered away and wasted
on a movie that couldn't make
up its mind just what it wanted
to be.
Film-
Alley Cinema, 330 Maynard
"Shop on Main Street" 7 and 9:30*
State Theater
"200 Motels" 1,3,5,7 and 9*
Fifth Forum
"Sunday, Bloody Sunday" 7 and 9*
Campus
"Hellstrom Chronicle" 7 and 9*1
Michigan
"Play Misty for Me" 1,3,5,7 and 9*1
Other Events-.
Catherine Blackwejl, Whitney Young Award recipient will speak
on African culture, people and dance
School of Education, Schorling Auditorium, 8:30 p.m.*
Women's Information Fair
Union Ballroom, 11 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.
Andre Kole, illusionist
Hill Auditorium, 8:00 p.m.*
Thursday, Nov. 18
Film-
Ann Arbor Film Cooperative, Aud. A, Angell Hall
"Freaks" 7 and 9:30*
Alley Cinema, 330Maynard
"The General" with Buster Keaton, 7 and 9:30*
*denotes events for which admission is charged
USE DAILY CLASSIFIEDS
BOX OFFICES OPEN 6:30
SHOW STARTS AT 7:00 r hA-1
Maureen Forrester, one of the
foremost contralto's of the pres-
ent day, will present a con-
cert at 8:30 p.m. this Thursday
in Hill Auditorium as part of
the University Musical Society's
Choral Union Series.
Shirley Verrett, who was or-
iginally scheduled to perform,
has been taken ill and obliged to
cancel several of her concerts.
Forrester, contacted Monday,
has offered the following pro-
gram for her recital: "Three
Psalms," Op. 61 by Edmund
Rubbra; "Three Tratic Songs"
by Bruno Walter; "Liebeshym-
nus," "Ruhe Meine Seele," and
"Wiegenlied," by R i c h a r d
Strauss: "T h e Concession
Stone" by Robert Fleming, and
three songs by Joaquin Turina:
"Romance," "El Pecador," and
"Rima."
Forrester has appeared ex-
tensively throughout the world
in 'opera, with symphony orches-
tra and in recital.
1 l
A
I
By DONALIJ SOSIN
Four gentlemen from Prague
came to, Rackham Auditorium
last night and played string
quartets. They started out well,
and got even better, and ended
up proving that they are one
of the finest groups around.
They began their program,
part of the Chamber Arts Series
of the University Musical So-
ciety, with Haydn's Quartet in
C ,major, Op. 54, No. 2. The
work'- is yet another example of
the composer's genius. Surprises
are around every corner, and
the total effect is delightful.
The: quartet played with gusto,
and :showed remarkable rhyth-
mic control as well as a gen-
erally tight ensemble.
The Quartet No. 2 ("Intimate
Letters") 'of Leos Janacek fol-
lowed. 'Written in 1928 at the
age of 74, the work describes the
composer's --feeling toward a
lady forty. years his junior whom
he much admired at the time.
To a fri'end, Janacek said the
relationship was purely spiritu-
al, but the music is so full of
passion that one begins to won-
der. Janacek's love of folk music
shows throughout, and plays an
important part in the develop-
ment of ideas. Frequently Jana-
cek uses short phrases over and
over,'and this repetition gives
the piece a simplistic quality in
some places. There are many
beautifully expressive moments,
too, though. The third move-
ment is by far the most intimate
one, with the first violin soar-
ing above a lush accompaniment
in the middle section. The quar-
tet rose above the notes, and
produced a" sensitive, personal
statement. The fourth move-
ment reaches an expressive
height, beginning with a folk
theme, and contrasting it with
the most delicate writing in the
piece. An intangible feeling of
happiness was in the air, and
the rapport between performers
and audience was electric.
Divorak's. Quartet in G ma-
jor, O p.106 closed the program.
This is a long and difficult
work, and in the wrong hands
DIAL 662-6264
C rner State & Liberty Streets
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Screen Entertainment"
OPEN 12:45
Shows at 1, 3, 5, 7, 9:05
WEDNESDAY IS LADIES DAY-
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FOR LADIES-EVERY WED.!
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can very easily sound frag-
mented and awkward. Needless
to say, this was not the case.
Everything flowed smoothly,
the many technical problems
seemed nonexistent, and the
performance was a great suc-
cess. The work contains many
wonderful passages: the slow
second movement, except for
some forced climaxes, is a
dream, while the scherzo is
pungent in its crisp rhythms.
The finale is long and sensuous,
and brings back themes heard
earlier, as well as using a sec-
ondary idea that sounds strat-
lingly reminiscent of the Faure
Violin Sonata.
If the' audience was not al-
ready in a state of rapture, the
quartet ensured this effect with
an incredible performance of the
finale from the Mozart G ma-
jor quartet. One could not have
wanted more to add to this thor-
oughly satisfying evening.
AUDACIO0US
is a word not generally
associated with
President Fleming
Merv Griffin
Colonel Sanders
The Lettermen
Peggy Lee
AUDACIOIUS
is a term sometimes
applied to
Christopher Columbus
Pablo Picasso
Fidel Castro
Ludwig von Beethoven
Andy Warhol
and
JEAN-LUC GOGARD
THIS WEEK AT
WEDNESDAY NIGHT
VIVRE SA VIE
1962-Anna Karina por-
trays a girl who makes a
free choice to become a
prostitute, at first casual-
ly, t h e n professionally.
"In a series of twelve ta-
bleaus, Godard dissects a
human soul in terms of
the full range of cine-
matic vocabulary."
-A. Sarris
ARCH ITECTURE
AUDITORIUM
7:00 and 9:05 75c
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THEY FOUND A NEW KIND OF HELL!
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THE GEORGE HAMILTON
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--3 Top Adult Features-
"TOBACCO ROODY"
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Russ Meyers
"VIXEN" X
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Late Show Fri. & Sat.
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Cassandra Gerstein's
TALES
Originally scheduled for Tues.,
Nov. 16, and in double.-bill with
VALI, Sat., Nov. 20, will not be
shown at this time,
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a
THIS WEEKEND
FRI.-SAT.-SUN
BOB DYLAN
in
DON'T LOOK BACK
1 & 9 Aud. A, Angell Hall
The School of Music and Department of Art present
MOZART'S OPERA
THE MAGIC FLUTE
(IN ENGLISH)
NOV. 19,20,22, & 23 MENDELSSOHN THEATRE
$1.50 and $3.00 ($1.50 tickets for U-M students only)
Conductor: JOSEPH BLATT Stage Manager: RALPH HERBERT
INFORMATION: 764-6118
BOX OFFICE HOURS: 12:30-5:00 P.M. November 15-18
12:30-8:00 P.M. November 19, 20, 22, & 23
Closed Sunday, November 21
4
X ADULTS ONLY
THE ULTIMATE ADULT FILM
- -$
2nd
,..lre C n M 8 482.-3300
F. FREE LIGHTED
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EASTERN MICHIGAN UNIVERSITY
PRESENTS } fir
DONOVAN 4
in concert 4
FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 19,8:30 p.m.
Bowen Field House< .
TICKETS-$3.50, $4.50, $5.50
Available at
* McKenny Union Ticket Office
" Ann Arbor Music Mart, Liberty St.
" Michigan Union4
fr
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PETER FONDA, NANCY SINATRA, and MICHAEL POLLARD in
~A.IFN
.L~~w~.Lv
Roger
Corman's
1 ;:
:ty , ,r .
; ;; >;
.:::.,:
;:; :
IL
A
GELS
I
R Restricted
IN MIND-BLOWING COLOR
with Bruce Dern and Members of the Hell's Angels, Venice, California
"A Shocking Reflection of Our Ties"
"One of the nost important filns of the last decade"
BENEF'IT for PION EER [1 (Pioneer High Free School)
I 1IE"VW1ir-f""' B.