Fridoy, September 27, 1974
THE MICHIGAN DAILY
Purge Five
Frid~iy, Septer't~er 27, 1 ~74 THE MICHIGAN DAILY Page Five
.. :.
Pick of the week:
That's Entertainment
Michigan,
That black sheep half-brother
of opera, the musical, has al-
ways been a uniquely American
form of entertainment. In most
of the rest of the world, the
musical has usually been view-
ed as a rather tasteless Yankee
curio. But here at home it has
always remained a perenially'
popular mode of entertainment
-whether on the Broadwaya
'crnemcL
w~ee]
i1
Animal Crackers
State
senc
The story centers around the
tensions between the crew and:
the captain of a Navy destroy-
er - minesweeper during World
War, II. The officers come to
the conclusion that Captain
Queeg (played by Bogart) is a
must, for Steinbeck fans a
must, for Americana fans a
must. It's historical, cultural,
sociological and psychological.
And who cares? It's marvelous.
-Bruce Weber
* *
stage or the small-town movie paranoid - schizophrenic a n A
d kAlexander
screen. that quite possibly it may be- Cinema II Aud. A
The heyday of the musical come necessary to mutiny.
film has probably now gone by The tensions finally reach a l, e Fri., 7, t
(to wit this summer's Marne peak during a violent Pacific People who are unable to en-
and Huckleberry Finn). Still, typhoon when Queeg gives an joy life resent those who can.
for nearly 40 years, some of the order which the executive of- In Alexander, Yves Robert suc-'
greatest productions every re- ficer feels would endanger the cessfully exploits this theme,
carded on celluloid were the ship. Torn by his conscience, producing a top-notch, semi-
singing and dancing extrava- he relieves Queeg of command. satyrical comedy.
ganzas of Metro-Goldwyn-May- Don't miss this movie, espe- This film follows the life of
ger.as cially if you have never seen it a hen-pecked farmer, blithely'
Almost all of the "greats" of before, because it is a superb played by Phillipe Noiret, who,
the 30s and '40s stopped by a film with electrifying perform- once his wife dies, decides tol
Metro soundstag at one time ances by all the stars. If you catch up on his ten years of;
oraoter o contrie o thme like Bogie you'll love The lost sleep. However, the localf
or another to contribute to the Caine Mutiny. villagers take over from where'
legacy that has become That's -ak e'fk his wife left off, which leads to
Entertainment. Garland, Ga- --Mark DeBofsky hiwfeltofhcheaso
,* * a delightful melange of biting
ble, Astaire, Kelly, Rooney, dialogue and slapstick humor.
Stewart, Chevalier: they're all Duet for Cannibals A spotted terrier, simply nam-f
here. Cinema Guild, Arch. Aud. ed "Dog", serves as a media-
Jack Haley, Jr. - the son of Sun., 7, 9 tor between jealous neighbors
the tin man in Wizard of Oz- In the mood for a complicat- and Alexander. Dog livens the
presided over the editing of ed, pensive, enigmatic foreign pace as he takes on human
MGM's cinematic heritage into import? Then Duet for Canni- traits, mourning at the wife's
this 21 hour film. It's a little bais is the movie for you. It is funeral or shopping for gro-
pretentious and overdone at the' first effort of Susan Son- ceries. A newcomer to the vil-
times, but it remains a mag- tag, an excellent Swedish movie lage, Agathe, played by Mar-
nificent tribute to one of the critic who is now trying her lene Jorbet, adds an intriguing,
most imaginative genres of luck on the other side of the twist to the film as she de-
film history. fence. velops a warm relationship;
-David Blomquist Basically, Cannibals concerns with Alexander.
* * * the varied activities of a mid- All in all, the fine acting1
juggernaut dle-aged radical German acti- coupled with the vibrant photog-,
The M is Briarwood vist and a younger theoretician raphy of the French countryside
In keeping with the current named Bauer. These two spend: make this film a must.
Hollywood craze of disaster the better part of the movie ..-Cinthia Fox
flicks, United Artists 'has flush- preying on a young Swede and
ed out its pre-holiday sewers his mistress, exploiting them E asy Rider
and spilled Juggernaut, the lat- in almost every conceivable The Movies, Briarwood
est greatest sea adventure in 'fashion. IEasy Rider, in its time, and
history, into practically every This movie appears to be aim- that time wasn't so long ago,
neighborhood theatre in the ing at some sort of social com- was thought to be a milestonej
world. Obviously, the movie mentary on the vicious people not only in low-budget filming,,
mogels in Tinseltown know what that abound in our present-day (Peter Fonda financed it all)
they don't have, realizing' society. Unfortunately, it gets; but also of "beat" films - the?
they've got to pack the theatres bogged down in the mire of my- pulsebeat of the times.
before word of mouth empties stery that Sontag dumps liber- Fonda is the quiet and heavy'
them. ally throughout. Unfathomable Captain' America and Dennis!
The movie itself is so simple' mystery is fine, to a point, but Hopper his paranoid sidekick
it defies believability. An assort- then it becomes merely boring. Billy as the .two of them bike,
ed cast of characters set asail Ultimately, it makes this movie it through the southwest, finan-,
on the luxury liner Britannic, frustrating and a headache. ced by what must be the big-1
only to be notified once far out -George Lobsenz gest cocaine deal of the dec-'
at sea by a mysterious black- ade. Their trip and search to-l
mailer, Juggernaut, that a East of Eden gether became a metaphor for
bomb will rip the ship 'open Couzens Film Co-op many peoples' searches for a,
"like a can of sardines" (kill- Couzens Cafeteria happier existence during theI
ing 1200 mFen, women and chi-Fri. Sat. f, 10 late 60's: the escape from the
dren) unless a huge ransom is James Dean, Raymond Mas- Big Bad cities back to the coun-
paid. se and Julie Harris (in her tryside.
all of the people of Amarene ;Tall Blond Aan with rises to the top of the charts.
seem to share. pdAnd then . . . and then, and
It's a small town so every- One Black Shoe then.
one 'knows what everybody is Cinema II, Aud. A Watch for a scene which hys-
doing; I hate him, she loves Sat., 7, 9 terically satirizes a familiar Co-3
you, you're doing it with 'me-, Occasionally an excellent fil ca Cola ad.
the petty passions that over- comes along which has no last- --Bruce Weber
whelmingly rule us all. And as ing value, but which is thor- *
the movie proceeds, the town oughly entertaining. Such is the Steelyard Blues
seems to get smaller and smal- French film Tall Blond Man
ler, emptier and emptier. directed by Yves Robert. 'Fediatrics, Nat.Si. Ad.
But somehow, what emerges An endearing, absent-minded Each actor in Alan Myerson's
is even more frightening: that musician named Francois (Pi- Steelyard Blues has excelled
we of the city, we with our cul- erre Richard) unknowingly be- elsewhere, but even their com-
ture, when stripped of the dis- comes caught up in the world bined efforts can't make this
tractions - our movies and our of high-espionage intelligence film much more than a poor
card games - are no better services, and we are off for xoor
off, no happier, no freer than an hour and a half of slapstick tonese for comedy with over-
anyone in Amarene. That the comedy. Francois remains won- Donald Sutherland is a, crook
passions are the same and the derfully oblivious to the agents with plans to go to a better
entrapments the same. As in tripping about all around him, land and Jane Fonda is his hap-
Winesberg, many of them will and yet has the agents believing py hooker friend joining him in
try to leave town, but none will him a terribly clever super-spy. making less than charming non-
escape. I Robert demonstrates his wit sense. The film makes some at-
Very sensitive use of life and and style in this mixture of tempt to be tough, as Suther-
shadow contribute to making Keaton-type comedy and a 'land and Fonda makes digs
this Bogdanovich film very con- uniquely French subtlety of about society's straights, but the
vincing and very powerful. character. Combined with su- unreal quality of the movie
--David Weinberg perb performances by Pierre cloud the possibility of radi-
* * Richard and Bernard Blier, as calism.
S o uan intelligence officer, this Peter Boyle is entertaining
CinemG ulfilm is a must! as a schizophrenic-the movie's
Cinema Guild, Arch. Aud. -David Crumm only redeeming feature. The
Fri., 7, 9 * * * noticeable lack of humor, polit-
Somewhere on the roster of Harder They Come 'ical point and technical quality
Alfred Hitchcock's films, hid- Ne rldy M3 leave Steelyard Blues with lit-
den midway between Psycho at Newn World, MLB tle to offer.
Animal Crackers, a classic
Marx Brothers comedy, has re-
turned to the world of the liv-
ing. For 20 years this film
has been kept off the market,
you are looking for intellectual for one reason or another. But
stimulation or heavy social now another studio has re-re-
commentary. However, if .leased it, and it 'is as funny as
you're to the every other Marx Brothers film.
'and rowdy, 'this lively little Shot on Long Island in ,he
piece of fluff is sure to enter- early thirties, this film is an
tain you. excellent opportunity to see the
-George Lobsenz 'Marx Brothers as young men.
* * It is easy to see the seeds of
greatness in these four young-
California Split sters.
Fox Village What can one 'say about a
e-Marx Brothers, film? Only thiat
Robert Altman mdre than re if you go to see it, you will
deems his spring flop, Thieves: laugh for the entire evening.
Like Us, with this terribly sub-Iv en
tle yet terribly complex tale of -David Warren
two gamblers on an almost un-
believable winning streak. The Groove Tube
Elliot Gould is the professuinal Fifth Forum
of the pair - the man who The Groove Tube is much like
thrives on the risk of high-low her ov ueitmchnliks
pokerand the close, sweaty at- Wheeis Poppa? It ntai
mosphere of tale dice tables. something to offend nearly ev-
Gore Sega, bs. erybody, no matter who you
George Segal, meanwhile, are. But it's also wildly funny
portrays a magazine writer in spaces and is a beautiful
working in Las Vegas (while roasting of the bland dreadful
separated from his wife) who pap which comprises commer-
has only a passing interest in ;ial television.
gambling - until he meets up
with the pro. I The short film is set in a
But the icing on the cake is number of short skits, many of
ABt ' therb cingone cakn e 1which parody familiar televi-
Altman's superb use of sound to' omt.Peitby
emphasize and heighte'h the s o n formats. Predictably,
pace pace of his film. S o u n d there's a Sex Olympics. skit,
mixer Jim Webb presided over with, of course, commentary by
no less than 13 microphones in a former .participant describing
a daring attempt to convey a the action. The French Chef et
more in-depth cinematic im- alia is blasted by The Kramp
pression of the frenzy-filled Easy Lube Kitchens.
world of the casino. The tech- Still, if you're not offended by
nique proves to be largely suc- National Lampoon humor you're
cesful, and at any rate is fas- bound to find a great deal of
cinating to listen to. it funny.
-David Blomquist_--Stephen Selbst
1
the summit and Topaz at rock ;Sn,
bottom, lies Saboteur, an enter- The Harder They Come takes
taming but virtually forgotten an old theme and makes it
wartime thriller. new. An aspiring young, manc
comes to the big city, gets down
Saboteur is taken directly on his luck, and sings the 'Don't
from the spy-chase mold that let the system grind you down'
Hitchcock created with The 39; blues until lo and behold, a
Steps and summed up in bril- break comes his way and he
liant fashion with the classic becomes a system man him-
North by Northwest. self.
This time, Bob Cummings (a } Director Perry Henzel shows
rather unfortunate piece of cast- youthful taste and film savvy
ing by Hitchcock's own ad- in his movie, which after be-
mission) portrays the confused ing buried for awhile, has gain-
hero pursued simultaneously by ed wide acclaim in its re-re-
the law and by the lawless lease. The camera work is
across the United States to an rather shoddy, the film quality
eventual showdown atop the is grainy, and the soundtrack
Statue of Liberty. is garbled at times. But perser-
The film occupies the du- vere; it's all worthwhile in the
Tbious position of a mere step- end.
ping stone in Hitchcock's d- The Jamaican film stars Jim-
velopment, and in fact does my Cliff, whose face seems to
little to enhance the master's grow in expression as the story
reputation among highbrow cri- progresses. He's a musician by
tics. Though excellent by Hol- trade, a reggae singer, initial-
iywood standardsthisn1942 flick ly exploited, who eventually
only anticipates the cinematic
greatness of later Hitchcock
masterpieces. I14CIA 4
-Linda Fidel
* * *
Mouse That Roared
Law School Film Series
Room 100, Hutchins Hall
Fri.,7, 9
The Mouse That Roared is
another in the long and some-
what less than distinguished line
of Peter Sellers comedies. Re-
leased in 1959, this flick is vin-
tage Sellers as he stars in three
lead -roles, each played in su-
perbly nonsensical style. This
is really a must for Sellers
freaks, if such people truly ex-
ist.
The plot is typically absurd.
A small country, Grand Fen-
wick, declares war on the U. S.
hoping to be rehabilitated by
the inevitable victor. This craf-
ty plan backfires providing the
opportunity for some slapdash
slapstick in the process.
This picture has obvious
drawbacks. Do not go to it if
Vr U11 w£ nUdE UE'a
I
As expected, it is a race first Hollywood appearance)
against time, with the movie star in this Elia Kaz e en
winding down to the final iden- gem.nEast o Eden, a wrench-
tity of Juggernaut, which ish tEstiog 'daofa rh-
perhaps the biggest swindle of ng, twisting drama of a brok-
the entire mess. Richard Harris en family, adapted from the
and Omar Sharif head the novel by John Steinbeck.
cast that is sentenced to the Filmed in 1955, East of Eden,
script, discovering they have a: atleast in retrospect, is often
full time job just keeping their daring and new, featuring dark-
heads above water, to say noth- ly lit sets and perfectly tuned:
ing of keeping a straight face. color. Kazan, also director of;
-Jim Valk Streetcar Named Desire, On
* * the Waterfront, and A Face In
the Crowd, is at once symbolic-
The Caine Mutiny ally obvious and technically dis-
Cinema Guild, Arch. ,Aud. creet. The shot compositions
Sat., 7, 9 are wonderfully thematic, the
Bogie fans are in for a treat framing is pointed and percep-
this weekend. The Caine Mut- I tive, and the sound track is per-
my, featuring Humphrey Bo- fectly timed.J
gart and directed by Edward Massey and Dean, as father'
Dmytryk, should not be over- and son at odds, are fine, par-1
looked. Herman Wouk's master- ticularly Dean, who, in per-
piece loses very little when haps his most famous role, as a
transformed to the screen and tortured and irresponsible young
remains filled with the same buck, is downright compelling.
excitement and vigor as the For film buffs, East of Eden
book. is a must, for Kazan fans a ;
The film does have a certin
aura of -"forbiddenness" and a
certain tendenicy towards bop-
perishness, especially by mod-
ern standards. And yes - the
deaths at the end are some-
what cheap. But the concept of,
"search" remains valid within
this society. Not as a lifestyle,1
but as a stage of growth which
all of us must experience in
some form in our own lives. And
perhaps it is this that makes
Easy Rider a worthwhile film.-
-David Weinberg
Lost Picture Show
The Movies, Briarwood
The Last Picture Show is
Peter Bogdanovich's film about;
certain people in a very small;
Texas town. In particular it's
about Sonny (Timothy Bottom)
and Jacey (Cybill Shepherd),
two high school seniors in 1951.
Filmed in black - and - white,
the movie mercilessly captures
the feeling of entrapment that
-Chris Kochmanski
1V ar M T IFhILMARIVUS
WILDEST MOVIE IS HERE!
"May be the funniest movie of the
year. Rush to see it!" -vinneapo! sTrbune
"A smashing, triumphant satire'
-Seattle Post Inteligencer
"Riotously, excruciatingly funny:'
-Mdwaukee Sentinel
"Consistently hilarious and
brilliant:' - i mo'e Da'y Record
"Insanely funny, outrageous and
irreveren -Bruce anPAYBOY MAGAZINE
" W (NighQst
Rating
"TOPS IN ENTERTAINMENT:'
-New York News
5 Camera Eyes- Highest Rating)
"STUPENDOUS"
-CBS-TV
MICHIGAN Open Daily 12:45
Shows at
603 E. Liert -0-515-
Dial 665-6290 7:20 & 9:30 (G)
I
7
fJ'GS4
30-40% SALE
HANDMADE
SHEEPSKIN
COATS
MAXI
REG. $185
. . . . . $115
REG. $150
CAR COAT w r...a$89
JACKET .
REG. $120
. .. .$69
ENJOY THE WARMTH
& QUALITY OF SHEEPSKIN
THIS WINTER
House of Imports
320 E. LIBERTY, 769-8555
Mon., Fri. 10-9;
Tues., Wed, Thurs., Sat. 10-6
-SPECIAL SHORT FEATURE
"T HE DOVE"
Showtimes: Mon.-Thurs.: 7:00 - 8:45
Fri.-Sat.: 7:00 - 8:45 - 10:30 -
Sundov: 5 15 - 7:00 - 851; - 0
-S
1
(1959)
PETER SELLERS in
THE MOUSE THAT ROARED!
directed by JACK ARNOLD