lk Joi de vivre'fills exuberant gay flick By MIKE TAYLOR HAD ANITA BRYANT known that her tirades against gay men and les- bians would unify them for the first time into a strong movement in defense of human rights, she might have had second thoughts. Arthur J. Bresson Jr.'s Gay USA, which had its Midwest premier Monday and Wed- nesday nights at the Modern Language Building, is the first film to try to capture the vibrance and loving warmth of this movement. As a film, it's not great; as a vivid document of human growth, however, it succeeds admirably. All the documentary cliches are here in this record of the June 26, 1977 Gay Freedom Day marches in San Francisco, New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, and San Diego - fast cuts from face to face, real conversation instead of rehearsed narration, a soundtrack filled with voices and songs, and "dramatic" shifts from the marches to Riefenstahl's Triumph of the Will Nazi footage. But while the film won't win any awards for imaginative filmmaking, it uses standard techniques to more than adequately convey the spiritual high of the day. As the fast-paced stream of faces flashed on the screen shows, an im- mense variety of people came to the marches. From the man who condemns gays for having problems with "sex hormones," to the countless "I'm not gay myself, of course, butI do believe they should be given their rights," onlookers, plenty of straights are represented. BUT THE GAY men and lesbians are the true stars of the show. One woman originally from Witchita, Kansas who left her husband to come out in 1975 said that "There's' less repression in Witchita than in other places in Kansas," but admit- ted that wasn't saying very much., Another woman. glowed with feelings of safety and warmth in a} street filled with men and women she did not know; it was a new ex-. perience for her. A beaming man talked of his job teaching youngechil- dren and the changes he's made sin-Y ce moving to San Francisco from Rochester, New York.A nita Bryant The folk songs which back many scenes and colorful visuals add to a carnival-like atmosphere. One marcher noted that unlike the peace mar- ches, which were often depressing due to their negative protest nature, the day's march was much more a jubilant celebration of gay life and rights. The gorgeous array of faces, bodies, and clothes contrasts sharply with older black and white shots of earlier marches, when fewer women par- ticipated, and all the men had long hair and beards, as well as with Riefen- stahl's regimented Nazi march footage. The film is only an hour and fifteen minutes long, but the folk songs become a bit wearing after a while, and the shots and dialogue become repetitive. Tighter editing wouldn't have hurt it. Some scenes are a little too cute; they seem straight out of a Pepsi commercial. As one viewer joked later, "Come alive, you're the gay generation!"' Gay USA is a non-profit film - all the proceeds beyond cost go to Artists United for Gay Rights, which then distributes the funds to various lesbian and gay men's groups. The free Ann Arbor showings were paid for by the Lesbian's Advocate Office, the LS&A Student Government, the Gay Academic Union, and the Residential College. - For straights, the film is a revealing, non-threatening glimpse into the lives of real gay folk; for gays, it's a gesture towards solidarity in the battles that lie ahead; for all, it's a moving tribute to love. aldeman says Nixon" s at fault (Continued from Page 1) 'Julia~ By MICHAEL BROIDY HEN GOING TO movies, rarely does one expect to see a film that works well on a number of levels. One goes to a spy picture expecting but the usual adventures, not a character study or a breathtakingly photographed essay on human values; similarly, one goes to a so-called "woman's picture" expecting a four-hanky melodrama, not a film which details an increasingly complex relationship with such finesse that the events move with intensity precluding the shedding of tears. In the new film Julia, however, one finds all these elements woven together with such intricacy by director Fred Zinnemann and stars Jane Fonda and Vanessa Redgrave that one is left stun- ned. Julia is a powerful work which leaves an indelible imprint on its audience. The screenplay is adapted from author and playwright Lillian Hellman's autobiographical memoir "Pentimento" in which her relationship with Julia is one of the episodes. This episode, as well as the book as a whole, is beautifully written - sophisticated and touchin, while at the same time evasive and mysterious - and keenly outlines the intimate feelings and frien- dships of its author, while shedding light on a complex and exciting period of history. Her recollections of her lifelong friend, Julia, provide the core of the memoir from which is revealed a superl ati i headed for Berlin a forces there. The t the sequence is a Zinnemann's contr one can feel the ch train compartmen current fear. Whi straightforward a while very effect tional, the underly dship and growth a ventional. Through grows and her rela solidifies into an und THE FILM REA of its power in a sc taurant where Lillia for what turns outt Although they hav communicated with eral years, their me alliance having be The Michigan Daily-Friday, February 17, 1978-Page 5 ye memoii Lnd the Underground -are appropriate both professionally and ension that pervades personally for their roles. tribute to director Director Fred Zinnemann blends ol over the medium: together many elements of the film -; austrophobia of the as an historical document, thriller, tale t and Lillian's con- of love and friendship ' masterfully le the suspense is Zinnemann has had a long and ind the technique, distinguished career in Hollywood; ive, quite conven- from the human drama of From IIere to ing values of frien- Eternity and the narrative structuring re anything but con- of thrillers such as Day of the Jackal. In this ordeal, Lillian Julia, he brings all, these elementg ationship with Julia together in a way that surpasses even. dying love. the aforementioned films. Douglas" Slocombe's cinematography surrounds CHES the pinnacle ene in a Berlin res- an meets with Julia to be the last time. ' e not seen or even each other for sev- eeting is short, their en ripped apart by Jane Fonda relationship which matches the richness and evasiveness of the writing. THE FILM CAPTURES all the beauty of Hellman's writing: The com- plexity of Julia; her relationship with the brilliant mystery writer Dashiell Hammet (subtly and carefully evoked by Jason Robards); and the paranoia and horror of Nazi Germany in 1937, while adding a cinematic technical brilliance that interweaves the beauty' of their relationship with the horrors of living in an era which usurped sen- sitivity and replaced it with malignant terror. In flashbacks we see Lillian recalling how she grew up as a writer with Hammett's persistent care, and as a woman under the tutelage of her friend Julia, a brilliant medical student who gave up a life of comfort to fight Fascism in the years before World War II. Lillian's increasing awareness of the forces that were working in this dark era was due to Julia's perceptive aware ness. The film becomes a story of an in- dividual's growth as a human being and the rites of passage. The film is also about commitment and the power of friendship: after Julia has been severely beaten by fascists, she summons Lillian to Europe to help the anti-Nazi underground. What follows is a harrowing sequence in which Lillian smuggles several thousands of dollars aboard a train Vanessa Redgrave Julia and Lillian with a glow starkly set off from the horrors which threaten them. Julia, like the friendships recounted, lingers on long after the film is over. Jason Robards the evils that surround them. The two women exchange information about their lives in a few rushed minutes, are denied any warm rewards of their com- pleted courageous act: That this is the last time they will ever see each other adds an almost unbearable emotion to the scene. It is undeniable that the two leads, Jane Fonda and Vanessa Redgrave, are perfectly cast. Ms. Fonda captures Lillian's growing awareness with a feeling that must certainly emanate from an intense identification with her character. Ms. Redgrave, too, gives the impression of a feeling and iden- tification with the title character. They Steo V Service Fost-Competent RENTALS ArSTUDENTRATES 215 S. Ashley 769-0342 owntown, I block west of Main, between Washington and Liberty 'HIGH VOLTAGE ENTERTAINMENT!" -William Glover, Associated Press Aghr~n 1ng 0I R t sel : ame ime, o Lar 4k Broadway's smash hit comedy ernard slade POWER CENTER Crash kills Ypsi man By R. J. SMITH Michigan State Police reported that a 64-year-old Ypsilanti man was killed yesterday on I-94, when his car was struck from behind by a truck. The ac- cident occurred at approximately 1:45' p.m. Jesse James Williams, of Ypsilanti, had stopped his car in the right lane of I-94 near US-12 to help a friend ahead of him who was having problems with his car. TRUCK DRIVER Frederick Foland, a 61-year-old man from Kokomo, In- diana, had just passed a vehicle and had moved into the right lane when he struck Williams car. The car was im- mediately engulfed in flames. Foland said he was looking in his rear-view mirror, and by the time he saw William's emergency blinkers it was too late for him to brake. An autopsy will be performed today at University Hospital. DON'T RAISE HOOP LOS ANGELES (AP) - John Wooden has been retired for a couple of years as head basketball coach at UCLA . but still has definite ideas about how college basketball should be played. The great coach was asked what he thought about raising the basket a foot or two to cut down on the advantage enjoyed by taller men over short ones. "I'm not really for it," he said. "I think taking away offensive rebound baskets would achieve the same purpose. then it is rushing the book into stores today. "I believe the initiative for the Water- gate break-in came from Nixon through Colson," Haldeman writes. "Nixon lit the match, handed it to Colson, who in turn touched off the fuse." He says Nixon "was in on the cover- up from Day One, although neither he nor we considered it a cover-up at the time." HALDEMAN SAYS Nixon talked of paying hush money to the Watergate burglars and using the CIA to sidetrack the ongoing FBI investigation three days after the June 17, 1972, burglary. That, in turn, was three days before the "smoking gun" conversation which, when released by the White House, preceded Nixon's resignation. "When you get the CIA people in, say 'look, the problem is that this will open up the whole Bay of Pigs thing again," Haldeman quotes Nixon as saying. "So they should call the FBI in and say for the good of the country don't go any fur- ther into the case. Period." Haldeman said he passed the message on to CIA director Richad Helms and said he was shocked at his violent reaction. "THE BAY OF Pigs has nothing to do with this," Haldeman says Helms shouted. But Haldeman said Helms and deputy director Vernon A. Walters then expressed no concern about telling the FBI to stop its Watergate investigation. "It seems that in all of those Nixon references to the Bay of Pigs he was ac- tually referring to the Kennedy. assassination .. . "When Nixon said 'it's likely to blow the whole Bay of Pigs' he might have been reminding Helms, not so gently, of the cover-up of the CIA assassination attempts on the hero of the Bay of Pigs, Fidel Castro - a CIA operation that may have triggered the Kennedy tragedy and which Helms desperately wanted to hide." Center for Afro American African Studies presents a BLACK HISTORY WEEK CELEBRAT/ON Featuring the INDIANA UNIVERSITY SOUL REVUE The Indiana University Soul Revue is a musical group consisting of 45 university students who play contemporary Afro-American Music SUNDAY, 7:00 P.M. FEBRUARY 19, 1978 MENDELSSOHN THEATRE ADMISSION FREE For A Great Evening Of Fun ... Come To BIMBO'S! LIVE ENTERTAINMENT Every Friday and Saturday Night Singolong With THE GASLIGHTERS, 114 E. Washington-Downtown 665-3231 [IS SCHOOL GETTING YOU DOWN? (and keeping you there?) GARY SNYDER 0E1 ISRAEL Proudly Presents DOCTOR DAVID WEISS HALIVNI Professor of Robbnics Jewish Theological Seminary of America Friday, February 17-8:30 p.m. "THE GENESIS OF THE ORAL LAW" Saturday, February 18-11:00 a.m. (during Sabbath Services) STUDY OF A TALMUDIC TEXT 1429 HILL STREET ALL WELCOME ARE YOU -freezing or blanking on exams? -uptight about school pressures? M4,40 THE MIND "The world is a product of thought. It is a creation of the mind. We create our world by our own thoughts. " A filc hA v 1IL IA h /Il/A -having trouble concentrating on studying 'cause you're scared? -a "study-aholic" with little time for fun? Then the ACADEMIC ANXIETY REDUCTION GROUPS offered by THE PEER COUNSELORS IN ACADEMIC ANXIETY REDUCTION of Counseling Services are probably for you. Through a series of 8 weekly group sessions led by peer counselors, you will participate in a variety of exercises and procedures designed to help you ex- plore the basis for your qnxiety, and teach you techniques for coping with it. m u' ns -