Page Four THE MICHIGAN DAILY Sundav. ADiril 4. 1976 11 Page FourTHE MICH.Ar.DArL , I r ! f t v J BOOKS Kael's reviews reflect a way with words but ignore the historical view of movies FeministWeideger examines attitudes toward.'the curse' REELING by Pauline Kael. Little, Brown and Company, Boston - Toronto. 497 pp., $12.95. By JEFF SORENSEN rIE RENAISSANCE OF the American film industry in the '60's and the emergence of Pauline Kael as our leading film critic have, fortuitously, coincided. The two are made for each, other: Kael has used her post at The New Yorker to champion a whole new generation of film- makers, artists like Robert Alt- man, Francis Ford Coppola and Martin Scorsese, who have tri- umphed - despite heavy odds - over the movie moguls who have stifled creative work for the past 30 years. She's herald- ed the arrival of such innova- tive, personal films as Bonnie and Clyde, McCabe and Mrs. Miller and Last Tango in Paris; and she is convinced not only are American movies better than ever, but that they repre- sent the most significant art about the current movies she form of our time. i loves. "A few decades hence, these As a thinker, Kael has her years may appear to be the weak moments, but as a writer, closest our movies have come her work is easily superior to to the tangled, bitter flowering that of anyone else in the field. of Americanletters in the early Her prose is sparkling - she 1850's," she says in the fore- writes with such enthusiasm ward to Reeling, her latest col- for her subject that she rarely lection of movie reviews. Writ- adopts the dry, academic tone ten between September, 1972 often found in her contempor- and May, 1975, the book serves aries' writings, like Stanley as both a literate, entertaining Kaufman or Andrew Sarris. guide to recent films, and a At the same time, she avoids record of Kael's love affair the cliches that most critics with the American cinema. rely on, and she stays away from the simple, unequivocal TI NLIKE OTHER film critics, putdowns that John Simon spe- Kael has never been as cializes in. Kael can be pointed, fond of aesthetic theories as she even angry at times when the is of her favorite movies, so her subject matter demands it (note approach is to tackle the films "On the Future of Movies" in one at a time in a catch-as- Reeling), but she will always catch-can style rather than at- attempt to provide ample sup- tempt to assess the larger is- port for her criticism - she sues. She views herself as the refuses to simply label and dis- ultimate fan rather than a miss even her worst enemies. critic; she doesn't attempt to Some of her most famous and be a scholar or historian, in- engaging work is to be found in' stead she writes feverishly Reeling. Readers may already be familiar with her articles on '>'' Last Tango in Paris, Nashville, F The Godfather (Part II), and> Mean Streets, but there area also many more included in this4 collection that are equally en- tertaining. These reviews, con- cerning the cream of the crop" of early 70's films, are among the best that Kael has written. MY OWN FAVORITES are her hymns in praise of ta- ented director Robert Altman- contained in this book are her when she makes such outland- comments on Images, The Long ish statements. California Split, and Nashville. TIMES, HER prejudice Goodbye, Thieves Like Us, against almost all foreign When it comes to Altman, Kael filmmakers smacks of jingoism.I pulls out all the stops. She re- imakdts againos alies ha Almans norhodxTime and time again, she pans alizes that Altman's unorthodox,j the work of such artists as Fel- personal style of filmmaking lini Truffaut, Rohmer and doesn't lend itself to orthodox Bergm aS, evider anot film criticism, for it lacks the Bergman. She is evidently not gimmickry that is responsible "excited by these directors; and for the success of most Holl -it shows in her criticism. fo teruccessnm st K ll All of these shortcomings wood entertainment. KaeI is amount to a chink in her criti- able to sense the "beauty with cal armor that seriously flaws ' out artifice" that lifts evein I R e e I i n g and, indeed, all of nor Altman films such as Kael's work - but it's still not Thieves Like Us out of the or- enough to outweigh the pleas- dinary run of commercial pap. ures that her very best reviews In these reviews, the scope offer. One could argue that her of her knowledge about film, I!faults are, in fact, a blessing and the fluid, engaging prose in disguise. Perhaps her lack style act on us, without our of judgment and her prejudice I knowing it. Kael has such a gift against some filmmakers are' for writing that she can get by the very qualities that keep her with a great deal of muddled mind - after tens of thousands thinking and outright contra-, of movies - from going soft dictions. Kael may be the or cynical. Hed unabashed love grandmaster of today's film of American movies may blind reviewers but that is only be- ' her to other artists, but I be-! cause of the paucity of the j lieve that it's this special en- competition. Her work falls thusiasm that inspires her best short of the best criticism, like writing. Shaw's or Baudlaire's, because Like it or not, the American he larger point of view, the cinema is the closest thing we critical perspective, always have to a national theatre, and: eludes her. ~ MENSTRUATION & MENO- PAUSE by Paula Weideger. Knopf, New York. 257 pp., $10. By CHERYL PILATE PLINY, THE Roman historian, - called menstrual b 1 o o d a "fatal poison" capable of de- stroying grass, causing fruit to fall from branches, and dulling; razors. Among Australian abori- gines, it is believed that the mere sight of menstrual blood can cause a young man's hair: to turn gray and his strengthE and vigor to dissipate at an! early age. As recently as the turn of this century, Greek Orthodox women were prohibit- ed from t a k i n g communion while they were menstruating. Throughout history, menstrual blood has been considered ta- boo. It was assigned supernatu- ral and evil powers, and in primitive societies, women have often been isolated in remote huts during their "dangerous"' period. And although women today are not subjected to such extreme forms of punishment, they often find that their month- ly cycles provoke shame or em- barrassment. A menstruating woman is "on the rag" and af- flicted with "the curse." Accord- ing to a common religious myth, her monthly cycle was God's! retribution for Eve's sin in the Garden of Eden. Feminist Paula Weideger, in: her new book Menstruation and Menopause, examines the roots and causes of the menstrual ta- boo, which she terms "univer- sal." Weideger believes that this: taboo is the result of man's historic fear and envy of wo- man's ability to bleed when not ill and his desire to keep her in a subservient role. 'T HE MENSTRUAL t a b o o, which most plausibly arose from man's envy of woman and: need to devalue her and over- power her has now been ac- cepted by women. . . . It hasI persisted for many thousands of years and in many different cultures because men have had the power to continue their! domination of women," she, states. Weideger, an M.A. in psy- chology and a member of the Women's Health Forum in New York City, asserts that it is necessary for women to cast aside age-old myths concerning menstruation and take "full possession" of their bodies. The menstrual taboo, she argues, is "alive and flourishing" and "ful- filling certain psychic and eco- nomic needs." ''HIS MIGHT appear a some- what farfetched contention until one recalls that women are often believed to be uncapable of holding certain types of jobs because of their monthly cycles: and consequent fluctuations in: hormonal levels. Only six years ago, Hubert Humphrey's per- sonal physician, Dr. Edgar; Berman, ignited the furor of many women when he declared that "raging hormonal influ- ences" made women unfit for! high pressure jobs. Weideger, while she does ac-: knowledge that changes in hor-I monal level may affect a wo-: man's physical and m e n t a I state, feels that much of the depresison and discomfort asso- ciated with menstruation has its roots in the menstrual taboo. Her contention is supported by anthropologist Margaret Mead'sI discoveries. According to Mead,I in Samoa, where the menstrual! taboo is nearly non-existent, I pain and depresison during men- struation is extremely uncom- mon. In order to knock down the myths and misconceptions sur- rounding w o m a n 's monthly cycle, Weideger examines men- struation and menopause from every conceivable angle. She discusses all the biological as- pects of the monthly cycle, and does so in simple, unscientific language. She also devotes a large portion of the book to the physical and mental discom- forts associated with menstrua- tion and menopause. DESPITE THE o v e r a l l strength of Weideger's book, there are some points on which she can legitimately be cri- cized. For instance, she en- dorses estrogen replacement therapy for menopausal women, a medical treatment which has recently come under severe at- tack because of its link to the significant increase in uterine cancer. However, it cannot be denied that Weideger's book is the defi- hitive work on menstruation and menopause. Unlike much of the other material on this subject, her book is aimed at the aver- age woman-everyone who has been embarrassed when buying a box of Kotex or mystified by gynecological terms will find solace and reassurance in Wei- deger's explanations and her direct style. Menstruation and Menopause should be read by all junior high school girls- usually the hapless victims of animated, Disneyesque sperm- egg films and sweaty sessions of euphemisms with an embar- rassed mother. Cheryl Pilate is the Editor of the Sunday Magazine. [ Ii' If you had anything to do with the following organizations: African Students Association Alpha Phi Omega Student Blood Bank Drive Ann Arbor Fifth Estate Ann Arbor People's Bicentennial Committee Ann Arbor Tenants Union Black Christian Nationalist Conference Child Care Action Center Chicano Program Development Center Community Values Lecture Series East Wind Food Action Coalition Frame-Up Film Festival Fraternity Coordinating Council Future Worlds Lecture Series Gay Academics Union Gerontology Association 'Graduate Employees Organization Graduate Student Newsletter Group on Latin American Issues Indochina Peace Campaign Inmate Project Jamaican Student Organization Madison Street Entertainment Committee Martin Sostre Defense Committee Mortar Board Michigan Fair Tax Campaign National Student Conference on Racism Native American Events Rackham Student Government Radical Student Union Raza Art and Media Collective Red Cross-Honduras Disaster Relief Regents Candidates Night Sailing Club Seymour Hersch Lecture- Pilot Program Spartacus Youth League Spiritual Community of the Sun Student Dietetic Association Student Organization Information Center (Mich. Union) U of M Polish Club United Farm Workers Support Committee University Housing Council . Voter. Registration City Charter Amendment Campaign i I a I i s i I i I I 1 3 .j t t { i yi 7 For example, in her review of Ingmar Bergman's Cries and Whispers, she claims that "Bergman is unusual among film artists in that he is an ar- tist in precisely those terms drawn from the other arts which some of us have been trying to free movie aesthetics from." It's difficult for the Jeff Sorensen is Arts Fditor. The Dail 's reader to take Kael seriously .j _ _ An exciting weekend for thinking young Jewish adults. Probe your Jewish Identity. Find out the current situations in Middle East politics and World Jewry. Find out about programs to travel. study. work, or live -.- -- I - r JI rh- in Israel. SPEAKERS FROM U.S. AND ISRAEL ISRAEL ALIYAH WEEKEND sponsored by the Detroit Israel Aliyah Center APRIL 9-11 At Camp Judson-Collins near Jackson $20 includes meals, lodging, and transportation For more info. and registration, call Elli: 761-1654 or Lynn: 663-3935 DON'T MISS THIS OPPORTUNITY! " , ..... l.y . :: Y " ~:::rx .:: r . ,Y. r Y:r .' . 'b. . . . . . . . . ._ ____ White Roots of Peace The Iroguois people have always considered an aggressive "pursuit of peace"to be their mission In September, 1969, a group of youncq Mohawks set out to renew their com- mitment to these traditions. Since they followed the in- structions of the White Roots of Peace, they took that - as a name to symbolize their group's task. Since then, the original group has been ioined by peoples of other 4 Indian nations as they criss-crossed the North American continent to meet in hundreds of reservations, colleges, pri- sons, and with other interested qroups. For traditionalist Indians-those who still keep to their original values-their message is one of hope and en- couragement. Their work is to establish revitalized Indian - strength and unity in this land and life. For tens of thousands of non-Indians, the White Roots of Peace have provided an interpretation of current events, traditional views of peace and harmony with the Creation, and brotherhood for all peoples. ANN ARBOR-Sunday, April 4th- Michigan Union Ballroom .........A x 4 : : av.m^.r:.f.. ..;n .; .:s: .g %; f KaeI comes as close to being a poet laureate for the movies as anyone who is writing today. To{ 'dismiss Kael for her faults is to likewise dismiss the most articulate and convincing: spokesperson for the movies, the livliest and most entertain-I ing of the arts. I 3 I I 1 Il I, } it 1 1 1 1 { i 1 i Author finds speech tour tiresome chore (Continued from page 3 ALTHOUGH BROWNMILLER maintains in her study that historical precedent, legal sup- port and "a surprising amount of cultural encouragement," have helped nurture and pre- serve men's high tolerance of rape crimes, she refuses to sympathize with their attitudes. "No, I just can't," she insists. "I understand it. I understand it, but I don't tolerate it. And it's not an excuse - historical precedent. It just won't do." Have men felt threatened by her controversial study? "I don't know. Obviously the porn kings are threatened be-I cause I think they understand1 that I mean to put them out of business," she says, referring to her contention that elimina- tion of pornography as well as prostitution would result in the elimination of rape. "Lots of women are threatened by the book," she continues. Her smile has wilted and a serious, concerned expression marks her face. "I've had many women tell me that they've felt terrified to open my book, be- cause they know what's in it and they don't want to know the truth. I mean, we're sitting here smoking, we know the truth about cigarettes but, you know, we prefer to forget it, and' to keep smoking. There's lots of women who prefer not to know the extent of male hos- tility against us. They just pre- fer to live lives and not have to face that, because the im- plications are enormous." BR N MLLER had earlier todhraudience of a story that Hustler - the newest maTl pornorgraphy magazine to hit city news stands - had written about her. The magazine's edi- tors sent Brownmiller galley proofs of the story which is slated to appear in next month's edition. She read the proofs and found that the writer's closing remark was, "And the next time I see Susan Brownmiller, I think I'm going to rape her." On stage, she laughed care- lessly and shrugged her should- ers when her statement drew a muffled gasp from her audi- ence. Backstage she's thinking- a bit more seriously about such re- actions and a nervous sigh is her immediate answer when asked if she ever worries about such threats. Drawing on her Carlton, she ponders the question. "I try not to," she' says. Her voice has dropped to a whisper. "I try not to." GOING-OUT-OF-BUSINESS SALE DAVID'S BOOKS s29 E. LIBERTY Prints & Posters.............40% New Books...............40% Used Hardcovers .......... 40% Used Paperbacks.......:..60 % Calendars ................70% Shelving, etc. off off off off off You were being funded by the student government. i COME HEAR The U-M Men's Glee Club mUsic ALBERT'S COPYING Will Continue in Business at the SAME LOCATION for Years into the future. ----- 6:30 A.M.-10:00 P.M. 944029 0' 0 S of 0 and get in on a special(!) 20th Anniversary Songfest by those fun-loving fellows, FUTURE WORLDS presents JULIAN BOND Black State Senator from Georgia "Future Role of Minorities in the Political System" FOR M.S.A. FUNDING n ronon I i