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Page 8 - The Michigan Dily - Wednesday, October 15, 1986
'Flash'
is
all
By Doug Rivers
Fall is usually a dismal time for
movies and usually consists of
films Hollywood decided to release
after the summer in order not to get
muscled out by the blockbusters.
Every once in awhile a movie
comes out of this pit of despair that
breaks all expectations and is both
original and very entertaining.
Jumpin' Jack Flash is not
that kind of movie...but it comes
close.
Whoopie Goldberg stars in this
comedy thriller (directed by Penny
Ma:shall) as Terry Doolittle, a
computer operator at a bank who
stumbles into the world of
espionage via "Jumping Jack
Flash", a codename for a British
agent (and the name of an old
Stones song, in B-flat of course)
who is stuck in an Eastern Bloc
country. By using a computer ter -
minal he contacts Doolittle in a
desperate plea for help in finding a
"good guy" contact behind the Iron
Curtain- that can get him back to
the free world. Accepting this
righ t
mission, the strange (maybe
downright wierd) Doolittle gets
chased by funny man turned "bad
guy" Jim Belushi and an assortment
of villians who want to prevent her
from helping the wayward agent.
Carol Kane (of Taxi fame; who
could ever forget Latka's wife) and
Stephen Collins (Star Trek I and
Tales of the Gold
Monkey...what was the name of
the dog?) star as Goldberg's friends
and co-workers. The movie also
stars Roscoe Lee Browne as the
reclusive secret agent Arthur
Lincoln, Annie Potts, and British
actor John Wood.
So...with all this talent why
isn't this movie one of those primo
movies already mentioned.
Jumpin Jack Flash is plauged
with one of those common movie
ailments called the "not-so-hot
plot" condition. This usually means
that a movie is predictable and the
characters are as three dimensional
as a pancake run over by a steam-
roller. So, if nothing really grabs
the audience about the storyline or
the supporting characters, what
makes this movie almost a primo
movie? Re-read the previous
sentence over again.
Yep, you guessed it, Whoopie
Goldberg. You see, Jumpin'
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interested in working for a fund raising telethon calling LS&A alumni across
the country. The telethon runs five nights per week, Sunday through Thurs-
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Pay: $4.00 per hour
LS&A STUDENTS PREFERRED
Call 763-5576 for an inter vie w
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4
6
Whoopi Goldberg and Carol Kane discuss romantic misadventures in the new release 'Jumpin' Jack
Flash.'
Flash.'
Jack Flash also suffers from "one
actor or actress saving the show"
syndrome. As outlandish foul-
mouthed, and sympathetic Terry
Doolittle, Goldberg regains the
comedienne image she dropped for
The Color Purple and integrates
it with decent results in Jumpin'
Jack Flash. Her character even
makes the variation of the overused
car chase sequence humorous.
Unfortunately, this makes the other
actors take a category one step up
from props and scenery. There is
one scene that reminds you that this
movie is directed by a veteren of
Laverne and Shirley. Without
saying exactly what it is I'll just
state the components: one
panicking - computer operator
(Goldberg), a sparkling blue dress,
and a carnivorus paper shredder.
If you're looking for an action
packed spy thriller, keep looking; it
ain't here. But if you feel like
laughing a bit and are not too
concerned about a deep meaningful
plot, stop in and take a look. It
might even be worth four dol
lars...the first time.
Al
Records
(Continued from Page 7)
Seiden also provides a synth bed for
"Still" and "wailin' guitar" solo on
"24" that evoke moments of
brilliance from Brian Eno's
Another Green World..
Not convinced? Well, it's easy
enough to discover Lapides for
yourself without investing too
much money. The former drummer
of T & D shops his songwriting
wares nearly every afternoon under
the East Engineering Arch for mere
pennies. Stop by and hear him do
his thing and I'm sure you'll buy
his cassette. And for goodness
sake, save that money you were
going to spend on scalped R.E.M.
tickets and throw this man some
change. Write to Sam Lapides, 827
Daniel Street, Ann Arbor, MI
48103. Or look around the cassette
racks of Schoolkids'.
-Mike Rubin
Commander Cody
LET'S ROCK
Blind Pig Records
Commander Cody is back. Yes
folks, the man who took a Master's
degree in fine arts from the
University and wrote the 1971 hit
"Hot Rod Lincoln" is still
recording. On Let's Rock Cody
and his band have made a good
country-rock record, with a very
clean sound.
Country-rock is the key phrase
here, as the album is an eclectic
mix of both genres, with little
hints of R & B. The title track
gets the album off to an upbeat
start, with a frenzied Chuck Berry
riff and a short but sweet piano solo
from Cody. Clocking in at 2:14,
the song leaves one wanting more,
but it is still an excellent rockabilly
tune. "One More Ride" stands out
in sharp contrast to "Let's Rock."
A subtle mix of mournful
harmonica, acoustical guitar, and
some electric twang, combined with
lonely railroad lyrics make an
excellent song that wouldn't sound
out of place on a Willie Nelson
record. Indeed, someone with
Willie's promotional backing could
take this song into the country top
forty. Musically, the rest of the
album fluctuates between these
extremes with lyrics describing the
nitty gritty side of life, except for
the inevitable Cody ditties, such as
"Truck Stop At the End of the
World." Not a song for the
politically motivated, the
Commander seems to be aiming
this one at the next volume of Dr.
Demento's Novelty Records. Cody
covers nuclear war in this song,
singing Don't worry about the
scales / They're reading megatons /
Turn off the headlights / We've got
a brand new midnight sun. Overall
the mix of styles sounds good, with
a fairly even balance between the
rockabilly songs and the country
songs.
This time out Cody has dropped
the Lost Planet Airmen name (his
former band), which would make
one think this is more of a solo
effort. This is not the case
however, as Cody has assembled
two Airmen and two veteran
session men to support him. These
guys play well together, and the
mix is of the whole band, without
any particular instrument
predominating as on some solo
records.
In addition to playing well, the
band has other duties: four different
members of the band share lead
vocals, and two members produced
the album. With Let's Rock
these men have a great "long-hair"
country album that is pure fun.
-Brian Jarvinen
Phil Alvin
UN "SUNG STORIES"
Slash
What we have here is the most
bizarretcollaborationsince Willie
Nelson showed-up Julio Iglesias.
Imagine ex-Blaster Phil Alvin
phoning Sun Ra: "Sun, baby!
Yeah, I hear you're really into this
cosmological jazz stuff. Well lis -
ten, 1Ising a little rockabilly, so I
thought it would be just perfect if
you and I got together and covered
some old Depression-era show
tunes." However unorthodox this
Ballad of Smokey Joe," "The Old
Man of the Mountain") and- the
Gorney and, Harburg classic
"Brother Can You Spare a Dime."
On each, a drudging downbeat, -
anguished trumpet, and Sun Ra's
tinkling piano blend into one bit -
tersweet, appealingly unpolished re -
visitation of America's bread lines
and lean years.
However apt the,
instrumentation, it is Alvin's
penetrating voice which con -
sistently leads the way. His
ranting, melodramatic style.
beautifully echoes that of
Calloway, but cannot hope to.
match Bing- Crosby's original,.
heart-wrenching rendering of.
"Brother Can You Spare a Dime"
Early on, Alvin perks-up to
deliver a purely gleeful version of.
"Someone Stole Gabriel's Horn,".
buoyed by the joyous Dixieland
noise of the Dirty Dozen Brass.
Band. This track, along with a
funky blues cover of "Daddy
Rolling Stone," provides Alvin
with a perfect showcase for his
throaty shout and strained vibrato.
Stated simply, it sounds as if these
songs were written for him.
This collection also contains a
few modern compositions,
including Alvin's own country-jazz
solo "Next Time Sometime."
Impressively, all of these
selections seem right at home
beside the old classics, and only the
trite "Gangster's Blues" fails to
occupy an extraordinary stylistic
niche.
WE WANT YOUR
DIRTY LAUNDRY
AT THE & CLEANING
We will give it back to you
clean and folded iust like mom
used to do for
iust 906 a pound.
ONE DAY SERVICE
available
BOOKSTRE U of M Students
10% off
A Service of (bring I.D. cards)
715 N. University 662-1906
ANN ARBOR
Three stores away from Kresge's in
the downstairs of Hamilton Sq. Mall
THE UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN
COLLEGE OF LITERATURE, SCIENCE, AND THE ARTS
invites the general public to attend
THE SHANIK-FLEISCHER FORUM SERIES FALL EVENTS
an address by AMBASSADOR ABBA EBAN
"THE JEWISH PRESENCE IN CIVILIZATION:
A HISTORICAL OVERVIEW.''"
n,... ,,.. C .n - .. .,,. n.. .. -&...... T ......... A ..:......:. _ .
Thus, with an unmistakable
commitment and sincerity, the Un
"Su'ng Stories" of America'sJ
musical heritage have once again
been sung. Phil Alvin deserves
credit not only for the
ambitiousness of this project, but
also for his success in reviving the
wealth of emotions expressed by
this poor age.
10
-Joe Acciaioli
I
p1
PASS
IT
AROUND!'
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