The Michigan Daily - Friday, September 14, 1990 - Page 11
For those of you Almodovar fans
who missed Tie Me Up, Tie Me
Down in the theaters, you'll be
mildly surprised by his latest effort
*o pander to mainstream tastes.
Although even Almodovar at his
more conventional contends with the
oddest of films the general American
public might see, it's still a step
back from some of his darker films.
And it's a further irony that as
Almodovar hits his international
stride, this film garnered an X-rating
and inspired some of the current con-
troversy over a suggested "Adults
Wnly" rating to which Jack Valenti
of the Motion Picture Association of
America so strongly objects.
Tie Me Up, Tie Me Down
(Atame in Spanish) was one of the
four films this summer that
prompted filmmakers and audiences
to demand a rating that signifies ex-
plicit material without implying
hard-core porn. And, as far as the eye
;at tell, the furor is all over one
scene involving bathtub masturba-
tion with a small watertoy. Tie Me
Up, Tie Me Down explores the psy-
chlogy of bondage and romance, in
a way that cannot escape the most
overt sexism. Unfortunately, it's
also a movie worth seeing for its
other redeeming virtues.
It tells the story of a porno star
in her first non-hard-core role, and
!her relationship with the man who
obsesses about her to the point of
kidnapping her until she falls in love
with him. Whether this is a com-
mentary of contemporary
male/female relationships or an ex-
ample of Almodovar's warped view
of female acquiescence, it's hard to
tqll. Either ,way, it's worth seeing
for its fine performances of people
,who are less that perfect, entrenched
in the extravagant world of the
Madrid nightclub society. The psy-
cllologies of the two main characters
emerge in interesting and complete
ways. The way in which it toys with
audience reaction is perhaps its most
uAique accomplishment, because its
typically happy romantic ending
stirs even the most complacent into
questioning the psychology of sex-
#9ism and emotional weakness. Either
way, it's guaranteed to inspire dis-
cussion. Showing at the Michigan
Theater on Friday at 9:40.
On the other hand, if happiness
and warmth is the goal of the
evening, Giuseppi Tornatore's Cin-
ema Paradiso will suit the taste of a
d fferent crowd. Cinema Paradiso,
xf r those not generally accustomed
seeing foreign films, will affect
tle viewer in much the same way as
teSwedish My Lfe as a Dog. It
sieetly affirms the necessity for
lhve and belonging within family
4d community, as it retrospectively
tgls the story of a Sicilian film di-
r.tor who looks back at his child-
hood in a small Sicilian town.
Told in three stages, the director's
oasession with the art of film be-
comes apparent from a very young
ae. By far the strongest feature of
the film is his early boyhood, with
an incredible performance provided
by both the young boy, Toto, and
the town's old projectionist, Alfredo,
who befriends him. Toto lives in a
town with one movie theater, before
the age of television, and the cinema
functions as a 20th-century church in
its ability to gather the community
together socially.
The paternal friendship between
Alfredo and Toto unfolds in a way
that's so life-affirming, you can't
help but come out of the theater
buoyant and reenergized. Toto is an
imp, both mischievous and ambi-
tious, ready to learn the film trade at
all costs. By the end of the film, you
feel you know the town and its dy-
namics like your own hometown.
Strong personalities from secondary
characters, like the town crazy and
the priest who previews all films to
splice out kissing scenes, create the
dynamic that produces a director.
Even if subtitles aren't your bag,
Cinema Paradiso breaks down some
stereotypes about heavy, emotion-
ally exhausting, intellectually ab-
struse foreign films. At 7:15 & 9:45
at the MLB.
-Jen Bilik
This weekend there is a must-see
for all music groovers out there. For
those who grew up with them, it's
like reliving old memories; for those
who learned to appreciate their music
after they split up, it's an interesting
and informative film that lets you
get to know the people - the hu-
man souls - behind their music.
This Is Spinal Tap documents the
last few months of England's only
contribution to good music during
their American tour which licked the
nation into convulsions from coast
to coast.
The film, which began when
filmmaker Marty DiBergi wanted to
make a kickin' rockumentary about
the Tap's Smell the Glove tour,
takes on historical importance since
the tour was actually the beginning
of their decline and led to their even-
tual breakup. Mixing concert footage
with candid interviews and actual
"hidden camera" scenes, we see the
Tappers as they actually are, under-
wear and all. The fights between lead
singer David St. Hubbins and Nigel
Tufnel are painful to watch, and re-
minds the audience of the pain khey
felt when they read about the spats
in the National Enquirer-their pain
heightening our pain into a painful
paean of pain. Is there a dry eye in
the audience when the two reunite on
stage for one last show?
The concert footage intercut is
definitive Tap. Filmmaker DiBergi
captures all the excitement when that
astounding set lowers during
"Stonehenge," complete with a
Paula Abdul-choreographed dancing
leprechaun (while watching the film,
I nearly fainted with excitement like
I did when I saw them do this live).
DiBergi also gives us some Tap
classics, while they were being com-
posed; in one scene, he stumbles
upon Nigel at a piano composing
that make-out classic "Lick My
Love Pump."
' On a more poignant note, the
film also speaks to the current cen-
sorship controversy, particularly the
obscenity charge over Jane's Addic-
tion's latest release. As most fans
know, the Tap's Smell the Glove
original cover never made it to the
stores because their recording com-
pany thought it was obscene: a
woman on all fours wearing a dog
collar and a glove being held in front
of her face. Perhaps the lawmakers
today should heed the words of one
Tapper when he addressed the cen-
sorship of his own album cover :
That's not sexist,he said. "That's
sexy." At Hillel 8:45 &10:30 on
Saturday.
-Brent Edwards
Lounge lizards
Capt. Dave gets his (green)
tambourine in a twist as Lounge
Cats Jessica Peak and Dave
Murray gaze on psychedelically.
The Captain and his band appears
at the Blind Pig on Saturday. Show
starts at 9:30 and cover is $4.
Vegetarians are welcome but my
find theraw meat portions of the
show slightly nauseating.
The
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