ARTS-_ 'The Michigan Daily Tuesday, November 27, 1990 'Mire flickering for our bickering The Prince and the Pauper; dir. George Scribner The Rescuers Down Under .Q ir. Hendel Butoy and Mike Gabrield Page 5 hv Mike Kuniavsky I'm divided on this one: The kind, nice, "I think George Michael is quite good" me thinks: In keeping with past traditions, isney has put together two great- looking, beautifully-made, entertain- ing pieces of animation. The first, The Prince and the Pauper, a 23- minute short, brings back good ol' Mickey in a revival of the Twain classic about how a street beggar (Mickey) and a prince (Mickey) switch roles and so save The King- dom (indirectly by being able to see *"how the other half lives"). The second, The Rescuers Down Under, revives the characters of the 1977 Disney film (including the voices of Eva Gabor and Bob Newhart) in what Disney calls its "first animated action-adventure." Both films are beautifully made and the combination of the two shows off how there can be two dif- fering animation styles within the same studio: Prince is made in such a way that it looks like traditional Disney animation, with bright char- acters against a darker, richly painted background; Rescuers is done with a modern touch, natural colors domi- nate and there are more inventive "camera" angles (much of the back- ground stuff was computer animated to give it a harder, more realist look). In general the stories are pretty typical Disney fare: cute animals and incidental helpful humans fighting against evil humans and incidental animal lackeys. The characters are inoffensive, and the stories are gen- erally pleasant. Though basically de- signed for kids, there's still enough Hey look! It's identical twins Mickey Mouse and Mickey Kuniavsky. Together again. How can anyone tell the difference between them? adult humor and pure slapstick to make the films enjoyable, if not very intellectually satisfying. The evil, nasty, "I shove Slayer albums up my nose" me says: Okay, fine, so Disney is trying to be inoffensive, they pick animals as main characters to keep the "race" issue out of it, they pick nice tradi- tional stories that have been proven to be mostly criticism-free and they try to instill good, universally-ac- cepted values while still being enter- taining. But there's still a problem. That problem is that by being so conservative, they're reaffirming the white male-dominated societal values that are the traditional, universally- accepted values which seem so un- controversial to them. Just look at The Prince and the Pauper: all of the main characters (the Prince, his entourage, the Pau- per, his friends, the dying king, the villain, his henchmen) are men. They are the ones who make all of the decisions, whether good or bad, who are in control and who are "important" to the story. Where are the women? They scream and cry that the king is taking away all of their food and are basically helpless until the Prince stops a food truck and throws some ham hocks (it's Disney, after all) down to them, after which they all bow and thank him for his kindness. In The Rescuers Down Under a similar thing happens: even though Miss Bianca (Eva Gabor's voice and mannerisms) is theoretically the more "in control" of the two chief Rescuers, she really doesn't do a whole lot. Most of the time she's following this macho Australian mouse (Tristan Rogers) around (who's constantly trying to hit on her) and when they get captured they must be rescued by Bernard (Bob Newhart), Miss Bianca's hen-pecked partner. Ultimately, it is even the passive, ineffectual male who's more effective than the relatively liberated female. It's obvious that Disney is trying to influence its juvenile audience toward harmonious values, but shouldn't they think about what the underlying assumptions that these "good, wholesome" values take with them? Children pick up the totality of the message, and when you slip a set of destructive values in along with potentially good ones (both films do have good, positive things to say), then the two will be bound in the child's mind from then on. And in a world that must change very soon, instilling conservativism and sexism in the next generation is not such a great idea. As a matter of fact, it really sucks. Michigan Quarterly Review, Fall 1990 The Female Body University of Michigan In the introduction to this tenth issue of MQR, editor and University professor Laurence Goldstein writes, "the purpose of this issue is... to move beyond the defensive anxiety engendered by the older, more abrasive politics of gender -- move beyond with maturity and wisdom, and good humor." We get this and more: this edition of MQR is a sometimes scholarly, sometimes silly, often funny and entirely astute group of writings dedicated to the female psyche and body. The subject is timely and touchy: these days, feminism is a loaded word with sundry definitions. MQR is feminist and fair: feminist by virtue of being about females, and fair because every point is balanced with counterpoint. This issue has big names and no names: not only did Goldstein include Margaret Atwood and John Updike, but he also included a poem by a University MFA student whose poetry has never been published before. No argument goes without contention: a conservative argument for (and against) abortion follows the liberal one, and Judith Stacey writes a response to Carol Gilligan's essay (based on her February visit) on resistance, ambivalence and feminist theory. Each possible point of view is given equal time. In an essay on the effacements of postmodern culture, Susan Bordo presents arguments on popular culture, class and plastic bodies; the tyranny of fashion; and Madonna as a postmodern heroine. The essay is erudite and funny, complete with analysis on advertising and commercials - even a listing on Phyllis Diller's extensive body "resume" (which begins with hard contact lenses in 1960 and ends with stomach liposuction in 1987). Bordo writes, "The general tyranny of fashion - perpetual, elusive, and instructing the female body in a pedagogy of personal inadequacy and lack- is a powerful discipline for the normalization for all the women in this culture." Darcy Grimaldo Grigsby's article on contemporary women artists' representations of female bodies includes photos of the art. The first picture shows 15 stages of a woman undressing her blouse, and underneath the shirt are fifteen different paintings or scenes "drawn" on the skin. By this, Grigsby offers "the woman's torso can be interpreted as the permanent vessel upon which man's passing culture is recorded." Grigsby writes on the ways women can be shown in art - aesthetically, cinematically, burlesquely and forensically - in an attempt to redefine the terms of representing women. The question, she states, "is as much how to represent female bodies as it is why to represent them." This issue of MQR cannot be classified by opinion or theme of content (aside from the obvious one) as the arguments and sentiments toward women's bodies are as wide as bodies are different. The poetry - eleven poems in all - range from obscure to hilarious, and the fiction is just as diverse. Fabulous one-liners abound: Atwood writes of the female body, "It sells cars, beer, shaving lotion, cigarettes, hard liquor... is this the face that launched a thousand products?" John Updike writes, "A naked woman is, for most men, the most beautiful thing they will ever see...." However impossible to classify, MQR is immensely absorbing and well worth reading, an issue devoted to one gender but written for both to read. -Carolyn Pajor Write to us! (please) Daily Arts wants, make that needs feedback from readers. Without it we work in a vacuum, smugly praising and condemning without knowing how good a job we're doing. So send a message via MTS to "Michigan Daily PRINCE AND THE PAUPER and THE RESCUERS DOWN UNDER are being shown at Briarwood and Showcase. The Charlatans (UK) Some Friendly Beggars Banquet Manchester has spawned yet an- other monster, leading me to believe that Morrissey has gone and put an interesting drug in this northern En- glish city's water. This time the harlatans (UK) are the result. Fol- lowing the mold of other northern English bands on their debut album, Some Friendly, the Charlatans have produced a sound that emphasizes guitar and rhythm. But to differenti- ate themselves and promote their "flowered-up" image, they have in- cluded a very '60s-ish sounding or- gan which is used more in a *"backbone" capacity. This line-up amounts to a refreshing mixture of old and new. The album showcases and seems to build on the outstanding single, "The Only One I Know." Almost all of the other songs seem to have el- ements of this single in them. "Then", the follow-up single is not as good, but has its moments. Per- haps the best moments of the album come with the song "Polar Bear" when it sounds like someone is blowing in a conch shell. It creates a different sound that makes this track the best cut. Other songs, such as "You're Not Very Well" and "Sproston Green", are also excep- tional, even though "Sproston Green" sounds a bit too much like the Stone Roses' smash "She Bangs The Drums." After recently seeing an interview with this group on MTV, I con- cluded that the Charlatans are also distinguished from their competitors in another manner: they aren't arro- gant (yet). They didn't move to cut down other groups and actually seemed to be embarrassed talking about themselves. But even though I have respect for them for this reason, that doesn't mean that they aren't another flash-in-the-pan group. If they play well live and if they can successfully follow-up Some Friendly remains to be seen. - John Sellers The Flaming Lips In A Priest-Driven Ambu- lance Restless Records A man walked up to me just the other day. He asked me if I'd been born again. I told him I didn't think I had, that I had been rejected. But I think Hell's got all the good bands anyway. The rain falls so random what does free will have to do with it at all? I've never really understood re- ligion, except it seems a good reason to kill. All of my smiles gettin' in the hate generation's way. I want my own planet. The hu- man race I can't stand it. If you can't understand all these things we have to say, you're probly gonna blow up this whole planet anyway. I think I'm gonna go out and shoot somebody in the mouth first thing tomorrow. And if you take away my pain please don' t leave my brain cause when I think it hurts just the same. We're not like we used to be, we're not really bored. What I can't see, I surely can't believe. What I can't see, you know I can't believe. It's only natural that I can't believe ... what I can't see. Things used to be alright, but things got strange. People don't know what the songs are about, they just sing them out like they mean something we never thought about. Boy you play so loud you could wake the dead some of the living they're wakin'too. When I look out- side and these words collide an sends shit flyin' everywhere and ev- erythings explodin', everything, and these cars are crashing and every- body's happy, everything's ex- plodin'. Fryin' up on Easter Sunday, blowin' off everything on Monday. It seems that when people can't get love they substitute it with a bunch of drugs. If love was a drug and it was real cheap, everybody could get some sleep. So let's give love the marketing scam, make it something they can understand. To truly understand the existen- tial appeal of the Flaming Lips, you need a good dose - of their lyrics, that is. All of the words above were written by them. (The new ones are in slightly smaller type). The Flaming Lips are a trio from Oklahoma City. Their band consists of a guitar, a bass and a drum kit. This, their fifth release, continues in the same vein as their earlier work. Their music is, as I've described it before, a soothing combination of See RECORDS, Page 7 Staff," or bring a letter in to 420 Maynard. Don't let us run amok. m If you (1) have anxiety attacks and (2) are currently not on anti- anxiety medication (or are willing to get off such medicine), the University of Michigan Anxiety Disorders Clinic may be able to provide a FREE diagnostic assessment. Cash payments are available if you qualify for and participate in research. Specialized treatments are also available. Please call 764-5349. I ........ ispresents a live, TELECONFERENCE via satellite Black Fraternities .AI. & Sororities A Glorious Past, The Road Ahead This unique and revealing forum will examine the past, present and future of the major Black Greek letter organizations. Compelling dialogue with the organization's national leadership, college and university officials, undergraduate Greeks, advocates and opponents of Greek organizations will give insight into these revered yet often misunderstood organizations. Wednesday Also...Greek Issue Forum November 28th 1990 The Forum.will explore various issues including: 1.II -Historical Background 77 :I '