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Page 8 -The Michigan Daily - Wednesday, November 4, 1992

The Big
Questions
and some
neat looking
answers
by Michael John Wilson
"A Brief History of Time" deals
with a few Big Questions, such as
how the universe began, the nature
of time, and the possibility of a Cre-
ator. It also tells the remarkable
§tory of a cosmologist's fight against
Ois physical disability. Yet what is
most impressive about "A Brief
History of Time" are its ravishing
images.
Director Errol Morris is probably
the slickest (and best funded) docu-
nentarian working today. With "The
Thin Blue Line," Morris revealed
the injustice of one man's impris-
onment with starkly shot reenact-
-A Brief History of Time
Directed by Errol Morris
ments of the crime, along with the
more typical documentary inter-
views. An eerie Philip Glass score
further intensified the drama of this
ilonfict ion film.
"A Brief History of Time," is
structured like any other documen-
tary, as Morris tells the story of
Hawking's life chronologically
through interviews with his friends
and colleagues. As we concentrate
on the subjects' words, however,
Morris and cinematographers John
ailey and Stefan Czapsky show
stunningly beautful images of ev-
eryday objects relevant to the dis-
cussion.
As his mother speaks of Hawk-
ing's affliction with A.L.S., for ex-
ample, we see a breathtaking
closeup of, yes, an I.V. bag slowly
dripping. Oars, pages of mathemati-
cal text and rooftops are magically
transformed by the camera, as Glass'
score plays on the soundtrack. It's a
.masterful device that would seem
obvious and intrusive in lesser
hands. With Morris, however, it
makes "A Brief History of Time"
much more than the "Nova" episode
'ts subject suggests.
But that's really what the film
amounts to. Morris turns his adapta-
tion of Hawking's cosmologial text
into a biography, set in counterpoint
with his own explanations of various
concepts in the book. As we see
Hawking's intense devotion to his
work, even when doctors told him in
1963 that he had two and a half
years to live, we also come to under-
stand the concepts on which he
worked. A great deal of time, for ex-
ample, is spent on black holes, and
what it'd be like to be sucked into
one. "An exciting way to end one's
life," jokes scientist Brandon Carter.
"A Brief History" does manage
to explain a few difficult concepts
while telling Hawking's compelling
story. Computer-animated illustra-
tions of antimatter are not only fun
to watch, they're actually compre-
hensible. Plenty of friendly cosmol-
ogists provide easy analogies to ex-
plain, for example, how we know
black holes are there. One needn't

be an astronomy major to follow the
film (though the discussion of
"imaginary time" was lost on me),
but some basic interest in these
questions is essential.
If these compelling problems and
Morris' visuals aren't enough,
Hawking's personality also buoys
the material. Delivered slowly
through his voice synthesizer,
Hawking's wit is an antidote to the
humorless scientist stereotype. De-
scribing what would happen to an
astronaut falling into a black hole:
"He would be turned into spaghetti."
It's jokes like this which keep the
fascinating, but potentially dry mate-
rial of the film very alive. More than
that, however, Hawking's own
devotion to these awesome questions
is intoxicating. It's inspiring and ex-
citing to know that we might some-
day understand the very origin of the
universe. "The ultimate triumph of
human reason," Hawking calls it.
With his disability, then, Hawking
himself is the living symbol of that
triumph: the victory of mind over
body.
A BRIEF HISTORY OF TIME is
playing at the Michigan Theater.

RECORDS
Continued from page S
"Under the Bridge," at the top of their lungs. This album serves that crowd
in introducing them to the non-ballad, pure adrenaline side of the Peppers.
"What Hits!?" is a collection of Peppers' tunes ranging from the early
"Jungle Man," to songs off their latest album, "BloodSugarSexMagik." Fa-
vorites like "Knock Me Down," the gently crooning "Show Me Your Soul,"
and the pounding "Fight Like a Brave," are all present. And, yes, the ex-
tremely overplayed Stevie Wonder cover, "Higher Ground," leads off the
album. Conspicuously missing from the record, is "Give It Away," a song
which first opened the eyes of some new Peppers fans. Ultimately, though,
the main flaw in a greatest hits album is the exclusion of good songs.
-Nima Hodaei
Brand New Heavies
Heavy Rhyme
Experience: Vol. 1
Delicious Vinyl Records
When yer boy in Big Chief said there was no such thing as a funky Brit,
it must have been before the Brand New Heavies bumrushed that theory
with the funkiest joint since Earth, Wind, and Fire forgot the '70s. Empha-
sizing the rhythm in R&B, their self-titled debut percolated with a jazzy
mixture of soul and funk that caught the ears of many, including the hip hop
community.
"Heavy Rhyme Experience: Vol. 1," is a collaboration between the
Heavies and some of hip hop's finest that, for the most part, is a success.
On the best tracks, smooth rappers like Gang Starr ("It's Gettin' Hectic")
and Black Sheep ("State Of Yo") flow perfectly over the cool ray jazz the
Heavies are laying down. "Whatgabouthat," featuring Tiger's rapid-fire
rhyming, and Ed O.G.'s "Do What I Gotta Do" are also standouts.
The only real bummer here is Kool G. Rap's "Death Threat." His hard-
core gangsta rap is completely at odds with the deep groove behind it. Other
than this song, "Heavy Rhyme Experience," is just that.
- Scott Sterling
Jimmy Scott
All the Way
Sire
A 67 year-old who performs standards becomes a hot jazz property? It's
not hard to believe with Jimmy Scott, whose tumultuous career as a vocalist
has come to a happy ending with "All the Way." Worshipped by those
who've heard of him, Scott has been championed by such diverse artists as
Lou Reed, Bill Cosby and David Lynch (who put him in the last "Twin
Peaks" episode).
It's an unusual following for a unique singer: suffering from -a hormone
disorder all his life, Scott's voice is piercingly, achingly high. But the true
emotion he puts into fresh interpretations of well-worn standards like
"Someone to Watch Over Me" and "I'm Getting Sentimental Over You" is
remarkably moving. Scott's sad, slow ballads are so depressing that they're
exhilarating.
-Michael John Wilson

Garcia's

career is 'Untouchable'

by Alison Levy
It is possible to count the number
of minority romantic male leads in
films on one hand. Sure, there are
Denzel Washington and Wesley
Snipes, but big roles for Latinos are
few and far between. Few people
remember Lou Diamond Phillips
and even Martin Estevez had to
change his last name to Sheen to
achieve box-office success. From his
fledgling role in "The Untouch-
ables" to the upcoming release of
"Jennifer 8," Andy Garcia has suc-
cessfully made the transition from
supporting ethnic parts to leading-
man stardom.
Born in Havana, Cuba, Garcia
moved with his family to Florida at
the age of five. He began acting in
college and spent time in the Florida
theater scene before trekking to Los
Angeles. The actor got his first big
break in the pilot of "Hill Street
Blues." From there, Garcia made the
transition into motion pictures, be-
ginning with bit parts.
His first noticeable role was of a
police cadet tapped to help Elliot
Ness bring down Al Capone in "The
Untouchables." Garcia requested the
smaller policemen role after he was
first cast as evil Frank Nitty. His ex-
citing performance and ability to
hold his own with Costner, Connery,
and DeNiro marked Garcia for star-
dom.
Since then, he has appeared in
more than 11 fihns including "Stand
and Deliver," "Black Rain" and
"Dead Again." In "Internal Affairs,"
Garcia moved into a leading man
role opposite Richard Gere. The pic-
ture also included Billy Baldwin,
Nancy Travis and "Roseanne"'s
Laurie Metcalf in a serious role.
Once again playing a cop, Garcia
investigates fellow police officer

Gere for murder and illegal dealings
in this twisty thriller. Garcia's por-
trayal is both tough and compas-
sionate. His multifaceted character
literally blows Richard off the
screen.
Garcia's strong performance as
Michael Corleone's illegitimate
nephew Vincent in "The Godfather
III" sparked serious critical acclaim
and earned Garcia an Academy
Award nomination. The focus of the
last installment in the famous, but
fading trilogy, Garcia's stellar deliv-
ery sparked gossip that a fourth film
would be made. In the film, he lob-
bies to be his uncle's successor, but
his hot temper, offensive ways and
attraction to his cousin threaten total
mob warfare. Not as perfect as the
first two, but still good, Coppola's
film also stars such luminaries as Al
Pacino, Diane Keaton, Talia Shire,
Eli Wallach, Joe Mantegna, and
Bridget Fonda. Oh yeah, George
Hamilton and Sofia Coppola are in it
too, but don't hold it against the
movie.
Now in theaters, but probably not
for long, Garcia can be seen in
"Hero" along with Geena Davis and
Dustin Hoffman. In this Frank Capra
wanna-be, he portrays John Bubber,
a con-man who steals Hoffman's
glory as the anonymous savior who
rescues victims of a plane crash, in-
cluding anchorwoman Gale Galey
(Davis). While the fihn is still pretty
much a bomb, Garcia remains hon-
est (relatively speaking) and charm-
ing in his role.

0

Garcia
On Friday, Garcia will repeat hid
role as a cop in "Jennifer 8," finall1
occupying the main role alone. Thik
time he is try ing to get away from'
his work, when he stumbles ontb
string of serial murders and become/
not only and investigator, but also i
suspect. Other players in Bruck
Robinson's latest film include Um
Thurman and John Malkovich. IF
you can't wait till the end of the
week, most of Garcia's filmser
available on home video and eves;,
"Hero" will be at Blockbuster soon;
They are well worth renting for tak,
a look at this multi-faceted and erg
gaging actor.

T

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