6 - The Michigan Daily - Weekend etc. - Thursday, February 16, 1995 Take the skinheads to 'Romper'room and teach them how to play nice. By Alexandra Twin Daily Film Editor Chances are, you will never find a t-shirt that reads "Skinheads make better lovers" or "I shave, therefore I im" or even "I shaved my head and propagated violence and all I got was this lousy t-shirt." However, this fact should not indicate that the cult(ure) of skinheads is any less interesting and worth investigating than the cul- Ho me Entertainment Center. ture of say, Miami. Like the retired 'rents who flee evil New Jersey for the solace of Florida's warm waters, skinheads too are disillusioned, badly dressed and in need of a lot of sunblock. They're also the subject of last year's cult hit "Romper Stomper." Easily one of the best films of 1993, it was released to solid reviews and a few art houses in large cities. Draw- ing on a spare set and style, contrasted with prominent, emotive perfor- mances, the film chronicles the brief misanthropic adventures of gang leader Hando (Russell Crowe), his epileptic girlfriend Gabe (Jacqueline McKenzie), his little brother Davey (Daniel Pollock) and their group of young, broke, clueless rebels; these are skinheads who hide under their fierce monikers and mantras, who use intimidation, theft and Asian-bashing as a means of entertainment and sus- tenance. Hando and Gabe meet in a bar. She's a petite blonde, with large, seri- ous eyes who's just run away from her rich, abusive father. He's pure trouble, all bourbon eyes and sexy and edgy and ready to smack anyone who gets too close. She needs a place to stay. He needs to get laid. They stare at each other across the bar, transfixed for a moment. The next shot is of them tongue-tied against a wall in the subway station, as Hando's groupies play games and with each other in the background, alongside the filthy wall. There is a sense of reckless abandonment in their actions, but also a feeling of degradation and mostly desperation. Like the kiss itself, which seems compromised by and harshly juxtaposed with the dirt and violence around it, their love seems ill-suited. They are a perfect mismatch. He's proud to have acquired such unexpected loot and she's happy to know that she'll have a group to live by for at least a few weeks. They are sweet and dorky together, doomed but delirious for the moment. Call 'em Romeo and Juliet from Hell. Following this episode, normal life resumes. This essentially consists of breaking into stores, inspiring fear and trying to find cool, free parties with lots of loud punk music playing in the background. There are some punk-looking girls, but this is mostly a boys' game where the taller, meaner and more tattoos you have, the better. This is survival of the fittest. The group want to be anarchists, but are probably closer to existential- ists; they go where the day takes them, should it choose to. If not, they go somewhere else. They spend a great deal of time picking on the transplanted Asian minority. It is partly out of fear, but also out of a lack of anything to do. Finally, the repeated attacks become too much and the Asian group fights back. It is at this point that the skinheads must flee their home and seek cover elsewhere. It is here, in their flight, that the film takes off, casting a manic shadow on the mere implications of the first half. The film draws the parallel be- tween the gang's brief, frantic flight from the mob and their lifelong, fran- tic flight from society to stellar effect, offering a portrait that is neither sym- pathetic nor wholly reprehensible. It is doubtful that anyone watching the movie would ever want to be like these people -their excesses and devil-may-care attitudes and actions don't reek of glory or fun or excite- ment - yet few viewers will leave condemning them either. In their retreat, the loose tendrils of unity that they've managed tamus- ter over the years begin to unravel; they unfold as Hando loses bets with reality, casting Gabe and the last shreds of hope far away. As their group dissolves, so does a bit of the bias against them. In the end, they seem to be just another group of lost boys. Daniel Pollock, Jacqueline McKenzie and Russel Crowe are seen here In the 1993 film "Romper Stomper," a bit of art on skinhead culture. Although the film does not con- demn this group, it doesn't romanti- cize them either. The hints of Nazism, generally associated with the skinhead movement, are present here, but mostly in the personification of Hando, who is clearly the group's extreme. He wakes Gabe after their first night together with a reading from Hitler's "Mein Kampf." He wears his swastika as proudly as Joe Patriot wears the American flag, yet he doesn't really know what it all means and it doesn't really matter. It's just an emblem for him to latch onto. Russell Crowe plays Hando with the kind of impassive, brutal, random determination that makes your skin crawl. Yet, he's appealing - hand- some and misguided and definitely once destined for more than this. JacquelineMcKenzie's Gaberemains something of a mystery, aloof and wide-eyed, yet dead set on doing whatever is necessary to survive. Per- haps most disturbing of all is Daniel Pollock, who plays the conscientious, unassuming Davey with aquiet resig- nation that contrasts sharply with the bristly discontent of the others. The news that Pollock ended his own life only months after the completion of the film intensifies the performance to the point where it is painful to watch. Yet this film is not a documen- tary and these characters are not meant to stand as a microcosm for skinhead society. It's also not a musical-comedy extravaganza fea- M0 Misery is an o By Kirk Miller Daily Books Editor E-mail threat Jake Baker had only two faults; he was bad with names and got too chummy-with a Canadian. However, Mr. Baker has provided the occasional Internet surfer with a road bsessed Debbie 705 W. Cross 485-6720 (Ypsilanti) * THURSDAY Quarter Beer Night ("Q.B.N.") 250 BEERS $1.50 pitchers LIVE BANDS-This Weekend! Fri.- Brothers Grimm W/ South Normal Sat- X-Dreamr *Spring break specials Mon.-Sat. 250 BEERS every night* 2%' 'it -r _ __4 kT map to unusual computer stalking. A quick peek into the darker reaches of the Internet shows that there are many, many people living in their own bi- zarre fantasy worlds, and writing about real people in ways that would send the FBI into a tizzy. These are the fan club newsletter writers, the few, the proud, the deranged. U~sed & Rare K'XXBOOKS sk Bought & Sold 113 W. Liberty (1/2 block W. of Main St.) 995-1891 + Ites Worth E, theTrip t Fan clubs started popping up on the Internet a long time ago, but with this wacky information superhighway fad almost everyone has their own home page, digest or monthly news- letter. And some of these make Mr. Baker appear quite sane, especially when considering the intimate details people are sharing about Debbie Gibson. Remember Debbie Gibson? "Shake Your Love" (shake my what?) "Electric Youth" perfume? The stir- ring Debbie vs. Tiffany debates? Well, Debheads, anything is possible, in- cluding a rabid fan base with its own monthly newsletter devoted to every- thing Debbie. It's called "Between the Lines" and it's available through e-mail subscription at btl@egbt.org or for a few bucks through the mail. "Why the hell would I want to know about Debbie?" you might ask. Good question. It appears as if there are a lot of proud owners of "Out of the Blue" who just can't let the little singing sensation grow up. Every month several people write in de- scribing their experiences with Debbie, random (and some eerily not- so-random) run-ins, critiques of her discography and her recent perfor- mance in "Grease" during its run in England. Most likely the goal is to unite the forces of Debheads into one loving community, like Waco. But these folks are marching to their own foolish beat. Most issues contain pages-long ramblings detail- ing every movement Debbie made during the week, sometimes uncom- fortably close to stalking. A writer for pro wrestling magazines wrote in turing cross-dressers and ballroom dancing meant to shake up the' skinhead stereotype. What it is is an engaging, serrating and ultimately* satisfying story. Whether it reso- nates as something stronger than that is up to you. Gibson fan to mention, "It's very satisfying to me to search for and find an item of Debstuff." Debstuff? He later added" ... the next day I bought the 'Any-* thing is Possible' cassette, not for the music, but for the photos." Paging Mr. Woolery, we have a possible love connection! But Deb's power goes beyond mere sexual obsession. One fan was so enthralled with her music that he gave up drugs. "After all," he ex- plained, "Debbie taught me that 'any- thing is possible."'Others have found her to be their long lost, silent com- panion. "I know you have no idea who I am," one woman admitted. "But I feel like your best friend." Even more amusing was another writer who had his own Debbie Gibson newsletter. "It's funny," he wrote. "I've been job searching and I put on my resume that I publish a Debbie Gibson newsletter. You would not BELIEVE how many people ask me about that ... Someone mentioned that one of their friends sat next to Deb on an airplane. I think I would just die to get a seat next to her on a plane ride, it would be so cool to talls to her for five hours." Five hours? About what? The bit- ter debate over using "Deborah" in- stead of "Debbie"? This was actually a debate for the past few years, but according to a "close friend" of Debg* she now prefers "Debbie." If you heat from the source, it is word. So if you fear that your obsession might lead you to prison, remember that you can always find a safe haved in stalking the stars. Shake your love, Debbie. We'll be watching you. London $379 Paris $429 Frankfurt $429 Madid $50 fire arroud & ft m Ddrft dp3byMwth 31. Rafc. Rmtar ,tcnO h&*d4WeAm&Y ctt~dwws. C0ftvordAat U4Sbm & owO d 4U*JWE* um. 1220 S. University Dr., Suite 208 (Above AMcDonskds) * - *- 99" ". "o Westside Bookshop since 1975 Vacation while learning Spanish Thinking about what to do with your summer i0 vacation? Why not spend it in a tropical location, doing something that you can justify to your parents? Learn Spanish! The Institute for Spanish Language Studies has 5 different Total Immersion Schools to choose from. Liveith a Costa Rican family and study with students from all around the world. With different locations and price packages your satisfaction is guaranteed! Call Now !! W 1-800-765-0025 Itet th _ tttl~ofa d b0n ISM,'y r Ann Arbor's Biggest Modern Rock & Alternative Dance Party Don' A EElk EIPLOYUEAT .