The Michigan Daily - Weekend etc. - Thursday, March 16, 1995 -3 MelRose Place 'Faraway' so close to perfection a By Sarah Rogacki For the Daily We are spirits in the Material World. Almost all cultures have a figure of divine guardianship in their my- thologies. In the temple of contempo- rary cinema, our angels look like Nastassja Kinski in a designer pantsuit Ty W ~i Cimes offashion Well, MelRose readers, since we last met I've received a rather impres- sive honor. It's not an award, or schol- * arship, or the $10 million from Publisher's Clearinghouse (though I expect Ed McMahon any day now) - it's much more personal. Yours truly, MelRose, recently ap- peared in Comedy Company's"Peep Show." Not myself, mind you - my character, my "persona," if you will. I was portrayed on the stage of the Mendelssohn Theatre. I am not aware of how exactly I earned this illustrious position. But suddenly I've rocketed to local celeb- rity status. And I have Comedy Com- pany to thank. Now I'm all verclempt. Talk amongst yourselves. I'll give you a topic. Comedy Company involves nei- ther a company nor comedy. Discuss. Now, onto the subject at hand: fashion. March is perhaps the worst month for fashion in Michigan, and it all goes back to the weather. One day you're wearing cut-off jean shorts and rollerblading to class, the next you're up to your ears in Thinsulate as you hack away at the inch of ice coating your car. One dy it's so cold your snot freezes, the next it's a sunny 72. And unpredictable weather + the human need to cover ourselves with *clothing = fashion disasters. A recent study by the Fashion In- stitute of Technology indicated that98 percent of all fashion disasters can be prevented. All it takes is a little com- mon sense. Here are a few simple year- round maxims: Shopping: The aforementioned study by FIT also indicated that not shopping at Sears reduces the chance of a fashion disaster by a whopping 45 percent. Also, stay away from clothing in grocery stores (Meijer, K-mart). Fish sticks and fashion do not mix. Inventory: Look through your closet and use common sense. Burn those day-glo orange socks, girlfriend! Ask me. E-mail your questions or requests to roseb@umich.edu. I can also be hired out for individual fash- ion consultations - wardrobe evalu- ation or personal shopping assistance - for a small fee. The impending change of season only complicates the rules, and com- pounds the chances for disasters. From winter to spring, there's not much wardrobe crossover, and, the fashion rules are stricter than they are from spring to summer, summer to fall or fall to winter. So here are a few helpful winter- to-spring guidelines: Sweaters: Breathability is the de- ciding factor. If it's wool or a wool blend, you'll be sweating like Tom Hanks on Oscar night. And if it's fuzzy, bulky or over a quarter-inch thick, put it into mothballs until next fall. Shirts: Thickness and breathability again Turtlenecks are out. Flannel is iffy: If you're tying it around your waist to achieve that I-want-my-MTV look, it's okay. But unless it's serving as an accessory or chilly-spring- evening outerwear, forget it. Use dark colors sparingly, and be sure they look and feel light. Pants: For dress pants, if they're lined, they're for winter. But don't go ripping out the lining as a last-ditch effort to get some spring clothes. Good news -most non-wool pants (espe- cially jeans) are all-season. Skirts: Again, the lining test applies fordress skirts. Butotherwise, if they're filmy and flowy, they're in for spring. Shoes: Perhaps the toughest call. The more boot-like they are, the more wintery. If it says Timberland, it says winter. Also, not much black makes it to spring, unless it's a dress shoe. And don't even think about suede. White: Unless you're going to a white party or getting married, don't be caught dead in a white until April 16. Whiteseason begins on Easterandends on labor day. Observe it religiously. I know this is all pretty overwhelm- Ho4 * Entertainment Center with wings, rather than a cherub in a choir robe. As members of a post- modern society, we invest our hope in cinematic imagery as a replacement for traditional religious iconography. Our sight becomes dulled, our cellu- loid angels save us from the depthless reality of a commercial era. In "Far Away, So Close," Otto Sander and Nastassja Kinski play an- gels who agonize over the plight of their human counterparts in the streets of modern Berlin. In viewing man as a creation of divinity bound in urban suf- fering, the angels act only as spectators to the human lives that they wish to touch and understand. Instead, they can only comfort humans at the moment of death. Cassiel, played by Sander, des- perately wants to bring humanity back to a state of spiritual perfection. He gets his big chance when he suddenly be- comes a human being himself. Guided by the devilish Emit Flesti (Willem Dafoe), Cassiel partakes in the evils of gambling and alcohol to gain a telling experience of contem- porary life. During his trials as a hu- man, he becomes involved in a sordid plot of gun-running and pornography which he strives to amend so as to better modern man. In his few whirl- wind days among the living, he learns the difficulty of freeing one's spirit from the materiality of reality. Winner of the Jury's Grand Prize at the Cannes film festival in 1993, the film shines in its exquisite direc- tion and cinematography. Wenders uses a non-traditional narrative struc- ture and black and white film to por- tray Cassiel's transient existence be- fore becoming a mortal. Speaking in a poetic dialogue, the two angels have the ability to move freely through time and space. This may cause con- tinuity problems for the viewer until Cassiel's metamorphosis, which in, troduces a more conventional style of editing. Cinematographer Jurgen Jorges photographs Berlin in an ur- ban beauty which seems to weigh the characters to their earthly existence. Even on the small screen, the stagger- ing visuals of the film are evident. Sander gives a wonderfully inno- cent portrayal of the angel fallen to earth, while Dafoe's hard-edged per- formance makes a perfect contrast. Kinski's haunting beauty and a large cast of fine German actors provide a mix of dramatic grace and ability. Lou Reed and Peter Falk make camel appearances as themselves in the film:, giving the ever-present theme of inm age and corporeal identity an enter- taining twist... In a moment of frustratio, Kinski's Raphaela observes: "Hi- mans see differently than us ... they take in, take notice of ... their eyes can no longer give." Aware of his medium, Wenders invites us to view modern life from a new perspective. Through the eyes of angels, we cad recover spiritually by identifying th e illusions of the material world. A little Descartes, a little popcorn, and you've got a night at the movies. Used & Rare BOOKS Bought & Sold 113 W. Liberty (112 block W. of Main St.) 995-1891 It's Worth the Trip! fl , -G ROWING GUIDES -NATU RAL HIGH WEAR -ROCK T-SHIRTS -ROCK POSTERS -ROCK TA PESTR IES -ROCK BALL-CAPS -HEMP WEAR 995-DEAD 215 S. State St. Ann Arbor Next to State Theatre - U pstairs Open 7 Das A Week Lou Reed is jacked up on horse. Westside Bookshop since 1975 I INSTITUTE FOR STUDY ABROAD B U T L E R U NI V E R S I TY SJMXN HMGHSIE Distinguishe performe of Arabic music will appear twice in Ann Arbor UNDERGRADUATE STUDIES IN GR EAT BRITAIN AUTRALIA IR ELAND NEW ZALAND Fully integrated study at British, Irish, New Zealand and Australian universities FALL OR SPRING SEMESTER * FULL YEAR INSTEP * SUMMER PROGRAM * INTERNSHIP Study Abroad Information Session Representative: Faith Salter / Susan Leisure Date: Thursday, March 16, 1995 Location: Information Table, Student Union (11-3) Student Meeting, International Center (4-5) **For more information, please call Bill Nolting at the International Office (747-2299) or the Institute for Study Abroad (1-800-858-0229)** Arab Instruments and Music sponsored by the Center for Middle Eastern & North African Studies and the School of Music Open to the public without charge CONCERT WITH Ghada Ghanem and the Dearborn Traditional Arabic Ensemble I u fit An opera about eternal love, or so it seems... FAN T'UTT"E By Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Sung in Italian with supertitles The Univewir I : _ ". " r ;°'