The Michigan Daily - Wednesday, March 29, 1995 - 9 'Dadgummit! That Disney shore is efficient at cranking out those family features, like 'Tall Talel" 'Tall Tale' long! on family fun By Prashant Tamaskar Daily Arts Writer Films about distraught children who, with help, manage to make the lives of everyone else around them better, and consequently find hap- piness, are a dime a dozen. But, give Walt Disney Pictures credit. They know how to do them right. They prove this again with the release of "Tall Tale: The Unbelievable Ad- ventures of Pecos Bill," a typical Disney film, that turns out to be rather enjoyable. Daniel Hackett (Nick Stahl) unhappily lives on a farm with his mother and father in the early 1900s. His family's land is threat- ened by the evil J.P. Stiles (Scott Glenn) who wants to build rail- *eroads all throughout the plains. 'When Daniel's father refuses to :surrender his land, he is shot, but not before he gives Daniel the deed. With his father in a coma, Daniel, lying down in a boat, pon- ders what course of action to take. As he falls asleep, the boat drifts off, and he finds himself in dan- ger, only to be saved by Pecos Bill (Patrick Swayze). The threat comes from Stiles' men, who are willing to use any measures to get the coveted deed. Daniel and Pecos Bill later meet up with Paul Bunyan (Oliver Platt) and John Henry (Roger Aaron Brown). Along with protect- ing Daniel, these three legendary heroes teach him about doing the right thing, while giving him the courage to fight Stiles. One of the stronger aspects of this film is the way in which all three heroes are presented. They Tall Tale: The Unbelievable Adventures of Pecos Bill Directed by Jeremiah Chechik; with Patrick Swayze and Oliver Platt At Showcase are portrayed in a rather imper- fect, comical manner. For ex- ample, the apathetic, overweight Paul Bunyan constantly whines about the people destroying his land. But, there is never a ques- tion about their ideals and their hearts. Essentially, this is what they try to pass on to Daniel. Since this is a Disney movie, this mes- sage is a bit overemphasized, but it doesn't take away from the pic- ture by any means. Surprisingly good are the ac- tion scenes of the movie. Of course there aren't any huge explosions, but they're all fun to watch, and some are even quite suspenseful. Unfortunately, the abundance of guns, may make some of them a bit too violent for the age group being targeted. Although it really isn't that important in a film like this, most of the actors give fairly decent performances. Patrick Swayze provides a good portrayal of Pecos Bill. Or rather, he doesn't ruin the character by trying too hard to be a cowboy. Roger Aaron Brown, who physically is a perfect John Henry, also brings a warmth to the character that makes him the most likable of the three. How- ever, Oliver Platt, as Paul Bunyan, serving mostly as comic relief, doesn't contribute much to the film. Finally, Nick Stahl, as the young protagonist, does a fine job of not annoying the audience, in a role that quite often does just that. Obviously, this is not some brilliant work of art that challenges the viewer to rise to a higher intel- lectual plane. However, it is an en- tertaining movie with a positive message, that can be enjoyed by older audiences. But this is prob- ably no surprise, considering it is Disney, who specializes in produc- ing efficient family films like this one. New play 'Sirens' disarms and alarms By MelIssa Rose Bernardo Daily Theater Editor There's no question: Domestic vio- lence is one the hottest issues of the past year. And hot issues make even hotter plays. "Hot" is the perfect description for "Sirens," which receives its third ever production this weekend at the Trueblood Theatre. Director Lynn Thomson is no stranger to new and exciting plays, thanks to her position as dramaturg at the Circle Repertory Theatre Com- pany in New York City. It is this posi- tion which introduced her to the work of Darrah Cloud, author of "Sirens." "Sirens" chronicles the life jour- ney of five women who experience domestic violence in different ways. Cloud was commissioned to write "Sirens" by the Denver Center The- ater, and as part of her research went to a local prison to meet women who had been forced to kill their abusers. "We see the beginnings of their involvement with violence and vio- lent relationships," Thomson said, "And our violent culture that tends to approve of such things. The title, Thomson explained, re- fers to the ancient Greek myth of the siren song. Female creatures would lure passing sailors with their hypnotic songs, sending the men to their death crashing into rocks. "Cloud sort of turns that around in the play," Thomson said, "in that the sirens song is really a desire to reach out, and the destruction is a mutual one." Though the play is a depiction of the women and their tragedies, Thomson emphasized that the play is not a depiction of women against men. "(Cloud) has always had to defend herself against this kind of criticism," Thomson said, responding to the issue of male-bashing. "The play does at- tempt to understand why men do this, and explores it, without making judg- ments." "If you put on stage a woman who is abitch, are you saying thatall women are bitches? You're saying that charac- ter is a bitch. So when you put on stage men who do this, you're talking about people who have a lotofproblems. But you're not saying that all men have these problems. It's only if you were (making that generalization) that it would be a 'male-bashing' play. will be severely beaten this year, and that between 4,000 and 4,500 women will be murdered by men that they know. But statistics, Thomson cau- tioned, are often used to skirt the issue. "Statistics can be a form of denial in that sometimes it makes you not enter into what's really going on in the people,"she said. "That can be the case ... when we deal with any kind of horrific event or circumstance in life. (But) plays make you experience the event in a very individual way, and that enlarges your understanding and com- passion." The subject matter isin Thomson's own words, very sensitive, but the time- liness of the issue and the newness of the play make this a piece worth view- ing. "I'm sure there are some pieces that do that- that make that leap from, 'the people who do this are people who have a lot of problems' to, 'all men have these problems.' 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