ale Eltrgtt DtUg Opening the 'Doors' Director Oliver Stone, acclaimed filmmaker and creator of such hits as "The Doors" and "Platoon," will be speaking tonight at Hill Auditorium. The subject of his talk with be "Making Movies Matter," and it will be a wonderful and rare opportunity to see this master movie artist in person. Tickets are available at the Michigan Union Ticket Office and all Ticketmaster locations. Student admission to the 7:30 p.m. show is $5. Wednesday March 20, 1996 5 excellence thrives at Film Festival By Bryan Lark Daily Arts Writer In a season renowned or, more ap- propriately, infamous for filling multi- plexes with commercial garbage and unnecessary sequels, it is comforting to realize that films still exist where style and creative expression have not been jettisoned in favor of turning a ofit. he recent source of many of these significant, phenomenal films was the 34th Ann Arbor Film Festival. The usually dismal first quarter of the year at the movies was brightened once again by the welcome appearance of the weeklong 16mm film festival, which concluded Sunday at the Michi- gan Theater. Handing out $10,000 in awards, the ards jury had the arduous, yet ulti- tely rewarding, task of narrowing down a field of 93 films in contention for prizes to just 29 talented filmmak- ers to be recognized for their outstand- ing contributions to the medium. Showcased in three separate screen- ings on the final day of the festival, the awarded films were extremely diverse in both content and production tech- nique. The winners ranged from three- minute shorts to 90-minute features originated from all over the world including Iceland, Australia and even Ohio. The most significant and monetarily large award this year-the Best of the Festival Award at $1,500 - went to Leighton Pierce of Iowa City for the REVIEW Ann Arbor Film Festival Michigan Theater March 12-17, 1996 amazing "50 Feet Of String." This film was a portrait of the seemingly monoto- nous trials of daily life and how they can be perceived in an impressionistic, beautiful fashion. Two films by the same creator, Laura Collela of Providence, R.I., were honored with the Tom Berman Award, given to the most promising filmmaker. Her two films, "Statuary" and "The Same Ark" are quite differ- ent, but are undeniably linked by wit and raw talent. For outstanding achievement in an animated film, "Superhero," an ani- mated tale of a hero who must fight Batman, by Emily Breer, was given the Chris Frayne Award of $500. Named for popular filmmaker Lawrence Kasdan ("The Big Chill," "Grand Canyon"), the award for best narrative film was presented to Festival veteran Richard Myers of nearby Kent, Ohio. With his "Monstershow," Myers used imagery of horror icons Dracula and Frankenstein to interpret his dreams. Filmmaker Michael Moore uses the money earned from his successful "Roger & Me" to fund the award for best documentary film aptly named the Michael Moore Award. This year's re- cipient was Laurence Green of Toronto, Canada, for his account of a dysfunctional family, "Reconstruction." While these and other victorious films, such as DonaldJoh's"18% Grey" and Bill Brown's wondrous "Roswell," were shown in the more widely at- tended evening showings at 7 and 9, audience members who went to the 5 p.m. screening were treated to five less rewarded, but no less cinematically sig- nificant, films. The first of these movies was "Those Precious Mints," which was one of the three films given the Old Peculiar Award. Peculiar is, indeed, the best adjective for this dreamy tale; the film captures a small girl's recollection of vying for some of her grandfather's Mentos-like mints, set to the sounds of a clicking camera. Next was the gripping "The Idea Of North," a winner of the Best First Film Award. A chronicle of an 18th century polar expedition by Rebecca Baron, the film ingeniously blends photographs of the mission with journal entries and close-up re-enactments ofthe explorer's actions for a static-filled tale of sur- vival. After the seriousness of the prior film, "Postal Exchange," by Bradley Gake of Los Angeles, this film provided a lighter, animated fare. A depiction of two unseen penpals in the United States and the former Soviet Union and their respective dis- gruntled postal workers, the picture won an honorable mention. The centerpiece of this screening was the hour-long "Tender Fictions" by prominent lesbian filmmaker Barbara Hammer. Her poignant and funny auto- biographical story of self-realization and obsession with Shirley Temple gar- nered her the prestigious Isabella Liddel 1 Award for artistic accomplishment. The highlight of this showing was the hilarious, Prix DeVarti-winning "Joe Was Not So Happy." Juxtaposing stock footage ofamphibians and a voice-over from a 1950s instructional film, the short subject by Chicago's Heather McAdams traced the cheerless life of a frog. Following in the ground-breaking footsteps of previous festivals, this year's event proved to be another ex- travaganza of experimental filmmak- ing that alternately entertained, in- formed and expressed creativity rarely seen in this age of mass-marketing. As the marquee darkens and the last souvenir T-shirt is sold, the 34th Ann Arbor Film Festival becomes just a fond memory. However, while com- mittees start planning for the Festival of 1997, and students, faculty and city- dwellers continue on with life here, selections from the award-winning films will tour the country until the end of August. This tour, which will stop in at least 12 cities, is an attempt to provide movie- goers with a fresh alternative to the creatively barren marketable cinema. It will spotlight an independent film move- ment that is not likely to fade out any- time soon. a.Ws* Singer Tracy Chapman moved the Michigan Theater audience Monday night. Spiited tunes enchantt crowd By Eugene Bowen Daily Arts Writer Nobody in their right mind would attend a Tracy Chapman concert expecting to be greeted with outstanding vocals. Chapman is no Mariah Carey or Whitney Houston; her voice is very plain. Yet, what pushes her music beyond the work of mere mortals is the amazing spirit that propels her songs. More than 1,000 people got to embrace this spirit first-hand Monday night as Chapman graced Ann Arbor's Michigan Theater with her presence. Entering the stage in total darkness and then being flooded by red and blue lights, Tracy and her band began with "New Beginning," the title track of her fourth album (on the Elektra label). From there, she went into "Can I Hold You Tonight," from her debut album, "Fast Car." On her albums Tracy Chapman sings songs with meaning. Topics reflect many of life's greatest pains and hopes. She brings the feelings that surround these various life experiences to a head in her music, recreating emotions so real one can only shudder in amazement. At Monday night's concert, Chapman gave the audience a good taste of her music's variety. REVIEW Tracy Chapman Michigan Theater March 18, 1996 Much of her per- formance centered about failed, pain- ful relationships. She sang such great singles as "Things You Won't Do for Love," "Can I Hold You Tonight" and the ever-famous she performed "Mountain of Things." She also performed "Freedom Now," dedicated to the living legacy of South Africa, Nelson Mandela. She sings: "Throw-d him in jail, and they k;pt him there/hoping his memory'd uie,/that the people'd forget how he once lived to fight for justice in their lives." Eventually she got to he rousing chorus everybody in the audience was waiting for. "Let us all be Free, Free, Free, Free!" On a more personal note, Tracy sang "I'm Ready." She explained the purpose of this song first. "This is a song I wrote about my grandfather. It's about how, at the end of his life, he came to his peace because he confessed something that had been troubling him." She never reveals that confes- sion in her statement or song. Chapman also sang about her hopes in "Heaven's Here on Earth," the first song on her "New Beginning" LP. "I wrote this song thinking that even if it isn't heaven, if we started treating it like it was then it could better continue to sustain us," Chapman explained beforehand. Tracy Chapman ended her show with "Why," a simple song with simple questions with not-so-simple meanings behind them. "Why do the babies starve when there's enough food to feed the world?/Why when there are so many of us are there people still alone?/Why are the missiles called 'peace- keepers' when they're aimed to kill?/Why is a woman still not safe when she's in her home?/ ... But somebody's gonna have to answer./The time is coming soon./Amongst all these questions and contradictions are some who seek the truth." In the middle of her show, Chapman read statements that, before the show, the audience was invited to write upon 3x5 index cards. She read everything from a Ralph Waldo Emerson quote to a funny statement concerning weather. Other state- ments combined elements of humor, seriousness and ideal- ism. "It doesn't take many words to speak the truth." "Isn't it a shame we can make love for the first time only once?" "One planet. One people. Please." Tracy Chapman is an outstandingly simplistic artist with a calling to preach a musical gospel. Her music is very down- to-earth in keeping with folk, bluegrass and African influ- ences. Yet it also has a contemporary feel that anyone could get into. Chapman easily pleased the Michigan Theater crowd. She gave everyone there a reason to laugh; a reason to cry, but most of all, a reason to hope and dream. Many concerts present music. What makes this event so much different is that Tracy Chapman didn't just offer great song. She gave her audience an experience they couldn't forget if they tried. "Fast Car." Each of these songs chronicles the hurt that can come from a relationship when one is so blinded by love for the other, he or she forgets about the importance of self-love. Yet no relationship song can compare with the musicless "Behind the Wall." "Last night I heard the screaming,/loud voices behind the wall./'Nother sleepless night for me./It won't do no good to call./The police always come late,/If they come at all." Tracy tells the story of a woman regularly beaten by her husband without recourse ("And when (the police) arrive,they say they can't interfere with domestic affairs/ between a man and his wife./And as they walked out the door the tears were left in her eyes."). This song produces nightmarish visions of brutes attacking those whom they claim to love; simultaneously it reminds us that these are neither nightmares nor visions. These people, and their victims, are all too real. Chapman sang about other things she has been affected by personally. Poverty was a primary issue she sang about when 61y Breer's "Supreero" was one of the award winners at the 34th Ann Arbor Film Fwtlval, which concluded last week. Simon's'Doctor' remedies boredom I THE UM SCHOOL OF MUSIC PRESENTS By Tyler Patterson Daily Arts Writer Neil Simon has established himself as one of the most prolific and beloved jywrights of all time. On Broadway, few contemporary playwrights have seen more success. During the 1966-67 season alone, four of Simon's plays were running simultaneously. This weekend, one of Simon's plays, "The Good Doctor," is coming to Ann Arbor, right here in the Basement Arts. The Good Doctor" served as Neil Simon's tribute to Anton Chekhov, ar- guably one of the greatest writers in s sian history. The play is broken up th adaptations of some of Chekhov's stories, with the common thread of a character called the Writer tying every- thing together. Lauren Miller, an LSA first-year stu- dent who is directing the production, promised a good time for all. "Neil starts, you have just the Writer," Miller explained. "And he's been writing, as he has to do. The stories you see are manifestations of his consciousness." The Writer becomes critical of his in- dulgence into his fictional life. A theme develops about the Writer's loneliness and his relationships to the characters he has created. "By the end, though, we find that this is absolutely what he must do, and he is a very vital part of life," Miller said. Do not be fooled, though. The pur- pose of a Neil Simon play and the reason most people see one of Simon's See DOCTOR, Page 8 Simon is hilarious," she quipped. "Simon adapts the stories so well, and they really are funny." Along with the humor, however, are twinges of seriousness that surround the writing and the stories. "As the play CHIP DAVIS, CONDUCTOR .. . .r.. r U - -- ,----- M Wsawm ia a AS"s &SN da a A r