Check out the film "Mi Vida Loca (My Crazy Life)" for free. Directed
by Allison Anders, the film explores the relationships, trials and tri-
umphs of a group of friends living in LA's Echo Park. The screening,
which is sponsored by the College of Engineering, will be at the HH
Dow Building (2300 Haywood) in Room 1013. Don't miss out!
Tuesday
February 18, 1997
5
5
Wise men say
'Fools' offers fluff
Museum shares
gifts with A2
By Kristin Long
Daily Arts Writer
In spite of the recent flop perfor-
mances on the big screen by members
the "Friends" gang, Matthew Perry
as proven that his talent can appeal to
movie goers as well as, weekly televi-
sion audiences.
In "Fools RushR
In," Perry delivers
a likable perfor- f iF
mance as thej
workaholic Alex '
Whitman, a man At 6
with little direction
* his life, but with a personality that
will take him far. He's the nomadic
business type, willing to move any-
where his job takes him.
When he is placed in Las Vegas to be
the site manager for a new night club,
his life takes a drastic turn, and we see
Perry in a similar role to his television
one - a nice guy humorously facing
life's troubles.
Instead of the annoying Janice sum-
oning her Chandlah Bing, Isabel
alma Hayek) struggles to remember
Alex's full name. She and Alex have a
simple one-night rendezvous that
explodes into a life-changing experi-
ence, when she returns three months
later to inform him she is pregnant.
Needless to say, the shock of the sin-
gle experience brings some stale mono-
logue of "it only takes once" to the bor-
ing introductions, but we can't help but
pe that good-ole Chandler will pull
t rough the lame beginning. He has the
good-guy attitude and fine smile on his
A
"a
Br0
side, as well as the stunning Hayek.
Only a half hour into the film, how-
ever, their interaction is nothing great;
they hardly feed off of one another, and
they work apart instead of together.
Isabel convinces him to meet her fami-
ly, so her parents can associate a face
with the father.
V i E W As expected, the
V I £experience entails
oIs Rush In more than simple
introductions, and
**i before we know it,
arwood and Showcase they are married.
The result of this
evening sets the premise for an enjoy-
able, though sometimes predictable,
drama/comedy.
The most obvious sentiment preced-
ing the film is definitely fluffy love that
pacifies the pathetic romantic. Initially,
it's obvious that the film's initial intent
is such. However,
as it develops, it
becomes more
than overused
attempts.
Alex and Isabel
share momentary
lapses of true love,
and it makes the
other random
cheesy moments
just a facet of the
general romance
flick.
Much of their
charisma is devel-
oped in their hum-
ble abode. Instead Peay in "Fools Rus
By Anitha Chalam
Daily Arts Writer
Generally, the art you see in any
exhibition comes from a museum. Not
necessarily the host museum for the
show, but some museum.
This is not the case of the newest
show at the University Museum of
Art, however.
Called "Michigan Collectors," this
thought provokingm
show features
items from the
collections of 0
graduates and C
friends of the
University.
The exhibition,
of a coffee house, Alex's headquarters is
a boring suburban-type house in Vegas
-- until Isabel enters the scene. As a
wedding gift, her very cultural and very
disapproving family redecorates the
house in a Mexican motif. The new fur-
nishings entail enough religious para-
phernalia to send Alex into a head spin.
It's these moments that bring simple
and fulfilling laughs to the flick. Perry's
facial expressions
reveal honest senti-
ments that every-
one always wants to
say, but for tasteful
reasons never can.
While the chem-
istry between
Isabel and Alex can
be dry and pre-
dictable, the details
of her life make the
story unusual and
humorous. She has
a father and five
older brothers, who
are all overprotec-
In." tive of the baby
who proudly holds her own. Hayek is
dramatic and funny, and she is also the
fire that keeps Perry on his toes.
Also at Alex's side is his buddy Jeff
(Jon Tenney), who is the average I-just-
divorced-my-wife Joe who swears that
women and marriage are just bad news.
His character adds little to the film
except as a complement to Alex.
What works well for Perry in "Fools
Rush In;' is that his big-screen role is
similar to his television persona. He's a
working man, who is a bit on the stiff
side, but he enjoys a little mischief to
keep his life vivacious.
Still, "Fools" sets the unfortunate
mold for Perry's future roles. It was
hard to remove him from his television
style, and it will be difficult for Perry to
escape the Chandler standard.
"Fools Rush In" is a basic sampling of
the light and laid-back romance that has
a one-in-20 chance of survival. It has
more depth than a television series, yet
less than an Oscar-nominated classic.
The great one-liners, combined with a
fine performance by Perry, leave us with
a feeling of enjoyable fairy-tale love.
R
h
Cibo Matto brings its tasty music to Detroit
part of the museum's,50th birthday
celebration, emphasizes the role
which gifts of art play in the growth
of a museum collection.
One goal of the exhibition is to
encourage others to discover the
rewards of collecting and living with
original works of art.
The show, which includes 130
objects from 63 different collectors, is
large, occupying all of the west gallery
on the second floor of the museum.
Accordingly so, the exhibition contains
works from six centuries and from five
continents.
Especially notable are the number of
famous artists featured in "Michigan
Collectors."
For example, Christo, Albrecht
Darer, Andre Grewe, Edouard Manet,
Henri Matisse and Louis Comfort
Tiffany are just a few of the many big
names that can be seen there.
Another rich feature about this exhi-
bition is the vast range of media on dis-
play, including woodcuts, paintings,
tapestries and bronze reliefs, among
others.
Understandably, a show so large as
this one would require a significant
amount of time, if one were to examine
every work of art closely.
But for those who lack a block of
time during the day, here is a 10-minute
self-guided tour of works that should
not be missed:
First, on the far-end wall from the
entrance is a group of three wooden
staffs, from various regions of Africa.
These undated pieces are exquisitely
carved.
Next, moving back toward the
entrance, is an ancient Greek bronze
hydria, or jug, from the mid-5th centu-
ry B.C. This large vessel is the oldest
piece in the show, but it is in excellent
condition.
Located near to the hydria is a
work by Kyohei Fujita, titled "Goblet
Venetian Series #8."
In this work, the object is made of
glass, resembling both a goblet, as
indicated by its title, and also afrag-
ile pink and white tulip, resting deli-
cately on a curving and glittering
gold stem.
Just behind the
tE V I EW Fujita piece is a
welded bronze
Michigan sculpture,,- "Wart
CollectorS Valley," by
Museum ofArt C l e m e n t
Feb. &-April 13 Meadmore. This
work is intriguing
in that it seems to take a perfectly rec-
tangular prism of metal, and bends and
shapes it into sinuous curves, as though
the metal were clay.
And finally, near the exit, is "Parets
IV," by Helen Frankenthaler.
Frankenthaler is generally known for a
certain style of work, but "Parets IV" is
not one of them. This piece is a pretty
monoprint, of green, red, brown and
blue pigments on a textured ivory sur-
face.
But don't take my word for what's
good at this show. Listen to what the
experts have to say as well, in a number
of related programs.
On Thursdays in March, the muse-
um will host Collectors Seminars. In
conjunction with the museum's "Tea
at Three" series, there will be two
more upcoming chances to talk with
collectors.
A family collecting fair will take
place on Sunday, March 16. Finally, a
five-hour seminar will take place 'on
Saturday, March 22 on the Aspects of
Collecting.
The seminar is in addition to the
docent-led tours of the exhibition,
which will take place on various
Sundays through April.
The exhibition will be on display
through nearly the end of the academic
year.
Though it includes only one Asian
work, it really is a diverse compilation
of artists, cultures and styles.
Give the show a chance. With the
self-guided tour printed here, it only
takes 10 minutes to walk through
"Michigan Collectors."
But once viewers get the chance to
see the wide array of objects on dis-
play, they'll wish they had more time
to experience the culturally diverse
exhibit.
By Heather Phares
Daily Arts Writer
Some groups try to break the sound barrier by turn-
2 it up to 11. Other groups try to break the speed
barrier, with pummeling drumbeats or lightning-fast
guitar solos. Cibo Matto, however, breaks the commu-
nication barrier with its unique blending of traditions,
sounds and expressions.
Miho Hatori and Yuka Honda, the Tokyo-born duo
behind Cibo Matto, approach music with a wide-open
perspective, embracing hip hop, jazz, rock and dance
music, along with poetic lyrics that range from sensu-
al to goofy. Last year's excellent album "Viva! La
Woman" showcased the band's diverse sound. Their
numerous tours, whether headlining or opening for
similarly-minded musicians like Beck, showed that
the band shines both in and out of the recording stu-
dio.
For Hatori, the eclecticism in her band's music is a
way of life. As she explained in an interview with The
Michigan Daily around the time
of Cibo Matto's tour with Beck P
last summer, even the band's
inception was due to cross-cultur-
al meetings.
"I was just a music listener for
a long time. Yuka has been here Doors oper
nine years, and she didn't do any-
thing musical until she came here, and I didn't either
until I came to America three years ago. I came here
to study English, and I got really frustrated because,
you know, I can't speak it! But I wanted to stay here
and do something to have fun. So I started doing
bands."
This sense of fun and creativity is present in all of
Cibo Matto's music, from hip-pop rave-ups like "Beef
Jerky" and "Birthday Cake" (from "Viva! La
Woman") or "BBQ" off the group's new "Super
Relax" EP, to wistful ballads like "Artichoke" and the
current single "Sugar Water."
The process of recording these songs, according to
Hatori, was as enjoyable as the music itself: "It was
really nice. Working in a big studio like that really
blew my mind. I felt like I was in a cockpit of a big air-
n a
plane with all those controls in front of me."
Though the duo found recording their debut album
exciting, it's in their performances where they experi-
ment and tinker with sound. No song sounds quite like
the recorded version, and according to Hatori, that's
the point: "We like to change the way songs sound
live, so it's more physical than on the record.'
On first listening to Cibo Matto's music, one of the
more unique things about the group is the prevalent
use of food imagery. Nearly every track on the group's
albums refers to food in the title,
E V I E W or uses it as a metaphor.
"Food is very close to human
Cibo Matto life," Hatori explained. "We'd die
if we don't eat. It's very impor-
The Shelter tant. We should have respect for
t 7:30; call 961-MELT food I like using food words as
expression. Food words are very
common all over the world. 'Know your chicken' is an
Italian expression that means 'Know your shit' or
something like that, and there's lots of food expres-
sions in Japanese."
For someone whose music is so complex and
diverse, Hatori likes to spend her time off the road in
a simple way: "I just like to stay at home and listen to
music. I like lots of different kinds of music. I'm a big
fan of hip hop, like a Tribe Called Quest and Old Dirty
Bastard. I've been a hip-hop fan since I lived in Japan.
I'd love to work with some people like that.'
Cibo Matto's flexible yet distinctive sound makes
any kind of collaboration (it recently teamed up with
Russell Simins of the Jon Spencer Blues Explosion
and members of Skeleton Key to form Butter 08) an
exciting and tasty contribution to the music world.
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