A 1948 classic, "Easter Parade" plays on the Michigan Theater's big screen. Starring Fred Astaire and Judy Garland as dance partners, the film features Astaire's infamous solo, "Stepping Out with My Baby." Don't miss the opportunity to watch two greats dance the night away. The screening begins at 7 p.m. Admission is $5. Tuesday September 30, 1997 Mamet's meaty 'Edge' bears weight ly Michael Zilberman ,,Daily Arts Writer :" . "The Edge" refers to a simple hunt- ' -ing knife. The one a trendy fashion photographer gives to a bored billion- aire as a birthday gift. The one both the billionaire and the photographer will use to hunt squirrels for food 24 hours later. Penned by David Mamet, "The Edge" is a kind of film that delights in seeing a "sophisticated man" temporar- ily reduced to his instinct of self-preser- vation. The essence of any movie has once been described as "you put a guy. up a tree; you get him down." In "The Edge," the tree is quite literal, and there's a man-eating bear hanging around it. Anthony Hopkins plays Charles, the billionaire, whose trophy wife - is there any other kind of wife in a David Mamet script? - happens to be a fash- ion model who might or might not be sleeping with her photographer Bob (Alec Baldwin). Suspicious, Charles follows her to a remote location photo shoot, a ridiculous Native American-themed enterprise. Before long, a tiny air- plane crashes over unknown terrain, with Charles and Bob on board and a hungry kodiak salivating on the ground. In one of the more predictable plot turns, another man survives as well, but it's fairly clear that this one is bear fod- der. (Harold Perrineau of "Smoke" plays the part as if it were clear even to him.) The real beef of the film is between the other two. Boy, are we dealing with fragile material here. A step to one side -and the movie turns into muddy social satire: See billionaire eat squirrel! A step to the other - and we end up with "The Ghost and the Darkness." Thankfully, David Mamet gives the kodiak business a rather short shrift, preventing the whole thing from mutat- ing into "The Old Man and the Bear" of sorts. Instead, it is a story of redemption - and the main hook of the film, once the bear gets the spear, is which one of the two main characters will be redeemed R by the ordeal. The trick of "The 41 Edge" lies in the fact that it's a AtBi human-versus- human movie masquerading as a human-versus-nature movie, and it unfolds for its first three quarters without requiring you to pick a side; when it finally does, the effect is like a harsh wake-up slap in the face. If at first we are somewhat lulled by the traveloque imagery, however, the blame compass points straight to the director. Lee Tamahori, who first attracted Hollywood's attention with the rather unsentimental "Once Were Warriors," has since switched into a mode of lush melodrama, as evi- denced by the repulsive "Mulholland Falls." The New Zealand-born director is a natural to helm "The Edge," with its ria ascetic mountain vistas, but the bom- bast with which he approaches every other shot becomes thoroughly dis- tracting once the human conflict sets in. And the conflict sets in all right --- in ways only David Mamet can man- age it. The screen- writer, better EVIE W1 known as the play- The Edge wright behind "Glengarry Glen **' Ross" and rwood and Showcase " A m e r i c a n Buffalo," is a mas- ter of the inobtrusive set-up: He plants drama in minuscule bits, shuf- fling them together with mundane dialogue and routine actions - so that some crucial plot points can only be seen in retrospect, after the resolu- tion. As "The Edge" hurtles along, it keeps changing your perception of what you've already seen. Mamet also being the Stradivari of the shouting match, Hopkins and Baldwin get to exercise some serious acting chops as well. By now, it should- n't surprise anyone that the eldest Baldwin can hold his own against the best of thespians; his effortless manner in "The Edge" reminds one of the early Kevin Costner (laid back but not yet to Anthony Hopkins fights the bear in Lee Tarnahori's "The Edge." a fault). Elle Macpherson bookends the film as Charles' wife, to no discernible effect. "The Edge" at once spoofs and upholds a tradition of wilderness movies actually teaching you some- thing about wilderness. The film is loaded with more practical survival information than a diary of a Montana Freeman. With the characters, you learn - and with the characters, you chuckle at hav- ing to learn - how to make E(compass out of a needle, for instanci or (the central metaphysical joke of the film) fire from ice. The main lesson, howeverr Is the instability of the cultural buildup mask- ing the base nature of our conflicts: a goose in an airplane propeller- takes care of it in a second. And that's wher the hunting knife comes in. Alec Baldwin Is Bob, the photographer. Fighters bring Sangrysound to A2 By Ted Watts Daily Arts Writer There's nothing like a little mid-week excitement in Ann Arbor. Tonight a fast-paced unit named the Freedom Fighters k is rolling into the Blind Pig. With two guitars and a drum, the band is not your everyday blunt head rock. The group has an angry sound, fairly reminis- cent of label mates Guzzard. But that's coincidental, explained drummer Jeff, Freedom Fighter. "The first time we got into that stuff was when we were on tour with Calvin Krime who're on AmRep. They had taken copies of all the AmRep albums on tape and we were borrowing them from their van. We knew about Hammerhead, we were all really big Hammerhead fans, 'land Boss Hog and the Cows, but other than that we'd never beard Guzzard, besides a song or two, That stuff kind of came to us after we were signed, strangely enough." P Parallel evolution is all fine and good Fre when it comes to sound, but when it comes to touring, a little advice is always good. "We toured for about a month in with unde April with a band called Arm, which books its own tours and gave us the Touring 101 by taking us out. Then I went ahead and booked this whole tour, so now we're doing it by ourselves for the first time.' The Freedom Fighters have just begun their first major solo tour. The band will be on the road for six weeks, and after a month hiatus, it will go out for another six weeks. "It was inter- esting (touring with Calvin Krime) in that we learned what it's Catchy Elcka has 'Nothing to Lose' By Brian Cohen Daily Arts Writer Currently on tour supporting Morrissey, West London's Eleka is still fairly new even to British audiences. In fact, its debut album "Rubbernecking" won't even be released in the UK until mid October. But with debut single "Nothing To Lose" already notching its way up the CMJ charts (it's currently at No. 20), America just might get fairly familiar with the lads before too long. "This tour was very last minute for us," said Eleka's enchanting frontman Harrold before last Wednesday evening's sold-out Hill Auditorium per- formance. "It was like two days before - 'pack your bags ... you're going!" The haste with which the band has been moving is rather remarkable, especially considering that its first assignment in this country is the difficult task of warming up te rgro like out there now, which is a lot of playing to nobody," said Jeff. "Which is kind of a test of how much you love it." After this current batch of touring, though, a spectacular opportunity has presented itself to the Freedom Fighters: "I don't know if you've heard of the Incredibly Strange Wrestling Tour, but it's these DIY Mexican wrestlers that set up their own ring and E V I E W wrestle. And Calvin Krime, and us and loin Fighters this band called Gimme Gimme, we're at 9:30 p.m. playing and then wrestling happens in Tonight Pi between the bands. I would love to wres- ound Asian Movement tle but I can't get in on that. They want the Mexican wrestlers. It's a tight clique" The Freedom Fighters also have a new album coming out soon. Titled "My Scientist Friends," it showcases an eclectic mix of proper rocking songs with words and instrumental interludes. Remember, tonight there is a band in town that could eas- ily free you from your doldrums. You just have to let them fight for you. thousands of screaming fans who have been waiting five years to see one of the music's most sought after artists. "I think it's kind of a signifipapt tbin that of all people Morrissey kindaf take a shine to us and introdumesus to America," Harrold said. "I couldn't think of a better way to come over here really. "People that like Morrissey.xend to have a bit of a take on music,4and they enjoy what we do and there're cheers 4nd it makes us feel very welcome ;by the time we finish playing," said drummer Darren Berry. "So it's a challenge but it's an enjoyable one, it's a rewarding one." And Elcka's performance w4sjust 1 rewarding for the audience as it was for the band members themselves.,.Withv its current UK single "Supercharged" kicking off the live set, it was no sur- prise that audience's eyebrows raised as the band started playing. Harrold's throaty delivery was effortless as he appeared to be "dressed to kill, seeking thrills, never coming down." "Paradise In Poison" was a bit of departure from the other live tunes, but i' intriguing guitar and Harrold's uncom- promising energy combined in a tri- umphant swirl. Thanks to Matt Barker's handiwork on keyboards, more refined greatness was unleashed on the the urgently intense "Try," which has already sparked some comparisons to fellow British superpowers Suede and Pulp. "I don't think we sound like anyone really," Harrold said. "It's not as if we're rambling on about 'T Beatles, Beatles, Beatles man.' We'v# been compared to literally everyone." After Elcka eased into "Nothing To Lose," all other band comparisons quickly vanished into thin air. The single has more hooks than a 24-hour fish-and-tackle shop, and the inspir- ing chorus left the audience clapping with fierce approval. Having already started to nibble the appetizers on America's menu for succesd the members of Elcka seem more than ready to continue putting in the long and sometimes draining hours into their music. If Wednesday's performance was any indication of what the band is capable of producing, then "Nothing To Lose" might just be the beginning of a long and prosperous relationship between America and Elcka - one with inil- lions of "silver smiles all around?' BOHDAN DAMIAN CAP/Daily Singer "Harrold" (front), and drummer Darren Barry of Elcka. PEACE CORlPS CAMPUS REPRESENTATIVE Peace Corps is currently placing college seniors' in positions that begin in the spring and summer of 1998. For information about current openings, visit the University of Michigan campus representative. International Center 603 E. Madison (313) 747-2182 OR (800) 424-8580 NEED EXPERIENCE? JOIN FORUM FOR INTERNSHIPS Access internship information on the Web, 24 hours a day! eldentify internship postings, on-campus interviews, and employer presentations Receive e-mail messages to help you "stay on track" with your search! *Hear about upcoming CP&P programs, hot internships, and tips for success A &t*% A f~ ~ nr 1P. EfITTIA £'nrTn i;~n nrfrian nrl I