of Art The University's Museum of Art is presenting a free discussion by History of Art Prof. Rebecca Zurier regarding its latest major exhibi- tion, "Spectator of Life: Works by George Bellows from the Sloan Collection." The unique and informative event kicks off this afternoon at 525 S. State St. at 1 o'clock. Call 764-0395 for more information Thursday November 13, 1997 9A, .* Hollywood held hostage: Indie film tackles showbiz By Michael Zilberman Daily Arts Writer There's nothing Hollywood loves more than a nice little jab at itself- but one must earn permission, and most Tinseltown satires used to come from the industry's disillusioned elder statesmen. Not these days: just a couple of years after P R "Swimming With 0 Sharks" and Hijacki "Living In Presente Oblivion" had their tonight at 9 o'clockt say, absolute new- comer Neil Mandt bursts onto the stage with another gerund - "Hijacking Hollywood." The film, coming tonight to the Michigan Theater for its Ann Arbor pre- miere, is a scathing comedy caper that paints the L.A. Moebius-strip food chain through the eyes of its ultimate bottom-feeder, the PA. A production assistant, to wit, is a semijob on the lowest rung of the Western world's highest-stacked hierarchy, performed in painful proximity to its top; the errand boy to the stars. "The movie is, first and foremost, a comedy, said Mandt, who is going to personally present the film at the Michigan. "It's your basic story about a guy who starts out at the bottom and looks for a shortcut to the top. And he finds one - a very good one.' t n d a Said shortcut is what makes "Hijacking Hollywood" turn on a dime halfway through. abandoning the obnox- iously realistic depiction of the poor guy's toil (for the production of nothing less than "Moby Dick II: Ahab's Revenge!") to reveal the cute caper with- in. Together with roommate Tad E V I E W (Neil Mandt him- self, making like a ig Hollywood "Swingers"reject), by director Neil Mandt, they hatch a t the Michigan Theater, scheme to steal the film's $18 million climactic whale-attack sequence and hold it for ransom. The relatively modest demanded fig- ure, $150,000, lands in the general ball- park of the real film's actual budget. Even though raising the dough for "Hijacking Hollywood" didn't seem to involve much criminal activity, it was still something of a coup. "Yes, I maxed out credit cards," con- firmed Mandt. "And we had to move very quickly. The script was written in a week, the shooting time was 16 days. The entire production took five months." Mastercard moviemaking, pioneered by Kevin Smith of "Clerks" and Ed Burns of "The Brothers McMullen," has already become the stuff of film student lore. But would one, after going through the actual experience, advise it ulks shoots new life into country Robbie Fulks South Mouth I Bloodshot Records If Garth Brooks is to country music as Bud Lite is to boozethen Robbie Fulks is Jack Daniels. Fulks' new album, "South Mouth" - released on Bloodshot Records, the self- proclaimed "home of insurgent country" - is a straight shot of undiluted twang. If you like the "hot new country" of the Travises, Leanns and Shanias, you'll hate this record. Like Iris DeMent and Steve Earle, Fulks is one of many artists who have recent- y fled the confines of the Nashville-based system that monopolizes the country music industry - considered "too country" for corporate coun- t try radio formats, these individuals have struck out on their own. In doing so, Fulks has found success - he has now put out two albums on Bloodshot, signed a three- 4 album, $300,000 deal with major label Geffen, and grins from the cover of the cur- rent issue of No Depression, the alternative- country scene's Bible in bimonthly magazine Form. Fulks succinctly sums up his attitude about Nashville in the title of "Fuck This Town,' a tune that aspires to be an anti- establishment anthem but instead comes off as a juvenile rant. But on his debut release, "Country Love Songs," Fulks more eloquently explained his stance - lamenting and pok- ing fun at the large (and naive) segment of the population that professes to like "every kind of music but country" and respectfully name-checking traditional country saints Buck Owens and Hank Williams in "The Buck Starts Here." On the new record, Fulks' debt to the '60s Bakersfield scene that produced these greats is clear on tracks like 'Forgotten But Not Gone," "I Was Just Leaving" and "South Richmond Girl." And he shows remarkable range, from "Cold Statesville Ground," which resurrects the lost art of the murder ballad, to "I Push Right Over" and "Busy Not Crying," which offer bouncy, upbeat melodies that will stick _ in your head if you're not careful. Also on display here is Fulks' often ribald and always biting ; sens of humor. Deployed with much success on his previous albu ''s "Papa Was A Steel-Headed Man" and "She Took a Lot of Pil (and Died);'the tactic works here on "I Told Her Lies," wearsathin by the end of "Dirty-Mouthed Flo," and fails com- pletely on the aforementioned "Fuck This Town." Nearly the only saving grace of "Fuck This Town" is that it captures the loose, energetic stage presence Fulks brings to his live shows. Otherwise, the song is not only simplistic - i the chorus consists almost solely of the title chanted over and over - but features stupidly offensive remarks about women 6 and gays. Musically, Fulks was assisted in the studio by the storied Missouri bar band the Skeletons, whose musicianship is uni- 4 formly - and not surprisingly - impressive. Fulks himself r is a fine guitarist and a versatile vocalist. * "Fuck This Town" and the too-polished "Goodbye, Good Lookin"' aside, this is an accomplished, enjoyable album. Note to Robbie: I like your "South Mouth" -just keep your foot out of it. - Anders Smith-Lindall Solas Sunny Spells and Scattered Showers Shanachie to anyone else? "The times are differ- ent," noted Mandt. "Precisely because Smith and Burns made it, there (are) about 2,000 Neil Mandts out there, each one with his own movie. There's been more indie films made last year than in 10 years before that. So, I would sug- gest not to try anything before you have some sort of a distribution offer." With the m o v i e' s domestic dis- t rib ut ion, Mandt chose a completely unprecedented strategy: he handled it him- self. After briefly enter- taining several offers, he decided to con- Movie veteran Henry tact theater Thomas stars in chain owners Mandt's "Hollywood." directly and work out marketing plans on the indi- vidual case-by-case basis. Almost a year after the film's com- pletion, Mandt still works overtime to generate publicity for it - travellig the TV show circuit, doing appearances on morning radio and so on (the fact that you're reading this means the strat egy's working, right?). It was the same determined moxie that helped Mandt land the talent he wanted - including "E.T."'s Henry Thomas as the protagonist, Mark Metcalf as a Tony Scott-ish hotshot producer and "Kids fl The Hall" alum Scott Thompson as a sadistic coordinator. "I called their agents and gave them my shooting schedule. I made it clear that the film is going to happen with or without them,' Mandt said. The only second choice in the entire cast was Thompson - Mandt originally approached "Ellen"'s Jeremy Piven fbr the role - and Thompson ended up developing a stock part into one of the film's comic highlights. So far, "Hijacking Hollywood" has met with acclaim at every turn, includ- ing the recent Austin Film Festival, where it took the Audience prize for the best picture. But one of the unexpected side effects the movie inevitably produces is positive notices for Mandt's own perfor- mance, which comes as the biggest sur- prise to the director. "I just wanted an unfamiliar face. I didn't want a na, actor because the audience has tOrbe completely clueless about the charate I.couldn't think of anyone less recog- nizable to them than myself. That, fairly safe to say, is not going to last very long. Mandt is already consid- ering several directing projects and is sure to be swamped with acting of'ers; "Hijacking Hollywood," meanwhile, hits video stores in February and lands on cable television in April. Both th1 film and its creator, however, can be caught tonight at the Michigan Theater - in a rare stop on the way that seemA to lead nowhere but up. There are few albums on the shelves today that would truly make you get up and dance (I don't mean slam dancing to "Groove Nasty" I'm talking real movement). But when you hear the beauteous energy of Solas on "Sunny Spells and Scattered Showers," you just may find your- 9 1 self doing a jig right in your living room. A group of five Irish lads and lasses, Solas employs tried traditional techniques for the antique songs, and a cohesive, truly entertaining album emerges. Karan Casey's liquid vocals flow through all the non- instrumentals, not missing a beat whether the song be English or Gaelic. The joy of her lilting soprano is second only to the pleasure of the jigs and reels which will captivate even a listen- er who has never been much of an Irish music fan. The cover photo shows the five looking straight into the camera, while a little Solas logo dances below them with rain- bow colors spilling off onto their collars. The picture gives one pause before opening the jewel case and reminds you that these are indeed serious artists worthy of mountains of respect. That respect is quick in coming from the second you hear "The Wind That Shakes The Barley" where the rich vocal tones complement the fiddles as much as the lush poetry about the United Irishmen's 1798 uprising. Try this on for size: "T'was hard the woeful words to frame / T'was worse the tie that bound us / But harder still to bear the shame / Of foreign chains around us." On "Aililiu na Gamhna," the Gaelic lyrics are in sung and the lyrics are included in the album sleeve with English trans- lations, so you're not listening in the dark. But when you're through listening, you'll probably have understood the idea without the English text. "Vanished Like The Snow" and "Adieu Lovely Nancy," both ballads featuring Casey's vocal embellishments, are grand in their understatement and the pared down arrange- ments encourage listening to the poetic renderings. "Vanished," an original song by the band's songwriter Sidney Carter, tells a beautiful tale of women like Helen of Troy and Joan of Arc often lost to the history books. Reels and jigs and Manx airs take you flying through the rest of album at dizzying speed. The flutes, tin whistle, man- dolin, banjo, guitar and acoustic guitars used in such simple beauty at once put an image in my mind of the hills of Ireland and of what real music should be. There are too many bands that try and fail to play fine music, so catch Solas while you can. It may be a while until you'll put something so glorious on your CD player. - Stephanie Jo Klein Michigan native Neil Mandt arrives at the Michigan Theater today to present his feature film "Hijacking Hollywood." I. ___________________________________________________ Have no fear, kids: Weekend, etc. Magazine will return to the Daily next Thursday! UNIVERSITY SECRETS: YOUR GUIDE To SURVIVING A COLLEGE EDUCATION Author: Robert D. Honigman The author is a long time contributor to the Daily, and his book contains reasons why abolishing Affirmative Action is wrong. Check it out at: http://www.tir.com/-honigman I- .1 SI Beethoven the Contemporary - Ursula Oppens, piano Have an opinion? Write to the Daily. E-mail your comments to daily. etters@umich.edu ..~~~IW 'YO