I The screen adaptation of the Austen novel plays at the Vlichigan. You have only one more night to catch this flick, so nake sure you're quick. 7:15 & 9:30 p.m. , &i4W ® Check out Erin Podolsky's review of Anthony Minghella's "The Talented Mr. Ripley," starring Matt Damon and Jude Law. Wednesday January 5, 2000 fying s mistakes sour 'Cider House' y Edn Podolsky aily Arts Writer "The Cider House Rules" tries to be a reat many things and fails at nearly all f them. It's a moderate failure, to be are; it's a moderate movie trying to mask The Cider House Rules A s t At Showcase G~ itself as something more. It has its bit of charm and its warm period magic, but it lacks something far more important: subtlety. Adapted by author John Irving from his own novel, the film suffers from the same problems that plague its lit- erary counterpart. what we know of our main character. But alas, at the end hero Homer Wells (Tobey Maguire) returns to the beginning, pass- ing off everything he has done for the previous 90 minutes as a phase. Born and raised at the orphanage in St. Clouds, Maine, Homer turns out early on to be impossible to send out into the world. Several times he is adopted, and several times he is returned. Dr. Larch (Michael Caine), the agingly stern but soft-hearted man who runs the orphanage, sees that Homer is a true son of St. Clouds and takes him under his wing. Homer becomes Larch's appren- tice and in the process an accomplished if not accredited ob/gyn, a necessity in the barren wintry land of Maine. Larch seems to have little to say to Homer and his other charges other than informing them that they are "princes of Maine, kings of New England" and imploring them to be of use. Okay, maybe that's not fair; he also teaches Homer the ins and outs of the female reproductive system, including how to deliver babies - and how to deliver mothers. There are times when "Cider House" strains towards abortion drama, but it ends up being downplayed to the point of being innocuous. That's about the best that can be said about the movie as a whole, too. Once Homer escapes from the orphan- age via visitors (to deliver the mother, not the baby) Wally Worthington (Paul Rudd) and Candy Kendall (Charlize Theron), his adventures tumble out of the narrative with boredom masquerading as grace. Homer lives on Wally's farm and picks apples in his orchard, making him- self generally indispensable once Wally goes off to fly for the ol' red, white and blue in WWII. A group of black migrant workers show up each year to harvest the apples and tolerate Homer's pale face. Homer has an affair with Candy. Dr. Larch gets old and needs a replacement director for the orphanage. Does this sound matter-of-fact? That's because it is. What "Cider House" really needs is a strong hand to guide a misguided tale, a tale that spins out of the control of the usually masterful Irving. Lasse Halstrom directs the movie with little of the flair he brought to "What's Eating Gilbert Grape." Things just keep on happening without much rhyme or reason. The motivations behind Homer's egress from the orphanage are clear, but his decision to return is explained with the simple echoing of Larch's instruction to be "of use." His passion for Candy is equally impenetrable, as is their silent decision to break off the affair when a wounded Wally returns from overseas. Although Irving wisely compresses much of his book's final act for the screen, it is not enough. "The Cider House Rules" had the potential to be a touching story about an orphan and his interactions with the world. Instead it is a not-very-bright piece of work that dimly meanders around interesting issues and plot developments, always skirting the passionate stuff in favor of a duller view and resolution. It's disappointing to see Irving unable to rec- tify his mistakes of years gone by. It's dis- appointing to see him drag down a talent- ed cast and crew with him. Unfocused and lacking direction after an excellent opening act, "Cider House" peters out - and wimps out, avoiding an ending that, had it been chosen, would have seemed much more in line with Courtesy of Miramax Films Charllze Theron decides to "wait and see" in "The Cider House Rules." mes Bond's gadget wizard dies n car crash Lo~geles Times Desmond Llewelyn, best known as 'Q,' the faithful and canny supplier of trick cars, reverse-firing guns, exploding toothpaste and other spy-baiting toys through 17 of the 19 James Bond films, died Dec. 19 of injuries suffered in a car crash. He was 85. Llewelyn was returning home from autographing books about his life in the town of Firle in East Sussex south of London when his car slammed head-on into another auto. Sussex police ;said the actor died of massive multiple internal injuries after he was airlifted to a hospital. Llewelyn was dri- vitlone. EFen as the actor portraying the suave British secret agent changed from Sean Connery to George Lazenby to Roger Moore to Timothy Dalton to the current Pierce Brosnan, Llewelyn endured. His most recent Bond caper, "The World is Not Enough," is currently in theaters. Aging wisely in the cur- rent film, Llewelyn is shown trying to train an apprentice - the comic John Cleese - for the day he ultimately might retire. But in real life, the actor had no intention to ease out of the franchise that brought him his greatest fame, cinematic status and t long last, modest wealth. ill play Q as long as God lets me. I have no inclination to stop," he told a Scottish newspaper shortly before the open- ing of the current film, which has Cleese, designated 'R,' mov- ing into the gadget department. Less than a month ago, Llewelyn told CBS News he hoped to be on board for the 20th Bond installment scheduled for release in 2002.1 DJ Hawtin spins Detroit techno scene into 2000 Courtesy of MGM Llewelyn (with Pierce Brosnan) in his last Bond film as Q. 4 On board from the second Bond film, "From Russia with Love" in 1963, Llewelyn resisted the director's instruction that he use a Welsh accent, even though he was born in South Wales, the son of a Welsh coal mining engineer. "My interpretation of the character was that of a toffee- nosed English," Llewelyn said. "At the risk of losing the part and with silent apologies to my native land, I launched into Q's lines using the worst Welsh accent, followed by the same in English." The actor's version won out. Llewelyn missed only the first Bond film, "Dr. No" in 1962 and the 1973 "Live and Let Die," Moore's first outing as 007. The Q character, formally named Major Boothroyd, was nicknamed "Q" for Quartermaster, a position in the British army that specializes in sciences for the military. No such char- acter existed in the Ian Fleming novels creating James Bond, although the written Bond did receive equipment from Q Branch. Ironically, Llewelyn said that absent the Bond cinematic magic, he was "allergic to gadgets" and couldn't even manipu- late a hotel key card correctly. His comfortable home in Bexhill, England, has no computer or cell phone. By Jason Birchmeier Daily Arts Writer Nine hundred and nintey nine people experienced the future of electronic music at Richie Hawtin's highly antici- pated New Year's Eve party in Detroit. Adequately titled "Epok," the event first retrospectively looked back at the roots ofTechno in Detroit. Then once the clock struck midnight, Hawtin took over the decks, showing not only how he helped pioneer the genre but also how he plans to define the future of Techno music. After a talented young female DJ from Detroit named Magda warmed up the party with a short set, special guest Scott Gordon took over the duties. The legendary Detroit DJ who gave Hawtin his start in the late '80s at the Shelter gave the ecstatic audience a history les- son, spinning classic tracks that were precursors to the futuristic sound of Techno. In less than an hour, Gordon navigat- ed quickly through classic electro bass anthems such as Telex's "Moskow Diskow" and Hashim's "Al-Naafiysh" before moving on to some of the early Detroit prototype techno of Juan Atkins, Derrick May and Kevin Saunderson from the late '80s. Among the many Detroit techno clas- sics Gordon spun were "Strings of Life," "No UFO's" and "Good Life" Then, once Hawtin joined his former teacher in the DJ booth, the clock struck midnight and everyone danced to the two Detroit, P-Funk classics, "Flashlight" and "(Not Just) Knee Deep," as the evening's musi- cal guide took control. Hawtin's five- hour musical journey passed through many soundscapes besides the sparse techno he is most well known for pro- ducing as Plastikman. Surprising many, Hawtin began his epic performance with some lively house music, retaining the celebratory mood ignited with the dawn of the new century. In addition to the two turntables on which he spun his records, Hawtin armed himself with his versatile Roland 909 drum machine and various: effects processors to tweak, modulate and phase his sounds. Throughout the night Hawtin would typically drop a record then begin adding his own sounds until the record became unnecessary. For several min- utes he would then further his extrapola- tion of the record until eventually mixing in a new record. Until 5 a.m., little disrupted the seam- less continuity of Hawtin's performance, consisting half of spun records and half of Hawtin spontaneous techno composi- tions. The highlight of the evening came when Hawtin reinterpreted his signature Plastikman track from 1993, "Spastik." Consisting entirely of multi-layered percussive rhythms produced on his 909 drum machine, the dense hailstorm of this legendary track with its symmetric percussion and the occasional appear- ance of pounding bassbeats sent the old- school Plastikman fans into a state of frenzy. This along with several other noteworthy tracks from Hawtin's past gave his performance a retrospective feel. The relentless suturing effect of Hawtin's performance with its continu- ous soundtrack of both records and spontaneous composition sets the artist apart from his peers in the global elec- tronic music community. Outside of the studio, few artists have the talent to spontaneously compose music foran audience in such a manner that the com- positions cannot be differentiated from the records. As illustrated on Hawtin's latest album, "Decks, EFX and 909,"the com- bination of DJing and live performance creates not only suturing continuity but also adds an element of individuality that cannot be duplicated. Any DJ can buy the same records as Hawtin, but not even the most talented impersonators can recreate the spontaneous elements the Detroit artist adds to his set. In addition to Hawtin's unparalleled talents as a live performer of electronic music, his parties also set him apart from even his most renowned peers such as Jeff Mills. While other artists can pro- duce great music or spin amazing sets, few artists or even promoters can match Hawtin's knack for creating the perfect context for his performances. Epok-like past events such as Consumed, Spastik and Sickness/Recovery - functioned as a unique constructed world appealing ,to the mindraltering sounds of Hawtin's music and the escapist idealism of the audience. Unlike most of Hawtin's parties which usually take place in long-abandoned, vacant buildings, the party took place within the context of a drastically altered version of Motor - currently the city's most popular legal venue. Hawtin and his camp of Techno apostles at M-nus records constructed a low hanging inter- mediary ceiling for the venue composed of black plastic screen. The many shin- ing, flickering and strobing lights above the screen ceiling were heavily diffused to create a dim, disorientating aura fur- ther enriched by a series of red lights sur- rounding Hawtin. The secondary room of Motor became a large installation art exhibit where vertical walls of the same plastic screen were erected in a maze-like fash- ion. Countless green lights were shone on these screen walls, making them appear holographic. At the rear of this hallucinogenic playground were two large stacks of speakers clearly teleport- ing Hawtin's cosmic audio transmissions from the main room. While this gigantic art exhibit housed anywhere from 200-300 people snug- gled and conversed with others to the transmitted sounds of Hawtin, a third room featured the ambient sounds of the artists on Hawtin's successful record label, M-nus. A small group of audience members taking a break from the inten- sity of Hawtin's performance sipped on drinks, wished each other a happy new year and chilled out to the down-tempo sounds of M-nus artists Clark Warner, Theorem and Matthew Hawtin. When the party finally ended around 5 a.m., it was clear that Hawtin had set new standards in the minds of the audi- ence members about the possibilities for techno performances. No other artist on the planet besides Hawtin could, have blended the art of DJing so effortlessly with the art of composition. In addition to the artistic performance, Hawtin added Epok to the growing list of his legendary atmospheric environ- A - -' +C IL Ds " 's C P F3 = '~ IN C * MULTI COLOR SPECIALIST; * ARTIST ON STAFF T RUSH ORDERS " NEAR U OF M CAMPUS 1217 PROSPECT, ANN ARBOR 665-1771 FF with this ai. http://www.tshirtstudio.COm S , wound .M~ON MN L S s 4 OUR