Wednesday, June16, 1993 - The Michigan Daly Summer Weeky -9
Barney's revenge
'Jurassic Park' proves a thrilling ride
ly whole life has been movies and religion. That's it.
othing else.'M
orsese
- Martin Sci
i
By BRETT FORREST
"I love you. You love me. We're
best friends like friends should be."
That's what Barney, the affection-
ately amiable dinosaur says to his pre-
schoolagedhuman chums. Thepurple
guyhastiny,flatteethandlovespeople.
Jurassic Park
Directed by Steven Spielberg; written
by Michael Crichton and David Koepp;
with Sam Neill, Laura Dern, Jeff
Goldblum and Richard Attenborough.
Therefore, Barney is more likely to be
chowing downonsome dino-sized fries
at McDonald's than to be roaming the
plains of Steven Spielberg's "Jurassic
Park."~
If you are looking for a fun-loving,
sit-comish family picture, this is not it.
However, if you want to see an action-
packed, attention-holding thriller, this
flick is the one. With "Jurassic Park,"
Steven Spielberg utilizes his Midas
touch once again.
"Jurassic Park" depicts the chaos
created whenbillionairedeveloper John
Hammond(SirRichardAttenborough)
givesbirthtothe world's most extraor-
dinary amusement park. Hammond's
scientists reproduce the dinosaurs that
riled the Earth for 160 million years.
Hammondhouses thecreatureson Isla
Nubula, located off the coast of Costa
Rica, andrmakes them the main attrac-
tion of his zoo/theme park.
The scientists were able to bring
the creatures back from extinction by
taking dinosaur blood from 65-mil-
lion-year old mosquitoes fossilized in
amber. The scientists then replicated
thevitaldinoDNAlocatedintheblood
to create new dinosaurs.
Dr. Alan Grant (Sam Neill), a re-
nowned paleontologist, paleobotanist
Dr. Ellie Satler(LauraDern)andmath-
ematician Ian Malcolm (Jeff
Goldblum) are flown to Jurassic Park
by Hammond to verify the safety of the
project. You see, investors were a bit
worried after a workman was eaten by
one of the animals in the film's first
scene.
The experts, along with
Hammond's two grandchildren and a
lawyer representing the investors, take
ajaunt through the park in electrically
powered jeeps. All goes awry when
computer genius Dennis Nedry
("Seinfeld" regular Wayne Knight -
he'sKramer'sbuddyNewman) sabo-
tages the park's security system in an
effort to sell dino embryos to a
Hammond rival.
The gargantuan Tyrannosaurus Rex
breaks through the electric fences
turned off by Nedry and begins terror-
izing and eating people. Two vicious
Velociraptors rip apart the fence sur-
rounding them and eat people, too.
Nedry meets his doom by driving into
'he forbidden territory and is eaten by
a "Gremlin"-esque Dilophosarus.
The rest of the film shows intelli-
gent and intimidating dinosaurs chas-
ing really scared humans. There may
be one too many chase scenes - but
theyareextremely welldone. Ahighly
skilledandrespecteddesignteamaspent
more than 18 months creating the live
action dinosaurs foundin Jurassic Park
and it shows.
The varmints are so lifelike, you
will probably be glad the film is not 3-
D. There is no mercy harbored in these
animals. They kill maliciously and of-
ten.
Searing and realistic Scorsese-like
violence is rare in "Jurassic Park," but
you're liable to be scared into move-
ment when alarge Tyrannosaurus Rex
with excruciatingly peaked choppers
invites you to dinner.
"JurassicParik,"takenfromMichael
Crichton's novel of the same name,
was years in the making. It could not
have been released at a better time, as
dinosaur popularity among kids is at a
Michelangelo designing cars for Ford?
By STEVEN DEVRIES
Why would the University Mu-
seum of Art want to display commer-
cial art? When we think of the stereo-
typical artist, we conjure up an image
ofastarving,strong-willedcreator with
Creativity and
Constrant: The Art of
Automobile Design
The University Museum of Art
abumingvision whomsocietyeventu-
ally realizes, generations later, was a
great thinker. Van Gogh, Beethoven,
Mozart, Wagner, Shostakovich,Manet,
Pollack, Rothko and just about every
other imaginative thinker who brought
about a revolution has contributed to
this image.
But art is not all about the pain of
unrecognized talent. It can come in
many forms -even very commercial
The Museum of Art's latest exhibit helps
erase stigmas attached to commercial art
ones. Such is the case with the latest
exhibit at the University Museum of
Art. The museum is now offering a
display which features Ford Taurus
preliminary and final auto designs.
This unique exhibitiscontained in
one room and provides a taste of the
revolutions which automotive design-
ers have triggered. And the exhibit
should convince doubters that the mod-
ern definition of an artistic personality
has its exceptions.
Highlights include a clay sculpture
realized at one quarter scale and a life-
size painting from a side view vantage
point, the latter of which is immedi-
ately attention-grabbing because of its
huge scale.Other pieces include docu-
mentary photographs for approxi-
mately 30 hub-cap designs and photos
of six different trunk and tail-light area
designs.
The exhibit argues that the creative
process involved in the making of the
Ford Taurus and Michelangelo's
Sistine Chapel ceiling are quite paral-
lel. After all, both projects aim for a
specific target audience and undergo
extensive revisions. Both artists have
to answer to a "boss." That is, while
Ford designers have to answer to top
businessexecutives,Michelangelo was
commissioned by the pope.
Also, both Michelangelo and the
Ford design team work in harmony
with society. For example, the design-
ers of both works strive to better the
general population as opposed to chal-
lenging it. Ford's developing technol-
ogy is computers;Michelangelo'stech-
nology was his development of one of
the first systematic studies of the hu-
man anatomy.
Michelangelo and the Ford design
team have something else in common.
Both embrace developing technology,
sek innovation, petform under tre-
mendous time constraint and not ordy
believe in satisfying their audience,
but whole-heartedly research that au-
dience in order to please it.
In choosing to exhibit this work,
the University Museumof Art makes a
political statement that erases part of
the line separating commercial and
fine art.
And the museumecertainly doesn't
need to apologize for giving all forms
of effective visual art a place on its
walls, they simply should hang it. In
doing so, the museum advances itself
by acknowledging that quality art is
often created through commercial ac-
tivities.
CREATI VITY AND CONSTRAINT-
THE ART OF AUTOMOBILE
DESIGN is displayed at the Univer-
sity of Michigan Museum of Art (525
South State Street) through August
15.
fever pitch. Spielberg is able tocapital-
ize on Barney's cuddliness and sell his
film to any company that can afford to
merchandise it. Aside from the
corporatenessof the product, "Jurassic
Park" is a sizable achievement.
When asked why children love di-
nosaurs so much, a Harvard psycholo-
gist said, "They're big, they're fierce
... and they're dead."
In "Jurassic Park"it is easy to com-
prehend the size and ferocity of the
animals. One probably will also come
to the conclusion that it is best the
dinosaurs died some time ago.
JURASSIC PARK is playing at
Showcase.
THE UNIVERSITY
OF
MICHIGAN
BALLROOM
DANCE CLUB
Starting in May, we meet at
the Student Union every
Sunday night to dance the
Swing, Fox Trot, Waltz,
Cha Cha, Rumba, Tango,
Mambo, Quickstep, and
other dances.
Come at seven for a
beginning lesson
Come in at eight for
general dancing
Come alone or with a
partner
Come only once or
every week
Any questions?
Call 668-2491