ARTS
Pae9Ienedy,.l * 1 3,1 9
'Yeah. But they were all bad.'
- Arnold Schwarzenegger in "True Lies,"
responding to Jamie Lee Curtis'
"Have you killed anybody?"
Yet again, Doc steals show from 'Wyatt'
By Michael Thompson
As Wyatt, his brothers and Doc Holiday walk
down to the 0. K. Corral, we all sit in anticipation.
We know who's going to win, but we also know
that the battle is going to be bloody. Usually we
Wyatt Earp
Directed by Lawrence Kasdan;
written by Dan Gordon and
Lawrence Kasdan; with Kevin
Costner and Gene Hackman.
know whom to root for and that adds to the
excitement.
In Lawrence Kasdan's Western epic "Wyatt
Earp" the respect and sympathy we usually have
for Wyatt and crew is blurred. Was he really a
hero, or was he just a bully who happened to
wear a badge?
Kasdan's film tries to span all the interesting
moments in Earp's life. We see him as a child,
anxious for adventure. Later he becomes a happy
husband. Then he moves to bitter, almost pathetic
widower. And finally he gradually turns into a hard-
ened, cold law man, unafraid of anyone.
The film seems anxious to be the definition of
what and who Wyatt Earp was. Running over three
hours it should be easy to believe that Kasdan and
crew could easily sum up the man and his experi-
ence. However, Wyatt himself is not interesting
enough to fill three hours. As with "Tombstone"
and even "My Darling Clementine," Earp pales in
comparison to his fateful companion Doc Holiday.
Dennis Quaid's performance of Doc Holiday
blows Val Kilmer right out of the water. Quaid is
perfect as the existential killer waiting to die. But
then again, Holiday does seem like an actor's dream.
His angry and pathetic existence is fascinating
because he is untouchable. He knows he's going to
die so he fears nothing. Doc Holiday is always
painted as a witty, educated man, and this film is no
exception.
Kevin Costner shows many different sides as he
goes through Earp's many transformations. Earp,
however, never really becomes as fascinating as
Doc. His warped sense of the law and justice are
fascinating but not enough to hold up an entire film.
Similar to "Tombstone," Kasdan's "Wyatt Earp"
has the problem of being interesting for moments,
but not as a whole. The gunfight at the O.K. Corral is
mercifully short, but getting there takes forever. A
shotoftheEarp'sand Holiday walking. Anothershot
of them walking. Cue overly dramatic music. Yet
another shot of them walking.
Kasdan seems so bent on being an epic that he
can't decide what's important and what isn't. The
wives of the Earp's speak up every now and then,
but instead of coming across strong, they come
across as annoying.
"Wyatt Earp" is hardly a total loss. It looks
beautiful and the time does pass quickly enough,
but it's hard not to feel that it would be better if
perhaps it was
S a i t tle
:.shorter
and there
had been
more about
< some of the
other charac-
ters in Earp's
life.
WYA 7i' EARP
is playing at
Briarwoodand
Kevin Costner Showcase.
Joan Jett and the
Blackhearts
Pure and Simple
Warner Brothers/ Blackheart Records
JoanJett'snewestreleaseisamostly
triumphant, noisy return to the rockin'
sort of stuff that made her in the first
place. "Pure andSimple"is also further
roof(asif weneeded any)that women
n rock- Kathleen Hanna of Bikini
Killco-wrote some of the best songs on
the albumwith Jett,including thesingle
"Go Home" and the witty "Spinster."
Kat Bjelland of Babes in Toyland and
Donita Sparks of L7 also appear on the
album, making "Pure and Simple" a
grrrl jamboree. While some of the
slower songs fall a bit flat, on the whole
Jett's newest is a refreshing return to
pure and simple aspects of her
talent.
- Heather Phares
Ms. Jett will be appearing at Harpo's
Friday. Call 824-1700 if you love
rock and roll.
Slow 'Forrest' leads stunning, yet tedious life
By Micah Berryhill
"Life is like a box of chocolates.
You never know what you're going to
Forrest Gump
Directed by Robert
.Zemeckis; screenplay by
Eric Roth; with Tom Hanks
and Robin Wright-.
get." At least that's the philosophy of
simple, naive Forrest Gump. And of
course, Tom Hanks is exceptionally
witty with this innocent, child-like
part, with the practice of one of his
other hit movies, "Big," in which his
character exhibits similar adolescent
characteristics. with his girl, Jenny, who was the first themostsuccessful.Forrest provesthat
The film recounts the history of personthatacceptedForrestfor whohe sincerity andkindnessarejustasstrong
Forrest's life from the first day of was. As Forrest puts it, they were like in the "real world" to get by A-OK,
school in hometown Green Boe, Ala., peas and carrots. which goes beyond success and leads
to the present time in Savannah, Ga., Not a bad list of accomplishments into happiness.
where he waits at a bus stop. Forrest for someone who lacks in the intellect Not only is this story line great
narrates his own life's story to numer- department. And that is precisely the (although a little lengthy), the special
ous strangers, who just happen to be message of this whole two hour and 20 effects are incredible. At certain points
sittingonthesame bus bench,abouthis minuteflick.Itdoesn'ttakesoul-search- in the movie, Tom Hanks is shaking
accomplishments,sorrows, dreams and ing maniacs and logical minds to figure hands with John F. Kennedy, show-
aspirations. out what life's destiny is or how to be See GUMp, Page 10
He recalls the elementary school
kids who called him stupid and threw
stones at him to his days in Vietnam,
where he won a medal but lost a friend A t U iversity Towers,
to running a shrimp boat and making
millions. But most of all, he fondly we've got room just for you...
remembers his long-lived friendship
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