ARTS
Monday, April 1, 1991

The Michigan Daily

Page 5

The Walk is historical but trite

Hangin'
very

The Long Walk
Home
dir. Richard Pearce
by Mark Binelli
* Sissy Spacek, who won a best ac-
tress Oscar in 1979 for her role as
Loretta Lynn in Coal Miner's
Daughter, and Whoopi Goldberg,
who won a best supporting actress
Oscar last week for the ridiculously
popular Ghost, play an upper-
middle-class Southern white
woman and her African-American
maid, respectively, who end up fe-
male bonding during a time of crisis
(the 1955 Montgomery, Alabama
bus boycott) in The Long Walk
Home. Yes, it's Driving Miss Daisy
meets Steel Magnolias, a cynical
critic's nightmare.
But the film isn't that bad. After
all, how could a scene like the life-
affirming, hope-instilling finale -
a crazed mob of rednecks have sur-
rounded Goldberg's character,
Odessa, and are screaming "Walk,
Nigger, Walk," but in the face of all
this, the women silently join hands
and begin to softly sing Gospel

standards - not work?
So of course, "powerful" and
"moving" are adjectives that are
likely to be thrown around when
discussing this film, and they do ap-
ply, but in a cheap sort of way.
Where the fairly bland Driving
Miss Daisy at least worked on a
more subtle, more human level ev-
ery so often, The Long Walk Home
shamelessly goes straight for the
heartstrings, making it into a
standard, Prime-Time-Movie-of-
the-Week melodrama, only you're
watching it on the big screen, so it's
more annoying.
The acting, bogged down occa-
sionally by some unforgivably
corny dialogue, nonetheless remains
first rate. Spacek is excellent as
Miriam Thompson, a woman who
must not only struggle with the
racist attitudes embedded in her so-
ciety, but also with the sexist atti-
tudes that tell her she should un-
questioningly obey her husband,
Norman, who is played by Dwight
Schultz. Schultz, best remembered
for his role as "Howling Mad"
Murdock in The A-Team, manages
to rather gracefully make the shift
from baiting an enraged Mr. T ("I


ain't gonna get in no plane,
Murdock, you fool!") to playing
this slightly more complex charac-
ter.
Meanwhile Goldberg, one of
Hollywood's most impressive act-
ing talents, tones down her nor-
mally obnoxious screen personality
for one of her most challenging
roles to date, a role which often re-
quires her to keep her mouth shut.
She can't be a smart-ass when she's
forced to trudge nine miles to work
after the boycott begins, or when
she has to serve the Thompson fam-
ily's openly racist relatives their
Christmas dinner, but she proves her
skill as an actor by very effectively
pulling off scenes like this. In one
of the film's best moments,
Miriam, who eventually joins a car
pool designed to help out the boy-
cotters, picks up Odessa and tells
her, "C'mon and sit up front with
me"; the look on Goldberg's face
makes any words redundant.
Other characters, unfortunately,
become caricatures. Dylan Baker
plays Norm's evil brother Tunker,
who not only has a ridiculous name,
but is an asshole to boot. While the
leads show some amount of strug-
gle with their beliefs, demonized
white characters like Tunker, or the
gang that harasses Odessa's daugh-
ter, are neither credible nor neces-
sary. Also bothersome is the fact
that the entire film is obnoxiously
narrated by Mary Steenburgen, who
gets to say things like, "In a way, a
war was about to start in
Montgomery - a war of wills."
Of course, merely seeing certain
scenes, as opposed to reading about
them in a textbook, are going to be
powerful, regardless of the film
technique or the dialogue or what-
ever. The opening scene, for instance,
shows Odessa and several other
black maids entering the front of a
bus, paying and then exiting and re-
entering through the back. This is
jolting stuff -- when history is re-
duced to a paragraph in a textbook,
small but compelling details are ig-
nored, like the fact that not so long
ago, African Americans not only
had to sit at the back of the bus, but
they couldn't even walk down the
front aisle. °

I

tough
by Peter Shapiro

with F.

Green I1




review

While we were in Jackson a cou-
ple of days ago visiting the Adrian
17, we stumbled upon New Kid
Donnie Wahlberg in the weight
room trying to work off his anger
over not being able to ride his
Harley while incarcerated.
"Fuck political prisoners," FG
said enthusiastically to me, "I
want to rap with Donnie. Now
they've got him in a cell."
It seemed like a strange nexus
for revolution. Roughly a week
ago, a videotape of construction
worker Rodney King being as-
saulted by police made it to televi-
sion. The same week, the Godfather
of Soul was released from prison.
And now - the vanguard of the
Clearasil uprising, Donnie
Wahlberg's gotta do eleven, livin'
in a five-by-seven.
Donnie was clad in a Malcolm'
X t-shirt that was getting progres-
sively damper with his sweat, from
over-exertion at the leg press ma-
chine. He sported a red bandana
around his forehead and New
Edition boxer shorts, a present
from Maurice Starr that he gave
him when their Christmas album
went platinum last year. Vanilla
Ice played on the boom box that
the corrections officers begrudg-
ingly gave him as recognition of his
celebrity status.
"So, Donnie," FG said, edging
towards the perspiring young mal-
content, "hangin' tough, huh?"
"Word to the mutha," Donnie
snarled towards us, his feral young
eyes beading at us from beneath the
headband. Prison walls had not
quelled the silent rage that almost
burned down that hotel in
Louisville.
"Over at the Daily we've got a
pool going about what brand of
vodka you used," I said. "I've got
Mohawk, but FG III over here in-
sists that it was Popov; nobody
picked Stoly."
"Actually it was Peppermint
Schnapps, but I told the pigs that it

World's
greatest lover
was great
Don Giovanni and his servant
Leporello were not the only ones
startled when the enormous, marble
equestrian statue broke out in song.
Wednesday night's audience shared
in their surprise. The dead-like,.
cakey white costuming and make-up
which covered Kyle Hancock's
entire face and body, gave an
incredible ghostly quality to this
"statue." The powerfulness and
excitement of this scene
exemplified the overall rich talent
of the School of Music Opera
Theater's performance.
9 Don Giovanni (Scott Jussila)
was the ultimate seducer of women.
lussila demonstrated strong acting
abilities in this role of the supreme
individualist who cares only for his
own desires. In one of the most hu-
morous scenes, Leporello (Jean-
Ronald LaFond) unrolls a scroll of
woman's names which the Don has
seduced - the international list ex-
tends across the entire stage. But
during one seduction Don Giovanni
accidently kills a woman's father
who has come to defend his daugh-
ter's honor.
After several misdeeds and at-
tempted seductions he meets up
with the woman's murdered father,
the aforementioned statue, and in-
vites him to dinner. At this last
supper, the statue orders Giovanni
to repent. But he refuses and is
dammed to hell. This intense scene
very effectively conveyed his de-
scended into hell with painfully
bright lights, as Giovanni grabbed
and pulled the curtain down with
him as his voice effectively com-
bined with the ghost. The ghost's
voice effectively echoed throughout
the theater with the manipulation
of synthesized voice update.
All three women, Donna Anna
(Darlene Bennett Johnson), Donna

Elvira (Sara MacBride) and Zerlina
(Christina Clark) gave very impres-
sive performances. Johnson had an
emotionally rich, moving voice that
nicely combined with a graceful
ballet stage presence. MacBride
demonstrated good poise and an or-
nate and independent vocal
performance. Clark was playful,
bright and energetic with her sweet
flowing voice.
LaFond was also fantastic with
consistently mighty vocals, grand
stage presence and strong acting.
Director Travis Preston's unique
set of white, shimmery drapery
worked very well. The glimmering
reflections, along with its ability to
capture a passing breeze produced a
dynamic, textured appearance which
added complexity to the simple
drape. The actors' entrances and ex-
its from varied places within the
curtain evoked mysterious feeling
that people were always lurking,
spying, watching and judging. The
drapery also functioned as a frame as
it was hung at various angles and
shapes, acting as archways or secret
walls.
The simple scenery also enabled
the elaborate period costumes of
knickers hats cloaks, boots, long
wigs and full dresses to stand out.
The performers stood on their own,
not needing an intricate stage dis-
play to enhance the show.
-Julie Komorn

Prison tough and FGIII's sparring partner, Donnie Wahlberg
plary of real rock, from the rock.
was vodka. I was making myself Maurice Starr family a
some loaded hot chocolate and re- Tresvant, Bobby Brown
trieving the Cool Whip for this ho Gentleman are all
named Katie. Joey came in 'cos he they're waiting till I1
needed some rouge 'cos he was gether to finish it."
about to make it with some 13- "You mean that Mi
year-old JV basketball cheerleader. actually acknowled
Then that little runt tripped and plight?"
got mascara all over my new "Mo is like a fatl
UTFO CD. So maybe I got a bit What are you talking
carried away." said, rubbing his arm
"I heard that you all only let and grabbing his crotch,
groupies give you head," FG asked "Oh come on," I co
furtively, as Donnie craned his head donically. "You know
around to trail some guy in a towel, doesn't want crimin
who had emerged dripping from stable."
the showers. "Yo, Mo's got the
He smirked momentarily, recol- He doesn't care, 'c
lecting those precious days of rock bailin!"'
'n' roll escapades gone by. "Yeah, At which point, he
except for Christina Applegate. from the leg press mach
That bitch was fly." ing animated for the
FG realized that he hadn't been since we had talked abc
taping and hit record on his Applegate.
Panasonic. "Has Todd Bridges "Yeah, sure, Do
written you yet?" he asked, hold- taunted him, chortling 1
ing the small gadget towards the indignant New 1
Jackson's newest kid on the cell throwing punches w
block.. recorder hit the floor a
"That girl from ET sent me this to pieces.
new Public Enemy tape and some "GUARD! GUAR
Vaseline. Says it might help me "GUaDonGUARD
through those rough nights. And asn the floor and assor
Leona Helmsley came by yesterday came scrambling from
for a spell."
What would you want us to gym to cheer and jibe.
tell all the fans in Ann Arbor?" I "GUARD!" I screa
asked while using the rowing ma- but when Jim Bakker
chine. frenzy that abruptly ex
"Just that they keep me in all a full-scale riot, I had s
their prayers and hold tight until I haven't seen Fo
our concept album drops. It's like a week now.

iffair. Ralph
and Perfect
involved;
get bail to-
aurice Starr
Iged your
her to me.
about?" he
repeatedly
1.
ntinued sar-
, that Starr
pals in his
right stuff!
cos I keep
jumped up
hine, becom-
first time
out Christina
onnie," FG
before me as
Kid started
wildly. The
and smashed
D!" I yelled,
rolled about
ted convicts
around the
amed again,
r joined the
xploded into
een enough.
arrest for 'a

AP Photo
is exem-

THE LONG WALK HOME is being
shown at Showcase.


I 1 1
p,

The Graduate Experience
and Beyond
April 5 and 6
RACKHAM SCHOOL OF GRADUATE STUDIES
Attend a two-day conference for students of color on strategies to make the most of your
graduate education & the transition to life after Michigan