4B - The Michigan Daily - Weea", e. - Thursday, December 7, 1995
Penn (almos
ehind as ne
:y Christopher Corbett
'Daily Arts Writer
You're kicking back in your local
-movie theater, watching "The Cross-
ing Guard." You see his name under
the title of "writer and director." Sean
Penn? Sean Penn, who looks more
strung-out than the wet clothes on
your grandmother's clothes-line?
Yes, Penn does direct cool movies,
like "The Crossing Guard" (which
opened last weekend and stars Jack
Nicholson and Angelica Houston), but
what might we think of him if we had
the chance to sit down and interview
him? Imagine...
US: So Sean, how did you come up
with the idea for your film, "The
Crossing Guard?" The underlying
power attached to the main character,
the emotional travesty he endures -
his young daughter killed by a drunk
driver - is certainly devastating and
jarring for any viewer. You didn't
want anyone to help you with the
script? Did you write it all by your-
self?
HIM: Well ... you know. Yeah. Uh,
yeah.
US: Ohh-kay! Mr. Penn, you also
directed 1991's "Indian Runner."
Many critics agree that you are com-
ing into your own as a competent
t) leaves troubled past
'w film reignites his career
director. They say that while you are
not quite at Martin Scorsese's level
yet, your films demonstrate your abil-
ity to really go for the jugular when
handling characters and their inner
Bad boy Penn in 1989.
inner conflicts. If you continue di-
recting, you will probably push your
skills to even higher levels. What do
you think?
HIM: Hell, yeah. 'Course. I mean,
phhht! Got a cigarette?
US: (Thinking to ourselves: This
chain-smoking cheapskate should buy
his own.) You've worked in Holly-
wood since you appeared in "Taps" in
1981. In 1989's "We're No Angels,"
you played an ex-con posing as a
priest, opposite Robert De Niro, whom
you've claimed was your role model
as an actor. Had you also looked up to
Jack Nicholson, whom you directed
in "Guard?" Nicholson gives us an-
other volcanic performance, this time
as the alcoholic jewelry store owner
Freddy.
HIM: Jack is the man. Breezy,
breezy. Hey, you.. Gimme another
cigarette.
US: Many people, when they hear
your name, remember you as "That
guy who divorced Madonna." Yet you
have considerable talent in your own
right since "Guard" is, for the most
part, a good film. And it should do
well. Your past with Madonna works
to your advantage because the pair of
you had so much publicity when you
were together that you both became
household names.
HIM: Don't make me punch you.
US: You've had some good roles,
but some of your films have been,
well, crap. "Shanghai Surprise?"
Come on! What was going through
your head? Don't you wish you could
just look at that film and tell everyone
it was an alien clone of you up there
acting next to big-mouth Madonna?
After all, a bad film is tricky. Most
times, with luck, it just disappears;
but sometimes, as with "Surprise," it
can burst and ooze all over the place
and leave behind a hideous mark.
HIM: Like a zit.
US: Yeah! ... You can act pretty
well, but most people might remember
you best, in terms of your acting career,
as the long-haired valley-dude Spicoli
in Amy Heckerling's "Fast Times at
Ridgemont High." However, your re-
cent turn as a director and upcoming
role as a man on death row who be-
friends a nun in "Dead Man Walking"
are cementing your reputation as a seri-
ous, talented young filmmaker.
As one famous female singer once
said, "Beauty's where you'll find it,
not just where you bump and grind
it."
"007, watch out! it's the evil Olsen twins there across the pagel Shoot now! NOW!"
'Goldeneye' shows latest 00'7 Pierce
Brosnan stuck in Bond time warp
By Neal C. Carruth
Daily Arts Writer
James Bond's latest outing, "Gold-
eneye," raises some interesting ques-
tions about both the past and future of
the Bond series. Ian Fleming's char-
acter has now entered his fifth on-
screen incarnation (sixth, if you count
Woody Allen in the turkey spoof"Ca-
sino Royale"). Irishman Pierce
Brosnan makes up for the much-criti-
cized Timothy Dalton in the first Bond
adventure in six years. But Brosnan's
performance, and indeed the tone of
the whole film, lead one to conclude
that the best of Bond lies in the past;
"Goldeneye"'s attempts to step in line
with new Zeitgeist, coupled with au-
dience expectations will result in fail-
ure.
In slightly tongue-in-cheek fash-
ion, "Goldeneye" drags Bond into the
'90s with references to gender equal-
ity, being politically correct and the
explosion of technological innova-
tion. His boss, M, is now a steely,
technocratic woman. The stalwart
Miss Moneypenny informs Bond that
unless he makes good on his innu-
endo, he may be guilty of sexual ha-
rassment. Additionally, the evil plot
at the center of"Goldeneye" involves
cyber-terrorism and a sadomasochistic
villainess.
This is not to say that Bond films in
the past haven't managed to adapt to
changing times. "Live and Let Die,"
the best of the Roger Moore series,
was an engaging blend of the espio-
nage and blaxploitation (like "Shaft"
or "Superfly") genres. Roger Moore's
Bond, in the '70s and early '80s, was
refreshingly different from Sean
Connery's typical '60s hero. Moore's
films dared to take Bond in a slightly
different, more light-hearted direc-
tion that was not always successful
For the time
being, Bond is a
woeful caricature
stuck in his
timeless past.
("Moonraker," "A View to a Kill"),
but at least represented change.
Brosnan's Bond, however, doesn't
stand as a significantly new take. He
lacks the tremendous presence of Sean
Connery. Also missing is Roger
Moore's panache and Timothy
Dalton's grim athleticism. Brosnan
brings nothing new to the character
and his lines and near-miss stunts
have acanned quality that was not present
in earlier entries. Brosnan seems so con-
scious of his attempt to portray "James
Bond," and all that we associate with the
character, that he might be offering up a
parody of James Bond.
Quite frankly, it is too bad that
audiences were not responsive to
Timothy Dalton, as "The Living Day-
lights" and "Licence to Kill" were the
best Bond films since the mid-'60s.
Dalton managed tocapture the spirit
of Bond, as Ian Fleming actually wrote
the character.,In the original novels
and stories, Bond is a serious, aloof
professional. Dalton's injection of
these qualities into the role was a
turn-off to those weaned on the dap-
per Moore and Connery's rugged el-
egance.
In addition to the problematic na-
ture of Brosnan's performance, the
seeds of dissent are sown by one of
the characters in "Goldeneye." Bond's
pal and colleague, 006 (Sean Began),
turns on England and joins a group of
ragtag Russians. When they meet
again, 006 suggests that Bond is noth-
ing more than a relic of the Cold War.
Obviously, the filmmakers intend for
us to think otherwise, but 006 has an
excellent point. All series and sequels
are by definition reactionary. For the
timebeing, Bond is a woefultcarica-
ture stuck in his timeless past.
Sean Penn (above left In "The Falcon and the Snowman") has shed the shackles
of an actor (one whose frequent bouts with the law made this photo especially
appropriate) and cut loose with his latest directing effort "The Crossing Guard."
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