48- The Michigan Daily - ta4ie . -- Thursday, October 19, 1995 Keaton balances satire, sentiment Enext ii By kate Brady For the Daily In recent years, it has become more and more common for actors to try their hand at directing. This has given some an opportunity for shameless self-glorification, often in the form of multiple close-up shots of themselves. Others have produced films which went on to become part of a long line ofmediocre, easily forgettable works. Some actors and actresses, however, have viewed this trend as an opportu- nity for exploration; they have even created some worthwhile films. The most recent addition to these ranks brings more with her than just name recognition. In her directorial debut, "Unstrung Heroes," Diane Keaton displays a great insight and talent for directing. Her first effort demonstrates that her abilities do not lie solely in front of the camera. Keaton shows her real strength as a director in the development of her characters. The two mentally dis- turbed uncles in this story - played by Michael Richards and Maury Chaykin - are dealt with in a realis- tic way. The temptation to turn them into wacky characters without real dimensions is largely avoided. The other central figures are simi- larly well drawn. The poignant depic- tion of the mother and son relation- ship is both realistic and heartbreak- ing. Even the role of the dying mother (Andie MacDowell) is fleshed out to show more than just a perfect, sweet cause of grief. The mother is a real person, who gets angry, smokes and sometimes messes up dinner. It is through MacDqwell's character that Keaton's own voice can be heard the loudest. Although Keaton spends this whole movie behind the camera, her person- ality manages to peek through in some of the film's more memorable and uniquely stylish moments. Early in the movie, the mother and son dance together in the kitchen to the tune, "You Are My Sunshine," playing on the old turntable. Stephen is reminded by his mother to lift the needle before it gets to the skip. Later, when the family is making breakfast in the kitchen, the same album plays. In a nicely drawn scene, the skip in the record this time suggests the action which is taking place off screen. Known largely for her comedic roles - especially as the title character in Woody Allen's classic Academy Award-winning tale, "Annie Hall" (1977)- Keaton does very nice things with this bittersweet story. Blessed with some truly funny and endearing moments, it causes laughter and tears to mingle. The tears the film inspires are come upon honestly; they come because the pain on screen is so real. It should not be surprising that this love her because she is like us, only more amusing. As a director, Keaton seems to seek these same everyday, imperfect but compelling personalities to populate her movie. Luckily, she finds them, and they are largely what make the film so interesting. Diane Keaton remains an incred- ibly talented woman, both on and off screen. Hopefully, she will continue her explorations with directing, while still doing what she does best - acting. :ave it in their ste s as part of their equipme Horror appeals to your axe-wielding double Diane Keaton: A picture perfect actress actress and director can paint such a nice picture. Keaton has years ofexpe- rience as an actress to draw upon. She has worked alongside some of the best in her field and has marvelous work to her credit as an actress. She is perhaps best known for her roles opposite Allen. From "Play It Again, Sam"(1972) up through 1993's "Manhattan Murder Mystery", she has built up a reputation as one of the finest leading ladies of her day. To- gether with her good friend Allen, Keaton has tried many different film genres. Keaton shows her real strength as an actress who can be both funny and emotional at the same time. In "Annie Hall," one of her most beloved roles (and one for which she received the Best Actress Oscar), Keaton displays her gift for finding the balance be- tween humor and seriousness. It is this same awareness that does not allow "Unstrung Heroes" to sink into the sentimental, sappy garbage it could have easily become. In this same role, Keaton portrayed a spirited, interesting and real person, complete with insecurities and a real strange taste in clothes. Annie Hall is so likable because she is real, and she sometimes says stupid things ("La di da, la di da") and drives badly. We By Christopher Corbett Daily Arts Writer Waiting in line to see "Halloween VI," I thought: "I hope it's scary. There's nothing better than agood horror movie." Horror films, like "The Village of the Damned" and the upcoming"Hellraiser" sequel, play throughout the year, notjust duringthe Halloween season. I've seen a lot of horror flicks over the years. Why do I and so many other people see films that, as Stephen King once put it, "Will scare the hell out of us?" We enjoy seeing someone who's the "other" to ourselves. Murderers in hor- rorfilms, like Jason in "Friday the 13th," are our opposites. We know we aren't evil killers because we can see that clearly, we don't do the things Jason does. In"Fridaythe 13th,"agirl runs through the woods, hopingtoescape from Jason's clutches. Jason catches up with her, hold- ing a gleaming power tool in his hand. Audience: Morescreamsof"DO IT! DO JlT!"than you'dhearfrom thesubliminals on a Judas Priest CD. The killer isn't lovely and delicious, but vicious and malicious. Characters like "Halloween"'s Michael Myers are transgressors, and they fascinate us be- cause they break our everyday rules. In "Friday the 13th," Jason shoves a spear through two people werejust having sex on abed-the speargoes straight to the floor. My friend responded, "That's cold! I would've waited another minute or two." It is a chance to vent. We can scream and yell in the show during a horror film the way we can't when stuck at work or when a prisoner in Spanish class. In "Nightmare on Elm Street," some dork, after his buddies warn him about Freddy Krueger (who has killed off some of their friends), decides to lay down on his bed. We can't wait for the gloved one to work his magic and get rid of such stupidity. And when the hand ripsthrough the sheets and pulls the clown down, the audience cheers, "YES!" Fear, a powerful emotion, needs exer- cise. Most of us know horror films are make-believe. The films allow us to feel scared in a safe environment. As the girl in "Halloween" checks out the noise in her basement, we diaboli- cally, deviously reach toward our date with a handful ofpopcornand say, "Oops! Was that apiece ofyou that Ijust squeezed when the killer popped out?" Technical wizardry. We appreciate the craftsmanship that goes into the making of a "Nightmare on Elm Street" or a "Hellraiser." Special-effects geniuses work hard to fool us. In "Halloween," a girl stumbles upon an open window in her home. She's alone in the middle of- wouldn't you know it - nowhere. The lights go out and we hear the eerie music as she walks stiffly to the front door - BAM! Michael Myers jumps out. My cousin's reaction: "I hate it when they stab them in the head. It's so fake. I say just cut the damn thing off." I couldn't decide which reason forwhy we see horror flicks fit the best. When my friend later chewed me out for slamming the door on her new GMC Jimmy too hard, I noticed a peculiar shine in her eyes. Maybe we are all psycho. And ifwe got off like some people, do you think we'd all start running around with axes, turning each other into boxes of KFC? Nightmare on Elm Street freak Freddy Krueger has clawed his way into the hearts of psychos... er, movie audiences everywhere. In fact, he's Just one of many horror film weirdos that your secret, axe wielding double can identify with. 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