Friday, November 15,1996 Page 9
Entertainment
REVIEW:
J^J SLEEPERS
RATED: R
^ DIRECTOR: Barry Levinson
Michelle Choate
Movie Reviewer
SLEEPERS, based on Lorenzo
Carcaterra’s novel, features a wallop of
revenge, a dash of classic prison movie
torture, a smattering of courtroom
drama, and a pound of male bonding.
The movie recounts the “true” story of
four adolescent boys, growing up in the
1960's New York’s Hell’s Kitchen,
mentored by a loving priest, Father
Bobby (Robert DeNiro) and a Mafia
Don, Fast Benny (Vittorio Gassman).
Following a boyish prank turned tragic,
the young friends, Lorenzo, nicknamed
Shakes (Joe Perrino as a boy), Michael
(Brad Renfro), John (Geoff Wigdor),
and Tommy (Jonathan Tucker) are
sentenced to juvenile detention. Here
they are sexually abused and tortured by
a gang of 4 sadistic guards, led by Sean
Nokes (Kevin Bacon).
Jump to the 1980’s, boys to men.
Iraplicity as a result of their internment
and abuse, John (Ron Eldard as an adult)
and Tommy (Billy Crudup), have
remained in the hood and become
murderers, drug addicts, and thieves.
Too amazingly, Sean Nokes has dropped
Rhonda L. Parker
Editor
This fall, Brevard College was
treated to a production of “You Can’t
Take It With You”, a light comedy
about family life.
There were nineteen cast members,
at one point in the show, all but two
were on stage in one scene.
Sam Cope, the director, said that
fte first family was “a rather unique
family of creative individuals, who are
•^6 perfect definition of family.”
Members of the family included a
painter, a dancer, a xylophone player,
and writer. They are very loving and
supportive of one another.
They come into contact with a very
different kind of family when a boy
from one family meets a girl from the
other. The two families decide to meet
by a pub in Hell’s Kitchen to grab a bite
to eat. Tommy and John, spotting the
villain from their past, take turns
riddling Noke’s body with bullets, while
restaurant patrons look on. Shakes
(Jason Patrick) and Michael (Brad Pitt),
with the help of Father Bobby and Fast
Benny, hatch an ingenious plot to get
their friends off and gain revenge on the
remaining three guards. It just so
happens that Michael (Pitt) is the
Assistant Prosecutor who will be trying
the murder case against his old buddies.
Movies are created to tell a story,
be entertaining, and perhaps move us in
some way. SLEEPERS succeeds on all
counts. However, the predictable screen
play dampens the suspense. Tlie
courtroom action is so unbelievable tliat
it borders on silly. DeNiro delivers a
haunting perfromance as a priest
struggling in moral no man’s land.
Bacon is near perfect as the menancing
Nokes. The biggest problem with the
film is that it fails to convince us ttiat, as
adults, Tommy and John are worth
saving. The men, though regrettably
abused as children, are convicted killers
who will go on to kill again. Yet, all
players are willing to make extreme
personal and/or professional sacrifices to
keep the pair from doing time.
for dinner, and the second family comes
on the wrong night, and chaos erupts.
However, everything comes together in
the end, and the couple lives happily
ever after.
“It makes you wonder who the
crazy family really is,” said Cope.
The show ran from November 6
through November 9. The cast played
to full houses on Thursday, Friday, and
Saturday nights, and the ushers were
forced to turn people away at the door.
Of the performances. Cope said that
they were “well-done, and well-received
by the audience.”
Cast members were: Bonnie Clark,
Aimee Salzer, Stephanie Johnson, Jared
Costly Paul Gerber, Joshua Poindexter,
Kevin Williams, Robert Allwyn White,
Angela Hayes, Robin Mitchell, Michael
Harrison, Paul Zinke, Emily Holbrook,
Jeff Marvin, Amber Parmele, Beth
Miller, Tommy Lancaster, Scott
Strange, and Durbin Davis.
f
BAND REVIEW:
THE JUMP STARTS
Eric Cohen
Staff Writer
Brevard College was treated to a
performance by the “Jump Starts”! The
band played Friday, October 11, 1996
on the lawn in front of the Coltrane at
3:30 that afternoon.
CD REVIEW:
JUSTUS (The Monkees)
LABEL: Rhino Records
Rhonda L. Parker
Editor
The Monkees are back, and better
than ever. After almost 30 years of
separation, Michael Nesmith, Micky
Dolenz, Peter Tork, and Davy Jones
have come togethef to to make a new
album.
For those of you who aren’t familar
with the group. The Monkees had a very
popular television show from 1966 to
1968. It was a light-hearted sitcom
about a struggling band trying to hit the
big time. Every episode feamred a
video sequence. The group released
nine albums, and several of their songs
went to fS'l. In fact, the group sold more
records than Elvis Presley and The
Rolling Stones combined.
Their new CD is titled “JUSTUS”,
and it’s different from any other
Monkees album. The overall sound has
a 1990's feel to it, with a mix of
grunge, pop, light, classic, and hard
rock songs.
The four men, now in their late
fifites, wrote, played, sang, and
produced the entire album themselves.
All of the songs, except for “Circle
Sky” and “You and I” are brand-new.
Since the group officially broke up
in die late sixites, each has pursued a
solo career. Dolenz, Jones, and Tork
reunited for a tour in the 1980's and for
Several people became very excited
upon hearing the news that they were
playing, so I decided to go check it out
for myself.
When I arrived at approximately
4:15, the band had drawn a crowd of 40
to 50 people. I attentively sat though
three to four songs. I concluded that
while the band was backed by talented
musicians, they could not write a song
with any structure, and the singer fell
short every time. Not only that, but their
stage presence was almost non-existent.
Judging by the reaction of the
crowd, my sentiment was shared
throughout. On the upside, or however
you look at it, the band played quite an
extended set, which is uncommon of
musicians these days.
All in all it was a commendable
performance by a mediocre band.
a 30th anniversary tour in 1996.
Nesmith may join them for a JUSTUS
tour next year.
Tracks: Circle Sky, Never Enough,
Oh What a Night, You and I, Unlucky
Stars, Admiral Mike, Dyin’ of a Broken
Heart, Regional Girl, Run Away From
Life, I Believe You, It’s My Life, It’s
Not Too Late.
Release Date: October 15.
For more mformation, check out the
Offical Monkees ^ Homepage at
http: //WWW. flexquarters. com/main/mo
nkees.html
DRAMA NEWS:
FALL SHOW
“YOU CAN’T TAKE IT WITH YOU”
DIRECTOR: Sam L. Cope
PRODUCED BY: The Monkees