THE TWIG
OCTOBER 8, 1964
^GE
ENTERTAINMENT—
Sugar Cane Alleys Fantastic! Sugar Cane Alley:
by Anne
Sugar Carw Alley Is a story about life.
It Is the story of a young black boy In
Martinique In the 1930's, t>ut it is also the
story of a pec^le struggling to find justice
and freedom at the hands of tt>^r bosses,
who were once their masters, In the cane
fields of Martinique. It Is, as well, a story
about values and heritage, about relatlon-
shtpsand love, about dreams ar>d reality.
This nwvelous film opened last week
a! the Cstfollna Theater In Durham.
Directed by a young (2B-year*old) woman
with the unusuid name of Euzhan Palcy, It
combines skill, talent, aiid good taste to
present a moving, unified story of life on
the sugar cane plantations of this French-
owned island. This is Ms. Pdcy’s first
American blowing, although she has
directedoneortwoeerlierflims. l-iertalent
in this field is evident throughout the film.
Although the story Is based on fiction,
Patey creates an aura of reality and
authenticity centering on ttte life of young
Jose Hassan, his grandmother, Ma Tine,
^ a small village of cane pld^ers. Filmed
in French, with subtitles, ttW nnovie moves
quickly and smoothly through nearly two
hours of human drama.
Life In the village is seen through the
eyes of young Jose as he narrates the
opening scene with a glimpse of vlllage
life from a child's perspective. He is being
raised by his grandmother, Ma Tine, wfio
wants for her grandsofS what she and the
others of the village will never have- a
good education. She sees this as the.one
escape fromthe harsh, oppressive life of
the cafie fields.
A telling example of theexten: of their
poverty and her detennlnation to have him
rise above It Is a rather humorous scene in
which Ma Tine has t)rought home, at the
end of a long day in the field, a scrap of
newspaper ror Jose to prectice his
reeding. He pastes this sheet alongside
Burtw
others that cover the walls of their crate-
llke hut while reading to her from the paper
about the sizes and shapes of wonr>en’s
bosoms and how to develop them. As he
drones on through the article, Ma Tine’s
expression Indicates mwe pleasure at his
reeding ability than criticism of the con
tent matter. It becomes deer from the
beginning of the film that thelr's Is a
special and loving relationship.
Relationships are the heart of this
movie, and Palcy manages to meke each of
them seem loving and strong without
sliding Into the sentimental. The charac
ters are cleariy defined, both in their roles
and In their personalities, arxj how they
relate to each other seems real end most
convincing.
Palcy traces young Jos^s friendship
with the village elder, Medouze, through a
heartwarming series of Incidents In v^ich
Medouze passes on to the boy the history
and heritage of their people. Their mutual
affection and respect are obvious through
out. Jose Is a blend of the old and new. He
learns his people's story of bondage In
Africa and their eventual freedom In
Martinique thn^ugh the old man's rttuai-
istic sign-song chant. He aJso leems the
traditions of herbal medteine and the
respect for the cycles of tife-birth and
deeth~ln his role of apprentice to his
mentor, Medouze. Palcy p(xtr^s the
Intimacy of their relationship with many
camera close-ups and through the use oi
natural lighting-soft fire glow, warm eun-
shlne, and, at Medouze's death, mournful
torchlight.
Jose Is also obedient to the wishes of
his grandmother artd becomes an esger
student in the local school, thereby eanv
Ing the opportunity for higher education in
the dty of Fort-dfrFrance. The ironic in-
iustlce of this opportimlty Is that the
[Continued on Pege 5]
A true disappointment
By Stephanie L Bush
Sugar Cane Alley tells the story of a
young boy’s efforts to escape the sugar
cane fields of Martinique in order to
receive an education. He is aided by his
aging grandmother, whose tireless efforts
to provide financial support add much to
the content of the film.
So far, so good, at least the story
“sounds” promising. I have to admit that I
enjoyed the scenes that revealed the
cultural characteristics of Martinique. It's
just a shame that the rest of the film
doesn’t capture a viewer's attention. Of
course that may be due to the subtitles
that one has to read In order to understand
the dialogue between the characters. I
guess I've Just never enjoyed viewing afilm
that makes me wortt to catch every word.
Not only did it irritate me, but I found my
self missing key objects in scenes, while I
struggled to, literally, read the script as it
flashed before me.
Thedirectormakesafeebleattenrvt to
draw the audience Into the actton of the
film by scenes of the field wortters living In
their dilapidated shacks and surrounded
by filth. Here, Jose and his grandmother
are Introduced. We ieam a little alxiut
Jose, but more about his grandrrwther's
disposition. It Is during the first few
scenes that we Ieam of her determination
to help Jose beher hims^f by achiwing an
education.
The next phase of Cane is
centered on the pair’s move to Ute city.
There, Jose must pass several gruelling
exams In order to continue his education.
Of course, he comes through with flying
colors, and the film continues. (Much to
my distress. 8y this time I had a headed^
from reading sutTtitles).
The city is bustling with progress,
which both excites and dismays Jose and
his grandmother. On the heavy side, we
are exposed to the problems the tviro face
In adjusting to a modernized sodety. The
director obviously doesn't want us to miss
this, so we view the name “Albatross” on
the boat that canies Jose and his grand
mother to the dty. Naturally, this name Is
symbolic of the struggles the two are
^XMJt to face. I was insulted by having
something so obvious literally spiled out
for me. On the lighter side, the scenes of
Jose and his grandmother in the city pre
sent the ageless problem of the oid^*
gener^rtlon versus tlie younger. The grand
mother finds the city a haven for moral
decadence and remains loyal to ha- cul
tural heritage. Jose, at the other end of the
scope, is filled with a desire to experience
the new and exciting. Their views concerrv
Ing education are just as diverse. The
grandmother sees education asa means of
escaping the sugar cane fields. Jose
recognizes education as a chance to be-
conrte part of the modem world.
Also centered on the struggles of the
pair trying to make 11 in the city are two
new themes: the first being personal
sacrifices, and the second being the
dominant white culture. The grandmother
is able to capture the hearts of everyone
through her tireless efforts to support her
self and Jose. She becomes ill twice
during the film, the second illness causing
her drath. Tlie scenes of hw death,
contrary to the rest of the film, are quite
moving. If a viewer is able to last until this
[Continued on Page 6]
Don Angle'-
A new angle harpsichord
by Susan Adkins
Don Angle, a renowned harpsi
chordist, provided an entertainir>g per
formance for the Meredith students,
Monday, Oct. 1 at convocatkHi.
Angle, orginaiiy from Pennsylvania
attended the Berkley School of Muste to
study pi^o and was introduced to the
haipstohord one summer. While studying
the harpstehord he built a repertorre
ranging from Classical to Jazz to Blue-
grass.
The program for convocation was
enhanced by Artgie's warm and jovial
personality. The music he played followed
In line with his personality including such
well-known songs as “Ro^ytop,” “Foggy
Mountain Breakdown" “The Entertalnei'’
and “Stars and Stripes." Angle impressed
the students with his unique reftdition of
“Old MacDondd's Fanm” which was
infiaginative and entertaining.
Angle's performance was most en
joyable and we eagerly look forward to
future visits from this warm and entertain
ing man.
DON angle
OCTOBER 21
GATE CENTER
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