Newspapers / Daily Tar Heel (Chapel … / April 13, 1989, edition 1 / Page 19
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.8 QTH OmnibusThursday, April 13, 1989 As a suspense film, By JAIIIS DSAN St3ff Writer One review I read for the new Australian thriller Dead Cairn called it "a combination of 'Allen' and in cold Blood.'" Have you noticed how people have been doing that recently? "Lean on Me" was described by one critic as "part "High Noon,' part Rocky " What this means is anyone's guess. Maybe it means that the lead character is a sort of Gary Cooper Sylvester Stallone type fighting for justice when the odds are stacked against him, but what it suggests is that the reviewer was thinking, This movie sucks,- I'd much rather be watching High Noon' or at least 'Rocky' right now." Weil, "Alien" and "in Cold Blood" are two of my favorite films, and Mariakakis Restaurant and Bakery Famous in Chapel Hill since 1963, offers a variety of famous Greek pastries and breads made fresh daily in its on premises bakery. Pizza is the restaurant's trade mark but many authen tic Greek dishes are offered along with sand wiches, homemade barbecue, chicken, seafood and 60 brands of domestic and imported beers and 25 wines. IE Marco Polo International Restaurant. Chefs from Italy and China prepare fabulous dishes from the finest provinni veal, stuffed clams, to szechuan shrimp. Thailand chicken and spicy In dian curried dishes,' " ' fr there are a lot of films I'd quite happily walk out of to watch them. Not "Dead Calm," however. Despite its faults, it accomplishes what it sets out to do in a very commendable fashion. Except for a few bodies floating around, it didnt remind me one bit of "Alien" or "in Cold Blood." if anything, "Dead Calm" could be described as Hitchcockian, but then isn't everything that is even vaguely suspenseful? Neverthe less, "Dead Calm" is one of the most tense films ive seen in quite a while. The story is centered com pletely around three characters and is set in the middle of the Great Barrier Reef off the coast of Australia John and Rae ingraham have just tost their only child in a car accident and have dcddsd to go pleasing the most criti cal palate. Come for a casual lunch or delight ful dinner. The average price of our 100-item dinner menu is about $8.00. IlPalio Ristorante There is no spectacle in all of Europe like The Palio in Siena, Italy. In Chapel Hill there is no finer dining than that at The Siena Hotel. II Palio serves breakfast, lunch and dinner. Its highly trained chefs prepare magnificent ' Italian cuisine that is served by attentive staff in an elegant setting. La Residence Enjoy supper under the stars on the Church Street deck or inside at the bar. La Residence has created a light, moderately priced menu for casual diners. No need to dress up Or make ' u Dead Calm out onto the high seas for a while to help get over the shock. After a few wrc in srn ir, tryspx a large boat in the distance that looks like it may be in a spot of trouble. Which, it turns out, it is, since the only surviving crew member, Hughle, rows up to their boat in a frantic state and spills the beans about what happened. As in any good suspense movie, the stranger is a real threat. Neither the characters nor the audience trusts him. Nothing about Hughle is certain. He could be lying through his teeth about the food poisoning that has wiped out his fellow crew members. He could be lying when he says that his ship is gradually sinking and that he would definitely have drowned had the kind ingrahams not turned up in time. Added to reservations for the cafe. Open nightly, 6-9:30 except Mondays. All credit cards accepted. Colonel Chutney's When it'stime to relax! Serving gourmet burgers, super salads, fresh seafood, prime rib, grilled steaks and chicken, homemade desserts and lots of fun: The best late night menu avbailable seven nights a week until one a.m. at reasonable prices. PATIO NOW OPEN! Just a block from campus, 300 W. Rosemary St. 942-7575. 4 " hits that, they are all in the middle of the sea The Ingrahams cant pack him off to the nearest trauma center. They are stuck with him, and he really is a bit strange. While Hughie is recuperating, and because we are ail just a little bit inquisitive about what really happened on the sinking ship, John rows over to check it out He discovers some distinctly unpleas ant things including, as iVe already mentioned, some nasty floating corpses. He races back to the comfort of his own ship. But before he can get on board, Hughie, who has since awoken, takes over the ship and leaves without John. The rest of the film is Rae's battle with Hughie to get back and find her husband before he is consumed by the command ing sea The fact that the film remains suspenseful for an hour and 40 minutes with just the three lead characters and the same setting is a pretty worthy achievement. The story is fairly simple, though sometimes a bit slow. But because of the depth of the characters and the tense mood that is created between them, the film is perman ently fascinating. More specifically, the three characters, especially Hughie, are not normal movie characters. John and Rae are a fairly unremarkable couple all in all, but because of the way each of them reacts to the trauma of losing their child, they seem slightly mysterious. Most of all, Hughie is an extremely difficult character to pin down. He is in a constant sweat, he dances to guitar music on his Walkman, and he doesnt seem to care about what has just happened on his boat although it supposedly upset him' so much or about leaving John behind to die. He has no real direction or motives for his actions. He could be perfectly normal or seriously psychotic He just wont give away which he is. Not wanting to trust him, we are forced to assume the latter. The tension is enhanced by the splitting up of the characters. When we are on the boat with Hughie and Rae, we wonder what is happening to John, and vice Planned Parenthood Kroger Plaza, 93 Elliott Rad, Chapel Hill Affordable Health Care Health Education 'By Caring People U Physical Exams for Women Birth control Information & Supplies Free Pregnancy Testing l Counseling Treatment for Vaginal Infections Treatment for Sexually Transmitted Diseases All Services Confidential' Special Rates for Students . GAtt FOR AN APPOINTMENT, . 942-7762 ' the mark versa The characters are so well developed that we are drawn to caring about their fate and judg ing their actions. We support John and Rae ail the way through, but when they resort to destroying Hughie without even uttering a word to each other, we feel the weight on our consciences as they do on theirs. The three leads are excellent. The only recognizable face is that of Sam Neill ("A cry in the Dark"). As John, Neill has the ability to seem suspicious even in the most unsuspicious situations. You want to trust him, but you cant. And when he turns out to be ail right, you feel bad about it This trait works perfectly for his character. As Rae, Nicole Kidman grows in stature with her character. She deals with the psychological tor ment of Rae very well, and makes the increasing strength that Rae finds to overcome Hughie seem plausible. Even when she turns nasty a la Sigourney Weaver, she fisssnt overdo the mean looks. As. Hughie, Billy Kane does for the film what Ray Uotta did as Ray in "Something Wild." He makes his character completely unpredicta ble. Consequently, he creates a power for Hughie that seems almost superhuman, and is quite terrifying. Despite the simplicity of its setting and plot, "Dead Calm" is a beautifully made film. It uses the sea (which I've always found creepy) very well, with the help of some exquisite photography. There are plenty of faults: a gratuitous dog death, a few slow moments, and a rushed ending. However, they only detract slightly from the overall effect. Although there are plenty of unanswered questions at the end that arise from the mysterious nature of the characters, the film still works because it is meant to be strange. More importantly, "Dead Calm" succeeds as a suspense thriller, in an age when such tripe as "Frantic" and "Tequila Sunrise" are the only films from that genre on offer, and are given good reviews because of it, it is good to see a thriller that really leaves an impressioa r . jf
Daily Tar Heel (Chapel Hill, N.C.)
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April 13, 1989, edition 1
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