arts
Er entertainment
‘Stand By Me:’ A show-and-tell
by Jennifer Hubbard
More than likely you can vividly recall
certain experiences of your childhood—
your fifth birthday party, your first night at
girl scout camp, the wreck you had on your
shiny red Schwinn. Stand By Me, based on
The Body by Stephen King and written for
the screen by Gideon and Evans, chooses
this rather trite and basic approach to tell a
story about four twelve-year-old boys in
their last summer days before starting jun
ior high. A middle-aged Gordy (played by
Richard Dreyfuss) flashes back to a major
turning point in his youth, when he and his
three best friends set out in search of a dead
body. The film, directed by Rob Reiner (of
All in the Family fame) creeps along at
first. I tired very quickly of listening to
twelve-year-olds bad-mouth their mothers
and watching them ritualistically punch
each other in the arm. Reiner attempts to
recreate the atmosphere of the late ’50's;
unfortunately, he fails, partially due to the
script, which is too heavily padded with
’50’s jargon. No one needs to be hit over
the head 99 times with “Your mother
wears boots” to realize when the movie
takes place. (A mere oil-slicked hairdo or
an Elvis tune would suffice.) Here lies the
screenplay's combat tragic fiaw: it treats
the audience like a kindergarten class,
leading one step- by-step through the
movie. Dreyfuss’ character narrates the
entire way, which is quite unnecessary; I
could see the four boys trudging across a
Anyone for Movies?
The following is a list of movies playing through the week of September 15-21:
Theater
Cardinal
Imperial
Mission Valley
Tower Twin
Valley Twin
Movie
Legal Eagles
Ferris Bueller’s Day Off
Stand By Me
Killer Party
Armed and Dangerous
The Fly
Back to School
Karate Kid II
Top Gun
Aliens
Extremeties
Bullyies
Stand By Me
Top Gun
Ruthless People
Times
7:00 9:15
7:15 9:15
7:20 9:20
7:30 9:35
7:30 9:30
7:25 9:40
5:30 9;35
7:15
7:00 9:00
7:20 10:00
7:30 9:45
7:15 9:15
7:30 9:30
7:00 9:30
7:10 9:15
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have a shuttle which leaves from Johnson Hall at 10:00 and returns to campus by
12:15 p.m.
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(Telephone: 832-7535)
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Edward F. Hill, II, Associate
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grassy field shadowed by a dying sunset;
he didn’t need to tell me. The film would
have been much more effective if the
audience would have seen or heard of
older Gordy only at the beginning and at
the end.
Despite the weak script, a few strong
performances prevail. River Phoenix as
Gordy’s best friend Chris rises above the
rest of his buddies with his natural instincts
and acute sense of timing. His portrayal is
neatly polished and thoroughly convinc
ing, an admirable achievement for such a
young actor. Wil Wheaton as the young
Gordy has his moments in the spotlight but
is often upstaged by Phoenix. His winning
smile and innocent expression are appro
priate, as is the comic lisp of the chubby
Vem, entertainingly played by Jerry O’Con
nell. Often, however, the boys’ actions
appear unnatural and mechanical, and
here Reiner must be faulted. Kiefer Suther
land in the role of Ace, the high-school
hood, also turns in a believable perfor
mance, blending just the right amount of «
bully, coward, and lunatic to chill one’s
spine.
Although Stand By Me concerns friend
ship and growing up, parents should hesi
tate before allowing their children to view
it, for it does contain a superfluous flow of
profanity. As for you parents, if you reveled
the show-and-tell in your eariier days, and
if you like a good story, you would proba
bly enjoy this film.
Review: An Evening at the
Triangle Dinner Theater
by Mary Helen House
If you are trying to conjure up a way to
enjoy a rare evening of delightful enter
tainment, Triangle Dinner Theater solves
that problem for you by combining an
enjoyable meal with a musical production.
Conveniently located at the Highway 54
exit off of 1-40, Governor’s Inn has onfe
special floor where reality vanishes when
the lights go out after dinner, this is the
Triangle Dinner Theater. The most recent
production of the theater was the smash hit
musical Oliver. Although Olivervjus a mus
ical depicting the abject conditions of the
workhouses in England during the nine
teenth century, the characters repeatedly
revealed the humorous side of life.
The majority of the cost are native
North Carolinians, demonstrating that the
Triangle area is loaded with talent. Katie
Hall captivated her audience in the lead
role of Oliver, a rejected orphan boy.
When Oliver’s bottom lip quivered and his
eyes filled up with tears, the audience
empathized with him. When Oliver sang
“Where is Love,” goosebumps appeared
on your arms while chills traveled down
your spine; he had tears glistening in his
eyes while his melodious voice drifted
through the theater. Studying in New York
at Circle in the Square, Susan Sanford,
playing the part of Nancy, was another key
to the success of this cast. Nancy made the
audience feel her agony of loving a man
who abused and eventually murdered her.
Although the entire cast contributed to the
success of the show, Lamont Wade, play
ing Fagin, was definitely the highlight.
Wearing a big floppy hat, this bearded
man kept the audience in hysterics by wid
ening his eyes in a frequent state of para
noia. Wade did a magnificent performance
of the number “Reviewing the Situation.”
Although Oliver was not a musical that
called for very elaborate sets, some of the
scenes left room for improvement. The set
that needed the most work was the final
scene which took place on the Tower
Bridge in London. This set was simply an
unrolled sheet with a sketchy painting on
it. The other scenes were basically effec
tive, but more detail work would have
improved the overall appearance. On the
other hand, the dance numbers were flaw
less; Vicki Atkinson, the choreographer,
did an excellent job with the children in the
play.
Before going to the Triangle Dinner
Theater, I suggest you eat lightly all day so
you can savour the delicacies that are
served for dinner. After being courteously
seated, you will promjptly be served hors
d’oeuvres by a friendly waiter. Shrimp and
cheese spread over Townhouse crackers
or fresh vegetables are only a tasty hint of
what’s to come. As you enter the buffet
room, a massive feast stretches before you,
and you must make some choices or you
won’t be able to carry your plate back to
your table. The salad selection is unbeata
ble with shrimp and crabmeat salad, pasta
salad, old fashioned ambrosia, and all the
fixings for a refreshing tossed salad. The
best selection for an entree is the Shrimp
Newburg; the scallops, which melt in your
mouth, and shrimp are served in a cream
ing sauce over fluffy rice. Gourmet style
green beans are excellent, but the rest of
the vegetables are nothing special. The
final topping of the meal is a choice
between chocolate mousse, cheesecake, or
chocolate fudge brownie, and all look
heavenly.
While the atmosphere in the theater is
pleasant overall, we were unfortunate
enough to sit next to a table with four
children under six years old who whined
and talked throughout the entire perfor
mance. Oliver was not the type of play that
could be understood by children of this
age; people should have either gotten a
babysitter or stayed home.
The Triangle Dinner Theater has two
more musicals scheduled before Christ
mas. The fall musical, Steven Soundheim’s
Company, begins September 18 and runs
until November 8. Then on November 13
a lighthearted musical with a Christmas
theme opens—7?i^ Streets of New York.
Reservations are definitely necessary to
guarantee a seat. $19.00 — $21.00 per
person is a very reasonable price consider
ing the quality of the meal and the perfor
mance. Don’t miss your chance to enjoy an
evening you won’t forget!
4 Meredith Herald September18,1986