DTH ' Oninibiis ' Page 7
Thursday January 17, 1991
warn
MOVIE (NOT-SO) BRIEFS
Mermaids
Cher, Bob Hoskins and Winona Ryder
directed by Richard Benjamin
Scrfh Square
433-3302
COO
The first thing you need to know
about Mermaids is that the names on
the marquee need to be rearranged.
This is a Winona Ryder movie first
and foremost, with Cher and Bob
Hoskins turning in fairly understated
performances (surprising when
Cher's role is a flamboyantly liber'
ated woman).
Ryder is charming as Charlotte
Flax, who desperately wants to be a
nun (never mind that she's Jewish)
but can't cope with her rampaging
15'year-old hormones. She and her
mother (Cher) , whom she calls Miss
Flax, don't understand each other
and don't get along until a major
crisis (what else?) brings them to
gether in the end.
The performances are excellent,
but telegraphed plotlines and un
even shifts from frantic comedy to
melodrama prevent Mermaids from
being an unqualified success
ChipSudderth
1ST incsa Ryder calks sssj ss tha
trca star cf F'srrsdis'
mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm
Kindergarten Cop
Arnold Schwarzenegger, Pamaia Reed
and oodles and oodles of little kids
directed by Ivan Reitman
77C31
OCO
Yes, folks, it's Kindergarten Cop,
the amazing story of a hard-boiled
copwhobearsastrikingresemblance
to a statue. Kmdergorten Cop island ;
this is rare for an Arnie movie, mo
tionless .Not that it's a bad movie, but
the humor and style of Kindergarten
Cop depend entirely on the u Arnold ,
mystique" and the joke, "There was
this big cop who taught kindergar
ten and nearly went bonkers,
Arnold?HedoesexoctIywhatthe ;
script requires of him and nothing
more. Since Kindergarten Cop is
situation- and not character-driven,
i f O.OL
he doesn't have to. His acting evokes
his earlier heartfelt performance in
TheTermmator, It'salotof fun to see
him scream in terror as he desper'
ately tries to avert his kids' crying.
But any big guy in a Schwarzenegger
disguise could perform any of
Arnold's scenes. No acting required.
The humor comes simply from the
factthat this is Arnold Schwarzenegger,
The man. The myth. The stone
faced. If you enjoy Schwarzenegger
flicks, you'll probably like Kinder
gqrtenCop for that reason. It is fun to
see the one-man' killing machine
meet his match in a 5-year-old who,
when he first meets someone, ex
plains the differences between male
and female anatomy. (Another plus:
Pamela Reed shines as Arnold's
partner, an ex-kindergarten teacher
who became a police officer because
chasing drug dealers was less stress
ful than teaching kindergarten.) But
non-Arnold fans may have to be
carried out and resuscitated.
Chip Sudderth
Look Who's Talking,
Too
Kirstfe Alley, John Travote, Olympia
DukakisandthevoicesofBruceVViliis,
Roseanne Barr and Damon Wayans
directed by Amy Hekerling
:ilflHniMiiS
477-C31
Of all of the disappointing se
quels of the year (RobaCop 2,
Predator 2, Another 48 Horns), none
is more of a letdown than Look Who's
TaSdngToo. The first movie was cute
and fuliof great one-liners- ItsfbHow
up is a complete mess. It would be
surprising if this movie had a script
over a page long. LWTT picks up
with Mollie (Kirstie Alley) and
James (John Travolta) married.
Mikey (voice once again supplied
by Bruce Willis) is about 2 or 3 and
he now has a littlesister, Julie (voice
by Roseanne Barr). Julie is a brat
(she looks amazingly like Barr), and
she gets on Mikey's nerves. Barr and
Willis . have voice-oveT fights.
Travolta and Alley fight and (heav
ens forbid!) separate. Will they get
tack together? Do we care? There
are about three music videos in the
film to fill the gaping holes in the
screenplay By music video I mean a
3-4 minute sequence of shots
synched to a song related to the
subject matter (here babies). The
only redeeming part of the film is
the crazy, screaming comedian Gil
bert Gottfried as the instructor of a
bizarre, indoor playground called
Baby Gym, Richard Pryor was going
to play the voice of Mikey's friend
Eddie, but he backed out and was
replaced by Damon Wayans of TVs
InUvingCclor. I guess Pryor saw the
postage stamp that the script was
written on and thought better of it.
Mike I-ong
Does Edward make
Edward
Scissorhands
Johnny Depp, Winona Ryder, Dianne
Weist, Anthony Michael Hall
directed by Tim Burton
Varsity
S57-CSS5
OOP 12
r T ake no mistake about it,
Tim Burton is an origi-
l naL In this age f "Hey'
I 1 that worked, let's make
-J w I two more!" marketing,
Burton's films stand out as unique.
His latest film, Edward Scissorhands, is
no exception.
Edward Scissorhands is simply a fairy
tale for the Os. Avon lady Dianne
Wiest, making her neighborhood
rounds, decides to visit the big, spooky
house on the hill. She discovers a boy
named Edward, played by a barely
recognizable Johnny Depp, who has
scissors where his hands should be.
Wiest decides to take Edward home
to suburbia. He immediately becomes
a local celebrity due to his incredible
topiary abilities he doesn't need
garden shears, he just uses his hands.
Edward soon expands his talent
and begins cutting hair and grooming
dogs. Meanwhile, he is falling in love
with Weist's daughter, Kim, played
by a newly blond Winona Ryder.
Kim's bully boyfriend, played by An
thony Michael Hall, dislikes Edward
and frames him for robbery. The
neighborhood that once had em
braced Edward now hunts him as a
criminal.
TV Listings. Pages 12-15.
OMNIBUS.
nicrmpr
Contemporary
Roman Catholic
Church
We invite you to deepen your
relationship with God and to
red i scover how the
contemporary Roman Catholic
Church addresses the hopes
and confusions, the joys and
anxieties, the rewards and
contradictions of modern life.
These sessions are called
Inquiry . They are designed
for non-Catholics who want
to understand Catholicism and
are considering becoming
Catholic. -
Eight 112 hr. sessions are
planned beginning
Sun., Jan. 27, at 1 2:30 pm at
Newman - The Catholic
Student Center,
218 Pittsboro St..
For further information contact
us at Newman -
929-3730; 942-8471.
Mike Long
Edward Scissorhands is two movies
in one. There is the simple tale of a
boy created by an old inventor
(Vincent Price), who doesn't fit in
with the world and must adjust. This
tale is full of love, myth and hope.
However, the movie is also a
scathing social commentary. Burton
portrays life in the suburbs as a homo
geneous existence. The houses are all
pastel colors, with complementary
cars in the. driveways. The house
wives have a complicated gossip
network. When the streetlights come
on, the husbands return home from
work, and the wives cook. When
Edward enters this world, he turns it
upside-down, and it becomes obvious
that he can't become a part of it.
Depp (who made his movie debut
in A Nightmare On Elm Street a lot
of people don't know that) does a
good job as Edward. He doesn't have
much dialogue, and you'd barely know
him under the white makeup. He
smiles and acts scared a lot. Ryder
plays the same character she always
plays. Weist (Parenthood, The Lost
Boys) is delightful, as usual. Anthony
Michael Hall Vacation, Sixteen
Candles) used to be one of my favor
ites, but he plays a real jerk in this
movie, and 1 don't like him anymore.
NOW OPEN FOR
LUNCH SATURDAY
f ifi. n
Two separate kitchens serving Italian and Chinese Cui
sines (average between $9-$10)
Daily European Luncheon Buffet, plus regular Chinese
Luncheon Menu ($5.95)
International Sunday Lunch Buffet ($7.95)
Wedding Rehearsal Dinners & Extensive BanquetTake
Out Facilities
Courtesy Van to chauffeur small groups from nearby
bouUmottU Lum.b:11.30.2.30
Sunday International Luncheon Buffet: 11:30-2:30
Dinner 5:00-9:30 Weekends: 5:00-11:00
Marco Polo I
US 15-501
Chapel Hill
Ptrformontt
the cut?
Edward's hands, created by Stan
Winston, are impressive.
But Burton is the real star of the
movie. As with his other films (Pee
Wee's Big Adventure, Beetlejuice,
Batman), Edward Scissorhands has a
unique visual style and an abundance
of unique characters. One of the
bravest men in Hollywood, Burton
was courageous enough to make the
Batman film no one else would have,
and, in this age of ultra-violent films,
he sends us this sweet little gem of a
movie. He has a vision and style that
are all his own, but that will probably
be heavily imitated in the years to
come.
( Editor's Note: Ahight, enough yak'
king, Long! Just tell 'em if it was good or
not!)
All right. Chill.
Yes, it's a good movie. It's a sweet,
wholesome movie with nothing ob
jectionable in it. When you leave,
you don't feel depressed or scared, but
kind of warm. It's a good movie.
Not great, but good.
Which brings us to the final point.
Some people are going nuts over this
movie. In a big way. It's good, but it's
not anything worth worshipping or
seeing five times.
But even though I'm not an Edward
freak, I think 1 can see why they love
it. Maybe people are embracing this
film because of its content. With the
world on the brink of war, a sweet
little movie might just be what it
takes to keep one sane.
CHEF GIOVANNI CALIGARI
from Florence, Italy
CHEF SIMON CHAN
from Hong Kong
CHEF CHUNG YUAN
personal chef to the late
President Chiang Kai Sheh, presents
our large banquets
Duriwm ConSllltUsAt
Raleigh ALL ABC PERMITS,