film/tom spackman and micllael glassman

Animated nipples; streaking trains

The movies this weekend are
Wizards and Silver Streak. Wilards is
Ralph Bakshi‘s animated version of
the classic confrontation between good
and evil. Silver Streak on the lighter
side is an above-average comedy—
mysteryradventure story with Richard
Pryor.

There are those who consider the
animated film one of America’s
greatest origianl art forms. Too many
of us consider movies based on draw-
ings to be inane “cartoons,” much like
the pop~top Saturdaymorning trash
we're treated to after coming back
from a late Friday night.

Wizards (1977). an animated movie
for adultswill do much to dispel this
misconeption, this breeding oi curls
tempt. which seems to exist in many.

The plot itsell is a simplistic,
allegorical fantasy. It is almost awful.
There is the old stand-by, “good vs.
evil," with a major subplot being
“technology vs. magic." You can root
ior your home team iavorite.

Two brothers, wizi, as it were, battle
for the world, There‘s blood, violence,
gore, jokes. cigars, and iunny clothes,
There are animated nipples (a per-
sonal favorite) to titillate the starved
libido, and 1001 different types of
mythological creatures. Allusions are
made to Casablanca, Enter the
Dragon, The Longest Day, and
ilorseicatiiers. Even the Bible gets a
{all or two in this conglomeration,

It is the animation that is the star of
this film. It takes the movie and ex»
plodcs it into a wondrous piece of
entertainment. Colors slash across the
screen, splashing left and right,
diving deeply into the caverns of fan—
tasy, making the absurd seem harrow-,
ing, and the harrowing, absurd,
creating, in the end, a wonderful in-
carnation oi phantasmagoria that
enlivens the mind. (So, come with an

open and expanded mind, but not too
lnuch or it might explode.)

As for length, well, it's longer than
three minutes, but shorter than an
Ellen Mease epic. No matter what,
you'll wish there was more, So take a
iriend, take a spliii, you can even take
r. .Sakey, but got

lvcr Streak (1976), for a slight
change of pace, is about a man (Gene
Wilder) who meets and falls in love
with a secretary (Jill Clayburgh)

'hile they are aboard a train, the
silver Streak, on their way from LA to
Chicago.

The plot takes a turn for the worse
when the secretary's boss is murdered
and Wilder is thrown off the train
several times by an art larger and his

12 '

thugs As you might imagine, Wilder
runs into myriad problems trying to
get back on the train, including nearly
getting arrested by a bumbling hicks
town sheriff.

The first hall of the film is a little
slow. Everyone gives adequate perforr
mances and the plot develops quickly,
but there is something missing. Arthur
Hiller’s direction is poor and the com-
ic timing is off. so lines which are
dinarily would have ﬁle audience in
stitches get only smiles.

The second half of the film in-
troduces Richard Pryor as a thief (by
his own admission) who helps Wilder
get away from the sheriii
and catch up with the Silver Streak for
the second time. Pryor livens up the
entire cast and helps create the tune
niest scenes in the film (including the
scene where Wilder tries to pass as

Clemment's

1fiddling finesse

by Mark Conterolo

He has been Called “a virtual
master with a fiddle" and “King of
Bluegrass.” He is Vassar Clemments,
a fiddle player with his own unique
style.

Upon asking people to comment on
his style, the most repeated phrase
was “countrified rock-blues.”

Indeed, his music has undergone
many changes. Clemments himself
says, “I can‘t stop my music irom
changing. I can't be satisfied; it‘s no
fun ii you’re not learning anything."

Clemments first encounter with a
fiddle occurred when he was seven
years old. He never had a real fiddle
lesson and had to teach himself. He
recalls when he was young, he and his
cousins started playing music together
in every spare moment. Eventually,
they began playing at rodeos and beer
joints.

Clemments’ first big break oc-
curred in 1949 when he played at the
Grand Ole Opry with Bill Monroe's
Bluegrass Boys. By 1950, he recorded
his first album as one of the Blue-
grass Boys.

During the following years, Clemr
menls travelled back and forth from
Nashville to Orlando, Florida, his

black to get past the policemen
waiting to arrest him),

Overall, Silver Streak is an un-
sophisticated but entertaining movie
which is stolen by pryor.

Even Wilder, whose excellent per-
iormance in Young Frankenstein pror
ved him to be one of the foremost
comic actors working in American
iilm today, is no competition ior
Pryor's spontaneous wit and perfect
timing. Uniortunately, this fact is also
the film's only major problem. It
turns into a one-man show for Pryorr
which makes all the other actors per~
formances and the direction seem
shoddy\by comparison.

Film schedule this weekend:
Wizardserr” 9:30, SL/Sat., 10:15, _
SL/Sun., 10:00, SL Silver Streak-Fri.,
9:30, Ami/Sun. 8:00. ARE

home town. During this time, he held
a string of jobs, working in a Georgia
papermill, at Cape Kennedy, and sell-
ing insurance.

Finally, in 1969, he settled down in
Nashville for good. in 1971, he gained
national exposure when he was
icatured on the Nitty Gritty Dirt

Band’s classic album, Will the Circle

Be Unbroken?
Thereafter, Clemments‘ career

blossomed. He got involved with some
of the greatest artists in country and
western music. A list of the people he
has recorded with reads like a “Who’s
Who” of the field, Hoyt Axton. Allman
Brothers, The Band, Charlie Daniels,
The Grateful Dead, Gordon Lighti'ooi,
Paul McCartney, Bonnie Raitt, and
the Marshall Tucker Band are just
some of the greats Clemments has
helped record

In 1973, Clemments was able to form
his own band, and it is with this
groupithe Vassar Clemments
Band—that he will be seen this
weekend Members of the band come
from rock, jazz, bluegrass, and country

backgrounds. This combination gives
Vassar Clemments’ music a unique
sound’ the iusion oi these iorms.

Scarlet 8. Block,

 

