Flipper Purify (Wesley Snipes) is a middle-class black architect who hasn’t forgotten his roots. He demands that he be treated with respect; he tries to get more people of colour working with him at his firm; he still lives in Harlem. He has a loving wife and child, and he is secure. He only has one problem — he’s having an affair with a white woman. Jungle Fevér ~ directed by Spike Lee Cineplex-Odeon Theatres reviewed by Tim Crumley Spike Lee has gone back to racial tension and predjudice as a theme after dealing with the life of a black horn player in Mo’ Better Blues, but it’s on a more insidious level than Do The Right Thing. It asks this question: how does race and class affect the way we love? Lee does a spectacular job of this film. In his typical way, Lee asks more questions than he answers, forcing the viewer to decide themselves what the answers are, foring them to My father was a big, big man.... he was a truck driver, and he always used to take me to the Carnival Restaurant for banana splits after we went for a haircut.... I don’t think you cared about that. I know that I didn’t care at all when Robert (Christopher Walken) said a similiar story for the third time, or the second time, or half-way through the first time. The Comfort of Strangers directed by Paul Schrader Cineplex-Odeon Theatres reviewed by Tim Crumley Paul Schrader attempts to say something in this film. Probably it’s that excess is bad. think. His camera is filled with insight, showing the communities of Harlem and Bensonhurst as they really are, sometimes beautiful, sometimes cold and unforgiving. After being angry at the hiring of Angie Tucci (Annabella Sciorra), because his bosses promised they would hire an African American, Purify begind to become attracted to her. They have an affair. Purify’s wife kicks him out, upset because, not only did he cheat on her, it was with a white woman. Some of the answers to Lee’s questions aren’t easy to stomach. Purify has to come to grips with the reality that he fell for Tucci because he has trouble dealing with himself; that a black man in society is bombarded with images of the “perfect woman” as white, and he chose to have the affair because he couldn’t love black And that sado/maschism is bad. Even probably that radical feminists are bad. I couldn’t bloody care less. This has to be the most irritating film I’ve seen this year. You can sit through dull, senseless drivel like Don’t Tell Mom the Babysitter’s Dead because it at least knows it’s dull, senseless drivel. Films like this are pretentious and dull, senseless drivel. At least the cinematography’s good. You feel trapped in a maze in the archways of Venice; you were supposed to. whoopee-doo. Two dull boring Brits go to Venice and meet a bad man ina The Fire Should Win An Oscar Forget the archery lessons in Robin Hood, let the Rocketeer blow a gasket, let Dying Young die quicker, let the Diceman get sliced in a cuisinart. Backdraft starring Kurt Russell Famous Player Theatres reviewed by Haroon A. Khan The real star of the summer is the animal. It lives and it breathes, all it needs is a whisp of oxygen and you to go and plunk your well scrubbed bucks down to cause a Backdraft that'll blow the competition away. Backdraft is, simply put the best action adventure flick out in memory. It boasts a stellar cast featuring Kurt Russell, William Baldwin, Jennifer Jason Leigh, and even Robin DeNiro. But even DeNiro is overshadowed by the animal, so named by the very bent Donald Sutherland as an insane pyromaniac. As you've surmised the animal is fire and there’s alot of it in backdraft. It’s so alive that it should be put in the credits as the main character. Backdraft is directed by Ron Howard. The film revolves around two brawling fireman brothers. The older, more experienced Kurt Russell in a hell of a good role and the new guy, his brother, played by William Baldwin, who never made it into the family business until now. Of course big bro Stephen (Russell) is his commanding officer. And of course, the standard punch ups happen, saving people in fires, you know...macho stuff. And of course both brothers have problems with women, Leigh and Rebecca De Mornay are somewhat underused in their parts as girlfirend and wife respectively. Backdraft sizzles, and I mean literally, you can see the heat of an oxygen starved fire sizzle paint in a closed room building up more and more heat and with just a whiff of oxygen....kabloooiee! animal time...fire everywhere Backdraft is highly recommended and__ will the Other Press 2000 POOLED women, and hence could not | love himself. Tucci, on the other hand, is working class. She sees in him a kind of man she isn’t used to: educated, middle-class, more respectful. She wants this in her life, and falls in love. The consequences are hard for the both of them. They are both ostracised by their communities. Tucci’s father beats her senseless. Purify’s father calls Tucci a “whoremonger” and says Flipper “should know better.” Purify is almost shot by police for having a playfight with Tucci on a_ streetcorner. The overwhelming reality is that, even if they didn’t have ulterior motives for their relationship, they would still go through hell. The fear exposes their real feelings (no feelings), and they split. Tucci goes home, Purify to his wife. Are interracial relationships a good idea? Lee doesn’t care. “Society still frowns on interracial relationships,” he He wants them for sex. They don’t know that exactly, but they know he’s creepy. They still walk along like lemmings into harm’s way, because.... well, they’re British, Robin Hood Steals From The Poor and Gives To The Rich The myth of Robin Hood means so may different things to different people. To some it’s a story of rebellion and class warfare. To others it is a love story. To Warner Bros. it’s a story about making lots of money. Lots and lots of money. Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves starring Kevin Costner and Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio Famous Players reviewed by Marion Drakos “Robin Hood has, for hundreds of years, summed up the image ofa hero.” screams the press material released by Warner Bros. But somehow this Robin sums up the image of dollar signs. The plot is mostly old hat but with a few twists. Young rich boy Robin of Locksley Consolidated Exploding the Myths ...continued from page 4 Adam: I think if we’re going to continue to be Consolidated, we’re going to have to find ways to make our presentation harder. I think we tried to modify our image, our presentation, our content between the first and second records to meet our needs and the needs of the people who come to see us. OP: Yeah, I noticed that it was a lot stronger statement on the second album. Adam: Word. Did you happen to notice that the music may have changed as well? Spike Lee’s Latest Joint a Thinking Movie Flipper Purify (Wesley Snipes) and Angie Tucci (Annabella Sciorra are social pariahs because of their love in Spike Lee’s Jungle Fever says, “and this film isn’t so much a dissection of them as it is an by Stevie Wonder and you have attempt to look at the myth that an excellent film. It’s destined to make you think. Comfort of Strangers Torture In Venice brings these people together.” and they can’t say no. It wouldn’t be polite. Bad man in getting really good at playing white suit slits dull boring Brit psycho weirdos. He should get man’s throat. Whoa, bummer better at selecting scripts to act in: sul twos iW Vv vacation, End of movie... ...~:; (Kevin Costner) has gone to fight in the crusades and winds up in prison. Robin escapes with the help of Azeem (Morgan Freemon). Azeem claims he owes Robin his life and follows him to England. The rest of the film is your classic (been told so many times you can recite it in your sleep) story. Robin of Locksley goes home to find his father dead, for one reason or another becomes an outlaw, fights Little John on a log, falls in love with Marian and saves England (and the world) from the evil Prince John...-Wait! No he doesn’t! ..saves England (and the world) from the evil Sheriff of Nottingham. I forgot there is no Prince John in this one. I must be thinking of Rocket Robin Hood. OP: Yeah, it was pretty industrial on the first album. I had heard some mention of... I heard that you don’t like people slamming at your shows, and that was done as a way to make the music more non- violent. Adam: We try to reiterate that wherever we go, because it was a conscious decision made after night after night of frustration. We’d have to stop the music because the huge male frat violence occurs everywhere at an industrial show. And it was just sort of distasteful to us at first, and then it became this huge endemic thing that just... July 8, 1991 Throw in a marvelous score Christopher Walken is Kevin Costner doesa fair job as the war weary Robin o Locksley. Some one should really teach this guy how to dq accents. The Moorish character o Azeem is played hard for comic relief. He is called a savage b the barbaric Englishmen. If this was an attempt to make 4a statement about racial equality i fails because Azeem follows Robin around like a blood hound. Maid Marian (Mar Elizabeth Mastrantonio progresses from a toug independent woman to simpering wimp all ready to be saved by Robin. At first shq seems to know how to take car¢ ...continued on page you knew that wherever yo showed up to play music it was going to go down. OP: All I can say is I reall hope it works. Adam: I think it works i one way, to bring people likg your observations to question o to bear in our perspective and that gives us more possibility ag evolving our identity in more o: a comprehensive way. It works for me on that level. Consolidated comes to Vancouve opening for Meat Beat Manifesto, o July 31 at the Commodore Ballroo: Tickets are on sale at any Ticketmaste outlet.