Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

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'Yanks By David Baker Qanrwcock FHm Critic Yanks is the latest in a long line of great and near-great films directed by one of my favorite craftsmen, John Schlesinger, (whose credits include Darling, Midnight Cowboy, Sunday Bloody Sunday, The Day of the Locust and Marathon Man). In it, Schlesinger presents us with three parallel romances ? each between an American G.I. and an English woman?that grow and blossom during the US occupation of Great Britain in the months prior to Dday in 1944. Each affair is kept strictly within class boundaries, but Schlesinger treats them all in such a lovely manner that no one couple is slighted. In fact, the movie can best be described as a tasteful and heartfelt valentine to all the loving couDles who were brought together as a result of World War II. At the top of the social ladder in Yanks is the love story between Vanessa Redgrave and William Devane. She's a wealthy wife and mother who, while waiting for her husband to return from the war, passes time by working for the Red Cross. He's an American officer who joins her for dinners and for long conversations about their resoective families. n^nmwm ^ * " * ^ J^^SS/BBBBtmBS JhrHNKJ Richard Gere ar Thanksgft ocean, jui By Karen Moody Gam?cock Staff Writer "Thanksgiving"?the very wor<j great turkey feast, complete wit potatoes, cranberry sauce, ass< vegetables, and crowned by a fr< pie. For days before the feast, swe( drift through the house, snugglinj and cranny until the house itself s feast. Families and friends gather a very secure time. Everybody knows that the first celebrated by the Pilgrims and l autumn of 1621. It was a feast of bountiful harvest, one that would c of the disease and hunger decims time of the feast itself nnlv fivp alive in the entire Plymouth Colonj Although most of the Pilgrims w of them came to America by waj had been persecuted in England beliefs, and many fled to the reli Holland. On their first attempt to 1 women and children were left onsl jj loaded the boats. Shortly before emDanung, me King s soiaiers ap| captain became afraid and orderc leaving behind the women and ch arrested, brought to trial, and deta which time they were allowed to There, the Pilgrims lived in the many died. t' a joy Their friendship ultimately leads to a romantic liaison and when it does, sparks virtually fly from the screen, thanks to the current produced by the duo's stellar emoting. Redgrave's performance again puts her in contention for a Best Supporting Actress Oscar. Richard Gere and newcomer Lisa Eichhorn, representing the middle class, match Redgrave and Devane line for line. Their storv. about the romance between an enlisted man and a shopkeeper's daughter, provides the film with many of its most touching moments. The pair's love is kept on an almost spiritual plane throughout the movie. Gere's respect for Eichhorn is so great, in fact, that when the two finally make it to the bedroom, he can't make it with her for fear of leaving her pregnantwhen he is called away to fight. Gere's portrayal here is the highlight so far of a brief (he's only aDDeared in five films), but ex traordinarily diversified career. He's a bit pretty when comapared to the picture's other G.I.s, but his good looks had to be played up to put him on par with Eichhorn, who is an absolute knockout, both in looks and in talent. Eichhorn is from Pennsylvania, but her English accent and English Mr ^HPH Wm i^& i^J^S r2 V' ' id Chick Vennera zing came a mped dates The Pilgrims w festival or feast in medieval times, ? I brings to mind a held on November th stuffing, sweet Germany, France )rted salads and central Europe. T ?shly-baked pecan was goose, and i ?t and spicy smells fathers were sen g into every nook dinner; instead of eems a part of the started the Amerit together, and it is The Pilgrimj Thanksgiving unti was not a harvest Thanksgiving was God for the safe the Indians in the Holland. thanksgiving for a msure the survival There was no na ited colony. At the when George Was women were left as National Thanl however, was onlj the celebration r ere English, many servances. It was / of Holland. They attempt to bring t lI l ?; n:..: 1 11 r i _ lor ineir religious v^ivii war, prociairi gious toleration of as a national holid; leave England, the In 1939, Frankl lore while the men demands of the nr the women began the fourth to the peared. The ship's tending the time ;d the boat to sail, caused so much pr ildren. They were moved back, so nc lined for a year, at after Thanksgiving leave for Holland. The spirit of Tha Dutch slums and the only Thanksg Gather Together Ti fmm ? J * ? V /J Wendy Morgan an mannerisms are perfect. Her throaty voice is at once sexy and sad and she manages to convey more about her character with a single glance than most actresses are able to convey in two hours of screen time. Schlesinger has been quoted as saying that Eichhorn will be one of the biggest stars of the 1980s and I agree with him totally. The third couple Schlesinger deals with in Yanks is Chick Vennera and Wendy Morgan, who represent the lower class. Their 1 love is mostly physical and their ' characters often seem to revel in | their lowness. She turns up ! pregnant by the film's end and Schlesinger turns the scene into a commentary about the difference i between love and lust. He seems to 1 be saying "If you treat love as a base instinct, you will be ! punished." ( Such a comment from a director of lesser skill undoubtedly would icross the 8 for years | 'ere accustomed to some kind of M celebration of the harvest. During 1| a harvest feast, Martinmas, was || 11. This holiday was celebrated in jf] i, Holland, England, and most of ?gj he traditional food for Martinmas n fact, it was goose the Pilgrim it to get for their Thanksgiving Jjj goose, they found turkey, and so |J( ;an tradition. fjjj ? didn't celebrate another ^ 1 two years later, on July 30,1623. It feast, but rather a feast to thank arrival of the ship "Anne" from IjJ tional Thanksgiving day until 1789, H hington proclaimed November 26 ^ ksgiving Day. This proclamation, f for the year 1789. After this year, |Vv everted to local or regional ob- H n't until 1863 that Lincoln, in an Hj tnffpthoi* a OAlinfrir Axri nnnxt K.. H w^kaavs M VVU1IV* J iV/1 II O I I Uy ned the last Thursday in November ||J ay of thanksgiving. pg tin D. Roosevelt, bowing to the I lerchants, changed the date from II third Thursday in November, ex- H of Christmas sales. This move R otest that, in 1941, the holiday was I : >w merchants no longer wait until ||| f tn Qfllrartico PlirioJmno fenw ) fcV UUTV1 VlOV VIII to VI11 CIO, riksgiving is perhaps best shown in ^ iving song that I know of: "We r? Aclr (Kli I nw/l'D Dliuininx '' is <U?n HIV AW1 VI O UlCOOlll^. itnri tn id Lisa Eichhorn wave goodl seem preachy, but it doesn't when coming from Schlesinger. The unfolding love between the other couples is so beautiful to watch that the viewer is willing to go along with whatever comment the director makes about love affairs icaa suvui y. Colin Welland and Walter Bernstein have done an excellent job in creating a script that weaves these three stories together, and they've also included several funny and several not-so-funny scenes that deal with the clash between American and English cultures. The most important of these peripheral stories is the one concerning racism in the American Army. The scene takes place at a New Year's Eve dance where an English girl asks a black G.I. for a dance. The two swirl and gyrate across the floor until a group of redneck soldiers incite the blacks to riot. The unprejudiced English girls *j?Yr "^ilBrti^P^Cil^ Norman Rockwell's' 1 J If ffov I ~ : . ,<s ;v." $;;.jM ttlittsfiiSSI^* xS B^n^H ? y |^^J| i'T^r:" )ye to GIs in 'Yanks' retaliate by dropping their white -i _ i _ - t .1 i . >_i uaies lor a single aance wun tne black servicemen, most of whom are too frightened to have very much of a good time. The girls get their point across, however, and the violence subsides. Technically, Yanks is one of the most magnificent films of the decade. The details cinematographer Dick Bush captures on film give the picture an almost documentary feel, but the colors and settings are so lush that the movie also has a fairy talelike quality. Richard Rodney Bennett's score is moving without being overpowering and the theme song ("I'll Be Seeing You" sung by Anr><? Cliahnn\ if 1 * *?a?iv UllV&iVII/ Id CHUIU51 illl" bearably romantic. Undoubtedly there have been bigger bundles from Britain than Yanfes, but there's never been a bundle more welcome. It's a joy from start to finish and a sure bet to make every critic's year-end "10 Best" list, including mine. ; 'i V H m&XujjV &H -;; Ifl^R ^fin I ? Freedom from Went'