The gamecock. (Columbia, S.C.) 1908-2006, April 27, 1981, Page Page 7, Image 7
' ' '1'"' "11
Hea
/ft /i ^
VOO I
By David I
FHm Cri
"Heaven's Gate" is pure hell.
Michael Cimino, in a vain eff<
once promising career, has r
million fiasco that was withdi
disastrous one-week run in New
two hours and 20 minutes may i
made, but all worse movies ("Tl
"Guyana ? Cult of the Damnc
ridiculously bad that one could a
them,
"Heaven's Gate" is simply a I
mess.
The picture pretends to be aba
a series of conflicts that took pla<
European immigrants (whom
rustlers) in Wyoming in the 189
about, however, is how a writerwreckless
disregard for budget*
^1111 I ? -
milium uciug spem on a s<
paper it was written on.
Isabella Huppert and Kris ,
$36 million 'Heaven's Gate.
THE ACADEMY AWARD C
4<m1 rv tt a. ii
ijf#o s iiie ueer nunier appa
to rush to his brain that he be
wrong. The dialogue he si
"Heaven's Gate" (alls somei
purple prose and not a single lin<
Dregs
By Pata McElveen ii
Special to tha Gamacock a
"Down-home boys go to J?
the big city" could almost be J!
the theme of the story of the ?
Dregs so far. Not long ago, jj
they were an Augusta-based n
Capricorn act, playing 11
mostly club dates (including P
those in Columbia quite s
regularly), and leaving in ^
their wake loyal legions of
awed and enamored n
Southerners. s
Now, after a change of
name, personnel adjustments,
a few years of
hectic touring, and a steady
rise in popularity, they're an j
Atlanta-based Arista troupe, [,
just beginning to taste the I
national recognition they so I
richly deserve. But, as a sad |
consequence to locals, it's
been far. too long since
they've been booked in
Columbia. J
Steve Morse, guiding 9
genius of the Dregs, now has [
an even firmer hand in the k
band's destiny. The talented I
guitarist/composer has now R
produced the band's second
IP nn tho Arict'i lohol
M.JA VII MIV ni j
"Unsung Heroes."
But as the Dregs climb
into the big time, reaching {
beyond their loyal devotees
ainmer
4
n % '
C/Cft
mill
Saker
ftic
>rt to save what's left of hi
e-edited the four-hour, $3
awn from release after <
York last fall. The resultinj
not be the worst movie eve
L _ .4.1 . _ % 19 4 _ ? <
tie benunei, ine swarm,
id" and "Sphinx") were s
t least get a good laugh out g
>rutal, insulting and sadisti
lit the Johnson County Wan
:e between cattle barons an
the barons thought to b
9s. What the movie is reall
director's megalomania an
try restraints could result i
:ript that wasn't worth th
i UjaflH||HNu4
>.'<m "
Kr/stofferson star in th
*
"imino won for his work i
rently caused so much bloc
gan to think he could do r
Libsequently concocted f<
where between poetry ar
eof it is believable.
i go/<
i Dixieland, they are
nnfolii aufora nf hniv harH it
<^UVV1J UTTHA V V* ??V ff lu* U ??
? for an all-instrumental act
) make it big these days,
ome "middle ground" must
e found. They realize the
eed to package themselves
ito a somewhat universally
alatable product, without
traying from the original
oncept and alienating their
jyalists. This is a dilemma
nost class bands face: to
tick to quality or l4sell out."
As I said, a reminder thai
With their new album,
instrumental Dregs hoi
nnmmercial success. Th
cover, but they believe
self.
s Gai
on be
Most of the dialogue is so j:
meaning that it doesn't so mil
mouths as dribble down their chi
In one scene, a falling-dowi
? ceedingly eloquent terms, exj
6 toxica tion stems from the lack o
a room where he's been drinking
B then shoot a game of pool, disc
* while.
1 l_ 1 A.
isimino s suDsequem crimes ,
0 writing are innumerable, but Uh
,f which come late in the film, whe
from the cattle barons' hired
c frightened, George" and "The
doubly bathetic in light of the fa
? significant enough to merit putti
? THE EDITING ? and it tool
% assemble this monument to sadi
1 It's as if the editors took the ir
Piniinn ohnt (nimnp hoc if that
VJIillltAV kJIIVV \1 UtIIVI lAUtJ * v Miuv
was 35-to-l), threw it on the edit
together with a pitchfork. Nc
"Heaven's Gate."
Its first 90 minutes are a stri
i related scenes that flow into on<
| being dumped from a wheelbar
utter chaos. So much happens
track of it. And it's filmed from
^ one can't even tell who's shooti
* overturned on top of who else. C
| in mid-sentence.
| Further hampering our abilit
I fact that Cimino shoots virtually
_ m ? a ? ww
H ot ausi or a pun ot smone. tie a
| were going to be outlawed toi
casions, makes the unpardon;
camera tilt down while a partia
rjj a huge gray streak, originally
1 the sun, that moves around with
I heads as if it was an 1890s foreru
P
I THE BEST that can be said
U Gate'' is that each performer pr
It Huppert in "Violette," Christc
|? Hunter," Kristofferson in "!
p everything.
But Cimino's script and dir
chance to create anything her
close to a consistent characters
plays the leader of the cattle ba
evil-looking in a black moustacl
villains more often.
Cimino, on the other hand, she
again.
[n For the record, the title of the
^ of an 1890s roller disco, where tl
l0 every now and then to boogie th
)r title strikes Cimino as being ir<
l(t lofty adjective. It strikes me as
film
1UI1I 1 U3VU
?r'big
the Dregs will continue to
maintain their present
course is timely. A couple of
steps toward that "middle
ground" mav have* somp nf
us wondering. The Dixie
Dregs are all of a sudden just
"The Dregs" (catchy, ain't
it?) Have they forsaken the
i Southland? I wonder if they
still end their shows with
"Dixie?"
1 ALTHOUGH MORSE is
sticking to the "Dreg fort
mula" closely, there is no
rJ * ||5Al
\ ^jgjjE rank.
' Unsung Heroes," the alive
to score a nation-wide
* -? - <1 ?i
ay iacK mourns on zns a/oum
the music will speak for it
n
IC Id
>mb
regnant with philosophical
tch float out of the actor's
ns and necks.
n-drunk John Hurt, in explains
that half of his inf
adequate ventilation in the
. He and Kris Kristofferson
ussing cosmic truths all the
against the art of dialoguei
most absurd ones are those
n the immigrants are fleeing
killers. Lines like "I'm so
;y're killing all of us" are
ct that Cimino deemed them
ng them in subtitles.
c no less than four editors to
ism ? is atrocious.
riles and miles of footage that
the shooting ratio of this film
ting room floor, then tossed it
thing ever makes sense in
ng of boring, seemingly non;
another like so many bricks
tow. The last 50 minutes are
that it is impossible to keep
i so many points of view that
ing who or whose wagon just
>ne edit cuts Kristofferson off
ies to follow the action is the
/ every scene through a cloud
lso uses lens filters as if they
morrow and, on several ocable
mistake of having the
1 filter is on it. Thus, we have
meant to reduce the glare of
tin scenes, obscuring people's
inner of The Blob.
for the acting in "Heaven's
eviously has done good work:
>pher Walken in "The Deer
Semi-Tough" and Hurt in
rtfitfA o m? Ann n
cvuv/ii uuii tr give aujri/nc a
e. The only one who comes
nation is Sam Waterston, who
rons. Waterston, delightfully
he, should be allowed to play
>uld never be allowed to work
picture comes from the name
le characters gather together
eir cares away. 1 imagine the
inic, prescient or some other
i being pointless, as does the
time9
shortage of creative juices.
Most compositions on
"Unsung Heroes" are more
of the same exciting and
immensely clever Morse
magic.
Especially pleasing is the
blossoming of the newest
Dreg, T. Lavitz. His
keyboard playing is easily
the most jazz-oriented
musicianship in the Dregs
lineup, lending the band
further fusion credibility. He
is the first Dreg keyboardist
of the last three to actually
exude his own unique,
personal style from within
the context of Morse's
compositions. The chemistry
here is simply superb. And
something interesting to
note: First live gig as a Dreg
was right here in Columbia
at O'Sheas (now Dundee's
Saloon).
Their recording engineers
have discovered some
digital recording effects,
nrlrlind on avtra trut/ih r\f
HUVIIIIQ n? VAVI 0 iVVIVIl VI
class to the sound quality.
Listen to Morse's guitar
cascade from one channel to
another. Techniques such as
this, the eternally clever
composition, and sheer Dreg
make this album another
impressive Dreg effort.
90MMHMI
Kris Kris
in Michai
Afi
at!
By Jo)
Sta
A selectioi
collected fc
faculty anc
Sunday a
Museums. 1
fersabroad
art created
m*v4in Snmi
old, ranging
half of the t\
to the 17th
were produc
forms but
tended i
ceremonies.
The purpc
annual show
COLLECTS
ART, is to c
the interesti
ftiA KxAra/1 on
uic ux uau o\interests
university c<
This shov
from the w
Africa. Mos
this year
traditional
headdresses
addition t
namental (
A 1 J
jeweiry ar.u
AFRICA!>
a rich ti
resisted
religious
pressures
throughout
sculptures
for magica
iico Tn Aft
U*JV. AW 1UI
necessary
rituals sue
The fornr
these Afri<
centuries ol
different tri
sculpture if
single piec<
emphasis <
axis. Symi
create an
serenity, ai
style is a
crafted by
W^0!^^KmMy
/' '^wk- '
|M<
flBB
IMP
WK-ii^ mHBp &&*"-' -'
W a- '*M
mm $fl
HHB ?
toff or son enjoys a game o
*/ Cimino's 'Heaven's Gate.'
rican exl
YlcKissic
res Rogers (no.18). It is i
wwrtt.r "Janus-head"
- A, . 4 Masks which
" 0ffnC?,Vr ritual danc<
|y ,JjS JiLn'S animal and hu
An example i
* mask with
rhls e*A. of' crafted by th,
range ot African it ^
from various statue 0r mask
i items are very t0 ^ ,
1 fr?m.Kthe I living being
ventieth century
century. Some
ed in traditional
were never in- v v \ '
for use in
se of the second .
ing, A CAMPUS WyEM
I: AFRICAN
>ffer evidence of Vl;.;;j
Ug 1IIMIC1 lal UIIU HHJV
ope of collecting :
within the j
immunity. ;i
/ includes work
estern region of
t of the work in
's exhibit is r'-J ji
wood sculpture, i | jl
i and masks. In fijjTr |
here are orcunh
o C MwPiS SCifiDtii
ft/jtvio ouvn ao r
basketry. African art ex
I ART developed "Jmus-hMd'
adition which Phy. (Photo
influence of Williams)
and cultural
of invaders AFRICAN
history. Most become one
were oroduced important trm
1 and religious world. Its beat
icans they were the co-ord
for performing emotional at
cessfully. structural pri
i and styles of inspiring to f
:an pieces are tradition c<
d. carried on hv members of oi
bes. Most of the community.
i hewn out of a
i of wood, with Singing star
mi the verticle will appear v,
metrical halves man Delbert
impression of Sunday, May
i example of this Carolina Col
t ?? * ?
tieacue ruiiy concert will sU
the Baule people tickets are
v.^-yrj
f billiards
libit
;k
typical of the
iconography.
1 were used in
;s resemble
man features,
s the wooden
monkey fu.
; secret Por
power of
; was believe
I than that of
ire at
MM typh
' iconog
by Ti
ART \
of the m
iitions of '
lty is found
ination
titudes wi
nciples. It .
ind this rich
.11 _ . _i i
meciea Dy
it intellectual
Willie Nelson
rith pop/jazzMcClinton
on
' 3 at the
iseum. The
*rt at 7:30 ami
>.50 and $9.50.