The gamecock. (Columbia, S.C.) 1908-2006, April 06, 1983, Page 14, Image 14
Adventure mo
By Pamela Shaw
An established Hollywood tradition is that
of the trend: if a certain r?f film Hom
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well at the box office, producers rush to
clone it.
* '' It is precisely this reasoning that has
created "High Road to China," a campy
lookalike of the tremendously popular
"Raiders of the Lost Ark."
"China," with its exotic 1920s setting and
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"Raiders" on the surface, but in those areas
where the latter succeeded ? non-stop
action, lovable characters and superb
scripting ? "China" simply does not cut the
mustard.
THE MAIN attraction of "China" is its
leading man, Tom Selleck (who, ironically,
lost out on the "Raiders" role of Indiana
Jones because of his CBS-TV series,
"Magnum, P.I.").
Selleck portrays Patrick O'Malley, a
cynical, drunken World War I veteran who
flies a pair of biplanes in some undisclosed
Asian SPtiinf O'MflllPV ic hiroH hoiroor
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Eve Tozer (Bess Armstrong) to find her
father in Nepal.
Tozer, as played by Armstrong, is a
spunky young lady indeed, as she promptly
exhibits by flying one of the planes herself.
Her snappy, often profane remarks and
gutsy deeds are reminiscent of Karen
Allen's Marion in "Raiders," although they
lack the style and quality.
Like Indiana Jones, Selleck has a sidekick
along for the ride to provide straight lines ?
his mechanic, Struts (Jack Weston). Weston
has the most fun in the movie. When the trio
lands in Nepal amidst an unfriendly tribe,
and the chieftain invites them to dinner,
Acclaimed poet
By Chris Handal
"I'm not happy unless I'm in the middle of s
to work on two or three things at a time. I th
pulsive person. I'd just feel lost if I
something," Maxine Kumin said recently.
The Pulitzer Prize-winning poet, at USC k
fourth guest in the 1983 Spring Writers Serie
by those words. She has authored four i
collections of poetiy snd a collection of criti
has also written several children's books.
Kumin was awarded the 1973 Pulitzer Prize
was named Consultant in Poetrv to the Lihrs
for 1981-82.
THOUGH SHE considers herself primarily
said her prose writing is useful. "It keeps
honest. It's good discipline to write prose,
leaps you make in poetry to the simple declar
of prose.
"Poems are terrible risks. The ground un
swampy. The ground under the prose write
said.
Kumin, who said she wanted to be a poet s
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ivie fails in atti
film review
Struts deadpans, "Does that mean he's
going to feed us or eat us?"
AS THE title suggests, O'Malley and crew
don't find the elder Tozer in Nepal, but in
China, about 90 minutes into the film. And a
tedious 90 minutes it is. This film might well
have been named "Long Road to China."
The climax is a predictable and
uneventful mess that, even worse, is no fun
whatsoever. After all, an adventure tha,t
doesn't lead to some good guys beating the
devil out of some despicable bad guys has no
joy.
Chief among the movie's difficulties is the
script, by Sandra Roland and Lee Pogostin.
Characters are flat and rarely have decent
lines, while plot holes are large enough to fly
O'Malley's biplanes through with room to
spare.
These troubles waste Selleck and Armstrong.
She has little to work with and must
be content playing second banana, while he
can only grin and bear his two-dimensional
character.
OF ALL THE roles, the most vague is that
of the villain, Bentik. Robert Morley, a fine
character actor, takes a valiant stab at this
part, but he, too, is wasted.
Visually, "China" succeeds to some ex
tent, with some appealing aerial
cinematography by Peter All worth. Shots of
Nepal and China (actually Yugoslavian
locations) are pretty and colorful at times.
But director Brian Hutton, who did such a
visits USC, disc
;omething. i try 'The irony is that you
ink I'm a com- n0et, but you can make 01
weren't doing
ist week as the
s, seems to live chiid, often teaches at colleg
aovels, several herself. She recently finishec
cal essays. She residence at Bucknell Univers
"The irony is that you can't 1
tor poetry, and can make one talking about it,
iry of Congr&SS
POETS iVIUST seek out colli
living, Kumin said, ;;bGC2U?e
a poet, Kumin essential; it's a frivolous indi
? them (poets) fop; the poet is something
to go from the cultures, poets are statesmen,
ative narrative Society does not truly reco
after they have been safely de
der the poet is "It's certainly the academic c
r is firm," she alive. People like me are grat<
in and house us for a period of
?ince she was a since Robert Frost who could i
zuuy ure
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coming next ive
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jmpt to clone 'R
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Socialite Eve Tozer (Bess Armstrong) and rogi
"love, action and adventure" in "High Road to Chir
brilliant job with "Where Eagles Dare,"
fails with what should be the movie's
highlight ? its flying sequences. The most
notable letdown is a dogfight between
O'Mallpv anri an pvil ^rman ooo q
that promises derring-do but never delivers.
usses the state c
Kumin is optir
can't make a living as a the reasons our <
. , a very pragmati
ie talking about It. poetry is enlargii
n . .. . u . Crediting this
Poet Maxinc Kumin poetry in school,
es and universities to support PEOPLE OF!
1 a five-week stint as poet-in- another reason it
ity. are frightened o
nake a living as a poet, but you understand it," s
" she auinn?d not
-x rf VTA J/WV/VX J 1U UUl> lit
Many of Kum
eges and universities to earn a England environ
: in this culture, poetry is not Poems get start
ilgence. The poet is seen as a event, or sometii
to be made fun of In other let go in my head
" As with many
gnize the works of poets until fluenee Kurnin's
sad for several years, she said, end before you li'
community that keeps the poet have always beei
iful to institutions that bring us "tsui I tnuug?t
time. I don't know of any poet Now, the world
nakea living as a poet." burden."
"" i
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drivers
1 Will ed
I the legi
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iday, Saturday
M*T ENSEMBLE
Remerr
You w
to call
. or con
Ketones J aup
BLANKS |
. I ^
aiders'
nistic about the poet's fate. She said one of
;ulture doesn't appreciate poetry is that it is
c culture, but she thinks "our audience for
ig year by year." i
growth to the exposure children receive to
Kumin said, "I think we saved a few."
rEN find poetry inaccessible, she said ?
; is not valued in our society. "A lot of people
f poetry because they're afraid they won't
ihe said, explaining that a broad knowledge
jcessary to enjoy it.
in's poems are rooted in her native New
ment. "Wherever I am, a poem gets started,
ed in so many different ways ? a direct
mes it begins with a nagging line that won't (
,"she said.
artists, world politics are beginning to inwriting.
"I'm very concerned the world may
veoui your normal life," she said. "I myself
1 opposed to didactic and polemic writing.
po?try was too fragile an 3ft for this burden,
is too fragile for poetry not to C?rry
i
did S.C. find $50
plus?
oposed insurance laws
e for those under 25?
ffeet will proposed
egislation have on ,
?
ucation be cut again by
islature?
out Wednesday night
at 6:00 on
CAROLINA
uruATB
iber:
ill have the opportunity
in with your questions
1 merits.
rnativp on R I
VUSC-FM~ I