The gamecock. (Columbia, S.C.) 1908-2006, April 11, 2003, Page 5, Image 5
THE GAMECOCK ♦ Friday, April 11,2003 . 5
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BY NIK RAMACHANDRAN
THE GAMECOCK
The Nickelodeon Theatre is
once again in the midst of its an
nual Jewish Film Festival.
Because of the independent venue,
Columbia is the only city of its size
in the United States to offer this
type of event.
It started three years ago with
the Cultural Arts Committee of the
Columbia Jewish Community
Center, which strives to encourage
arts and culture by presenting pro
grams to the Jewish community.
This year’s festival showcases
four feature films, a documentary
and a film short. The productions
hail from a mix of countries —
Israel, France, Czechoslovakia
and the United States.
“Through film, we can gain un
derstanding of the culture associ
ated with varied people,” said
Anne Raman; executive director of
the .Columbia Film Society,
Nickelodeon’s parent organization.
“It is the film director's vision that
makes this festival so unique.”
“Kedma,” a film named after a
European refugee ship that sailed
toward the newly formed state of
Israel, was shown the first two
nights of the event.
The film, which was released in
■ 2001, had its world premiere at the
2002 Cannes Film Festival. Filmed
in a brutal and violent cinematic
style, “Kedma" recreates the early
battles involved in the Israeli na
tion’s fragile be
ginnings.
The film
shows a people
ravaged by a
war in Europe,
only to be faced
with an endless
battle for its na
tion’s creation.
Beautiful poetic
passages writ
ten during the
period are in
serted into char
acter dialogue,
as the film rais
es many moral
questions, such
as the merits of
war and the per
secution of in
nocent people.
The film is espe
ciauy poignant given that it was
filmed just days before the latest
round of Arab-Israeli fighting
broke out two years ago.
The emotional final scenes of
the movie show an elderly Arab
man shouting that the Palestinian
people “will remain as a wall” and
“will father generations of rebel
lious chil
dren.” The
scene then
switches to a
Jewish man who is on the brink
of a nervous breakdown. “We
have no history”; he proclaims
through sobs, “suffering is what
makes us Jews.” Many theatergo
ers were as disoriented as the
characters in the film, and some
had tears in
their eyes as
they left the
theater.
Tamir Larren, a young Israeli
man who has lived in the United
States for the past three years,
said thefilm was “a powerful
statement” and showed “a contin
uous war with no solution.”
“Mistakes were made in the
past that can never be undone,”
he said, “and the director shows
this through
his film.”
Not all the
films shown
were as intense
as “Kedma.”
“God is
Great, And I’m
Not,” a roman
tic comedy, was
screened
Monday night.
The movie,
starring Audry
Tautou (also
star of
“Amelie"), tells
the story of a
fashion model
who converts to
Judaism after
being dumped
by her
boyfriend. She
men meets a vegetarian, non-prac
ticing Jew who resolves to convert
his faith so mat me two can marry.
Hilarious hijinks ensue in a Woody
Allen-like fashion.
I
• On Sunday Afternoon at 2. a free
screening of the documentary
“Laihd of Promise’’ will be shown
at the Columbia Museum of Art.
Director Paul Keyserling will
lead a discussion after the film,
along with composer Meria
Warshauer. who is a Columbia na
tive.
“Land of Promise” documents
more than 300 years of the Jewish
experience in South Carolina,
from its earliest flays through
modern times. The film notes var
ious historical accomplishments,
such as the first Jew elected to
public ofTice, and addresses the
many challenges Jews have faced
in order to maintain their identity
in the New World.
“This film is worth seeing not
just because of the history of the
Jewish community', but also the
level of tolerance and acceptance
here in South Carolina,” Raman
said. “It shows how a community
documented their history and how
you may document your own his
tory in the present day.”
Those attending the event should
arrive early; seating will be limited
for the screening.
Comments on this story?E-mail
gamecockmixeditor@hotmail.com
Through film,
we can gain
understanding
of the culture
associated
with varied
people. It is
the film direc
tor’s vision that
makes this fes
tival so umq^.
ANNE RAMAN
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF THE COLUMBIA FILM
SOCIETY. NICKELODEON’S PARENT ORGANIZATION
PLAY REVIEW
Play breaches comfort zone
“SPINNING INTO BUTTER"
Trustus Theatre
BY HILARY SCHRAMM
THE CAMECOGK
With its oversized, cushioned
armchairs and personalized bas
kets of popcorn, Trustus Theatre
isn’t your average night on the
town. In fact, it’s more like bring
ing a play into your living room.
This friendly, unassuming at
mosphere and the small cast of its
current production, “Spinning
Into Butter," make the theater ex
perience fun and casual. For in
stance, before the show
Wednesday, each audience mem
ber met the director, who intro
duced himself and handed out
Butterfingers for “Candy From
Strangers Wednesdays.”
But within the homey setting
of Trustus, “Spinning Into Butter”
takes viewers out of their comfort
zone to consider racism, both as a
society and on a personal level.
Faculty at a small, private col
lege in Belmont, Vt., are forced to
deal with racist threats toward a
black student. As they decide how
to help the student body and the
college’s image deal with these
threats, they consider their own
attitudes toward race and dis
crimination. '
Intriguingly, the audience nev
er meets the endangered student,
Simon. He remains an invisible
icon of racism and its victims. This
illustrates how the play is far more
interested with personal intro
spection than actually dealing with
the problem at hand. The main
character, Sarah Daniels (Erin
Wilson), offers a cynical, multi-lay
ered analysis of her own struggle
with her racist views — both her
recognition of them and her many
attempts to deal with them.
The most impressive perfor
mances of the night were offered
by Bob Hungeriford, who plays
Dean Burton Strauss, and Don
Mohr, the janitor Mr. Meyers.
Hungerford presented his older,
“assimilated’' character amus
i.' Hi . I-Hii|m i m
ingly yet convincingly. Mohr gave
the most natural act of all — the
audience was never provoked to
question the authenticity of his
character.
Wilson, as Sarah, engages the
audience through her actions and
racist ideas. Her performance
might have lapsed a few times, but
overall, she succeeded as the most
frail, human character of all.
Through its connection with
Sarah, the audience was able to
follow the story, which otherwise
might have seemed too intellectu
al and detached.
The production had a few weak
♦ ‘BUTTER’, SFE PAGE 6
PHOTO BY TRISHA SHADWEtl/THE GAMECOCK
Paul Kaufmann plays Ross Collins in "Spinning Into Butter,” a
play that deals with the racism of a small Vermont college.
Dade County Resistance set
to unveil first full-length album
BY CHARLES TOMLINSON
THE GAMECOCK
After less than two years in
the Columbia music scene, punk
rock band Dade County
Resistance will release its first
full-length album, “Every Last
Chance,” Friday night at the
New Brookland Tavern.
The band had planned to
record a full album last year, but
the recorded songs turned into the
band’s “The Long Story Short”
demo. Bassist Mark Emerson said
the band was glad it waited to
record a full album.
“We’re really pleased with
these songs and the way every
thing turned out,” Emerson said.
The band’s reaction to the al
bum was “ ‘Wow, this is where
we really want to be,’ " said gui
tarist and vocalist Garrett
Grashuis. “It was a natural pro
gression of the band. ”
“Every Last Chance” will be
released on Illinois-based Trend
Is Dead Records in conjunction
with Grashuis' own label, Three
Day Hero Records. Grashuis, a
veteran of the Columbia music
scene, also played in such bands
as Self and Insult to Injury.
The album affords Dade
County the opportunity to explore
a gamut of emotions, dynamics
♦ RESISTANCE, SEE PAGE 6
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MdTOS SPECIAL TO
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Garrett Grashuis, left, and Mark Emeh
County Resistance * new album, w
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