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About The daily Nebraskan. ([Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-current | View Entire Issue (Sept. 2, 1977)
pago 8 friday September 2, 1977 daily nebraskan 'Roxy Theatre creator thinks dreams came true By Casey McCabe For most people, making dreams come true is just a tired cliche. For Patrick Callahan it has been a rewarding, though not exactly profitable venture. Callahan is the creator-owner-manager of the Roxy Theatre, 12th and Q St., in the Glass Menagerie. There you can be entertained by some of the most interesting and exciting films in movie history. Callahan, 26, moved to Lincoln from Chicago in 1973. He said that after examining Lincoln's cultural events, he was disappointed and decided to do something about it. "When the Hollywood & Vine theatre went out of business, I was lucky enough to hear about it the day before it was to be torn out," he explained. "Little did I know what I was getting into, as it took a month to fix it back up. But in the process I've met hun dreds of wonderful Lincoln people. Alternative entertainment "I wanted to provide Lincoln with an alternative," Callahan said. "Good movies, decent food, good music and smiling faces." Callahan chooses the schedule from a request bowl in the theatre's lobby. The concessions are what Callahan terms "healthful munchies," such as natural corn, chips and fruit Juices. Tapes made by local musicians are played during inter mission. There is a bulletin board that posts announcements, business cards and ads. Roxy's clientele return the favor by posting the Roxy's schedule in their business. "We opened the season with a free concert by Earth works," Callahan said. "It was a very, very happy night as the group played until 2:30 ajn. to a most contented crowd. It is what the Roxy dream is all about to be-alternative, comfortable entertainment." ... . Double feature The Roxy currently shows double features for $1.50 admission on Thursdays through Mondays, with A Thursdays. Callahan said the Roxy is wide open to Lincoln. He said he now is considering staging live theatre produc tions, and in November the world-renown Africa explorer, descendant of Charles Darwin and commentator Quentin Keynes will narrate expedition films. While the Roxy does not make a profit, Callahan said he considers the theatre worth overcoming all the un pleasantries of the business world. He said he enjoys work ing with creative, talented, and thoughtful people in the project. , . ; "Over the past few weeks, I've become aware of the fact that Lincoln is finally beginning to be the cultural center it can be," Callahan said. "If the people of Lincoln are careful, they can have one hell of a city. I'nrproud tobe part of it." The Roxy schedule: Sept. h2;Sons and Lovers (1960) Virgin and the Gypsy (1970; R) Sept. S-l9;Prisoner of Shark Island (1936) The Time Machine (I960) Sept. 22-26; The Walking Stick (1970) The Young Lovers (1964) Sept. 29-Oct. 3-,Lolita (1962) - Schedule is subject to change. There will be a 10-minute intermission between (rouble features. arts Bi entertainment ETV features bluegrass, folk sounds List will be published A listing of this semester's cultural events at UNL and in Lincoln now is being prepared. Any group or organization sponsoring speakers, musicians, plays, danc ers, films, art exhibits or other arts and entertainment events should contact Cheryl Long at 113 Westbrook Music Building, phone 472-2997. If successful, the publi cation could later be incorporated in a magazine . The sounds of music become country western, folk and bluegrass when Nebraska ETV airs "Sounds of Country" tonight at 8:30. The 30-minute special is hosted by Nebraska folklorist Roger Welsch, who is a UNL assistant professor of English and Anthropology. The concert was taped at the Stuhr Museum Railroad Town near Grand Island and features Lincoln guitarist and vocalist, John Walker; a country bluegrass group from Springview, The Kenaston Family; Broken Bow fiddler Charles Pettis and North Platte gui tarist Nels Clang. Walker, a Nebraska Wesleyan associate professor of philosophy, calls his brand of music country blues. "Basically I'm a folk singer," Walker said. "All the music I do is acoustic." He said most bluegrass and folk music is acoustic while country is more electrified. . "Folk music is music that is created naturally and" spontaneously without a desire for commercial publica tion or performance," he said. "Bluegrass is a species of country music. Country music is much broader. It's like a dog and an animal; not all animals are dogs," he said. In the show Walker sings "Wabash Cannonball" and his original composition, "Sand Hills Rag." His first album "John Walker, An Okie Boy and Other Tunes" will be followed by a new release within the next two months. Walker said he has no problem balancing his role as professor and singer. "It's the best of both possible worlds." Newest Bond flick more like sophisticated cartoon By J.MarcMushkin Several years ago, I happened across a copy of Pauline Kael's Deeper Into Movies. At the time I could have been considered one of those "I don't know much about art, but I know what I like" types. To me, that seemed a fool proof form of logic and I was happy making judgments of films with virtually no concept of the art of cinema. If a movie tickled my fancy, that was enough. Skimming through the table of contents I found a movie I liked, Straw Dogs, and checked what she wrote. Even though most of it passed right over my head, I slowly realized there was more to that film than I had imagined. Kael discussed Dustin Hoffman's performance, how it related to his character in The Graduate, and Sam Peckinpah's powerful direction of the film's complex plots and sub-plots. Most people never get the luck to have this level of criticism fall into their laps. This is unfortunate because that naive noncritical approach taken by most is the natural state for movie-goers. It has no relation to age, education, or intelligence; movies are simply too new an art form to have a popular traditional standard. Movie "reviewers" only worsen the problem, in my mind, because they tend to highlight the sensational aspects of plot without judging its merit. Harrowing experience This is not to say that reading a movie critique need be a harrowing intellectual experience; rather, .a good critique should help bring out the best in good movies and expose shallow, weak, or exploitative films. movie review First-rate criticism, such as Kael's, John Simon's, or Dwight MacDonald's-to name' a few-can open one's mind to all the richness and depth of a good film. This level of criticism is contagious. The reader soon becomes a more discriminating movie-gocr. I can't pretend that I could match'the critics I men tioned; they have the wealth of experience and knowledge of cinema history I am only beginning to work on. But I hope to lend some insight into the good -and bad movies that come to town. Well, I'd first like to look at one of the summer's biggest films, Vie Spy Who Loved Me. . . - - James Bond movies hold a special appeal for me per sonally because they evoke memories of a time when fantasy wa3 perfectly justified. Those mid-sixties Bond films were often a delight replete with gadgets and sdvcntnre. In the seventies, though; and particularly when Roger Moore stepped in, I hey tufned stale and somehow became even more frivolous than the oldies. But Bond No. 10, Vie fry Who Loved Me, breaks from this Ucnd and proves funny and, above all, enter taining. There are many old Bond standbys: a helicopter chase and plenty of voluptuous women. But this movie rises above its vapid stars with spectacular stunts and a fresh new foe for 007, a seven-foot, steel-toothed hitman. (This popular character, Jaws, swims into the sunset at the end hinting at some sequel. But what would they call it?) Bond's carsub is another great effect and the underwater laboratory and tanker are similarly im pressive. '.Classy sets It is unfortunate, however, that the classy sets and effects in the film, instead of complementing its stars substitute for them. Barbara Bach, the Russian agent is pretty enough, but her girlish manner makes her rather unconvincing as a spy. Any time she would rattle off some facts to impress Bond, it reminded me of a snotty junior high girl after memorizing her lesson. I was hoping Bond would get fed up with her and slap her around to get serious, but that would call upon a little more character than Roger Moore could muster; With this performance he adds new meaning to the word "stiff," It seems that they removed whatever twinkle his eyes might have had. The scene at the bar illustrates both characters' shallowness. The old "shaken, not stirred" Bond drink used to sym bolize hi; aristocratic suaveness, but when Bach points this out to the bartender, the drink acts as just another point she scores in trying to impress Bond. Moore quickly matches her by ordering her drink-it plays as more of a game than a character. Snappy comebacks Furthermore, Bond's traditional sardonic wit mani fests itself exclusively in the form of snappy comebacks which get downright infuriating after a while. Inspite of all this, the magic of fantasy survives, and The Spy Who Loved Ate succeeds. Perhaps Moore and Bach perform a valuable service by keeping our attentions on the gadgets and stunts, because no other film of the summer, including Star Wars, can match them. The effects make it seem like a sophisticated cartoon. This feeling is a special form of exhilarating entertainment that so few movies can provide. Whatever the reason, this film brings James Bond out of the sixties and into the seventies to give us an adventurefantasy that we don't mind oohing and aahing at. 4r )) : . V-" r''X ' " ' - . . - sfi! -' ' '''.: "';:''. '': ' ? "C ' J- fr- f ' "-; : ' , V Ty 1. ...a t , . , -" jr"" '-,5. ' ' : ,, J- - j ( - 3 J ) - J. - : v.v" .-. r. v -...7,, -wwr , - - ! : Y i . J . 14 ' i - ' .A ' ' 'v "-if fc ' "- ; :. i" f. ; . I if ' -------- 1 111 ' i i . .. -lit II r.ioto courtesy of United Attistj Barbara Bach unconvcntionaly opens thechampagne for Roger Moore in Ian Fleming's The Spy Who Loved Me