page 10
daily nebraskan
thursday, november 20, 1980
(ffGsInlfirS
Two new films inspire hope for American cinema
By Pete Schmitz
Just as I was about to give up on the
American cinema showing any signs of
improvement, two remarkable films,
Gloria (directed by John Cassavetes), and
It's My Turn (directed by Claudia Weill)
made their way to Lincoln for what
appears to be a very brief visit. The reason
these films are failing at the box office de
spite the good reviews they have received is
that they break too many rules in current
popular culture.
LJ J
nr
L
v1
reuiera
In a time when movies are being made
in a slick manner on multi-million-dollar
budgets, Cassavetes and Weill maintain
their creative integrity by working with
relatively small budgets in order to present
works of art marked by austerity and in
telligence. Another thing the directors did
wrong was to work with scripts that called
for strong and independent women.
However, It's My Turn at least had the
advantage of having Jill Clayburgh in the
leading role. Since Clayburgh is young and
attractive with two consecutive Oscar nom
inations behind her, she is considered,
"semi-bankable" by the studios.
But Gena Rowlands, who plays Gloria
Swcnson in Gloria, is middle-aged, non
prolific, and less than glamorous; for
actresses that spells disaster. This is a
shame because Rowlands has proven with
this film, as with A Woman Under the In
Fluenee, that she is one of the best actress
es in film today. Not even Jane Fonda,
Sissy Spacek or Meryl Streep can match
Rowlands' talents, which come with age,
experience, and time away from Holly
wood. Mob associate
In Gloria, Rowlands plays a former mob
associate who has settled down so that she
can enjoy her money, apartment, friends
and cat. But her life is disrupted by Phil,
a six-year-old Puerto Rican whose family
was killed by Gloria's friends after the
youngster's father informs the law of the
mob's activities. Just before Phil's family
is killed, Gloria gives him protection out of
love for the boy's mother, to whom she
was close.
Throughout the film, we see Gloria
using her wits as well as her gun in order to
protect the boy and herself. But even
though Gloria claims thqt she can shoot
anyone's guts out as long as she knows the
person, she uses her weapon discriminate.
In one instance she puts her life in greater
danger in order to spare the innocent lives
of others whom she cornered into a bath
room with her enemies.
In the tradition of the gangster genre,
this film has a violent and episodic plot
Pre-Baroque group
creates 'musical museum'
By Penelope M. Smith
This Friday ai Kimball Recital Hall you
can escape the popular music of your own
time and discover what your peers of 400
to (S00 years ago were listening and dancinu
to.
Calliope, a Renaissance band, is a quar
tet of reknowncd soloists on modern in
struments, who discovered a mutual inter
est in pie-Baroque music.
lien Harms, the group's percussionist,
who also plays for the Pennsylvania Ballet
and the Metropolitan Opera, spoke of the
group's formation and purpose.
Initially. Harms said, the group got to
gether because of the possibilities tor musi
cians in New York.
"Here in New York we have the phe
nomenon of freelance work, every tiling
from work tor the opera like I do, to
jingles for Kentucky Fried Chicken." said
Harms. "All of us are conservatory -trained
on modem instruments but we're from a
large pool of musicians who don't have to
be regularly employed."
Harms said that through working at var
ious jobs together, he and the other mem
bers of the band discovered a mutual in
terest in pre-Baroque music and started to
perform .
Part-time work
Though Calliope is supposed to be part
time work tor its members, they have per
formed in every majoi Renaissance festi
val and an constantly conducting seminars,
lectures and vsoikshops across the country .
In spite ot the small amount of expo
sure ol thou audience to some of the more
ancient and obscure music. Harms said
audiences respond enthusiastically because
of its attitude.
"Basically the music is straight forward,
it's not frivolous but you don't have to
work reai hard to understand it." he said.
"It's generally happy music, optimistic.
There are also many sad pieces, but it's a
purer emotion. !5th and 16th century
music is less encumbered with dialectical
determinism and existentialism. It doesn't
beat around the bush."
One of the things Calliope enjoys most
about the music is the amount of participa
tion allowed the artist in the creative pro
cess. "The music doesn't specify any particu
lar orchestration, instruments, dynamics,
tempo, or phrasing, wc do it all our
selves. In that way I suppose the closest
things to it are chamber music and jaz,"
Harms said. "For example. Friday night
we'll play l.'lomme Anne, from a 15th
century Burgundian manuscript. Only the
melody survives but we've created seven or
eight minutes of variations with accompan
iment. Musical museum
Harms said that though Calliope is in
part a "musical museum" the music is
being played with 20th century values by
20th century players.
"We can't play and the audience can't
listen like people 500 years ago, this adds
another clement of creativity." he said.
One of the most unique things about
Calliope is their use of old instruments that
have been created by instrument makers
based on pictorial sources. They have such
names as tabor, a ty pe of drum; the sack
but, a ty pe of Renaissance trombone; and
the vielle. a type of pioto viola in the 40
instruments I he group plays.
Symphony range
"The sounds we can create have the
same range as a symphony." Harms ex
plained. "The Renaissance was an age of
experimentation, some of the instruments
weren't successful and died out. some
of them remained "
The instruments that died out often
cause Harms recreative problems. Conse
quently some of the percussion instru
ments he makes lumsell lor the group.
"I've been making some Renaissance
tympany lor a year or two. 1 he pioblem is
that there's only one maker of copper
bowls in this country. He makes them for
candied apples tilings like that, and he has
a back order of six months. Only altei I gel
those can I begin to woik." said Harms.
People tend io underestimate the tech
nique of pre-Baioque musicians when in
fact. Harms said, some techniques are de
generated. Calliope is trying to discover
and utilie what they discern to be these
techniques and to use them in their re
citals. "The precision instruments of the Re
naissance were a lot more interesting and
the technique was a lot more developed
than today." he said. "For example the
tambourine technique. From paintings and
woodcuts of the period wc can conclude
that they played it in the complicated way
it's played in the Middle Fast today."
with a vibrant musical score to match.
Fortunately, though, Cassavetes spares us
the gory visual details that have made other
violent movies so popular (another rule
broken). More important is the fact that
Gloria still has the Cassavetes touch: it is
photographed with fast stock film, frames
are dominated by close-ups of the perform
ers' faces, and the story thcmatically is
concerned with the joys and sorrows of
relationships.
Indeed, Rowlands and Juan Adames
(who plays Phil), are a touching duo. Al
though Cassavetes put too many adult
phrases into Phil's mouth, we are con
vinced when Gloria says the boy is one of
the nicest persons that she has ever slept
with. And it must be stated that Adames is
an amazing discovery.
Best movie
This young actor explodes like James
Dean, broods like Montgomery Clift, and
radiates like Paul Newman. This is no acci
dent since Cassavetes has been fascinated
with the "method acting" technique which
influenced his acting career as well as the
careers of others who started performing in
the 50s.
Without a doubt, Gloria is the best
American movie released so far this year.
It probably will be a long time before we
see any film with a hero or heroine as brave
and sensitive as Gloria Swenson.
Jill Clayburgh 's character. Kate Gun
zingcr, is very different from Gloria; she is
a soft-spoken, middle-class professor of
mathematics at the University of Chicago.
But like Gloria, Kate has her orderly life
disrupted by a male whom she meets one
weekend in New York City.
Inner turmoil
Obviously, Kate is not representative of
many young adults today, but the turmoil
she feels is easy for many to identify with.
In one weekend she discovers the distance
people have been making between each
other. Some of it, as in the case of her
lather and herself, is inevitable. But the
emotional climax occurs when Kate real
izes that she can have a satisfying relation
ship once she commits herself to working
at it.
Like many of us, Kate was misled into
thinking that once a relationship starts all
efforts to perfect it can stop. While we're
uncertain as to what job Kate finally will
choose, the story ends on an affirmative
note as we know that Kate will not settle
for anything less in her relationships.
If you have been disgusted with the
recent rash of bad movies, see Gloria and
'.v My Turn. Neither film is perfect, but
they show a lot of hard work and sincerity
on the part of those involved in their
production.
YY
2 ads
FOR SALE-1 male and 1
female ticket together in South
stadium. Good seats. Call after 5
p.m. or all day Friday. 475
9301. Best offer. Also set of GA
tickets in North stadium.
Foi iiilc Tin ee male student
tickets toqether Call 474-3860
or 477-3886
For Sale: 1 male and 1 fe
male ticket toqether foi OU
ijume - 466-7520.
2 male and 1 female student
ticket toqether for OU NU. 472
9626
2 GA tickets to NU vs. OU.
Good seats $50 each. Call 472
0678 4 NU-OU male student
tickets. 475-9434, 476-1266
One 6 month old twin size
bed, $70. One 3 month old
Atari TV game with 2 cartridges
$120 Call 423-9420.
1 male ticket, NU-OU gome.
Call after 6 30 p.m. 423-0842.
For Sale One female ticket
to NU-OU game. Call 477-1788
HELP!! I need money to get
home. PLEASE buy my game
ticket! Call Anne 472-9437
1 male, 1 female student
ticket together for NU-OU
game SE comet. S40 apiece
989 5635
1978 Kawasak. KE125
tgieen), great MPG, qre.it ttans
(Kirt.it ion .iround city, .Hmost
new 42 963 $650 Imust sell)
Female F B ticket to the best
offer. Call 472-9246 after 5
p m
2 GA tickets together great
seats (Will nell separate) High
est bidder 4 72 9372
1 female ticket NU-OU-$30
Call Cheri, 477-2591.
For Sale: 2 E. Stadium, N.
goal line tickets for NU-OU
game. $90. 483 5006.
3 male student NU-OU
tickets Good seats together.
$40 each or best offer. 489
3520. Foi Sale 1 female ticket to
the OU game. Will sell to the
highest bidder. Call 472-9155
ask for Kathy.
Have 2GA tickets (together)
left $95 for pair or best offer
Ed 474-4536
Football tickets-1 male & 1
female for OU game together. 1
other male ticket also. Don't
have to be sold together. Call
Sue 474-5278.
1 female OUNU 50 yard
line ticket 475-7638 Laurie
Start your own library -thousands
of books from Alt
money to Zoology for sale, both
hard cover and paper back
Hundreds of records, classi
cal 78 s and 33 s plus modern in
78, 45, or 33 speeds.
Nice old collectible advertis
ing out of the past.
Ft iday 4 to 8 p.m.
Saturday 8 to 6 p.m
4100 Van Dorn
3 female student tickets for
sale Best offer. Call 476 6769
2312 R St. Furnished effici
ency apartment $165.
ER A-Paramount Realty
483-2571
Bobbi Wheler
2-bedroom duplex, $255
plus cieposit and utilities. Ciose
to City Campus. Call 474-2848.
3 bedroom apt. for rent Dec.
1. $220month, lights only plus
deposit. Close to campus. 474
2848. Close to East Campus, City
and UNL bus line, furnished one
bedroom, washer and ciryer in
building. Off street parking, free
Cablevision. 464-6682.
MOVING?
Rent a Cargo Van from
DeBrown Leasing
Call 477-7253
17th & N St.
Christmas Shopping -
DON'T DO IT! (w.thoui
your Student Discount Card)
217 No 14th
weekdays 10 5
For Sale 4
NU OU game
female tickets to
Call 47V9722
Foi Sale One rn.jle 40 yard
line t.rket Best offer 435
4865
'74 Subaru DL, 4 -speed, reg
gas, 52.000 miles. 1 owner 4 76
0109 after 4pm
For Sale 2 male tickets to
qether to NU OU game Best
offer Call 477 7346 after 5 30
p m
Used cross country ski pack
ages $75 and up Also new skis
and rentals Bonsai! Ski Co
3201 Poneers Blvd 4384)148
2 GA tickets to OU game.
Call 466 8853 between 5 9pm
Together One male one fe
male 50 yd , Row 1 7. Oklahoma
game. "You get what you pay
for". Call after 6 pm 477
7806.
3-4-5 bedroom house 6
blocks from stadium. Washer,
dryer, 2 bathrooms, shower, all
beds, desks, range, refrigerator,
etc. 477-5947. Leave message.
1 bedroom apartment, near
school, small deposit, no pets
$145 monthly 474-5441 after
noons BELIEVE IT OR NOT
It is true' Close to campus and
bus lines, rooms a a liable at the
Co-op for only $155 a month
for next semester with food and
many other facilities, call an
officer at 474 9772 or 474-9773
3 BR house, unfurnished, for
rent or sale Built 1 883. original
woodwork, barn Great con
dition $280 mo. utilities. 435
3000, eves
Old Governor's Mansion
with cat, 4 bedroom, 4 fireplace
furnished Jan 1 July 1 $400
month 435 3000, evenings
QUIET QUALITY LIVING
We have several modern one
bedroom apartments m quet
well kept buildings $195 $200
720 So 19th. 1215 So 23rd
Caii Austin Realty 489 9361
PERSONALITY
If you are a high energy out
going person, excellent food ser
vice opportunit.es await you as
an employee of RVR Manage
mpnt. Inc
Application ar,- now being
taken for full time dn(J pan
time waiters, waitresses, bar
fenrjers doormen and hostesses
Can Mr. Va-iqhan at 4 75
1941 between 10 a m noon
weekdays
-ft
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