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About The daily Nebraskan. ([Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 4, 1984)
Thursday, October 4, 1984 Page 12 Daily Nebraskan Intriguing 'Soldier's Story' explores blacks' changing roies Dy Chris Welsch Dally Nebraskan Staff Editor "A Soldier's Story" is much more than that. It's a murder mystery, an insightful exploration of changing values at the end of World War II and of the complex effects of those changes on blacks. It's a damn good story. The movie starts with the mur der of Master Sgt. Vernon C. Wat ers, a hard-ass who is hated by his troops. Waters, played well by Adolph Caesar, leads a troop of all-black soldiers waiting for as signment in the European Thea ter. Howard E. Rollins Jr. plays Richard Davenpart, a sharp-look- iJLo Vljy World Famous 4 W 1 1 mm Mim lotto H a m m a m r'l mm. ta K . m 321 'S 9th ST.' UlKOUlimTG-BSSl Dsar Lincoln, Better late than never. Opening soon. Lo fVIOiiD Fes COSTli SS OUR SPECIALTY! Theater Stock Pioneer, Colonial Medieval, Sliakespearian Animals, Santa Claus Suits Masks, Capes Hats, Capes Wigs, Makeup Antique Clothing (1880's-mOs) We've Moved to . . 735 "0" (under the Viaduct) 475-9861 It V jr.- (f uJiHDLif VI Ml B- "1 ACCB c OCT. 15 THROUGH NOV. 16 Registration FEE: M.00 UNL-STUDENTS (PER CLASS) 2. NON-STUDENT Register for classes through Wed., Oct. 10 1834. 10 am - 2:00 pm at the booth in the Nebraska Union. Questions? CaSi 472-2454 7 ing black captain sent to investi gate the murder. The white offic ers at Fort Neal in Louisiana res ent Davenport and fear he wont be successful in the investigation because of his race. Davenport is determined to find , the killer his thorough investi gation makes a fascinating mur der mystery. He interviews all the men of Waters' troop. An intriguing por trait of Waters emerges in their recollections. The sergeant is ob sessed with imitating whites be cause he thinks this war will bring blacks into the mainstream. He humiliates and abuses his troops in his overzealous quest to eliminate "geechies" and "yassus." Davenport has the formidable task of finding the killers in hos tile territory. The white officers are covering up for two of their men who were the last to see Waters alive. Davenport is told he probably won't be able to arrest any whites for the crime be they Klansmen or officers. But what begins as a cut and dry case of racial killing becomes more and more complex as Wat ers relationship with the black troops is revealed. Rollins is magnificent as Daven port. He handles the prejudice of the white soldiers and the admi ration of the black ones with the same cool demeanor. "Soldier's Story" revolves around Waters, but Rollins makes it Davenport's story too. Caesar also excells in his role. Although Waters in hateable, Cae sar makes the character more than just a knee-jerk bad guy. Waters wants to be part of the white world, but as the movie progresses, he becomes horrified at the hypocrisy of his actions. In his efforts to further the race, Waters actually steps backward with his viciousness. Caesar por trays that struggle so well, one becomes sympathetic to the mis led sergeant. The role of blacks in society was changing rapidly at the end of WWII. Waters represented one extreme a man proud of his black heritage, not cowed by preju dice. He was a success with a law degree and the stripes of a captain in a white army. C.J. Memphis, a dumb, friendly black who was considered an "Uncle Tom" was scorned by Wat ers. Memphis was Waters' exact opposite. Played by Larry Riley, Memphis suffers Waters' abuse until it drives him to the edge essentially taking Waters with him. Technically, "A Soldier's Story" is straightforward. Everything Is real. The camera work is smooth with some fine subtle touches. During one scene the camera takes in Waters as he talks about a"geechie"like Memphis he knew in WWI. In the background Mem phis sings a blues tune. The cam era closes in on the mirror until all that is seen is Waters lined face, his thin-lipped mouth; the focus, grinding insult after insult, showing his hate then panning back to see the friendly innocent Memphis, smiling and singing. The blues music in the bar scene is as good as anything you'll hear at the Zoo, and Herbie Han cock's funky, '40s soundtrack completes the movie. The acting is fine-tuned, the timing is right-on. It's a slick job. A story well told. ttA Soldier's Story" should be at a Lincoln Theater soon. Si''1 v I m4 I r I Photo Courtesy of Columbia Pictures Sgt. Waters (Adolph Caesar, right) holds the smoking gun and accuses C. J. (Larry Eiley) of pulling the trigger. Bay Area exhibit . Continued from Page 11 These artists have helped make San Francisco more in tune with the mainstream of contemporary art, like the East Coast, but with a West Coast flavor representing individual freedom. The stress on the individual produces a variety of styles with no central focus except the power of the artist's personal approaches to their work. This factor also seems to glue the exhibition together. Otherwise, it looks like an abridged edition of contemporary painting in the United States, with works representing most major move ments in modern American art. One of the strongest pieces in the show (also the largest), is a 1983 work by William T. Wiley titled "Agent Orange." The use of folk icons and found objects de rived from the "Funk" art of Cali fornia, which tends to demystify art. The multimedia collage, r I jsr fl - omstyr I 3 ir., i J ji -r-'v K5 J Vrr4LJ-AA V7 Big Red Season, Misty's Style! Celebrate Homecoming Friday night with a pep rally featuring the Misty's Pep Band!!! (Havelock Location Only) Open Monday-Saturday 10 am-1 am Sunday 5 pm-10 pm XIavefock: 466-8424 f - 1 ;. .,SSV., 56th & Highway 2 423-22S8 Serving the Midwest's finest prime rib for 20 years. painting, print and assemblage is reminiscent of Robert Rauschen berg's "Monogram" and the value placed on the found objects leans into the realm of the metaphy sical Another interesting piece is a large mixed-media work on can vas titled "I Used to Draw in Church on Sunday by Raymond Saunders. The black-textured painting is accented with "patches" and "zips" of brilliant color, and feels like it belongs among Ab stract Expressionist work be cause many techniques are bor rowed from that movement. In contrast to the Abstract Expressionist works is the photo realism of Richard McLean. His painting "Satin Doll" looks like a snapshot blown up about 100 times and must be an airbrush painting since no brushstrokes are visible. Representative of another brand of realism is .a small oil painting by Wayne Thie baud titled, "Holy Park Ridge." Although the work is not a still life (his usual subject matter), the approach to the landscape is similar bright colors and thick textures reflecting the vulgar commercialism of pop ait from a California point of view. There are several other works in the exhibition landscapes, geometric abstractions, figurative paintings and painted sculptures. One by Manueal Neri looks much like Edgar Degas' "Dressed Ballerina"