Tuesday, March 18, 1986
Daily Nebraskan
Page 7
Arfts
n ' o n
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Courtesy of Twentieth Century Fox
Clancy Brown and Lambert (right) clash in "Highlander."
Flashy action film 'Highlander'
pretty, but lacks substance
By Stew Magnuson
Staff Reporter
"Highlander" is a new, flashy swords
and sorcery film with a lot of action and
a new twist on the genre. Instead of
taking place in "a land time long for
got," most of the movie is set in
modern-day Manhattan.
Movie Review
Why are people running around New
York City with swords instead of the
standard Saturday Night Specials? The
premise is this: Connor MacLoed (played
by Christopher Lambert), is a Scottish
highlander of the year 1531 who dis
covers through his mentor, Rameriz
(played by Sean Connery), that he is an
immortal warrior. Unless (and this is a
big unless) he happens to get his head
chopped off. I guess there are some
wounds even an immortal warrior can't
survive.
"But why is this?" MacLoed asks
Rameriz.
"I don't know," he answers.
Yes, this film is full of just such
half-baked dialogue. One probable rea
Impressionist paintings illustrate
abstract slices of life in art exhibit
By Jennifer Welton
Staff Reporter
In about 1863, a group of young
artists decided to rediscover nature.
This new art movement, called impres
sionism, began in France. The artists
involved in the movement set up their
easels in the open air, instead of paint
ing in their studios.
Art Review
They were" interested in the new
scientific discoveries, placing new
methods of painting at their disposal.
This created a new sensation for their
time. Impressionistic style aroused
criticism from the public, who could
not understand the artists' reasons for
creating pieces which were not realis
tic in color and form. For all these
reasons, impressionism could be con
sidered the formative stage of the mod
ern art we have today.
Impressionism style became popu
lar among American artists as well.
Many Americans studied in France,
joining American methods of realistic
traditional landscape painting with
the impressionistic style of the French
artists.
Some of the finer American artists
involved in impressionism are included
in the exhibition, American Impres
sionist Paintings from the Phillips Col
)
if I $
v J " vdM
son for this is director Russell Mul
cahy's background as a music video
director. The film is one continuous
video without the music. It seems like
Mulcahy spent all his time setting up
weird camera angles and mondo-bizarro
lighting, instead of concentrating on
his characters.
Well, being an immortal warrior has
a catch. One day all these warriors will
gather in one place and fight until only
one remains. That one' survivor will win
the "ultimate prize." This immortal
warrior convention takes place in
modern-day New York City.
Eventually, all the immortal warriors
have had the unfortunate experience of
having their heads separated from their
bodies except MacLoed and the evil
immortal warrior, Kurgan, played by
Clancy Brown.
Brown is by far the best part of this
movie. Unlike Lambert, Brown is excit
ing, a good actor, and a strong presence
on the screen. He is everything you
would want in a villain big, ugly and
evil to the core. After he kidnaps the
film's young damsel in distress, Mac
Loed's girlfriend (played by Roxanne
Hart), he drives through Manhattan
playing chicken with other cars and
lection in Washington, D.C., now on
display at the Sheldon Memorial Art
Gallery through April 20. The Phillips
Collection opened to the public in 1921
as America's first museum of modern
art.
One exceptional American impres
sionist artist is Maurice Prendergast.
His work, entitled "Autumn Festival,"
is filled with captivating elements.
Three-dimensionality in the figures and
objects makes the scene seem to move
and breathe.
The scene consists of a park with
people mingling about, but these peo
ple do not have any facial features. This
enables the viewers to imagine them
selves as the people in the scene. I
think the painting is thoroughly intrig
uing with its color and form. It all fits
together so sharply.
Another especially impressive work
was Ernest Lawson's "After Rain." I am
usually not very taken in by a lands
cape work because often nothing is
very exciting or surprising about them.
Impressionists juxtaposed color dabs,
one within the other, to produce this
blended optical sensation for the viewer.
While viewing this exhibit one must
take into consideration the time period
in which these artists worked. These
paintings were once considered radical
and incomprehensible to the public
because they were the first to use this
style and method.
Across the corridor from the Ameri
running over pedestrians while singing
"New York, New York." Kurgan is sort
of a rock 'n' roll Darth Vader. -
Kurgan is a rare bright spot though.
Lambert is quite ridiculous. He doesn't
say much and when he does he sounds
like Peter Lorrie. I guess that's what a
Scottish burr sounds like after four
centuries. I thought he was great in
last year's French film, "Subway." Maybe
he should stick to films in his native
language.
Connery is charming and debonair,
as usual. He's in the film for about a
half hour, so it's more than a cameo
appearance. But like all mentors that
pass on their knowledge to the young
fighter, he can't last long. But Ramer
iz's voice does suddenly yell out advice
to MacLoed centuries after his death.
Is this starting to sound familiar?
I almost swore he was going to say,
"Use the force Luke," during the big
showdown.
"Highlander" does succeed as an
action film though, once one accepts
the half-developed ideas. The sword
play scenes are plentiful and flashy.
But like many of the music videos Mul
cahy directs, the flashiness isn't backed
up by substance.
can Impressionist Exhibit is a display
to complement the Phillips Collection,
set up from Sheldon's permanent col
lection. This is also a fine display of
famed American impressionist artists,
including Chile Hassam, William
Glackens and Arthur B. Davies, to name
a few.
One of my favorite works is on dis
play from the F.M. Hall Collection,
entitled "Room in New York," an oil
painting by Edward Hopper. The artist's
choice of color and the manner in
which he uses it is most peculiar. The
bright glowing green walls are the
overbearing element surrounding the
scene of a man and a woman. The cou
ple appear to be in their own world, not
emotionally attached to one another.
It seems as if there is a mutual con
nection between the couple, but they
seem bored with their lives and each
other.
The American Impressionist Paint
ings from the Phillips Collection are
made possible in Lincoln by suppport
from the Nebraska Art Association, the
Nebraska Arts Council and the Nat
ional Endowment for the Arts through
their participation in the Mid-America
Arts Alliance; and by the corporate
sponsorship of the IBM Corporation
and Banker's Life Nebraska.
The Sheldon Art Gallery is open to
the public on Tuesday through Satur
day from 12 to 5 p.m., Thursday and
Friday from 7 to 9 p.m. and Sunday from
2 to 9 p.m. Admission is free.
By ChnrLa Licurance
Senior Reporter
Here's some stuf freia the record
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