Arts&Entertainment
De Niro’s acting
doesn’t outweigh
bad plot, story
By Stacie Hakel
Staff Reporter
If this is a joke, it is neither humor
ous nor is it entertaining.
“Night and the City” (Lincoln,
Edgewood 3), starring Robert De Niro
and Jessica Lange, is a total disap
pointment.
The movie is set in New York City
with Harry Fabian played by Dc Niro.
Harry is known as a shyster lawyer
who uses his profession to earn money
by bringing up suits where there is no
case.
Harry has this wild brainstorm and
decides to be a boxing promoter, but
he needs money.
So off on his search he goes.
He goes to many people, and some
how Regis Philbin gets stuck in there.
Buthecndsupatalocal bar owned
by two of Harry’s friends.
Harry asks Phil (Cliff Gorman),
the owner, if he can borrcta$15,000.
This is where Lange comes in.
Lange plays Phil’s wife, Helen.
All Helen docs is smoke cigarettes,
have sex with Harry and yearn loopen
her own bar.
Phil and Harry make a deal.
If Harry can come up with S7,500,
Phil will pay him the other half.
Helen secretly gives Harry S7.500
on one condition. Harry will only get
the money ifhccan get Helen a liquor
license to open her own bar.
Harry agrees to this and Helen
hands him an extra S5,(XX) for the
license.
Harry then gets the other half of the
money from Phil.
After Harry finds a fake liquor
license, he rents out a dance club
where he can set up the box ing matc hes
he will promote.
He finds old, retired A1 Grossman
(Jack Warden), and hires him as a
boxing manager.
Boom Boom Grossman (Alan
King) is Al’s brother, and he doesn’t
like the idea of A1 being a boxing
manager for Harry. His reasons arc
because Boom Boom doesn’t like
Harry, and because A1 had a scries of
heart attacks in the past.
Boom Boorh threatens Harry be
cause he, too, is in the box ing business
and doesn’t want any competition.
But Harry doesn’t listen to Boom
Boom and is soon followed by his
bodyguards. *v
They tell Harry that if anything
happens to Al, they will shoot to kill,
and they will be aiming at Harry.
Suddenly the movie unravels, and
all the characters and the audience
find out what a schmuck Harry really
is. „
This is the only good part of the
movie.
Dircctcdby Irwin Winkler,“Night
and the City” needs help.
It was hard to figure out where
exactly this movie was going, and
then once it got there, it was incred
ibly boring.
De Niro’s acting was good, but the
plot was so terrible that it was hard to
believe he would participate in this
movie.
The secondary characters were in
terwoven into the scene, but it was
hard to figure out what they were
doing and how they were significant.
The title didn’t even tie into the
movie in any way.
If you’re out for a night on the town
and you want to catch a movie, do
yourself a favor and skip this one.
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Courtesy of Twentieth Century Fox
, Jessica Lange as Helen Nasseros and Robert De Niro as Harry Fabian scheme to “make the
big time” in “Night and the City.”
Science fiction writer’s newest
release keeps readers riveted
“Labyrinth of Night”
Ace Science Fiction
By Sam Kepfield
Staff Reporter
There are very few authors today
who, when a reader sees their names
on a book, they can automatically
know that what they’re about to plunk
down $5 for will be worth every penny,
and will keep them riveted and enter
tained every second.
It’s these books that always sadden
readers when they end. Three hun
dred pages are not enough — heck,
600 pages wouldn’t be.
This is pretty heavy billing, but
Allen Steele lives up to it. His first
book, 1989’s “Orbital Descent,” won
the Locus Poll for No. 1 best first
novel.
His second, “Clarke County,
Space” in 1990 was nom inated for the
Philip K. Dick Award. “Lunar De
scent” came out to similar rave re
views in 1991.
This year, il’s“Labyrinth of Night,”
and it is sure to win some sort of
award. It’s one part good, old-fash
ioned Arthur C. Clarke puzzle-piece,
and one part Tom Clancy techno
thriller, with the gritty realism that is
becoming Steele's trademark.
When Viking 1 orbited Mars in
1976, it photographed what appeared
to be a human face made out of rock,
facing up to the heavens, and a “city”
nearby. This much is fact.
Steele takes us to the year 2030,
when human explorers have reached
Mars and discovered that indeed there
is a pyramid city and a face.
The only problem is that when they
send people into the main pyramid
and a maze they call the Labyrinth,
they don’t come out again.
The artifacts were left by the Coo
ties, an inscctoid alien race who went
into hibernation within the main pyra
mid. They were killcu by a meteor
strike.
The United States and the Com
monwealth of Independent States want
the knowledge in the pyramids —
badly.
A minor conflict ensues on Mars,
and the United States win. But the
paranoia reigns, and a military com
mander for Cydonia Base is sent, one
who was court-martialed after he tor
pedoed a civilian freighter, killing 50
people.
It all goes downhill from there.
August Nash, a corporate spy, is sent
to Mars to discover the true situation.
He finds a paranoid commander
thinking of the Cooties as an alien
threat to be destroyed — with a tacti
cal nuke if necessary. Nash is beaten
and captured, but escapes after hav
ing his cover blown in record short
time.
Nash discovers the secrets of the
pyramid and of the Cooties after he is
recaptured and forced to lug the nuclear
device down into the Labyrinth.
The ending is filled with wonder
ment at the alienness of another race,
and a hair-raising finale slraightoulof
a James Bond film. (Hint: It involves
a dirigible crash.)
Steele is, quite simply, one of the
best writers around today. His brand
of hard science fiction is filled with a
realistic portrayal of people and tech
nology in the future.
Happy reading.
^ : i
‘Greatest Misses’ is flawless effort
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“Greatest Misses”
Public Enemy
Def Jam/Columbia
It’s only filling lhal Public En
emy releases its fifth album in the
fifth year since their formation. To
no surprise, this one’s a soon-to-be
classic.
Chuck D and Flavor Flav are the
rappers of Public Enemy while
Terminator X is the DJ. These arc
the guys who, in the past, have
turned controversy into hits.
Chuck D’s songs deal with per
tinent, timely issues facing black
America. Some say that Chuck D is
the voice of the black nation.
“Greatest Misses’’ is based on
Chuck D’s idea to refocus allcniion
on several album tracks that didn’t
become Public Enemy hit singles,
but still present important ideas
from the group.
Each of the six tracks on the
remix side have been chopped up
and glued back together by some of
the test DJs in the business, includ
ing Jam Master Jay,ChuckChillout
and Terminator X.
From Public Enemy’s debut al
bum, “Yo! Bum Rush the Show,”
comes “Mcgablasl” and “You’re
Gonna Get Yours.” The first brings
thorns and cymbals galorcas well as
alternating “bum/ycah” samples to
add to Flavor Flav ’ s lead and Chuck
D’s supplementary vocals.
The second is chopped up in
style with lots of scratching and
cutting, and only half of the vocals
left intact.
From Public Enemy’s platinum
album, “It Takes a Nation of Mil
lions To Hold Us Back’’ comes
“Louder Than a Bomb’’ and “Party
for Your Right To Fight.”
The first favors a smooth bass
sample instead of the original drums
and guitar samples. Jam Master Jay
does this song up right.
The second alternates Chuck D
and Flav’s vocals instead of the
original with them rapping together.
“Fear of a Black Planet,” the
1990 platinum release,'is repre
sented by “Who Stole the Soul?”
and incorporates horns and more
solid drums than the original.
Finally, last year’s “Apocalypse
91... The Enemy Strikes Black” is
See PUBLIC on 10
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Courtesy of Interscope Records
Gerardo gets some assistance on his latest release, “Dos,”
from some of rap’s biggest names such as Tony G and Luis
Vega.
Gerardo’s album no star,
but a worthwhile attempt
—
R.CuU^t
—- ^
“Dos”
Gerardo
Interscope Records
Incredible as it may seem, Rico’s.
.. oops, Gerardo’s latest album, “Dos,”
actually is worth listening to.
Likchisfirstalbum,“Mo’ Ritmo,”
Gerardo comes back with bilingual
raps and croons — some good, some
downright sucky. That is the “G
Man’s” weak point — his inconsis
tency.
Most of the songs begin with lead
ing intros. The majority of these fall
flat, but some are rather cute and
clever.
The disc opens with “My Name Is
Not Rico," a disappointing rap song
that had the potential to be funny, but
Gerardo instead uses this tunc to in
flate his already oversized ego.
The best thing about the tunc is the
introduction, which employs the gim
mick of messages on an answering
machine.
“Rico? Hello, Rico. It’s Amy, and,
urn, I’m here with some friends, and 1
was just, urn, calling to let you know
that you left, urn, a T-shirt in my bed,
See GERARDO on 10