Arts (^Entertainment
Robin Williams plays Mrs. Doubtfire, an old English nanny, in this holiday movie. Courtesy °f Twentieth Century Fox
‘Mrs. Doubtfire’ a funny, smash holiday hit
FIlLM
A film that will tickle your fun
ny bone and touch your heart. “Mrs.
Doubtfire" has come to town, and it
will probably be the runaway hit of
the holiday season.
Robin Williams, who has al
ready earned three Oscar nomina
tions. has a definite shot at Best
Actor again this time around. Wil
liams was shut out last year for Best
Supporting Actor as the voice of
the genie in “Aladdin.”
Williams plays Daniel Hillard,
an out-of-work actor that loves to
have fun with hi* three children.
But one day his fun goes over the
line, and his wife Miranda (Sally
Field) asks for a divorce.
Since Daniel has neither em
ployment nor a permancnent resi
dence, Miranda is given temporary
custody of the children. Daniel re
ceives once-a-weck visitation
rights.
However, he isn’t satisfied with
that. Daniel wants to be able to see
his kids more often, and when
Miranda puts an ad in the newspa
per for a new housekeeper, Daniel
sees his chance.
He goes to see his makeup-artist
brother Frank (Harvey Fierstein),
in a wonderful — but short —
performance to have himself done
up as an old English nanny. With
his/her soft voice and gentle ad
vice, she charms Miranda.
He gets hired to watch the chil
dren, but life gets complex when it
seems Miranda is falling in love
with her old friend Stuart (Pierce
Brosnan, at his suavest).
The film also looks at the issue
of divorce in a serious way. It dis
cusses situations in which the chil
dren arc sometimes treated as com
modities or property. The film han
dles all the concepts well, and it
even addresses how younger chil
dren sometimes are affected by
divorce.
“Mrs. Doubtfirc” gives Robin
Williams the chance to show that
he is an accomplished performer.
He delivers his finest performance
since “Dead Poets Society,” for
which he received an Academy
Award nomination.
Williams adds a magical flair to
all of his characters, which helps
bridge any age gap that might exist.
Whether youngor old, he can make
you laugh.
Special recognition should also
be given to makeup artist Ve Neill
and hairstylist Yolanda Toussieng
(both worked on “Batman Returns”
and “Edward Scissorhands”) for
their masterpiece — Mrs.
Doubtflre. Word has it that Will
iams’ own son didn’t recognize
him in the costume.
If you only see one movie this
holiday season, make it “Mrs.
Doubtflre.” You will not be disap
pointed.
— Gerry Beltz
Wake up Lincoln, Stewart’s got something to sing to you
preview
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British rocker Rod Stewart, who kicked off
his “A Night To Remember” tour in July —
complete with a 12-piccc band and 18-piece
orchestra — is scheduled to perform at the Bob
Devancy Sports Center, Wednesday night at
For nearly three decades, Stewart has scored
big with hits ranging from soft, whispering
melodies to hot and heavy numbers. Stewart
fans, which span several generations, will have
fhe opportunity to hear him play songs from his
new release, “Unplugged ... And Seated,” as
well as his historic plugged classics.
Past hits include “Tonight’s the Night” from
his 1976 album, “A Night On the Town;” “Hot
Legs" and “You’re In My Heart” from his 1977
album, “Footloose & Fancy Free;” and a host of
other unforgettable singles 1 ike “Stay with Me”
and “Do Ya Think I’m Sexy?”
For the first part of his career back in the
60s, Stewart’s vocals mixed true blues with
rhythm and blues, backed by the rock solid
refrains of Jeff Beck and the Faces. In 1969,
Stewart emerged as a solo artist with his debut
record, “The Rod Stewart Album.” Rock was
never the same after that.
“Gasoline Alley,” followed Stewart’s debut
and proved the Englishman’s consistency in
producing quality songs. “Every Picture Tells
A Story,” blew everyone away with the interna
tional hit, “Maggie May.”
And now in the 1990s, Stewart’s career
continues to soar, with memorable singles like
“This Old Heart of Mine” and the unplugged
“Have I Told You Lately” showcased by MTV.
When Stewart turned 39, he told a Los
Angeles Times reporter that a career obituary
was premature.
“1 don’t think I’m getting too old for this.
The body is in good shape, the bones don’t
creak. I’m not ready for the rocking chair just
yet.”
A decade later, Stewart is still going strong,
although he admits he lacks the energy he had
15 years ago. When looking at him, you’d think
he must have gotten a skin tuck here or there.
Maybe he discovered rock isthcelixirofyouth.
Another notable difference is that Stewart
sounds better than ever.
Judge for yourself.
Stewart’s performance will be in the round.
Tickets for the concert, sponsored by the Uni
versity Program Council, are $25 and $35.
— Jill O'Brien
Courtesy of Contemporary Productions
Rod Stewart will perform Wednesday at 7:30 p.m. in the Bob Devaney Sports
Center. His “A Night To Remember" tour started in July, and is sponsored by
the University Program Council.
Debut book
lacks drive,
dimensions
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Sean Stewart
“Passion Play”
Ace Science Fiction
The blurb on the cover of Canadi
an-born Scan Stewart’s first novel
runs true to mindless publishing in
dustry practice. According to Will
iam Gibson, “Passion Play’’ is “Dark
and nastily believable... Sean Stewart
is a talent to watch.”
The endorsement is designed to
reel in cyberpunk fans, but the book is
more a mystery than anything else.
Very little cyberpunk here, save for
the overall depressing tone and nihil
ism, though he does avoid the hip,
trendy slang so common to most other
cyberpunk.
“Passion Play’’ takes place in the
21st century, in an America living
under the Redemption Presidency. The
Religious Right has triumphed, and
stoning adulteresses is unofficially
condoned — if you don’t get caught.
Those who do face trial and execu
tion, endless appeals of the death pen
alty are also a thing of the past.
Diane Fletcher is a “shaper,” a sort
of empath, who can read emotions of
others, though not their thoughts. She
is called in to investigate the death of
Jonathan Mask, a popular actor and
Redemption spokesman. Flctchcrdigs
into Mask’s past, and discovers he
didn’t quite live up to his billing as a
holy roller extraordinaire.
In the end the murderer is finally
caught and killed in the best Dirty
Harry tradition. The final pages, how
ever, find Fletcher awaiting execu
tion herself, for killing the murderer.
It is a depressing tale, with a de
pressing ending. In between, Stewart
commits another cyberpunk sin, a
persistent now-ncss that excludes w hat
could be fascinating and informative
bits on just how this Redemption oc
curred.
Without that information “Passion
Play” becomes just another one-di
mensional talc that leaves the reader
unsatisfied.
— Sam Kepfield