jaasB. Arts@Entertainment
Courtesy of Paramount
Mike Myers, left, as Wayne Campbell and Dana Carvey as Garth Algar party on in “Wayne’s World 2.”
Wayne, Garth’s sequel falls short
Movie plagued
by stale gags
“Wayne’s World 2"
“Wayne’s World 2" garners
three reels, but just barely.
The first reel is for not letting
Tia Carrere sing.
The second reel is for Jim
Morrison and the “weird half-na
ked Indian.”
The third and final reel is for
Wayne, Garth and company’s ter
rific performance as the Village
People. That scene alone is worth
seeing.
Otherwise, this sequel to the
enormously popular and funny
“Wayne’s Worm” is a mishmashof
old jokes, often with Mike Myers
(Wayne) trying too hard to recap
ture Wayneisms.
Frankly, this flick just isn’t as
clever as the first.
The plot — if it can be called
that—revolves around Wayne and
Garth (Dana Carvey) putting to
gether “Waynestock” in their
hometown of Aurora, 111. The idea
comes to Wayne in a dream, cour
tesy of a weird, half-naked Indian
and Jim Morrison.
“If you book them, they will
come,” Morrison says continually
in his half-dazed stupor.
So they go about booking the
park and the bands, enticing the
public to come. It doesn’t work.
The story is loosely tied togeth
er with old jokes and with bits and
pieces about Wayne and
Cassandra’s (Carrere) relationship
falling apart. Their relationship is
in jeopardy because her career is
taking off courtesy of producer
Bobby Cahn — a producer who
wants to see more than her career
taking off. Christopher Walken is
Cahn, in a classic example of a
what-is-he-doing-in-this-movie
role. He’s not alone — there are
countless cameos as well.
Don’t be mistaken. There are
definitely some amusing moments,
but those funny bits are few and far
between, sandwiched between half
baked humor and overused jokes.
There are also too many rip-offs of
other movies and commercials. ,
Some are funny, but when they
make up most of the movie, the
jokes fall short.
“Wayne’s World 2" is worth
seeing at matinee price, but it’s
nowhere near as funny as the first.
— Anne Steyer
Green issues
hit red planet
in sci-fi book
Kim Stanley Robinson
“Red Mars”
Bantam Books
Sooner or later, all science fiction
writers worth their salt have to do
books about Mars; some of them turn
out to be classics.
Hcinlein’s “Red Planet” and
Clarke’s “The Sands of Mars” come
to mind. Kim Stanley Robinson
weighs in with “Red Mars,” the first
volume in a projected trilogy about
the Red Planet.
Epic SF is nothing new for
Robinson. He first came upon the
scene in the early 1980s with his
California Trilogy, three books each
detailing a possible alternate future
ior aoumem ^ainornia.
“Red Mars” opens in 2026, with
humans journeying to Mars to begin
the first colony. After landing, differ
ences develop among the multina
tional crew as to how far settlement
should actually go, a debate strongly
paralleling the one over environmen
tal issues on Earth.
Part of the crew wants to preserve
Mars in its natural state, limiting hu
man development. The rest want to
terraform Mars, making it more
carthlike by releasing oxygen into the
thin atmosphere, warming its surface
and eventually releasing liquid water
onto the surface from frozen under
ground reservoirs.
When scientists on Mars discover
a longevity drug, pressures increase
to throw Mars wide open for settle
ment. It brings the colonists into con
flict with the Terran authorities, and
the threat of war hangs over the plan
et. The powerful climax includes a
flood rushing down the Valles
Marineris, a large canyon on Mars.
“Red Mars” is a painstakingly re
searched work, full of the details that
hard SF readers love. It’s an old
fashioned space opera with a cast of
hundreds, magnificently done.
— Sam Kepfield
‘Nutcracker on Ice’ marries holiday ballet to blades
Dancing mice and waltzing flowers leaped
and swirled on the glistening stage.
The traditional “Nutcracker” fairy tale was
transformed to “Nutcracker on Ice” at the Lied
Center this weekend.
After seeing the “Nutcracker” ballet several
times, “Nutcracker on lee” was a refreshing
change. It made the performance more wintery
and suited to the Christmas season. The chore
ography of the ballet blended perfectly with the
ice skaters’ talents.
Transforming this traditional ballet to ice
was similar to the addition of technicolor to
classic movies. It was good to begin with, and
the enhancement made it so much richer.
The performers were allowed much more
fluidity and drama in their movements. A reg
ular ballerina would never be able to reach as
much height as an ice skater pirouetting in the
air.
The special ice skating “tricks” added much
to the lively fight between the Nutcracker and
the Mouse King. The speed which the skaters
could use made the performance alive with
movement. The timing that went into several of
the dances was incredible.
Professional ice skaters Tai Babilonia and
Randy Gardner were excellent in their portray
als of Clara and the Nutcracker. Their move
mcnts were perfectly coordinated and smooth.
World champion skater Linda Fratiannc shined
in her role as the Sugar Plum Fairy.
The ethnic dances were beautiful in their
variety of dancing styles. The Arabian dancers
were strikingly passionate during their perfor- .
mancc. Equally impressive were the three Rus
sian dancers who generated a loud response
from the audience every time they completed
an amazingly high jump across the stage.
The exquisite costuming also added to the
dreamlike illusion. From the party scene to the
grand finale, the costumes never failed to en
hance the performance.
In a play without words, the costumes were
essential in telling the story as well.
Clara’s costume was angelic and flowing as
she flew across the ice. The Nutcracker was
equally stunning in his starch blue and red
soldier uniform. The mice, with their big cars
and awkward tales, were especially cute.
Gossamer white pedals and gold highl ighted
the performance of the Sugar Plum Fairy. The
ethnic dancers’ costumes were symbolic and
true to their origins. The waltzing flowers came
complete with rose costumes made of green
sequins and layers of pink taffeta.
My personal childhood favorite was the
performance of the Petit Fors who were dressed
in cardboard cake, complete with frosting. One
skater even “licked” a costume when the other
wasn’t looking.
The performance was a grand illusion of
intense color and feeling. The special effects of
fog and snow created a winter fairyland that
amazed both children and adults. And of course,
there was the magical growing Christmas tree.
The only thing I missed from the original
production was the live orchestra sound. Al
though the recording was of exceptional qual
ity, I missed the power of the instruments.
It was a delightful adaptation of the tradi
James Mehsling/DN
tional Christmas ballet. Little Clara and her
precious Nutcracker will always be a staple of
the holiday season.
— Paula Lavigne