The daily Nebraskan. ([Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-current, November 09, 2000, Page 9, Image 9
(Proppe<y^43 '80s teen idol, Corey Feldman, to perform at Royal Grove Corey Feldman, the young actor famous for his roles in “The Goonies” (1985), “Stand By Me” (1986), and “The Lost Boys” (1987), will be visiting Lincoln on Thursday, but in a different, more creative fashion. Corey Feldman’s Truth Movement band will be playing an age 19 and over show at the Royal Grove tonight. Tickets are $15 and doors will open at 8 p.m. Last year, the band released an album on Vegas Records, a punk/ska record label from Orange County, Calif., but Corey Feldman’s Truth Movement is regarded as a psychodelic rock group. After appearing on a num ber of movies in die ’90s (includ ing “Teenage Mutant Ninja Unties m”, "National Lampoon's Loaded Weapon 1” and “National Lampoon’s Last Resort”) and bat ding his way through drug addic tion, Feldman created the band he describes as the “Pink Floyd of the ’90’s.” "Still Searching For Soul,” Corey Feldman’s Ttuth Movement’s first full-length release, is available at www.VegasRecords.com, and tick ets for tonight’s show are available at all Ticketmaster locations as well as at the door. Samples bring unusual sound v to KMerixxier's tonight The Samples combine rock, ska, folk and grassroots music for a sound that has gained a huge following for over a decade. The band from Boulder, Coin, will hit the stage tonight at Knickerbocker’s, 9010 St The Samples consist of five down-to-earth guys that have been making music for about 12 years. Lead guitar and vocalist Sean Kelly and bass player Andy Sheldon first played together while living in Burlington, Vt. After Kelly and Sheldon moved to Colorado, they got together with guitarist Rob Somers, keyboard player Alex Matson and drummer Sam Young. The guys started calling them selves The Samples from a time when the members were suppos edly surviving off free food sam ples at local supermarkets. The band played its first gig in 1987 and has produced eight full length albums since. The Samples’ members say they are trailblazing a path for other musicians with their unique sound The show will begin around 10:15 p.m., and tickets for the over-18 concert are available through Ticketmaster for $8-10. Lee's'Bamboozled'is a scathing satire BAMBOOZLED from page 8 for its racism, partially because they didn’t get to be the in-house band dressed in prison uniforms for the “Mantan” shows. Pierre has a father for a stand-up come dian who never compromised his ethics for Hollywood. But none of them, not one iota, blot out the blackface scenes or the gut-wrenching pre quels that show Glover and Davidson putting on the makeup in painstaking detail, as we get a didactic explanation of the process in Pinkett’s voice-over narration. There are two movies going on here; the satire stops once the blackface becomes cen ter stage. It is, in no way, funny. And the funny that ensues isn’t funny because the viewer is still hung on the blackface. Then, oddly, Pierre seems to collect more blackface artifacts, dolls and trinkets than it seems possible to own. They stand and coo at him, oscillating their oversized eyes back in forth in racist exaggera tion. At one point, Wayans starts seeing things, imagining the col lectibles talking back. A toy bank of a blackface barker works with out assistance. The lines are blur ring. Lee has tweaked the film to a stunning effect Most of it is shot in handheld, guerrilla-style video, grainy and unclear. But notice the minstrel show scenes, which have been shot in clear lucid film. Lee did this purposely, but for what, exactly? To better por tray the clarity of the racism going on here? To shock us even more? When Glover, a Broadway performer by trade, flashes this crazy grin, the envelope gets pressed. Looking away is easy. Several critics have nailed Lee to the wail for the use of blackface, sort of like they nail Leni Riefenstahl to the wall for making a stunning film for Adolf Hitler in “Triumph of the Will.” I suppose it comes down to per ception. Is it Lee’s job to nudge at the horrors of racism and let those themes grow and ferment in our minds, or throw the whole bag at the viewing public? He’s chosen the latter. I question the respon sibility of it. I don’t question the power. It works to disturbing effect. Another question: Could Lee, given he steak a lot from the clas sic television satire “Network,” have delivered the satirical point without blackface, as “Network” did? Yes; he succeeds in the open ing act, without the blackface. That’s the less direct, subtle way to approach it And in interviews, Lee expounds on how modern day rap videos are kindred souls to minstrel shows, as they offer the opportunity to mock and shun a seemingly money and woman-hungry black power structure. There’s very little of that com mentary in "Bamboozled.” There k a lot of blackface. The scenes are so well-writ ten, so intricate (notice the “Mantan” call of Hoooooooweeeeee!, which the audience responds to with: Hooooooowaaaahh!) that I was left pondering the delicate sur roundings of Sleep ’n' Eat mono logue in a chicken coop than the bigger picture. The closing twists, meant to be painful shocks, pale in comparison to the wringer that they follow. Maybe more interesting is Lee’s assertion that an audience, black and white, could or would accept blackface if it was offered as some effect of racial healing or desensitization of the issues. This catches Lee in a conun drum: Just what is his purpose in using blackface, if Pierre, face tious as he might be about it, suc cessfully defends it as satire? Is the movie meant to be liked or simply grimly understood? The only adequate explana tion is that Lee intends the traffic ; to stop in those extended min strel scenes, purposely so, and slowly pummel us with images until submission. To repeat: I haven’t a clue, once arriving at it, what to do with that assumption. The credits rolled, depicting var ious racist dolls, while I slouched stunned. That’s what “Bamboozled” does, rattle the brain chemistry. I’m no virgin to Lee’s work, nor unaware of the important black films that followed his seminal, race-changing film “Do The Right Thing.” This movie, in some ways, represents Lee’s most ambitious work since that effort; it's a hol low pointed bullet right though the vernacular of political cor rectness that television bathes in. It ought to say something since Lee was hired after the movie’s opening to develop black dramatic television concepts for one year. Somebody at Douglas Theatres in Lincoln ought to throw the movie a two-week bone -1 saw it in Omaha - at the very least. College audiences deserve the opportunity to view it. The film will likely stop show ing in Omaha this week. Then it will disappear, to be missed by the mass audience of Americans who spent their hard earned money for 94 minutes of mindless drivel at Adam Sandler's “Little Nicky.” And we wonder why movies like “Bamboozled” need to be made. The blackface could be a step too far. But it’s quite possible that our movie mush culture has done that already in much less provocative ways than Lee’s sets course upon here. “Bamboozled” is the most important film - genuinely, hon estly important to something beyond die medium itself - put onscreen in years. It touches that same dangerous nerve as “Fight Club,” a movie I initially hated, and still dislike, but admire for purpose and effect Like “Fight Club,” and even more so, “Bamboozled” begs to be seen. In a movie I cannot yet comfortably grade, that admoni tion should serve as grade enough. 'Diviners'offers good, dean fun DIVINERS from page 8 town of Zion, the play tells the story of C.C. Showers (Brandon Kennison), a preacher in a spiri tual slump looking for work. Showers meets Buddy Laymen (Mickey Seiler), a boy terrified of water, and the two form a bond that is nurtured throughout the rest of the play. “This is a play about love, friendship, family and commu nity in a time when these things were hard to find and even hard er to hold onto,” Gilmore said. He said the most attractive quality about “The Diviners” is its mood. "It’s a warm play that has a hymn-like quality,” Gilmore said. Leonard said the honesty of the characters shines through during the production. “These are good and simple people,” Leonard said. “They have nothing but the best of intentions.” Though Gilmore felt it was important to specify the details of the play itself, he wanted to emphasize the overall theme. “It allows people to look past their indifferences and accept each other and realize we’re all human,” he said. Gilmore and Kennison, both theater majors at Union College, envisioned a program that was developed and run by students. They were both frustrated with existing drama clubs and disappointed with their student dropout rates and lack of suc cess. Through their efforts, their vision has become a reality and the company is starting to make its presence known in the Lincoln area. “We’re a small school and haven’t made a big splash in the past,” Kennison said. “Now our company is making a name for itself amongst Lincoln’s theatri cal community.” Audiences have enjoyed the shows, Kennison said. “The feedback we’ve gotten so far has been very positive. People have really enjoyed our shows” “I think a big part of that is because the performances are clean and of good quality. You won’t see us putting on a produc tion of the ‘Vagina Monologues.’ ” Both Kennison and Gilmore are proud of the company's repu tation and approach to theater, which is a feel-good one and is suitable for all audiences. “We try to stay away from doing risqud stuff,” Gilmore said. ■■■ *■ Com* in and see our completely NEW collection of hair care. Now available exclusively at JLMITCHF1 I -iL ——».■»-.■ S--. j.’-W.S-A**¥.it. ft*..^liw;. —a.--to--->iW~ W^_ >.*•>'..1 Please recycle your Daily Nebraskan. Incubus new release gets a mixed review BY ANDREW SHAW Incubus has the munchies for your hard-earned cash, and “Fungus Amongus” is their newest trap. “Fungus Amongus” is a col lection of the first recordings from the drug-induced hard rock band. Recorded from 1993 to 1995, the album showcases a band who was unsigned with good reason. These early recordings of Incubus do not show the con trolled side of the young band who is instead painfully erratic and musically immature. Incubus has been working hard to keep their name in the spotlight as long as they can. Earlier this year they released “When Incubus Attacks, Vol. 1,” an EP featuring acoustic ver sions of songs from their latest full-length release of new music, “Make Yourself.” They have been featured on MTV's show “The Return of Rock” and the accom panying soundtrack, as well as the compilation “Loud Rocks,” which features hard-rock bands covering popular rap songs. Although Incubus has creat ed good music on their last two full-length releases, “Fungus Amongus” shows that the band has not always been a creative and original band. “Psychopsilocybin,” one of album’s most intriguing tracks, explodes with Red Hot Chili Pepper influence. Layers of a choked guitar riff, funk-rap vocals and a bass solo halfway through are pulled directly off of die cutting room floor of “Blood Sugar Sex Magik,” one of the Peppers’ funkiest albums. The first track of this re released album, "You Will Be A Hot Dancer,” most resembles the band in its current state. A steady and funky guitar riff clips by throughout the song, and the lead vocals switch off between [Incubus ★★ of 5 stars choppy and screams. Part way through the medium groove, a djembe - a traditional African drum used by Incubus in later recordings and concerts - floats to the surface. The tune ends with a chorus of children singing “nah-nah-boo-boo.” The inclu sion of a children’s theme is also carried out through the band’s later releases, sampling music, toys and videos marketed to a young population. Unfortunately, “Fungus Amongus” is rather one-dimen sional. Each song sounds very similar to the previously one. The vocals are fun to listen to but don’t seem to carry a theme or message. The music doesn’t seem to have a direction but has a great deal of potential. Perhaps that’s the greatest effect of “Fungus Amongus.” It shows that the band has pro gressed, that they have done their time in the annals of insignificant rock and are mak ing their way out of it, even though they still have room to grow. Customer Appreciation Tonight! 37^ Bowling Newly Remodeled 12 Lanes of Glow Bowling 25 Pool tables EJ.’s Lounge We can host your B-day, Holiday, and Greek parties Up to 100 People! Call now for Reservations f"'coupon ;15%0FF| I Regular Priced | l Merchandise i id® i i ji Lincoln 14th & P . j I Omaha 132nd & Center | Sony, NOT VALID with ■ | any other offer, previous ■ I purchases. Doc Martens, | l_ Lucky or fragrance. ■ Expires 12/31/00 Distinctive Clothing, Sportswear & Shoes ^ Lincoln - 14th & P Omaha - 132nd & Center i