8
Wednesday, June 30, 1993
UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
'Last Action Hero'a success in spite of unreal 'real world'
featuring i.a. Eyeworks
Brian Whitburn
Kansan staff reviewer
These things often happen in action movies; the good guys defeat death without a scratch and never run out of bullets. The villains do stupid things that cause their undoing.
These overdone situations are satis-
ized quite well in John McTiernan's
("Predator") action parody "Last
Action Hero" (PG-13).
The movie centers around Danny, a young movie-goer played by Austin O'Brien. He possesses a magic ticket which propels him into the world of his favorite on-screen action hero Jack Slater, played by Arnold Schwarzenegger. It is in this world of a movie-within-a-movie that the real fun begins.
Some of the fun is watching for cameos by celebrities such as Sharon Stone ("Basic Instinct"), Robert Patrick ("Terminator 2") and Schwarzenegger's wife, Maria Shriver.
Schwarzenegger and O'Brien deliver competent performances, but it is
the originality that the villain Benedict (Charles Dunce) brings to the movie that stands out. It is not often you see a smart, accurate marksmans with a glass eye. Benedict does not fall for the usual tricks like other villains. he uses his brains to create a foolproof scheme that causes havoc on the lives of our heroes and fulfills his wicked desires.
"Last Action Hero" spoofs the action genre, including Schwarzenegger's own movies. The film's funny references to the overdone, improbable aspects of the genre help carry its story, theme and comedy to new heights.
But this story is not entirely original. The plot is suspiciously similar to
Woody Allen's "The Purple Rose of Cairo." In Allen's film, a woman watches movies to escape her troubles — much like Danny does — and enters the world of her favorite movie "The Purple Rose of Cairo." As in "Last Action Hero," the heroine of "The Purple Rose of Cairo" brings her hero into the real world.
Despite its ripoff of "The Purple Rose of Cairo," "Last Action Hero" 's action/comedy-oriented story still possesses enough originality to make it enjoyable.
What keeps this movie from being more enjoyable is its overabundance of unrealistic, self-parodying scenes in the "real world." This keeps the contrasts between the "real world" and the world of the movies to a minimum. Because of this, the movie's theme, that one cannot solve one's problems by escaping into the movies, is diminished.
Don't wait for this movie's release on video cassette. Go see it on the big screen. It is part of the film's charm.
"Last Action Hero" gets a B+.
Bottleneck
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737 New Hampshire St.
Burning Spear, tonight, $12
Month of Sundays, tomorrow, $3
Lonesome Hounddogs with Monterey Jack, Friday, $4
Fluid with Zoom and Hoof, Saturday, $7
Id Xplosion. Tuesday. $3
Dos Hombres
815 New Hampshire St.
Don Coons, Saturday, free
Gusto's
Iowa St
House Party, tomorrow and Satur
day.
CALENDAR OF EVENTS
Hockenberry's Tavern
1916 Massachusetts St.
Int Grey, tomorrow, $3
1016 Massachusetts St.
State of Mind with Pilgrimage,
touro
Lipopotamus
Hellcat Trio with Spam Skimmers
Friday, $3
Id Xplosion with the Cause, Saturday,
$3
Jazzhaus
926 % Massachusetts St.
Terrakmals, tomorrow,
Milhous Nixons, Friday,
Crap Super, Saturday,
3
Liberty Hall
642 Massachusetts St.
Mighty Mighty BossTones, Tuesday,
$11 advance tickets
Rick's Neighborhood Bar and
623 Vermont St.
Fast Johnny, Saturday,$3
Swarthout Recital Hall
Midwestern Music Camp staff recital, tomorrow, 8 p.m. free
Midwestern Music Camp honor recital. Tuesday, 8 p.m. free.
Midwestern Music Camp jazz ensemble, Friday, 7 p.m., free
Lied Center
Midwestern Music Camp concert,
Saturday, 11 a.m. and 2 p.m., free
Sandstone Amphitheater Bonner Springs
Kansas City
Poison with Damn Yankees,
tonight, 7:30 m.*
841-7421
806 Massachusetts
Barry Manilow, Friday, 8 p.m.*
Lynydr Skynyrd, Sunday, 7:30 p.m.* H.O.R.D. E Festival featuring Blues Traveler, The Samples and Big Head Todd, Monday, 2 p.m.*
Fine wine & spirits 841-2277 store hours: Mon-Sat9am-11pm
Starlight Theater
Sunset Summer Jam II, tomorrow.
7:30.p.m.*
- Tickets available through Ticket-master, (816) 931-3330.
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