University Daily Kansan, November 7, 1984
ENTERTAINMENT
Page
Film's strength is suspense
By DOUGLAS H. CHANDLER Staff Reporter
"Body Double." Rated R. Showing at the Varsity Theatre, 1015 Massachusetts St., starring Craig Wasson, Gregg Henry and Melanie Griffith.
"Body Double" has been touted as Brian DePalma's best film yet, and it might well be.
The director, who was responsible for such thrillers as "Scarface," "Dressed to Kill" and "Carrie," has made yet another spellbinder which, with gore and a few unlikely details, is captivating and entertaining.
The first half of the movie is a bit predictable: our claustrophobic hero, Jake Skull, played by Craig Wasson, is a second-rate actor who has come to the place to stay because he found his girlfriend in bed with another man.
HE WINDS UP house-sitting for Sam, a fellow actor played by Gregg Henry, in a space-age house that looks like it could belong to the Jetsons. From among such inviting features as a fully stocked bar and a rotating bed, Jake chooses a telescope as his favorite toy. With it he
has a perfect view of his voluptuous new neighbor, Gloria Revelle, played by Deborah Shelton. Revelle is a rich beauty who does an erotic dance of self-satisfaction every night.
Our love-starved loner immediately falls in lust, and when he sees an evil-looking welder chasing his brother, she well-meaning knight in shining armor, chasing her both to protect her and to ogle her.
MOVIE REVIEW
The movie moves from hard-to-remember to hard-to-believe in an impromptu groping scene on the beach between Jake and his obsession, and then to hard-to-stomach when she is murdered by the welder with a huge power drill before Jake's eyes.
THE PLOT TAKES an interesting turn when Jake, while watching a commercial for a cheap porn movie, sees Holly Body, played by Melanie Griffith, performing the exact dance the woman next door used to.
hard-core porn. And once you think you've got it you've straightened out, DePalmia twists it again with flashbacks and camera tricks.
From that point on, the story is an exhilarating maze of twists and turns.
DePalma re-establishes himself as the heir-apparent to Alfred Hitchcock with his brilliant use of suspense. He seems to know exactly what will create the highest possible outcome, and is murder or claustrophobia. But, refreshingly, he manages to do it with a minimum of blood and guts.
THE CAMERA WORK is truly dramatic, demonstrating DePalma's uncanny ability to say a great deal with just a few images.
The acting is good overall and whatever weaknesses exist in the characters have apparently been in the script. Melanie Griffith is particularly believable as the hard-edged, but peculiarly lovable, porn queen.
The movie will probably do well at the box office, if only for its sexual content and one gory murder scene, and because many people love to pay money to be frightened by someone who knows how to do it well. But even if you're not among those who like to be scared sick, this movie is worth the money simply for its quirky plot and pure entertainment value.
Top Grossing Movies
NEW YORK — Last week, these were the 20 top-grossing films, based on Variety's weekly survey of 1,800 to 2,200 screens.
1. Thief of Hearts
2. Places in the Heart
3. The Little Drummer Girl
4. Teachers
5. All of Me
6. A Soldier's Story
7. The Razor's Edge
8. Amadeus
9. Crime of Passion
10. Ninja III — The Domination
11. Irreconcilable Differences
12. Country
13. Ghostbusters
14. Purple Rain
15. The Karate Kid
16. Savage Streets
17. Exterminator 2
18. Adventure of Buckaroo Banzai
19. The Wild Life
20. The Gods Must Be Crazy
By United Press International
By MIRIAM YUNTA Staff Reporter
Del Fuegos to hit Lawrence
Although the sounds of The Del Fuegos have been playing on Lawrence airwaves for more than a year, the group still plugs itself as one of the faceless bands on the rock'n'roll one of the members said this week.
They hope to change that image when they perform at 8 p.m. tomorrow night at the Lawrence Opera House, 642 Massachusetts St.
The group's first album came out at the end of September. And considering the length of time that it has been out, "The Longest Day," is doing well, said Gary Habib, manager of The Del Fugoes. It is doing
THE DEL FUEGOS — Dan Zanes, Warren Zanes, Tom Lloyd and Brent "Woody" Geissmann — are based in Boston. That is also where the group was formed by Dan Zanes and Tom Lloyd. They met in college and then they liked the same type of music — Chuck Berry and Otis Reddine.
But the old Rolling Stones songs, influenced by the influence said Warren Zapes, gullor's father.
The group members also like soul, so most of their style of music mixes soul and the Stones' style.
especially well on college campuses, he said.
“IN THE NORTHST AND west we are doing very well,” Habil said, and hoped that this tour would interest throughout the Midwest.
The reason the group is not doing as well in the Midwest is because The Del Fuego have had a hard time with airplay on commercial radio stations.
Habib expected the best concerts on the Midwest tour to be Wichita, Oklahoma City and Lawrence.
"The reason is that Giessmann is from Wichita, and this is his home turf." Habib said.
"THE DEL FUEGOS are trying to appeal to everyone." Habib said, "and they have rock'n roll love songs, but they are still nice songs."
Zanes said that even though they have tried to appeal to all types, they have failed on one account — his mother. She does not like to go to their performances. The music is not really the kind that she likes, he said.
The members of The Del Fuegos have not set a lot of professional goals for themselves. But eventually, they will want to be rock stars. Zanes said.
"But when you look at goals, you have to come to grips with being what you are," he said.
NO CAR STEREO CAN PASS IT.
Woodruff Auditorium