Section B·Page 6
The University Daily Kansan
Friday, October 2,1998
Reviews
Clay Pigeons good flick for target practice
By Jeremy M. Doherty
Kansas movie critic
Kansan movie critic
Pardon me, but when did movies about loud,
stundid people suddenly become so popular?
The latest example is Clay Pigeons, a thriller that's big on guns, profanity and slow-talking hicks, but possesses the intellectual prowess of a paper weight.
CLAY PIGEONS
Director David Dobkin stages his noirish pot boiler with the audacity of a guy who's dying to be hailed as the next It Boy. Each scene rolls by on a wave of uncouth characters and foul situations, praying that one has ever seen a Quentin Tarantino flick.
The movie's hero is Clay Bidwell (Joaquim Phoenix), a thick-witted gas station attendant in the hilly, fly-infested town of Mercer, Mont. Life's good for Clay, especially since he began tending to the devil's business with Amanda (Georgina Cates), the wife of his buddy Earl (Gregory Speler).
Kansan rating: *\* out of ******
Running time: 1 hour, 45 minutes
Rated R for cusin', shootin' and deadly women
Earl's a fellow who can't bear to see his woman dalyling with other gents. The two pals go for a round of Budweiser and target shooting, after which Earl promptly does himself in with Clay's pistol. Before plugging himself, Earl explained that he would like to die knowing that his betrayer would suffer for his wrongs.
Clay, mortified by the turn of events, tries to avoid Amanda, but she'd like to move their relationship to the next level. When he disagrees, she responds by blowing away another of Clay's bedding partners.
At the same time, Clay's making friends with Lester "The Molester" Long (Vince Vaughn), a traveling truck driver who wears belt buckles
that could stop a gauge round.
While the two guys are on a fishing trip, a (gasp) dead body bobs to the surface.
The rising stack of bodies in Mercer draws the attention of FBI agent Dale Shelby (Janeane Garofalo), who suspects that a serial killer is on the loose.
The problem with Clay Pigeons is that none of these characters are likable or even the least bit interesting. Clay's naivete and friendship with the clearly deranged Lester makes him hardly the ideal person to care about.
Phoenix's co-stars fare better. Vaughn makes the most of his character's rodeo shirts and awshucks-Ma'am manner, and the result is both amusing and disturbing. Garofalo also gets in some good yukas as the fed who's surrounded by corpse-poking cops.
Film's heavenly potential falls short of deliverance
But the movie itself just trots out the guns and sex, inevitably running its pointless story into the ground.
Williams' acting adds to wimpy plot
By Jeremy M. Doherty Kansan movie critic
Maybe it's me, but I think that any movie that depicts hell should make some effort to show the Head Sinner himself.
Case in point: What Dreams May Come stars Robin Williams as a recently deceased bloke who journeys into hell to rescue his wife's damned soul. Right away, most folks are going to start dreaming of a catactlysmic battle between Mork and Beelzebub. I can see Don King fighting tooth and nail for the Pay Per View rights.
WHAT DREAMS MAY COME
Instead, director Vincent Ward has patched together yet another big-budget poem about love transcending death. And this one doesn't even have Patrick Swayze in it.
Painting in Crayola colors and hauling out the slow-motion photography, Ward introduces Chris Nielsen (Williams), a newly dead soul who can't separate himself from his living wife, Annie (Annabella Sciorra).
Kansan rating: ★* out of ★★★★
Running time: 2 hours
Rated PG-13 for fuzzy photography
and hellish performances
Chris Nielsen (Robin Williams) travels through hell to save his wife's soul in What Dreams May Come. Contributed Photo
Chris couldn't have entered the realm of the dead at a better time. Four years earlier, his kids had died in a car wreck, putting his wife into a near-suicidal state of mind.
Another fatal accident sends Chris into heaven, and he awakens in a valley of hills, canyons and waterfalls. Chris even gets an afterlife tour guide (Cuba Gooding Jr.).
Meanwhile, the audience has the pleasure of watching Annie scribble in her ear and mope for about 45 minutes of screen time. Finally,
she kills herself.
Ah, but her soul goes to hell because, according to Cuba, suicide is a no-no. So Chris does the gentlymanly thing and ventures down below to rescue his woman.
Director Ward gets some appropriately shocking images out of this section of the film. One that stood out featured Williams crawling across a blackened beach strewn with the decaying bodies of
the damned. But most of hell looks more like a bad neighborhood than the worst place in the universe.
Williams tones down his hyperactive energy for this movie, but rather than engaging us with his sensitivity, his character comes across as more wishy-washy than passionate. Like the rest of the movie, Williams puts in the effort without delivering the goods to the audience.
Never go under with the KU Card
With your KU Card you just can't go wrong. It has special, rounded corners that won't poke or jab. Use it to call home. Use it to eat. Use it to wash your clothes or buy a pop. Whatever you use it for, it's waterproof and it floats so you won't have to worry about ever going under. Because it's NOT a credit card, it's a debit card—there's no interest to pay.
Other safety features include ATM access with your personal identification number, allows only you to have access to your money. And your photo prevents anyone else from using your card at a merchant. Use it on campus or around town like cash but don't worry about having the exact change—the KU Card will take care of it.
For more information call the KU Card Center at 785-864-5845 or Commerce on Campus at 785-864-5846.
Stop by these KU Card participating merchants:
Baskin-Robbins 31 Ice Cream Store • The Bike Shop • Boorer's Smoke House • Brown Bear Brewery
Burge Union Bookstore • The Casbah • Children's Book Shop • Classic Gourmet • Coco Loco Mexican Cafe
Gibson Pharmacy • Imperial Garden • Jayawkbook Bookshop • Jayhawk Trophy • Johnny's Tavern • Kansas Union Bookstore
Mr. Gatti's Pizza • Orchard Drug • Superior School Supply • University Bookshop • Yello Sub • Yikes