FILMS: 'Oliver' is great
By MIKE SHEARER
Cinema musicals have been redefined and standards of expectation raised with "Oliver."
"Oliver," along with "Funny Girl," will make 1968 a year of renaissance in American musicals. Hopefully, it will make Americans less willing to sit through the standard money-making musical in the future.
With an excellent cast and not one substandard performance "Oliver" has proven that a good musical is baked in an oven of good music with all the necessary ingredients. We learn from "Oilver" that we have been eating Betty-Crocker brand musicals up until now.
No big-name non-entities sell "Oliver."
Instead some of the most animated, exciting choreography ever filmed, highlighting Ron Moody as Fagin, makes the movie alive from beginning to end. Moody's Fagin is somewhat like Alfred Dolittle in "My Fair Lady," except Fagin is even more developed and enthralling. Moody, a virtually unknown performer in America, is the movie's standout.
Shani Wallis, playing Nancy, shows all the talents of a budding star. With a varied and beautiful voice and a distinguished personality, her character is one of the most believable and lovable in the film.
Child actors, traditionally a nauseating crew of mini-grownups with dimples, can be warm and alive, as evidenced in both the performances of Jack Wild playing Artful Dodger and Mark Lester playing Oliver.
In fact, few children in the history of cinema (including Patty Duke and Shirley Temple), have delivered a performance more professional and genuine than that of young Wild. His dancing, his singing and his acting are breathtakingly fresh and appealing.
The other two main performers, Oliver Reed and Harry Secomb, are more than adequate. Secumb's voice is perfect in its boldness for the role of the evil Mr. Bumble.
But the musical's essence is its choreography and its music. The production of "Who Will Buy" is splendid and moving.
All in all, "Oliver" will add much to the downfall of future film musicals in the manner of "My Fair Lady," "Mary Poppins," "The Sound of Music" and "Star"-all big money makers of recent years. But much more than burying the trite, "Oliver" gives birth to a new realism in close relationship to fantasy with the result of cestasy.
Sale offers rare prints
London Grafica Arts of Detroit, Mich., is currently presenting a collection of original graphics in an exhibition and sale in the Kansas Union South Lounge this week.
The collection includes prints from the originals by Rembrandt, Durer, Picasso, Braque and Chagall. Also included are contemporary prints that were commissioned especially by London Arts.
Making a tour of colleges and universities throughout the United States, this collection provides about 500 works usually seen only in major art galleries or museums.
KWNEVN
The prints range in price from $10 to $3 thousand. They will be on sale in the Union all week.
Pittsburgh Symphony plays in Hoch tonight
The Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, under the direction of William Steinberg, will perform at 8:20 p.m. today in Hoch Auditorium.
Steinberg, German born and trained, was a refugee from Hitler's Germany who helped found the Palestine Symphony Orchestra (now the Israel Philharmonic) in 1936.
Tickets for the performance are available at Murphey box office and Bell Music Store. KU students will be admitted free with ID cards.
RECORDS:
'Natch'l Blues'
By WILL HARDESTY
THE NATCH'L BLUES by Taj Mahal on Columbia is real stoned soul music by a guy who calls himself "an old swamp spade." The result is a tremendous album.
Best song on the album is "You Don't Miss Your Water ('Til Your Well Runs Dry)." This song has a brass and reeds background which is outta sight, allows Al Kooper on piano to get in a few licks and lets the talented Taj Mahal show off his singing, guitar-playing and harmonica-playing abilities. The song is an abstract of the album—sometimes light, sometimes heavy; sometimes fast, sometimes slow; always blue—blues done catchly.
James Taylor-has an album out called JAMES TAYLOR on Apple. He has a good melodic voice, writes excellent music, plays guitar and does other things (with the help of a few others) to make an excellent background. True modern folk music.
He must be an ex-con Leo for his songs are about being free and sunshine and things which are free and wonderful and not entirely understandable, like women.
Unique parts of the album are the "links"—little musical interludes between most songs.
WINGS OF A MAN by Danny McCulloch on Capitol is a very good album. McCulloch played with Eric Burdon and the Animals for awhile and the songs sound a lot like slow, blues-ballad Animal songs. He has a gritty, dirty-blues voice. His music is more surrealistic and mystic than Animal music; softer, with more orchestra background, lighter. The only real fault occurs occasionally when McCulloch has to strain his voice to make it do what he wants it to.
Mar. 12 1969 KANSAN 5
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'Peace'
Allen Ginsberg narrates Jonas Mekas" "Guns of the Trees" 7 p.m.
Thursday in 303 Bailey and stars in "Me and My Brother" 4:30
Friday in the Forum Room and at 7 and 9:30 p.m. in 303 Bailey.
FRI. & SAT. -- MARCH 14 & 15
InDesign
8 P.M.
Now on Capitol Records! The Serfs first LP "Early Bird Cafe"—on sale at Kief's in the Malls— Only $2.99
Moby Grape's New Columbia LP "Moby Grape 69"
Now on Sale at Kief's—Only $2.99
Fri., March 21
Doug Clark & The Hot Nuts
Advanced ticket sales on all above attractions
at Red Dog Office Mon.-Fri. 9-5 p.m.