Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SATURDAY, February 4, 1995 TAG: 9502100016
SECTION: EXTRA PAGE: 12 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: MIKE MAYO
DATELINE: LENGTH: Long
Since then, the business of leaving the world of innocence and entering adulthood has been the stuff of countless retellings. Despite variations in character, setting and situation, these stories are always the same, always popular. This week, in typically illogical video fashion, we've got three versions of two coming-of-age stories.
"There Goes My Baby" is about a group of Los Angeles high school seniors in the pivotal year of 1965. Stick (Ricky Schroder) is a surfer who's about to go to Vietnam. Finnegan (Noah Wyle) is the straight-arrow honor student headed for Harvard. His equally respectable girlfriend Tracy (Kristin Minter) - "a perfect 34-C at age 12" - isn't sure what she'll do.
Calvin (Kenny Ransom), their black friend, doesn't know which world he belongs in when Watts erupts in riots. Babette (Jill Schoelen) dreams of being a rock star. Free spirits Pirate (Dermot Mulroney) and Sunshine (Kelli Williams) are about 10 minutes ahead of the hippie movement. Mary Beth (Lucy Deakins) is our narrator who explains what these young men and women are up to.
Mirroring the larger domestic and international upheavals going on around them, their favorite hang-out, Pop's Paradise, is about to be bulldozed to make room for a shopping center.
Writer-director Floyd Mutrux, who was also responsible for the cult hit "American Hot Wax," divides the action fairly evenly among his large ensemble cast, and he got fine performances from them. His script may not be 100 percent true in terms of historical fact, but he gets the emotions absolutely right. For teen-agers, those were heady days of conflict and uncertainty, and the film captures that instability. Though there is a certain unavoidable "American Graffiti" nostalgia to the film, Mutrux also borrows a more hardheaded sensibility from "Medium Cool."
It is an unusual combination, but one that finally works well, and Mutrux winds up with just the right ending. "There Goes My Baby" is due in video stores on Feb. 21. Make your reservations now.
Somerset Maugham's "The Razor's Edge" is one of the great coming-of-age novels. The first film version of it was nominated for several Academy Awards in 1946 and lost all but Best Supporting Actress (Anne Baxter) to "The Best Years of Our Lives." There's no disgrace in that, and the film still stands as a remarkable adaptation of popular fiction. It's just been re-released on tape and, it's well worth another look.
Larry Darrell (Tyrone Power) is a young Midwesterner who returns from World War I disillusioned with his country's all-consuming pursuit of monetary success. His fiancee, Isabel (Gene Tierney at her most stunning), simply doesn't understand him. Visiting English novelist Maugham (Herbert Marshall) is intrigued by an American who's so interested in spiritual matters that he moves to Paris and other places even more remote in his search for truth.
The other key players are Gray (John Payne), who's also in love with Isabel; her snobbish Uncle Elliott (Clifton Webb); and their friend Sophie (Baxter). Though the story may sound cliched in synopsis, the characters are boldly drawn and instantly recognizable. The film is also a textbook example of the magic that could be achieved through Hollywood soundstages. All of the locations - from Left-Bank dives to Himalayan monasteries - were created on a back lot.
By today's standards, the pace is a little slow and the action is too talky but those flaws are easily overlooked. The story works on the most basic what's-going-to-happen-next? level, and the emotional conclusion is just terrific.
"The Razor's Edge" was remade in 1984 from a script by star Bill Murray and director John Byrum. Though it's not as successful as the 1946 version, it's not a bad film. In a rare dramatic starring role, Murray is much better than fans of his comedy might expect. He gets good support from Catherine Hicks, James Keach, Theresa Russell and particularly the late Denholm Elliott as the scene-stealing Uncle Elliott.
For my money, neither film really captures the power of the novel, but that could be said of any good fiction. And as much as I prefer the 1946 version, the newer one will be more "accessible" to young audiences. In any case, all three films tell good stories of characters learning who they are as they make their way through interesting times.
Next week: Video valentines!
New releases
Blankman **
Starring Damon Wayans, David Alan Grier, Robin Givens. Directed by Mike Binder. Columbia TriStar. 92 min. Rated PG-13 for strong language, sexual humor, some violence.
This uneven little comedy wastes a potentially interesting premise. Set in Chicago, it's about an innocent man-child who invents a bulletproof fabric and then tries to turn himself into a superhero. The story never quite comes together as it should,despite a few bright funny scenes.
Color of Night **1/2
Starring Bruce Willis, Scott Bakula, Jane Marsh. Directed by Richard Rush. Buena Vista.. 140 min. Rated R for graphic violence, sexual activity, nudity, strong language.
Anyone who takes this one seriously will detest it. But those who see it as a parody of "Basic Instinct" thrillers will be wonderfully entertained. (The presence of B-veterans Lance Henriksen and Brad Dourif is the tip-off.) Willis plays a psychiatrist trying to solve the murder of a fellow shrink who was killed by one of his patients. The rest is a mix of racy sex scenes, hammy overacting and ridiculous pop psychology. Only Ruben Blades, as a detective, seems to have understood how silly the material really is. The video version contains about 20 minutes more footage than the theatrical release. It shows a bit more skin - including blink-and-you'll-miss-it male nudity - and makes the already convoluted plot a little more so. Definitely not for kids, but a must for guilty-pleasure fans.
Note: "Natural Born Killers," scheduled for video release a couple of weeks ago, has been postponed until Feb. 14.
There Goes My Baby *** 1/2
Orion. 98 min. Rated R for strong language, violence, sexual content.
The Razor's Edge (1946) *** 1/2
FoxVideo. 144 min. Unrated, contains no objectionable material.
The Razor's Edge (1984) **1/2
Columbia TriStar. 130 min. Rated PG-13 for strong language and brief nudity.
by CNB