ROANOKE TIMES 
                      Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times

DATE: Saturday, February 3, 1996             TAG: 9602040008
SECTION: EXTRA                    PAGE: 10   EDITION: METRO 
                                             TYPE: MOVIE REVIEW 
SOURCE: MIKE MAYO CORRESPONDENT 

RIDLEY SCOTT FOUNDERS IN `WHITE SQUALL'

"White Squall" is Hollywood filmmaking at its emptiest and most attractive.

Ridley Scott has a reputation as an extremely "visual" director. Images from "Alien," "Blade Runner" and "Thelma & Louise" are instantly recognizable. In this sea-going adventure, he fills the screen with more striking scenes. But in emotional terms, the film is hollow and false.

Based on a true story, it's set in 1960. A dozen or so rich white teen-age boys spend a year aboard the Albatross, a "sailing school" that will take them from the Bahamas to the Pacific and back. These young hunks never miss a chance to strip off their T-shirts and pose fetchingly in the rigging. At times, the whole thing looks like an extended Calvin Klein underwear ad.

Beneath that glamorous surface, though, they're a mass of phobias, Oedipal complexes and bladder control problems. No matter, Skipper (Jeff Bridges), his wife (Caroline Goodall), and English teacher McCrae (John Savage) will whip these callow youths into men. Our narrator on the voyage is Chuck Gieg (Scott Wolf), whose resemblance to a young Tom Cruise is no accident.

Pre-release publicity has made it clear that the key event is a terrible storm, but that actually occurs late. Before it, there's lots of bonding among the kids and wisdom dispensed by the Skipper. With all that, there's little room for realistic dialogue or character development.

Even though Scott does his usual careful work with textured light and composition, he tends to keep his characters' faces in shadow, further distancing them from the audience. When the big storm finally arrives, it's hard to tell who's drowning and who's escaping. It's even harder to care one way or another.

White Squall

*1/2

A Hollywood Pictures release playing at the Salem Valley 8 and Valley View 6. 128 min. Rated PG-13 for violence, strong language, mild sexual material.

LENGTH: Short :   45 lines
ILLUSTRATION: PHOTO:  Jeff Bridges (left) and Scott Wolf star in "White 
          Squall." color.