Page 43 - Phoenix1998-99

FEATURES Thursday, October 22, 1998 - Page 11 60 Seconds Visionary Dreams of the afterlife its explicit avoidance Do you think we should bring a BV Si\RAH RADICE onciled to his situation and reunites is god. I was hoping for a grander, of a god, any Williams with his dead daughter, commercial restaurant to the college? Features Editor devastated again when his wife more opinionated vision. As the millennium draws near, commits suicide and he finds out r think that the true star of you can expect a proliferation of that she is confined to Hell for her "Dreams" is not an actor at all, but movies dealing with spirituality actions. the computer generated special ef- and life after death. Determined to rescue Sciorra, fects. This movie would not have "We need a Wendy's." ,What Dreams May Come is he enlists the aid of Doc and a shad- been possible just a few years ago. Jason Valentine '00 probably the first in this category owy man called The Tracker (Max The scenes on Earth are meticu- of movies about death and the af- von Sydow), and sets off. Because lously detailed, the buildings sump- Biochemistry terlife. they are soul mates, Williams feels tuous and ornate. The cinematog- It is a visually stunning love that he can track his wife to the far- raphy is excellent, with inventive story wrapped in metaphysical thest reaches of Hell. camera angles and zooms that cre- musings on the nature of life and Williams and Sciorra make an ate unusual visual moments. This death that do not quite meet the attractive couple, and each con- creates a timeless, fairy tale atmo- same high standards as the special vincingly conveys the anguish and sphere that contributes to the fan- effects. suffering that come from death. tastic aura of the film. Robin Williams and Annabella While their scenes together lack a The depiction of Heaven is Sciorra star as a husband and wife passionate spark, they make up for breathtaking. Williams creates "I think that the food and so deeply in love' with each other it with a feeling of almost obses- from his mind a lush, shimmering variety are great, but that not even death itself can sepa- sive devotion. landscape of flowers and trees people get in a rut eating rate them. Although the whole "soul based on his wife's paintings. The meet one when They the same thing and get Sciorra literally bumps day into Will- mates" idea felt trite and tacked on whole thing is seemingly saturated bored. " just to give Williams a reason to be in molten light and created out of iams while both are boating in Italy. able to find Sciorra, I did enjoy paint. Williams touches flowers Matt Gribben '00 They marry soon after and have their selfish, almost neurotically and they crush in his hand, leaving Math/Biology/Chemistry two children who die in a tragic ac- close relationship. a paint smear. The central city is cident. Although Dreams is allegedly an immense medieval castle filled Four years later, Williams him- about the nature of life and death, with floating men and women go- self dies in another car accident. the love affair of Williams and ing about their tasks. Williams finds to his shock, Sciorra is the true subject. It domi- Hell, though, is where things however, that life does not end af- nates and drives the movie, sup- really get wild. Williams and his ter death. A spirit he nicknames planting even their love for their compatriots get pulled out of their "The food here is 30 times "Doc," (Cuba Gooding Jr., 011 act- children and adding a needed bit of boat into a black sea filled with better than American ing autopilot) comes to speak to darkness to a script that at limes pallid, grasping damned souls. University. " him and guide through his funeral. drifts into sentimentality. After coming ashore, they must Williams cannot accept his Jeff Soltz '98 Dreams is more of a spiritual take the elevator up to Hell. Then, Art History/Political death or parting from Sciorra, and movie than a religious one, some- in a scene highly reminiscent of finally is able to ascend to Heaven thing that disappointed me. Essen- Science only when he realizes his attempts tially, it states that Heaven is what Dante's Inferno, Williams walks where across a field of the damned, to stay with her only contribute to you make of it and does not address the people are buried up to their her anguish. the question of whether God is chins in the ground. Heaven, as it turns out, is cre- present at aiL Reincarnation is the What Dream May Come is a ated by each person based on his only concrete aspect, and the after- thought-provoking, emotionally ''I don't think our small life experiences. Williams creates life is presented as so amorphous affecting, though somewhat flawed student body can support his own paradise from paintings that it could encompass any reli- jewel. I highly recommend it. done by his wife. gion or none at all. It could almost such a franchise. I think After he gradually becomes rec- be seen as antireligious because of Glar is doing better this year. " Women in Black tie up Loose Ends Emily Murphy '00 Economics/Business BY MOl_LIE LAND low life, nocturnal insect who the eafofthe director. A good run- Administration StajfWrifer crawls out at the appropriate limes ning crew member can walk si- and sulks back to its lair when its lently, even across a creaky floor. Where's the cake? Frederico duties have been completed." Very few verbal exchanges take smells! This is heavy! BE QUIET! Due to the extensive number of place backstage; most communica- Just a normal day in a kindergarten props involved in Loose Ends, or- tion is telepathic in nature. classroom, right? Wrong! Wel- ganization was the key to success- The props of Loose Ends gave come to the running crew of Loose ful scene changes. This menacing the running crew lots of new toys "Two words: Sheets Ends, or as we like to call our- task was left to the Assistant Stage to play with. There was an insanely MTO." selves, the Women in Black. Manager Megan Townsend, and heavy gate and three equally heavy Dennis Lucey '01 Loose Ends, the most recent her assistant, Erin Owen. At any stumps. The challenges of these Math/Economics play produced by the theatre de- given moment during the show, one props alone sent the running crew partment here at Western Maryland of the two could be found on the to the weight room to prepare for College, opened on October I and verge of enervous breakdown. the show. closed on October 4. Life backstage is never without Then of course there was For an audience member the excitement. A prop is always miss- Frederico. Frederico was the dead drama of a play is in the acting. ing, something is always broken, fish offered, during the play, by a Little does anyone know that the and one crucial crew member is native of Bali to another character. activities behind the scenes are just guaranteed to disappear for at least During Frederico's offstage life, he as dramatic. ten minutes during each show. was the responsibility of the run- "The food is fine and Just what does a running crew Only the sheer magic of the theater ningcrew. people should just stop do? The responsibilities of the run- resolves these seeming disasters So where is the running crew complaining. " ning crew include setting all the just seconds before a scene change. now? You can probably find them props for an upcoming scene and When the lights go up, everything Ahsan Latif '99 in the theatre preparing for the next striking all the props from the pre- must be perfect. production Smell of the Grease- Economics/Business vious scene. One more quality characteriz- Administration To make things a little more ex- ing the backstage atmosphere of a paint. Roar of the Crowd. Tech work draws a certain crowd. Those citing, this must all be done quickly play is its quietness. One crew skilled in the art of solving prob- and in the dark. member described it as the "library lems quickly, quietly and without Lisa Van Auken summed it up from hell". The slightest noise, be panic are highly valued in the tech- best when she said, '" feel like a it a whisper or a sneeze, can catch nical community. ?