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THE HOUSTON HOME JOURNAL, SATURDAY, DECEMBER 29, 1990 6A fw 3 r James St. James (Emilio Esteves, left) flanked by his supervisor Louis Fedders (Keith David, right) hold their pizza deliveryman (Dean Cameron, center) hostage while disposing of a deceased mayoral candidate in the action comedy "Men at Work" 'Men at Work' is a lost, boring comedy By JACKIE K. COOPER HHJ Entertainment Critic "Men At Work" is a movie that had a fast release in the movie the aters, then hit the airplane circuit, and now has come to video. And all of this happened in the space of a couple of months. But that's life in the fast lane of Hollywood these days and Emilio Estevez knows how to make it all work. Real life brothers Charlie Sheen and Estevez play good friends in "Men At Work." The chemistry between them is good but no belter than that which any two good ac tors could convey. Still the movie has its moments thanks to them, and has its loses thanks also to them. Emilio plays James and Charlie plays Carl, two garbagemen in the fictional city of Los Playas, Cali fornia. When the movie focuses on them and their handling or work and 'Predator 2' had a lot of potential, final result is sad By JACKIE K. COOPER HHJ Entertainment Critic "Predator 2" starts out as a won derfully exciting action adventure but soon slides into cartoon capcr ish silliness. An outstanding cast can only watch hopelessly as all their best efforts fall apart. Danny Glover, Gary Buscy and others have the acting know-how to create a first rate film but the makers of this movie were only intent on show casing the "alien" killer. The first "Predator" gave Arnold Schwarzenegger a chance to go hunk to hunk against a lowering creature from outer space. Arnold can make even an alien seem a de fcatablc foe. But Danny Glover is more brains than brawn so when he and Mr. Alien go mano a mano the results arc laughs not thrills. The main flaw in the film though is its lack of consistency. The crea ture, which looks like it used to live in "the black lagoon," is visi ble one moment and not the next. It also is able to leap tall buildings in a single bound one moment and not the next. Plus it can lift tons in the opening segments but can't knock Glover out with a good right punch in the latter scenes. You never know what to expect as to its capa bilities and that is deadly in a movie of this type. You can stretch bclicvabilily to the limits as long U how Playing: PC □ "1991" tt ~LJ Hope it's a blockbuster! LJ~ ?n Thank you for your valued patronage. Q ;Q 987-9960 Eastgate Plaza. Pom/ Ur \ Entertainment V J leisure time it is fairly entertaining. But scriptwriter Estevez docs not trust his material to keep hold of the audience's attention. So what starts out as a "sanitation workers" comedy soon changes into a "let's play detectives" mystery movie. In trying to get some laughs from the audience, Estevez (who also directed as well as starring and writing) fills the screen with cheap shoLs at Vietnam veterans, murder victims, phrenologists, and police officers. In setting up funny pranks in the film it is one thing to sec an air bag attack someone in a car, but another to see one explode when it is filled with excrement. Estevez thinks this last joke is so funny he pulls it twice. Way to go, Emilio! Charlie Sheen has some mo ments of humor when he and Es tevez arc bantering back and forth. But then there are those long silent moments when he is trying to ap as you arc consistent, and the audi ence will follow right along. Fool them and they will turn on you cn masse. Glover plays a cop named Mike Harrigan in the film. Docs that make him Black Irish? I am glad to sec Glover getting roles which were not clearly written for a black actor but I think the name could have been changed to a more appropriate one. Plus they also forgot to give the character any character. All Glover gets to do is swear a lot and huff and puff. Buscy, Reuben Blade, Maria Conchita Alonso, and Bill Paxton do what they can with their sketchy roles also. But the body count in this film is so high that you no sooner get interested in a character and hc/shc is gone. The movie docs show some spunk though in pre senting Morion Downey, Jr. as a loudmouth reporter. And it bring s back an older and wiser Kent "Adam-12" McCord as the police Caj. ‘iain. The most ironic bit of casting is that of Kevin Peter Hall as the game hunting alien. Hall special izes in playing "big" roles. His most famous one was the Bigfoot pear deep in thought. Thai's when it dawns on you there might be no one home in his head at the lime. Emilio Estevez has much more of a screen charisma than does his brother. You arc always interested in what he is doing, or what is be ing done to him, on screen. So as an actor this movie is not a waste for him. But as a director and writer "Men At Work" is only a short step up from his previous basement level effort - "Wisdom." Leslie Hope has been seen in a large number of second rate movies and she usually has matched the film, but this time she is a bright spot in the movie. She is extremely likeable, and fun to watch. It's a shame she didn’t get more screen lime because she improves the movie every lime she appears. The film is rated PC-13 for pro fanity and violence. WHAT'S GOOD ABOUT THIS character in "Harry and the Hender sons." He was so loveable there and is so ferocious here. The movie is rated R for much violence, nudity and constant pro fanity. Giving the devil its due, 1 have to say the movie keeps the suspense going right up to the end. But these WOODRUFF AUTO SALES AND M AUTO 0 RENTAL!! Large Selection of Good Used Cars & Rental Cars Starting at $ 14 95 a day 912 Commerce St, at Washington St, Downtown Perry»9B7-0053 r - * Happy New Year from New Perry Cleaners We want to be the professional Dry Cleaners you want us to be. We are constantly updating our equipment and take every opportunity to provide specialized training for our employees. Your business is very important to us; Service is all we sell! If you are happy with our work, tell your neighbor and if you are dissatisfied tell me. Besides; we can't correct a problem unless I know what it is. Thanks to you, our valued customer we have experienced increased sales each month. Your continued support makes us try even harder to please you. Please cut out and use this 10% discount coupon through Decem ber 31 st, 1990. For your convenience, our drop off points are; Joyce's King Cotton Exxon On The Square US 41 Vienna, GA Unadilla, GA f 10% DISCOUNT COUPON ""'I I , NEW perry cleaners I 736 Main Street 11 lil Perry, GA 31769 ! (912)987-1965 ; Owners Home Phone (912) 268-4943 V ' ' Expires 12/31/90 J *)) VIDEO - The on screen camaraderie of Sheen and Estevez; the bright beauty and personality of Leslie Hope; and the cheap laughs that do work. Some of you arc bound to find some of this hilarious. WHAT'S BAD ABOUT THE VIDEO - The failure to maintain the comedy of the first third of the film; the long gaps when nothing interesting is happening; and the cheap shots at various groups to grab a laugh. THE VERDICT - Too little originality in the comedy scenes and 100 little inventiveness in the plotline make "Men At Work" a tedious way to spend an evening. But the joy of video is being able to scream at your TV screen when a joke is really lame or when the act ing is really bad. So hoot and holler and have a good time with "Men At Work." I scored "Men At Work” a leisurely 4 out of 10. arc cheap thrills in a movie that could have offered more. And on a final note, it is a confused film that fails to name any of its cast until the final credits. Glover may not be the mcga-slar Arnold is but he does deserve to have his name above the title. I scored "Predator 2" an alienating 4 out of 10. A murder mystery that keeps readers in deep suspense By JACKIE K. COOPER HHJ Entertainment Critic NIGHTWATCHER is an inter esting murder mystery by Charles Wilson. It has enough crooks and turns to keep the reader off balance as to the identity of the killer and this helps sustain the suspense to the very end of the story. In NIGHTWATCHER a young nurse is brutally raped and mur dered. Her father is distraught over this occurrence and pursues his own investigation into her death. As he digs deeper and deeper into the cir cumstances surrounding her murder he uncovers one suspect after an other. Judith, the daughter, was not the sweet young thing her father thought she was. Although she was married she had quite a few boyfriends in her life. And a good many of them were married. She also had strong sexual appetites which took a violent turn from time to time. Brandon Richards has to accept these revelations about his daughter while he works to discover her murderer. And when he hires a de tective to do some of the investiga tive work which is beyond him, he unknowingly picks a man who Thank you for your business in 1990. r /v tCL js. n Hope to see you in 1991. WAYNE MORRIS Exit 43 at 1-75 1/2 Mile West Perry 987-2411 • 922-5578 I Vd/Wi ifi I J ATTHE [ | PERRY HOLIDAY INN! j I* §L Great Parties * I i I* Ifor1 for *1 I I* I Great Price *P •—|_^*********j“- 1 I IN THE BALLROOM ! ; DANCE TO ALL THE BEST ’ROM R ; THE 50'S, 60'S, & 70'S WITH... I EATURING: U ; FRANKIE AND THE VELCROS j i •Seating will be on a first come, first serve basis• ■ i And i | To 0 ” \ HIGH ENERGY club dance music ! ; DOORS OPEN FROMTHEBOSAND9OS J lAT 8:00pm, MONDAY f 1 1 DECEMBER 31" 1990 WHS! ! 1 IGialknahduMl 1 1 r THE ENTHE NEW YEARS PARTY N I I PACKAGE FOR TWO-ONLY •*» i i *87 m V *>p<rtM,>fciS.i j i i rsssa, i | AFTER PARTY BREAKFAST BUFFET, ' „ ! I (flg® | | AND COMPLIMENTARY CHAMPAGNE AT HC ftK^K NN I V MPNIGHT FOR EVERYBOOYIIIIII J PERRY GAS 1069 ' might be a suspect in the case. But then just about everybody in this Mississippi town is a potential suspect in this bizarre case. The only problem with the book is the overly simplistic way in which Mr. Wilson writes. He has all the elements of the plot nailed down but he fails to create a totally fleshed out character in any of those described in the story. The main hero, Brandon Richards, appears on just about every page but you never get a feeling of full comprehension or understanding about him. Even the maniacal Minneficld who sits in the asylum across from Judith's apartment constantly watching is only a stick figure. This man has the potential to be a devastating villain but the words arc never given which would convey the full impact of horror he should inspire. Since Wilson is good with plots it is expected his next novels will gel better and belter. The talent for writing in depth characters appears to be there, it just needs to be cul tivated. NIGHTWATCHER is published by Carrol & Graf. It contains 263 pages and sells for $17.95.