10 /FEATUIMS CAPITAL TIMES November 23, 1992 Boring Christmas in New York for Home Alone 2 Jason Sandhaus Capital Times Staff Macaulay Culkin is back. So is everyone and everything else that made Home Alone the third highest grossing film of all time. Like they say, "If it ain't broke don't fix it." John Hughes certainly abides by that rule. He brings us - the script for his second installment--Home Alone 2: Lost in New York. This time the McAllister family is supposed to go to Florida on another Christmas vacation. Kevin is once again sent to his room, but this time he makes it to the airport. At the airport, he loses his family for a second, then sees his father's coat and follows quickly behind. The only problem is that it's not his dad. Little Kevin gets on the wrong plane--headed to New York. Love story trapped in a bloody mess Jason Sandhaus Capital Times Staff From the watchful eye of Francis Ford Coppolla comes Bram Stoker's Dracula. A film many people have been waiting for. I was one of those people. And I was extremely disappointed by it. The previews and the story itself would suggest that this is a horror film. Sorry. This is more of a love story than a horror flick. I hate love stories almost as much as I hate musicals. The film starts out when Dracula was a prince. He goes off to war and leaves his beautiful bride-to-be Mina back at the palace. He eventually comes back, but not before Mina kills herself. The prince can't handle her death and denounces God. He then becomes immortal--searching for Mina. Centuries later he thinks he's found her when Jonathan (Keanu Reeves) comes to his domain in Transylvania. He is engaged to Elizabeth (Winona Ryder), who remarkably resembles Mina. Dracula sees a picture of her and keeps Jonathan prisoner in his lair while he goes off to London to try and woo Elizabeth. The beginning segments of this film are the best. Dracula is an old man and does very strange things. In one scene he is talking to Jonathan and his shadow behind him is doing something completely different. Visually the film is very entertaining. It's the story that makes this film weak. I never read the book, but I'm sure it has more horror than the film suggests. Once Dracula arrived in London the was scat s 5 .1a126 ° jS A.6,s NI 04, Susquehanna Institute Comprehensive Counseling, Psychological and Educational Services Dr. Edward S. Beck, Director Dr. Ronald L. Bonner, Psychologist Dr. Diane Michalik Bonner, Psychologist Rosemarie Chernesky Holland, Counselor Patricia Rothermel, Marriage & Family Therapist Joseph R. Manduchi, Psychologist Dr. James K. Walters, Psychologist Michael Faulkner, Certified Massage Therapist Day, Evening & Weekend Appointments Available • Affordable Special Student Rates Most Insurance Plans Accepted • Nearly 50 Practice Specialties (for a free brochure, call or write) ..J Also in New York are the recently led "W Band " :he "Stick, Y Unfortunately for the movie's sake, these two aren't in it enough. Half the movie is spent getting Kevin situated in New York. Not very funny. He gets a hotel room at the luxurious Plaza Hotel. Most of the gags that worked in the first film are used again in this one. The gigantic sundae, the talking television to scare people off and the silhouette. This time Kevin uses the silhouette to represent his father taking a shower. Funny stuff. The old man who scares him in the first film, isn't in this one. He is replaced by a homeless woman who is quite fond film went downhill. I found myself almost dozing in some sequences. The whole scenario with him trying to win over Elizabeth is boring. I remember hearing over the summer that preview audiences complained that the film was too gory and too confusing. I think it would have been a better film if it had more, if any, gore. Coppolla is known for tinkering with his films before their release--I think he played with this one too much. The buzz on this film was amazing. It seems every time a film is over-hyped before it comes out, it usually is disappointing. As was the case with the first Batman. Like I said earlier, the film was visually entertaining. The set locations and the sets themselves were wonderful. I got a dreaded feeling when we were in Transylvania. I guess that's what happens when all you can see is mist. Much of the supporting cast was wasted. Anthony Hopkins was fine as Dr. Van Helsing, but I like him better as a villain. Oldman played a great vampire, much better than George Hamilton or Frank Langella. You almost felt for him. Winona Ryder still can't act, but she did try. The worst was Keanu Reeves. Why does he still get acting jobs? The man can't act. I thought I was watching Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure every time he was on the screen. went right down to the costuming and especially the editing. When Dracula was old, he had gray hair. That's fine, but his hair was in two beehives, and a braid went down the center of his back. Who thought of this? In another scene Ryder was dressed in a green outfit and a little green hat--she looked like a Leprechaun. The editing left a lot to the imagination. There were random shots of decapitated heads thrown in--where they didn't belong. I think the editor was drunk. The film was downright strange. It Serving Penn State Harrisburg Students, Staff and Faculty Since 1972 of pigeons. The film is too long (2 hours), and it takes forever for anything to happen. The basic premise of the film is that the bandits are going to rob a toy store-- because toy stores leave money in their registers over Christmas. Kevin finds out about the scheme and plans to ruin it the only way he can. But he doesn't have the comforts of his own home. Never fear--Kevin's uncle has a house in New York. How convenient. And fortunately for him, it's being renovated. He can do all his dastardly work inside that house. The scenes with Kevin and the bandits are the best in the movie. I was laughing so hard during some of the segments, tears were coming out of my eyes. Good thing I was wearing my Depends. There is one scene where Joe Pesci Student express concerns at humanities forum Lori Gring Capital Times Staff A small group of humanities students met with faculty in the gallery lounge on Monday, Nov. 16, to discuss concerns about the the humanities programs. Lisa Malask, a senior humanities/ communications major, SGA senator for humanities and organizer of the forum, asked what a student should do if they cannot get in touch with a part-time professor. William Mahar, head of the humanities division, advised the students to leave a note for the professor, allowing 3-5 days for a response. He said if there is no response, the student should contact their advisor. Angie West, a senior humanities/ communications major asked, why no (717)545-5500 24 hours • 7 days East Shore Medical Center 2405 Linglestown Road Harrisburg, PA 17110 does a handstand on a toilet to put out a fire on his head. Sound familiar? There really isn't much new material in this film. That is why it will b e successful and make a ton of money-- maybe $l5O million. I wasn't too fond of the first one, so I was skeptical about this one. I got what I expected. If you didn't pay attention that closely and saw them in New York, you'd swear you were watching the original. All in all, there is probably a total of a half-hour that is funny. The rest is ho hum and dry. Does Macaulay Culkin really need $3 million per picture? Heck, I could slap my face and scream for that amount of money. language courses will be offered through the humanities division next semester. Mahar said the humanities division is working on an arrangement to offer foreign language courses through continuing education. The group also asked questions about the availability and requirements for humanities internships. Dr. Melvin Wolf, professor of humanities and English 'spoke, about humanities/business internships. Dr. Peter Parisi, assistant professor of humanities and communications, spoke about communications internships. Dr. Simon Bronner, distinguished professor of American studies and folklore, mentioned that students interested in American studies internships should speak with Dr. Michael Barton, coordinator and associate professor of social science and American studies. Don't go into this film expecting it to be a scary, bloody mess. It's a far cry from that. It's a boring love story with horror mixed in. It will be around for a few weeks, but the big boys are starting to come out so this one will fade fast. **
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