The Collegian Wednesday, February 21, 1990
Laughs rare in poorly
structured Madhouse
by Christi Luden
Collegian Staff Writer
What do John Larroquette
from "Night Court" and Kirstie
Alley from "Cheers" have in
common? A unimpressive new
comedy movie entitled Madhouse
. Although the lading roles arc
played by two of television's
most hilarious and popular stars,
I would not advise anyone to
waste their money on this
mediocrity.
The film begins with a happy,
newlywed couple sharing their
first apartment together. Mark
and Jessica Bannister (Larroquette
and Alley) are madly in love and
very successful in their areas of
business and news broadcasting.
All is bliss until cousins Fred
and Bernice come to visit. What
starts out as a happy reunion ends
up causing unbelievable fiascocs
in the Bannisters' lives.
The first incident occurs
during the ride from the airport to
Mark and Jessica’s apartment.
Their wonderful cousins bring
along Scrubby, the family cat.
Scrubby doesn't like the car ride
100 much and literally soaks
everyone because of ill feelings.
This occurrence, which
foreshadowed many more terrible
events, provides one of very few
moments that causes laughter.
On the supposed last day of
Fred and Bernice's vacation, hugs
arc exchanged and the Bannisters'
moments of peace arc again well
on their way. Well on their way,
Liner
(continued from page 8)
tribute to the late reggae pioneer.
Island will donate profits to fund
Amnesty's humanist efforts in
the third world.
• Lock up your old Barbies.
Five new dolls have entered the
toy market representing (you
guessed it) the New Kids on the
Block. Is nothing sacred?
• Olcta Adams, the back-up
singer discovered on the latest
Tears For Fears LP, will release
her solo debut on March 12. The
release was written and produced
by Tears For Fears member
Roland Orzabal.
• The Cowboy Junkies will
premiere their second LP on
March 13. Titled The Caution
AOR Hits
taken from Radio and Records
1. Aerosmith - "What it Takes"
2. Alannah Myles - "Black Velvet"
3. Whitesnake - "The Deeper the Love"
4. Rolling Stones r "Almost Hear You Sigh"
5. Tom Petty - "A Face in the Crowd"
that is, until a pregnant Bernice
takes a little spill on the front
porch and, under doctor's orders,
has to spend the rest of her
pregnancy in bed. This is when
the couple begins their descent
into a living hell.
Bernice becomes demanding
and very obnoxious, Fred leaves
to find his real self again, and
Scrubby began to use up his nine
lives by dying and rising again
throughout the entire movie.
If these house guests aren't
enough <o put up with, Jessica's
spoiled and debonair sister leaves
her husband and decides to move
in also. Needless to say, she and
Bernice arc totally opposite and at
each other's throats from the first
lime they meet. Following
Claudia's intrusion, her son also
decides to join the Madhouse.
Now with four guests and an
ever-living cat, Mark and Jessica
Bannister arc starting to lose their
sanity. Privacy becomes a word
of the past, their jobs start to
suffer and sleeping on the floor
takes a toll also.
The fun doesn't end here
though. A rare passionate
moment in the backyard sends a
burning grill into a nextdoor
neighbor's pile of straw and the
neighbor's house is burnt to the
ground. What's the best possible
way for the Bannisters to avoid a
lawsuit while the adoring
neighbor and his two lovely
children vail for the insurance
payoff? Thai's right, let them
move in.
Notes
Horses, the release contains eight
original compositions and a cover
of Neil Young's "Powdcrfingcr."
• The meaning behind the
numbers in the title of Janet
Jackson's Rhythm Nation 1814
has been explained. According to
Jackson, she jokingly told
recording engineers that she
hoped for the release to become a
"national anthem for the 90's.”
She later learned that Francis
Scott Key wrote "The Star-
Spangled Banner” on September
14, 1814. Talk about a
disappointing revelation.
• U 2 guitarist The Edge has
completed the score for a
theatrical adaptation of Anthony
Burgess’ novel A Clockwork
Orange.
Added to the bunch is a crazed
car salesman with an obsession
for power tools, a mischievous
little boy who sets off
firecrackers and kills the cat a few
limes, and a teenage girl who's in
love with Mark and constantly
tying up the phone line. It's
enough to push the Bannisters
over the edge. They nearly lose
their jobs, resort to living in a
tent in their backyard, and totally
lose what sanity they had left.
What's next?
The Bannisters also deal with
police, cocaine, an elephant, and
surprisingly enough, a happy
ending.
If you plan to view this
movie,try to wait until it comes
out on videotape. It is worth the
price of a video rental, but
definitely no more than that. The
humor is rare and dry. The many
subplots and different characters
throughout the film are
somewhat corny, but the movie
isn't a total disaster. A few scenes
caused an eruption of laughter in
the theater and for that I'll give
writer and director Tom
Ropclcwski a just a tiny bit of
credit.
Thursday, February 22, 1990
Bpm Reed Lecture Hall
Pw<gs<smils s
Comedian
TONY powki .1.
Tony has made appearances on many local
shows, with an original approach as well
as impersonating the like of Eddie Murphy
and Bill Cosby.
Admission - FREE
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