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Mt. Holz Science Fiction Society
Club Notice - 07/23/93 -- Vol. 12, No. 4
MEETINGS UPCOMING:
Unless otherwise stated, all meetings are in Holmdel 4N-509
Wednesdays at noon.
_D_A_T_E _T_O_P_I_C
08/04 Hugo Short Story Nominees
08/25 CONSIDER PHLEBAS by Iain Banks
(Space Opera with a Knife Twist)
09/15 WORLD AT THE END OF TIME by Frederik Pohl
(Modern Stapledonian Fiction)
10/06 SARAH CANARY by Karen Joy Fowler (Nebula Winner)
(tentative)
10/27 A MILLION OPEN DOORS by John Barnes (Nebula Nominee)
(tentative)
11/17 BRIAR ROSE by Jane Yolen (Nebula Nominee)
(tentative)
Outside events:
07/31 Deadline for Hugo Ballots to be postmarked
The Science Fiction Association of Bergen County meets on the second
Saturday of every month in Upper Saddle River; call 201-933-2724 for
details. The New Jersey Science Fiction Society meets on the third
Saturday of every month in Belleville; call 201-432-5965 for details.
HO Chair: John Jetzt HO 1E-525 908-834-1563 holly!jetzt
LZ Chair: Rob Mitchell HO 1C-523 908-834-1267 holly!jrrt
MT Chair: Mark Leeper MT 3D-441 908-957-5619 mtgzfs3!leeper
HO Librarian: Nick Sauer HO 4F-427 908-949-7076 homxc!11366ns
LZ Librarian: Lance Larsen LZ 3L-312 908-576-3346 quartet!lfl
MT Librarian: Mark Leeper MT 3D-441 908-957-5619 mtgzfs3!leeper
Factotum: Evelyn Leeper MT 1F-329 908-957-2070 mtgpfs1!ecl
All material copyright by author unless otherwise noted.
1. Will Rogers, at the height of his popularity, was asked to do
testimonials for all sorts of different products. Why they thought
someone who made jokes well would be a person of taste I have no
idea, but I _a_m available. Anyway, he was asked to do a testimonial
for a piano company. Rogers's musical education had already
proceeded to the point that he knew some of the keys were black and
THE MT VOID Page 2
others, for some unexplainable reason, were white. (Come to think
of it, why is that? And did they used to make the black keys out
of ivory also?) But Rogers did not feel right about giving a
testimonial for a product he had never used, so he sent them his
testimonial saying theirs was the "best piano [he] had ever leaned
on."
I have a profound respect for people finding unplanned uses for
everyday objects. This is an unsolicited testimonial for what I
think is a really useful reference book--if you know how to use it,
that is. The source is a television and movie guide. Leonard
Maltin edits one; Steven Scheuer edits another. Either book is
more useful than the World Almanac in a lot of ways you might not
think. Somewhere I read about somebody who thought that the
ultimate reference book was the Sears & Roebuck catalog. If he
wanted to know how to spell "genuine," he would look up saddles and
there it would have the phrase "genuine leather saddles." I use
Maltin and Scheuer the same way. Evelyn asked me how to spell
"Solzhenitsyn." No problem: I just flip to the entry for _O_n_e _D_a_y _i_n
_t_h_e _L_i_f_e _o_f _I_v_a_n _D_e_n_i_s_o_v_i_c_h (1971) and there is a description
including Solzhenitsyn's name. What year was the Cuban missile
crisis? Well, _b_o_t_h _D_r. _N_o and _T_h_e _M_a_n_c_h_u_r_i_a_n _C_a_n_d_i_d_a_t_e were in the
theaters as the crisis was taking place. Just look either up.
What is French for "Chinese"? Look up _L_a _C_h_i_n... and find "_L_a
_C_h_i_n_o_i_s_e (1967)." It is just an amazing collection of knowledge
and wisdom in one book.
2. Borders Book Shop in East Brunswick NJ is having their monthly
science fiction discussion tonight (Friday, July 23) from 8-9 PM;
the topic is Robert A. Heinlein's _S_T_r_a_n_g_e_r _i_n _a _S_t_r_a_n_g_e _L_a_n_d.
(They have a science fiction discussion every fourth Friday and a
horror discussion every fourth Monday; times vary. I forgot to ask
what the Monday book was, but their number is 908-238-7000. This
Monday's discussion is 7:30-8:30 PM.) [-ecl]
Mark Leeper
MT 3D-441 908-957-5619
...mtgzfs3!leeper
"My country right or wrong" is like saying "My mother
drunk or sober."
-- G. K. Chesterton
SO I MARRIED AN AXE MURDERER
A film review by Mark R. Leeper
Copyright 1993 Mark R. Leeper
Capsule review: Unlucky in love, Michael Myers
plays a man who finally finds the perfect woman, only
to start finding clues that she may have murdered
three husbands. The comedy is uneven but often
amusing; the mystery elements need a lot of work.
Rating: high 0 (-4 to +4). (Mystery elements
discussed in a heavy spoiler at the end of the
review.)
Charlie Mackenzie (played by Michael Myers) has been unlucky in
love. Each of his former loves has had something seriously wrong
with her, as he recounts to his policeman friend and as he sets to
jazz poems as part of a very obnoxious coffee house act. It could
be that each had been involved on the mossy side of the law or it
could all be in Charlie's mind. Or a third very real possibility is
that Charlie's personality drives people to desperate acts. Then
Charlie meets Harriet (played by Nancy Travis) and they are just
perfect for each other. This might be the one for Charlie. The
only problem is that Harriet's background is surprisingly like that
of "Mrs. X"--the designation the tabloids have given to an unknown
woman who has apparently murdered three husbands. One piece of
evidence after another links Harriet to the three murders. Is
Harriet the infamous Mrs. X?
_S_o _I _M_a_r_r_i_e_d _a_n _A_x_e _M_u_r_d_e_r_e_r is a comedy/mystery, with the
accent on comedy. And I mean that 100% of the accent is on comedy.
The mystery writing is an insult to mystery films. It is just a
framework on which to hang the comedy. (Strongly-worded spoiler
section to follow.) Perhaps this is more a skit than an actual
film. While I was not fond of Myers in _W_a_y_n_e'_s _W_o_r_l_d, there is some
humor here that works. Alan Arkin is on hand as a police captain,
the boss of Charlie's best friend, and a running gag involving him
is original and funny. Robbie Fox's screenplay tries to go for some
bad-taste humor that on the whole falls flat. Mostly it is aimed at
the audience who thinks that crotch injuries are hilarious and not
over-used. The scenes of Charlie's home life with his eccentric
Scottish father (also played by Myers) fail to generate much
interest value or feel of authenticity.
_S_o _I _M_a_r_r_i_e_d _a_n _A_x_e _M_u_r_d_e_r_e_r is a comedy/mystery with some edge
on the comedy, but the mystery elements are just not very keen. I
rate it a high 0 on the -4 to +4 scale.
**HEAVY SPOILER** **HEAVY SPOILER** **HEAVY SPOILER** **HEAVY SPOILER**
So I Married... July 11, 1993 Page 2
**HEAVY SPOILER** **HEAVY SPOILER** **HEAVY SPOILER** **HEAVY SPOILER**
_S_o _I _M_a_r_r_i_e_d _a_n _A_x_e _M_u_r_d_e_r_e_r is the worst mystery film I have
seen since _H_a_u_n_t_e_d _H_o_n_e_y_m_o_o_n. Historically there have been few
mystery films written this poorly that did not have Bela Lugosi in a
red herring role. First, there is a rule in mysteries that you look
for the person who is completely unnecessary to the plot,
particularly if that person is played by someone well-known. In
this film, one person stands out in neon lights as a familiar actor
who seems to have nothing to do up to the finale. If that character
is not played by Lugosi, you can bet that you have the murderer.
Second, there is no sign that the writers gave any thought at
all to their own story. There is a strong implication at the end
that because somebody else was the actual killer, Harriet is now
happy and free. Harriet may not have been the killer but she
certainly has been an accessory to these murders, concealing them
from the law. And having concealed the first murder, she is legally
responsible for the two that followed. It is absurd to see Harriet
grinning in a coffee house at the end: this is a woman who is going
to spend most of the rest of her life behind bars. And I may not be
in the spirit of the film, but I think it's a good thing.
WEEKEND AT BERNIE'S 2
A film review by Mark R. Leeper
Copyright 1993 Mark R. Leeper
Capsule review: This continuation of _W_e_e_k_e_n_d _a_t
_B_e_r_n_i_e'_s has its moments but they are generally too
far between. We have ad nauseum corpse abuse and a
little bit of physical comedy from Terry Kiser as
Bernie. "Weekend" is probably accurate. I expect by
the first Monday it will be out of theaters and
headed for cable. Rating: 0 (-4 to +4).
For me _W_e_e_k_e_n_d _a_t _B_e_r_n_i_e'_s was precisely the right film at the
right time since I usually find it difficult to sleep on an
airplane. What I saw--a total of about ten or fifteen minutes--
seemed like mis-fire humor. A lot of it was the same joke--abuse of
a dead body--ad nauseum. When I saw that the sequel was being made
I said, "They'd have to pay me to go see that." Then a friend who
gets paid by the distributor to count audiences asked Evelyn and me
to cover for her. That fulfilled the condition. This time I stayed
awake, and while I cannot say I thought it was a genuinely good
film, it would be about average for cable fare (which is pretty much
my definition of a zero rating--+1 is average for a theatrical
release).
Robert Klane once again wrote and directed. Terry Kiser again
played the corpse. I suspect in the first film Kiser had little
opportunity to do much in the line of physical comedy. This time
around, however, Bernie has been subjected to a voodoo ceremony that
went wrong and he gets to return as a zombie whenever music with a
strong beat is playing. His almost animated body is probably the
best thing about this film. Certainly inferior is the acting of
Andrew McCarthy and Jonathan Silverman as the two cretins who are
stuffing the body into suitcases, dragging it down stairs, banging
its head around, and in general having the scene stolen from them by
a mostly inanimate object. It seems they have grabbed the corpse
and are trying to use it to get their paws on Bernie's ill-gotten
gains. All the while they are chased by company detective Hummel
(played by Barry Bostwick).
What can I say that is good about this film? A few of the gags
work, though many of the jokes that were not funny in the first film
are trying again and failing again in the second. The opening
credit sequence managed to tell enough of the plot of the first film
so that I did not feel lost in the sequel. Moving the story to the
Virgin Islands ties in with the voodoo plot and adds some nice
scenery. This film is a time-waster but it managed to keep me out
of trouble for an hour and a half (and awake this time). I would
rate it a 0, as I said before, on the -4 to +4 scale.
THIS PAGE INTENTIONALLY LEFT ALMOST BLANK
THE BLACK CASTLE
Berkley, 1979, 0-425-04198-0, $2.25.
THE SILVER SKULL
Charles Scribner's Sons, July 1979, ISBN 0-684-16141-9, $8.95.
CITIZEN VAMPIRE
Charles Scribner's Sons, May 1981, ISBN 0-684-16827-8, $9.95.
YELLOW FOG
Tor, 1988 (1986c), ISBN 0-812-51675-3, $3.95.
NO BLOOD SPILLED
Tor, February 1991, ISBN 0-812-50932-3, $3.95.
A series review by Mark R. Leeper
Copyright 1993 Mark R. Leeper
In Stephen Sondheim's play _S_w_e_e_n_e_y _T_o_d_d, the young sailor tells
Sweeney that he has sailed the world and seen wonders. Sweeney
replies, "I have seen the world, beheld its wonders. But the
cruelty of man is as wondrous as Peru." That is a sentiment with
which the vampire Don Sebastian could well agree. There are few
series that I follow, but Les Daniels's delightfully nihilistic
chronicles of the vampire Don Sebastian has its rewards. Don
Sebastian is a hero of sorts, but only by contrast. He is not like
Chelsea Quinn Yarbro's handsome stranger, St. Germaine, who carries
dirt from his native land in the heels of his shoes and is able to
mask signs that he is a vampire. Don Sebastian is a vampire in the
traditional sense. He just manages to be at those places in history
where the cruelty is so bad that the presence of a vampire is almost
redundant.
We first meet Don Sebastian during the Spanish Inquisition in
_T_h_e _B_l_a_c_k _C_a_s_t_l_e. Next he is present at the conquest of Mexico in
_T_h_e _S_i_l_v_e_r _S_k_u_l_l. The Reign of terror following the French
Revolution is the setting of _C_i_t_i_z_e_n _V_a_m_p_i_r_e. I have yet to read
_Y_e_l_l_o_w _F_o_g, set in the comparatively benign London Fog of 1835, but
Don Sebastian is in India with Thugs, ghouls, suttee, and the
callousness of the British Raj in _N_o _B_l_o_o_d _S_p_i_l_l_e_d.
Don Sebastian is the ultimate anti-hero. Unlike the handsome
St. Germaine, Don Sebastian is a real vampire. To terrify his
brother in _T_h_e _B_l_a_c_k _C_a_s_t_l_e, he rolls his eyes into his head and
blows smoke out the holes. This is not someone you pleasantly
invite to tea. But in his own way Don Sebastian is a moralist and a
humanitarian. He accepts his own nature as vampire, but clearly
feels the world is bad enough having vampires in it--why make it
worse with cruelty? Generally where he goes he tries to do at least
sufficient good to counterbalance the evil that inflicting a vampire
on the neighborhood causes. This makes Don Sebastian a complex and
deeply troubled individual, torn between instinctive impulses for
evil (or certainly for selfishness) and higher impulses to do what
he can to prevent the evil around him. And he is fully aware of the
Don Sebastian July 5, 1993 Page 2
basic hypocrisy in that position.
The background is always as much of interest in a Don Sebastian
novel as the foreground. Remember the old curse, "May you live in
interesting times"? Daniels takes the time to research periods that
are relative peaks of human callousness and barbarity. He explores
these times with the same wonder that Sweeney Todd had. He will
work into the plot as much historical ghoulishness as possible (in
the case of _N_o _B_l_o_o_d _S_p_i_l_l_e_d, literally). But for the sort of
person who enjoys the sepulchral tomes of Sweeney Todd or has a
fascination to visit the London Dungeon or the torture chambers in
the Prison Gate in the Hague, these novels are short, effective, and
rewarding.