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Mt. Holz Science Fiction Society
Club Notice - 08/13/93 -- Vol. 12, No. 7
MEETINGS UPCOMING:
Unless otherwise stated, all meetings are in Holmdel 4N-509
Wednesdays at noon.
_D_A_T_E _T_O_P_I_C
08/25 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 Nominee)
10/27 THE MOON IS A HARSH MISTRESS by Robert A. Heinlein (Classic SF)
11/17 BRIAR ROSE by Jane Yolen (Nebula Nominee)
12/08 STAND ON ZANZIBAR by John Brunner (Classic SF)
01/05 A MILLION OPEN DOORS by John Barnes (Nebula Nominee)
Outside events:
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. Okay, you can't say I wasn't trying. I did my best. Honest.
Most things I am unlucky in. Can I help it if in _t_h_i_s I am lucky?
Even if it is a peculiar sort of luck. Television news people must
be used to this happening to them. But that's their job. Nobody
points fingers at them. Well, let me start at the beginning.
Evelyn and I like to travel. We want to see as much as we can of
the world, as much diversity of lifestyle, as we can. We want a
feel for the varying textures of life and culture. That means we
particularly look for non-Western culture. That means some of the
THE MT VOID Page 2
places we go are a little unstable. Even some of the Western
places we go are unstable. When we went to Peru, the State
Department said it was safe. And we sent our trip report to
someone we knew who was going a month later. Except he didn't.
Just about the time we went, the Shining Path started shining a
little more brightly and the State Department turned on the red
light, so our friend never went. It's not like Peru was all that
dangerous while we were there, though that was the trip when 1) we
were nearly arrested by the military police, 2) we got stranded on
the Amazon with a bad storm coming up, and 3) I had to tackle a
pickpocket and wrestle him into a gutter. But if we were in any
danger from terrorists we never knew it. And one of the things
that makes a trip to another country valuable is that when it shows
up in the news, we can remember what the place was like. The thing
is, I don't know if it is the changing nature of the world or what,
but a lot of the places we have been are making news. Including
ones I would not have expected. I'll say more on this next time.
===================================================================
2. Last week we had the discussion of the Hugo-nominated short
stories. In order to collect votes from the regular discussion
group members who were unable to attend, there was a delay in
counting the ballots toward the second annual "Alexanders." (No
one claimed that the dog ate their ballot, but one person was
assisting his wife in giving birth.)
Rather than try to keep track of the raw ballots, I will just give
the final results. Based on a "1" for first place, etc., and with
no voting for "No Award," the results from five voters are:
1 "Even the Queen" by Connie Willis (9 points)
2 "The Winterberry" by Nicholas A. DiChario (14.5 points)
3 "The Lotus and the Spear" by Mike Resnick (15 points)
4 "The Mountain to Mohammed" by Nancy Kress (15.5 points)
5 "The Arbitrary Placement of Walls" by Martha Soukup (21 points)
"Even the Queen" was ranked in first place by four of the voters.
As a reminder, last year's runaway winner (on a five-voter ballot
of seven stories) was Michael Resnick's "Winter Solstice." [-ecl]
===================================================================
3. For our Columbus members, there will be a convention in October
1-3, 1993, in Dublin OH: Context VI: "An Intimate Science Fiction
Convention Focusing on the Written Word." It is at the Stouffer-
Dublin Hotel and the Guest of Honor is Fred Pohl, with special
guests Mike Resnick, Betty Pohl, Lois McMaster-Bujold, Dennis
McKiernan, Joan Slonczewski, Calvin Pierce, and Buck and Juanita
Coulson. Memberships are $30 until September 1 and $35 thereafter.
For more information, write FANACO, Inc, PO Box 2954, Columbus, OH
THE MT VOID Page 3
43216, call (614) 263-6089, or email pconnoll@magnus.acs.ohio-
state.edu [-ecl]
===================================================================
4. THE FUGITIVE (a film review by Mark R. Leeper):
Capsule review: This is a fast-paced chase and
murder mystery film based on a much more leisurely
television series. Ford is only okay, but Tommy Lee
Jones is great as a wise-cracking U.S. marshal
chasing Ford. There is also one sequence with very
impressive special effects. Rating: +2 (-4 to +4).
In September 1967 Dr. Richard Kimble found his wife murdered my a
one-armed man who escaped. Kimble was found guilty of the murder
and sentenced to die. But as police Lt. Philip Gerard was taking
him to prison, the train they were riding in derailed and Kimble
was able to escape. For three years Kimble tracked the one-armed
man and Gerard tracked Kimble. Or at least that was the premise of
the television series _T_h_e _F_u_g_i_t_i_v_e. that starred David Janssen and
Barry Morse. _T_h_e _F_u_g_i_t_i_v_e is also the name of a fast-paced new
film very loosely based on the twenty-six-year-old television
series. In fact, the film version owes as much or more to Alfred
Hitchcock thrillers such as _T_h_e _3_9 _S_t_e_p_s, _T_h_e _S_a_b_o_t_e_u_r, and _N_o_r_t_h
_b_y _N_o_r_t_h_w_e_s_t as it does to the old Quinn-Martin series. That
series, itself intended as a variation on Victor Hugo's _L_e_s
_M_i_s_e_r_a_b_l_e_s, had a leisurely pace which is just not the style of
this tight and tense 127-minutes film. There is very little of the
"nice guy mixing in people's lives" premise of the television
series in the new film. The series was light on the murder aspect
and the film has more motivation behind the murder than three years
of the television show had.
At least superficially, the film has the same premise. Dr. Richard
Kimble (played by Harrison Ford, apparently still a little
befuddled from the brain injury in _R_e_g_a_r_d_i_n_g _H_e_n_r_y) comes home from
surgery late one night to find his wife dead and a one-armed man in
his house. Nobody is particularly convinced by Kimble's story and
he ends up headed for Death Row. On the way there is an attempted
escape and a bus crash, and then a train comes along and slams into
the bus. This spectacular chain of events leaves wide open an
opportunity to escape as well as the mouths and eyes of the
audience. Called in on the case is U.S. Marshal Samuel Gerard
(substituting for police Lt. Philip Gerard, and played irascibly,
irreverently by Tommy Lee Jones). And the chase has everything but
the laid-back style of the television series. In the series Kimble
would typically befriend someone and after he saves their marriage
, they would help him escape. In the film Gerard is much closer on
the trail and the escapes are much more physically challenging.
THE MT VOID Page 4
I think Harrison Ford is miscast in this and many of his films. He
plays characters who are very sharp but he always appears on the
bland edge of confusion. Admittedly, he has a right to be as dazed
as he appears, after the events of the film, but at the same time
he is supposedly making clever deductions. Tommy Lee Jones may be
playing an honest cop--uh, sorry, U.S. marshal--but he steals the
film right from under Ford. He really can play with the mind of
the viewer by saying just the right unexpected comment at just the
right moment. And nearly as sarcastic is Joe Pantoliano as Cosmo
Renfro, assisting Gerard. Pantoliano is a character actor who
manages to make small parts get noticed. Sela Ward plays Kimble's
wife and appears to be the perfect reward for all the hard work of
medical school.
_T_h_e _F_u_g_i_t_i_v_e is a terrific thriller that may stretch the credulity
of the audience at times, but leaves them well-entertained for
better than two hours. I give it a +2 on the -4 to +4 scale.
***HEAVY SPOILER*** ***HEAVY SPOILER*** ***HEAVY SPOILER***
Here we have yet another mystery in which the solution does not
quite explain the mystery. Apparently the drug company is involved
with the plot since they have lent security people to it. It makes
no sense that they would do that without knowing the drug was
faulty. But a drug company is not the same as General Motors. It
is _v_e_r_y dependent on a good name because the doctors who prescribe
its products are a very cautious lot. So if you are a drug
company, you might try to cover up the negligence of letting a
faulty drug get on the market, but you would be really cautious
about what has not yet been released. Any possibility of scandal
is very, very strongly avoided. At least, that is my
understanding. The story holds together neither if you assume the
drug company knew nor if you assume it doesn't.
===================================================================
5. UN COEUR EN HIVER (a film review by Mark R. Leeper):
Capsule review: This is just about the best film I
could think of about a love triangle. Most of the
film revolves around the personality of one of the
main characters, which is only gradually revealed in
the film, so I will refrain from discussing it.
This is a thoughtful, intelligent film and one of
the best I have seen this year. Rating: low +3 (-4
to +4).
For many years Stephan (played by Daniel Auteuil) and Maxim (played
by Andre Dussolier) have been partners in a violin repair business
in Paris. Where Maxim is handsome and affable, Stephan is
THE MT VOID Page 5
introspective and introverted. In the years of their partnership
Maxim has been married and divorced and has dated many women.
Stephan has little life outside of the repair business. He is a
genius in building and repairing violins. He has one friend, a
woman, in whom he confides, but their relationship is purely
platonic. Maxim's latest girlfriend is Camille, a brilliant and
beautiful violinist (played by Emmanuelle Beart) who takes an
instant dislike to the blunt Stephan, but when it is clear that
Stephan appreciates Camille's music, Camille becomes interested in
the odd loner. The stage is set for a tragic love story.
_U_n _C_o_e_u_r _e_n _H_i_v_e_r revolves around about Stephan's unusual
personality, which is only revealed gradually through the film.
Suffice it to say this is a much more touching and engaging film
than could be expected from the above description. Stephan is a
personality type rarely seen in film, yet not nearly so rare in
real life. I went into this film expecting a fatuous love story
and came out with a film that will almost definitely be on my top
ten list of the year. Stephan's personality, what it does to him,
and how others use it and react to it make this a thoughtful and
intelligent addition to the films of this year. _U_n _C_o_e_u_r _e_n _H_i_v_e_r
was directed by Claude Sautet from a screenplay he co-authored with
Jacques Fieschi. Scenes of Emmanuelle Beart playing Ravel
(beautifully orchestrated by Philippe Sarde) have a pristine beauty
that is as sexy as anything you will find in any American film this
year. I give it a low +3 on the -4 to +4 scale.
===================================================================
6. CHILDREN OF THE NIGHT by Dan Simmons (Warner Books, ISBN 0-446-
36475-4, 1993 (1992c), $5.99) (a book review by Evelyn C. Leeper):
I am often struck by the ingenuity of authors--not so much for
their ability to write an intricately plotted story as for their
apparent ability to make their travels around the world tax-
deductible as a business expense.
Dan Simmons seems to have done that with _C_h_i_l_d_r_e_n _o_f _t_h_e _N_i_g_h_t, his
story of real vampires living in present-day Romania. It does have
that "sense of place" that stories and films are supposed to have
in that it feels like Romania--or at least as much as I can tell
after five days there. But Simmons lays it on a little thick,
describing every street his characters walk down, including each
major building they pass (see pages 40 through 42 for an example of
what I am talking about).
The story itself has some interesting ideas in its attempt to put a
scientific basis on vampirism. But the character development is
disappointing, especially for Simmons. We have the dedicated (and
divorced) nurse who adopts the sickly orphan, the priest who is
questioning his calling, the very helpful Romanian student, and so
THE MT VOID Page 6
on. There are also the obligatory number of deaths and tortures--
this is, after all, a horror novel.
On the whole, I recommend this novel. I would say that blaming
Romania's problems on vampires seems on the whole to be letting the
human race off too easily, but that may well be Simmons's point:
the monsters we invent and the evils we attribute to them are no
worse than ourselves and the evils we do.
===================================================================
7. FLYING DUTCH by Tom Holt (Ace, ISBN 0-441-24193-X, 1993, $4.50)
(a book review by Evelyn C. Leeper):
First it was the Ring of the Niebelung in _E_x_p_e_c_t_i_n_g _S_o_m_e_o_n_e _T_a_l_l_e_r.
Then it was _B_e_o_w_u_l_f _i_n _W_h_o'_s _A_f_r_a_i_d _o_f _B_e_o_w_u_l_f? And now Tom Holt
is busy looking at what the Flying Dutchman would _r_e_a_l_l_y be like.
Holt's humor relies largely on the matter-of-fact tone he adopts,
whether he's talking about bores ("Such was Paul's skill at
grabbing the attention of the viewer that if he told you your ears
were on fire you'd be so bored with the topic you wouldn't bother
putting them out") or world order ("So if we have third world
poverty and nuclear weapons and East-West hostility and economic
depressions, but all brought about by means of the democratic
process, then that's all right, but if just one man is responsible,
then it's tyranny. Sorry, I never did history at school, I don't
understand these things").
I have only one minor quibble--the arithmetic on page 177 was done
on a calculator that introduced a round-off error. But counter-
balancing this is the fact that Holt mentions my old home town of
Chicopee Falls, Massachusetts (though there is, of course, no
University of Chicopee Falls). I enjoyed _F_l_y_i_n_g _D_u_t_c_h better than
_W_h_o'_s _A_f_r_a_i_d _o_f _B_e_o_w_u_l_f? and as much as _E_x_p_e_c_t_i_n_g _S_o_m_e_o_n_e _T_a_l_l_e_r--
which I loved. To anyone looking for a very funny book, I highly
recommend _F_l_y_i_n_g _D_u_t_c_h.
Mark Leeper
MT 3D-441 908-957-5619
leeper@mtgzfs3.att.com
A sportsman is a man who, every now and then, simply
has to out and kill something.
-- Stephen Leacock