November 6, 1986 Thursday, Daily Nebraskan Page 15 Ws-styl- e ' 1 'Cancan i i kicks up its heels By Stew Magnuson poor district and just becoming a Staff Reporter trendy nighttime handout for upper-clas-s people who want to feel even 'AN "French Cancan" by Jean more wealthy hanging out in lower-clas- s M Renoir nightspots. On the surface, "French Cancan" One of these rich entourages has all the appearances of one of stumbles Into The White Queen, those 1940s MGM cheesy musicals, where the pretty Nini (Francoise ' A except that everyone is speaking Arnoul) is kicking her legs and French. It has the Technicolor. It doing the old folk dance, the Can- t has the beautiful and V talented young can. In the entourage is Danglard, woman, working in a laundry and the proprieter of one of the most destined to a live life of poverty. It popular clubs in Paris. He, natu- rally, discovers Nini's talent and sets out to make her a star by reviv- Movie Review ing the cancan and building a new club, the now famous Moulin Rouge, on the very spot he discovered her. has the rich impressario who is Jean Gabin plays per- going to make her a star. And it has Danglard fectly. He dumps the jealous La all the tiny soap-operais- h stories: Belle Abbesse (Maria Felxi), his the jealous boyfriend and the aging, former star, and throws his energy jealous, headstrong lady who doesn't into the Moulin and revi- Courtesy of Radical Records want a new rival on the Rouge the stage. val of the cancan. He's not M.D.C.: Are "French Cancan" has the certainly they punk or "peace and love" children? plot to let her in the of his and look of a '50s MGM musica, but going get way it's not. there's of bed dreams, although she finally suc- First, plenty ceeds with his scenes where in by sleeping rival. everyone's jumping After Nini's Bamdl love audi the sack, not stealing innocent jealous boyfriend pushes in a hole at the construc- digs peace kisses like in the American musi- Danglard 7 tion site and breaks his leg, La Belle cals. Well, that's the French for you. MDC 'The Kids to out tune into Abbesse and her new lover move in urges drop and reality And, happily, nobody suddenly to buy the Moulin Rouge while Dan-glan- d Peterson To produce four releases and survive ment, so it's the Multi-Deat- h breaks into a sappy song with an By Bryan Corpora- is in the hospital and can't Staff four years as a punk band is well above tions. The result is Millions of Dead unseen orchestra playing in the Reporter make payments. average. MDC has toured Children, because it even comes down background. But when you realize e throughout Millions of Dead Cops is a peace-and-lov- "French Cancan" is a psuedo-music- al the United States and Europe, and to food distribution being used as a Jean Renoir, the Master of French band??? Well, sure. with a And keeps them going? weapon. We trade arms that we make in filmmaking for twenty years, dir- message. if "MDC stand re- not into that and still against police "It's really the Hundredth Monkey this country for all the food in the Third ected and wrote the film, you must you're you the macho want some eye-cand- y, for the pression, brutality, Theory, where if enough people are World. A further result is a Missile Des- know this can't be a typical Ameri- just go and final cancan dance inferiority ignorance that thinking the same thought, it catches troyed Civilization, and Massacred and can musical. spectacular to take scene. You'll believe watch- encourages people a jol on," Franco said. "It's based on the Dismembered Cultures, like the Native Renter's "French Cancan" plays you're kick a Toulouse-Lautre- c where they can legally ass anthropological of wash- American whose and this weekend at Sheldon Film Thea- ing moving Henry on the thing monkeys people lifestyle poor, minorities, women, ing their sweet potatoes, and once culture is being destroyed." tre. The complete, uncut 35mm painting. homosexuals, use the law to is for first " strip enough monkeys learned to wash their Energy and limitations print being screened the "French Cancan" is show- all of their dignity. sweet all the sudden mon- It looks like MDC is the time in the United States since its ing atthe Sheldon Film Thea- notes MDCs potatoes, up against liner from first keys all over the world started washing whole world. Then why put so much original release in 1954. tre on Friday and Saturday album. two-wee- "French Cancan" is set in their sweet potatoes in a k time and energy into a punk band, with the and again on Nov. 20 and 22. period. That kind of consciousness tra- such a limited audience? 1890s in Paris' Montmartre district Screenings are at 7 and 9 veling over the electrical waves is, I According to Franco, "If you look at where the rich "bon vivants" go p.m., with Saturday matinees is 3 Band Interview believe, what's gonna change the world. just about any positive movement in "slumming." Montmartre still a at p.m. It makes me feel glad that I'm out here, the U.S. or almost anywhere in the - rr j "It's a gut reaction, against the vio- talking with people. The message gets world, you'll find that it's kids, youth, lence and abuse of authority that the amplified, and more people catch on. that are at the heart of it and that are o police exercise. It's a pissed-off- , angry Rather than everybody supporting Coca-Col- a the driving force. Because if you don't message, like 'I hate hate' or 'I hate and that being the Hundredth have the youth involved, then it kind of people who don't care.' Sometimes you Monkey Theory, that instead it's peace has no future." have to love enough in your own heart and love and we're all gonna make it So Franco plays music for us kids to stand up to the injustice that you together and we're not all just gonna while he is about to become a father. see, to put your life on the line." die together." Age and last name unknown. He is j.-- .s Franco (last name unknown) Back to the cops. MDCs scheduled much older than almost his entire " drea med last nightno poli- appearance in Lincoln (Oct. 10) was audience. ceAn armyless world, doomed to brought to a halt just before the band He said, "I'm just a kid, and I hope peaceAnd now as all my dream- began to play. A fight and a broken I'll always be a kid. And I hope that I ing stopsI see it clear, we need window around the corner caused the never get so jaded or burnt-ou- t that I no more cops. " cancellation of MDCs long-awaite- d forget what youth is about, because lyricsfrom "No More Cops, " Lincoln appearance. Lead singer Dave youth is the strength to really got out on MDCs second album (Smoke was arrested as he ran through the on a limb and stick your neck out even Signals) throng, dodging police and singing if you know it's gonna get cut off. It's Understand yet? MDC believes we "Chicken-Squak.- " Members ofthe crowd like our good friend Dave Whittaker can build a better world, a world with- raised $50 for bail. Upon his release, he's a beat poet who is super-activ- e out the social injustices which lead Dave broke into verse: "When I walk in th soup kitchens in San Francisco people to commit "crimes" such as into thestorethey sell thechickens said, 'I think that the Man of the theft, which in turn create the "need" by the scorebut eating dead birds Year for Time magazine should be The for police. just ain't for me . Foghorn Kids, because it's The Kids that are MDC does not limit itself to songs Leghorn wrote to meSays MDCs dropping out and tuning in to the reali- about the police, by any means. Through all right by me 'Cause we all ties of the world that surrounds them, " d: two singles and two albums, the band learned to let our chickens free. rather than just living in a has created material dealing with a Cops and dead kids 'Let's get a car and then let's go to wide variety of social issues. Those who In an Omaha interview, Franco said, college and then let's work and such lives to a boss.'" simply dismiss punk as mindless rant-ing- s "We didn't just stop at Millions of Dead all our "You lot of against the system need pay no Cops. We try to go beyond that and say, find a people giving up attention. Those who are willing to 'We realize that the cops are sort of .and saying, 'Oh, there's nothing I can too. do Franco read and hear MDCs message may find slaves in the situation, That the really to change anything,'" themselves even englight-ened- . orders are coming from somebody else, said. "If you 're gonna let 'em win, go surprised, of The Sheldon the corporate heads who run the govern ahead.