The Bowdoin Orient

March 9, 2001
Volume CXXXII, Number 19

BFVS presents a Maine movie week

by JIM FLANAGAN - COLUMNIST

This weekend, the Film Society is proud to present a group of films all dealing with the state we call home (well, at least during the school year). But for me, these films are particularly important. If you are an attentive reader of Student Speak, you will remember that your's truly hails from Waldoboro; a great little village just up Route 1.
That's right friends, I'm a Maine Dawg and proud of it. Now, not all of these films treat the Pine Tree State with great respect. But that's OK - we can laugh at Maine every now and then. But all four films are very enjoyable and should be seen by both residents and visitors alike. The movies will be screened in Smith Auditorium, Sills Hall, and are free and open to everyone.

Friday at 7:00 p.m.
The Iron Giant (1999)
Directed by: Brad Bird
Starring: Eli Marienthal, Jennifer Aniston, Harry Connick Jr.,
             Van Diesel, Christopher McDonald, John Mahoney,
             Cloris Leachman, M. Emmet Walsh
   There are so many reasons why you should see this incredible movie. First off, look at the director. Does the name sound familiar? Well, if you're a Simpsons fan, it should. Bird directed the famous "Krusty Gets Busted" episode, plus the one where Krusty and his dad are reunited. Now, as to the quality of the film work, it is top notch. The animation is superb and truly beautiful. All the voices used are great. You don't even associate them with the actors; they become the characters. Now, as for the story, it is very moving. A giant robot from outer space lands in a coastal Maine fishing village and befriends a boy with no friends. This is 1957, so the government believes that the robot is a Russian weapon and istrying to find it and destroy it. The film has been described as an anti-anti-communism film, showing the horrors of the Red Scare, and I'd have to agree with that description. The themes and emotions this film brings about are very adult; don't think that just because it is animated it is only for kids. Everyone should see this remarkable film. It is simply amazing.
Rated PG

Friday at 9:00 p.m.
Lake Placid (1999)
Directed by: Steve Miner
Starring: Bill Pullman, Bridget Fonda, Oliver Platt,
Brendan Gleeson, Betty White
OK, this is believable. People start dying in a small town in The County (that's Aroostook County for you non-Maine Dawgs) when a giant crocodile gets hungry and starts to eat them. Absurd, completely absurd. That is why when this film bombed at the theaters as a horror film, it was marketed as a comedy for its video release. And a comedy it is. I only watched a few minutes of it to prepare for this article, but already I was laughing. Hearing a New York paleontologist try to get out of going to Maine because she's "allergic to timber," is almost too good to believe. And to think Bill Pullman is a game warden is downright hilarious. I think everyone should see this movie for a good laugh.
Rated R

Saturday at 7:00 p.m.
The Cider House Rules (1999)
Directed by: Lasse Hallström
Starring: Tobey Maguire, Charlize Theron, Michael Caine,
Delroy Lindo
This is the story of a boy raised in an orphanage in Maine that also doubles as an abortion clinic. The doctor (Michael Caine's Oscar-winning role) treats the boy as his own son and, if I remember correctly, encourages him to go to his old school. A school we all know very well... I haven't seen this film, so I don't have much else to say about it. John Irving wrote it, so it is probably pretty good. And critics liked it, so that's a plus. But, for no other reason, go to this movie because they talk about Bowdoin in it. It will make you feel special, I promise.
Rated PG-13

Saturday at 9:00 p.m. (or a little bit after it, Cider House is just over 2 hours in length)
The Man Without a Face (1993)
Directed by: Mel Gibson
Starring: Mel Gibson, Nick Stahl, Margaret Wilson,
Richard Masur, Gabby Hoffman
So this movie doesn't talk about Bowdoin, but that's OK, because it was filmed here. Oh, how exciting! You can sit in the audience and yell out, "Hey, that's Hubbard Hall!" (Of course, you'll sound dumb, because everyone else will know its Hubbard; we all go here). It's kind of funny to see Bowdoin as a military boarding school. In the film, a young boy is desperate to get into this school and goes to a reclusive, scarred former teacher to help him gain admittance. It's a fairly good film on its own, but should be all the more enjoyable to us, the members of the Bowdoin community. You might even catch a glimpse of one of your professors; I know they are in the movie somewhere.
Rated PG-13