The Courier-Journal from Louisville, Kentucky • Page 7

0)- The Courier-Journal, Saturday morning, June 27, 1981 5 1 'Stripes': Even a Louisville locale can't hide the boot-camp cliches i i ft 71 the characters would sink the fun. Murray's deadpan audacity may not make him believable, but it does make him appealing. The supporting characters also have inch-deep personalities, but a few of the performers wring the most from their roles. Louisville's own Warren Oates works in some subtly funny facial tics as the despicable Sergeant Huika. John Candy, familiar for his im-provisational work with Second City Television, has more ability than he is really allowed to show in his role as an obese recruit, but he also manages to sneak in a few creative moments.

And how does Louisville perform? "Stripes" could have been shot anywhere. The city that appears in the movie isn't even given a name. And it's hardly given any screen time. Some recognizable Louisville areas appear in the first few minutes of the film. There are familiar scenes shot along River Road and Main and Market Streets, but these are so brief that it's hard to pinpoint precise locations.

The sequences of military life were filmed at Fort Knox, but the film makers decided to call it Fort Arnold. Part of Bullitt County is identified as Czechoslovakia. Nit-pickers may notice that John heads north on the Clark Memorial bridge while supposedly on his way to the airport. But since the city pictured isn't really Louisville, it's hard to quibble. Rated Profanity and female nudity.

Slapstick violence. ovie reviews The 'Dragon': scary; The scenery: good; The mystery: missing Indiana dancer AimcIiM Prm MOSCOW An Indianapolis native was among American dancers who won prizes this week in the prestigious Moscow International Ballet Competition. Kevin Pugh, 21, of Indianapolis, was one of two dancers from the National Ballet of Canada to win a "A SEQUEL THAT READILY SURPASSES Sorcerer's assistant Peter MacNicol and Caitlin Clarke, princess of the kingdom. dies, he says, all the dragons will dry up. But "Dragonslayer" is not an actor's movie.

Its reason for being is to show off some special effects that, while not too terribly impressive, do frighten us a bit Great care has gone Into making the dragon and her young ones as creepy as possible. No dragon in folklore ever looked more menacing or spat out such tremendous bursts of fire. Although it's initially confusing, the creature apparently can fly, filling the sky with a mountain of smoke in her wake. But strangely, the first objects we see flying through the air look like prehistoric birds, not dragons. Does the film work as a children's yarn? It's hard to say.

There's plenty of excitement but there are some long sections in which one adult felt like napping. Youngsters probably would too. On the plus side, there's the scenery, which is varied, verdant and primeval. But the sense of mystery such a film should impart simply isn't evident so much of the time. Rated PC Fleeting nudity.

A dragon bloodily devours a human. I Mb UHIUINAL RICHARD SHICKEL jT TIME MAGAZINE JT THE ORIGINAL" wins honors silver medal in the men's and women's senior category for dancers ages 20 to 28. Judges said Pugh and Kimberly Glascow, 20, of Eugene, who also dances with the Canadian group, showed "high professionalism, precision of postures and supports, and artistic expressiveness." KEDKfilf JMXIECODPtl SMMiOQUGlllS But the situation creates a confounded ambivalence. The story has an English setting and most of the actors are decidedly British. Then why use two Americans in major roles Americans who can't drop their accents to make their characters convincing? While Ms.

Clarke neutralizes her pronunciation, MacNicol doesn't Although not absolutely essential to the story, it would have been more appropriate to have chosen two actors with more adaptable voices. The time is the sixth century A.D., the Dark Ages, a period of ignorance when people believed in dragons and sorcery. The names harken back to the old English era Greil, Valerian, Galen. The people of the kingdom of Ur-land want to be rid of the treacherous creature who inhabits their land and demands a human female sacrifice every so often to assuage his appetite. They send for Ulrich, the last of the sorcerers, who's portrayed by Richardson.

Ulrich is old and feeble. He wants to get out of the wizardry trade. He would rather see his young protege Galen go in his place. We think we've seen the last of the old Merlin early in the story, when it appears that he's been killed, but he's sure to resurface after a while. (With Richardson's character done in so quickly, one is tempted to think the film makers wanted the prestige of having the esteemed actor's name in the credits, not really caring whether he was given half a chance to contribute.) Richardson, though, adds several enlightening moments to an otherwise plodding opening.

His Ulrich comes across as very human, a man who has self-doubts but feels it's time to give up playing games. He claims to be the last sorcerer, and when the last sorcerer By GREGG SWEM Curlr-Jurnal Critic "Dragonslayer," a children's adventure film which opened yesterday at several theaters, is a joint British and American effort It was filmed at Pinewood Studios in England and on location in the Isle of Skye, In the mountains of north Wales and in the Buckinghamshire countryside. A 40-foot dragon was designed by Industrial Light and Magic, near San Francisco. The beast was built by the special-effects department at Walt Disney's Burbank Studios. Furthermore, the stars represent both sides of the Atlantic Ralph Richardson, a well-known British actor, plays the sorcerer.

Peter MacNicol as the sorcerer's apprentice, and Caitlin Clarke as a young lady who disguises herself as a boy to avoid being sacrificed to the dragon, are American actors making their film debuts. ALSO OPENING The following movie has also opened. It has not been seen by a Courier-Journal reviewer. Information about it was furnished by the theater. "The Prowler" This horror movie opened yesterday at Alpha Grant Plaza, Village 8 and Preston.

It stars Vicky Dawson, Christopher Goutman and Cindy Weintraub, and features Farley Granger as Sheriff George Fraser. The ads show a person with a pitchfork creeping toward an old house. "It will freeze your blood," the caption reads. The film is directed by Joseph Zito. The script is by Glenn Leopold and Neal F.

Barbera. Rated R. WALL UNITS by piiiwBiiii. pl I pi. imm 'I pm "Two hours of non stop thrills." 1 Rpx milCIU Win i in.

a nniim ntnin Mftniu ruiu wwiiu rum umii iinrn nmn uimnnii PG Pf NTW. GUIOAIW SUCGtSUD 3' By JOHN HERZFELD CMrtor-Journal Contributing Crrtk Last winter, Louisville and environs were invaded by Hollywood. The city became deliriously alive despite the rerouted traffic with the magic of movie-making. In six weeks it was over. Director Ivan Reitman and crew retreated to the land of eternal summer.

Their project, "Stripes," has now returned to Louisville to Showcase Cinemas. "Stripes" is just another effort in a long line of boot-camp-buffoonery films. The roles are stereotyped and the plot familiar. In "Stripes" as in nearly every military comedy from the two-reel silent films to the recent "Private Benjamin," the basics of basic training return. Misfits join the military; misfits fumble through boot camp; misfits save the day.

It's hard to criticize such a successful formula. "Stripes" follows the recipe and, for the most part, succeeds. It's simpleminded, predictable and un-memorable but it is entertaining. Bill Murray, veteran of television's "Saturday Night Live," plays John, an impudent cabbie who loses his job, his car, his apartment and his girlfriend in the same day. With nothing remaining but bleak alternatives, be and a similarly disillusioned friend join the Army.

In basic training, they encounter a coarse sergeant, rigorous work and a barracks full of psychotics, idiots and klutzes. Naturally, their outfit is the worst in the camp. An officer hands them an ultimatum: shape up soon, or go through the horrors of basic training again. John unites the band of eccentrics with a stirring speech. According to him, being a misfit is the American way of life.

"Our forefathers were kicked out of every decent country in the world," he says. John promises to make true soldiers out of them. Murray performs as if he were the class clown who is just out to have a good time. He never truly creates a character he says his lines, gets his laughs (or doesn't), then moves on to the next page of the screenplay. But in such a lightweight film, any depth to Rend iV- i'lr Iff i 'lT" (MOWIMO -vac "i TECHNICOLOR (iR WT HM kP lV dm NOW SHOWING MT INDOOR KIIMNAIRD HllMPi oU gk TO 50 -Mir ft WWMWfN R-AOlfclf JL1.

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