Austin American-Statesman from Austin, Texas • 47

D7 Austin American-Statesman Friday, April 11, 1386 Playful 'Critters' Monster film constitutes harmless entertainment From The Maker i eI By Patrick Taggart American-Statesman Staff Review gests a sequel but by this time the movie has earned enough good will to be forgiven a final misstep. Critters, rated PG-13 for violence, profanity, a the Aquarius, Lakehills and Noithcross. heartiest laughs I've heard in the last few months. The ending is a disappointment it's one of those cliches that sug GINGER'S PRIVATE (X) Love Lips 12 PRICE SPECIALS! TUESDAYS) AND SUNDAYS ADULT VIDEO SALES RENTALS LOWEST PRICES-MAGAZINES Uincn DPPDQ IN A r.MAIMNFL ERUPTION gKll'IIllll MHIICN a I till i vxfiv 1 I I General Cinema The PULITZER PRIZE srf 8tarring Allc Ftniwy and A. ClT BARGAIN MATINEo- If IKTBAT 1 AU SHOWS KFORE 6 PM .2.75 MONEY PIT (PQ) THf COLOR PVmi (PG-13) FriASai- 1 -fWtisMsMM 1 1 Drained as a team 1 Trained as a team GIN GAME CAPITOL CITY PLAYHOUSE March 20 April 12 Sun 7 8 p.m.

Sun. 2 p.m. "One ol the almost perfectly blended martinis of the modern stage." San Antonio Light An ALAMO CITY THEATRE Production Funded ia pari by Texas Commission on the Arts POLSCE ACADEMY W(M) Out of jail. the streets of Miami is about to begin. 3 II Their battle to dean up I Their battle to than up The Brown family lives in what appears to be the heart of Dorothy-and-Toto land.

The corn is tall, pleasures are simple and values are traditional. Not the kind of place, in other words, one expects to find a gang of busted-out convicts from a distant asteroid. But that is exactly what happens in the new Critters, a monster-comedy that creates havoc and ha-ha's in equal portions. The film was directed and co-written by University of Texas film school graduate Stephen Herek, whose studies and experience as a production assistant and editor on a few other low-budget films have served him well in the technical aspects of filmmaking. Unlike so many other low-budget thrillers, Critters has a sharp, bright look (with a large share of the credit going to photographer Tim Suhrstedt) and uniformly high-grade acting.

The film certainly breaks no new ground thematically, but it is one of those goofy, playful concoctions that constitutes effective, harmless entertainment for the young. At the center of the action is the Brown family Dee Wallace Stone and Billy Green Bush (from Five Easy Pieces of long ago) as mom andpop; son Brad, through whose eyes the picture is largely seen, is played by the excellent newcomer Scott Grimes, of TV's' Who's the Boss. Their rather ordinary existence is threatened by the arrival of a set of furballs from outerspace escaped criminals who bear a toothy resemblance to the varmints in Joe Dante's Gremlins. Of perhaps even greater interest than the vicious furballs are the bounty hunters sent to capture them. The two para-lawmen are capable of transforming themselves into any physical form in order to work with anonymity, and the leader assumes the appearance of earthly rocker idol Johnny Steele (Terrence Mann).

His cohort first co-opts the body of the local deputy sheriff (Ethan Phillips), and later that of town drunk Charlie (Don Op-per). Quite a pair. It's hard to watch this goofy and very occasionally violent film without giggling repeatedly, try as you might not to. Herek moves the action along swiftly, and the cast, which includes the great M. Emmet Walsh (Blood Simple) in the role of the sheriff, works hard.

There's a sequence in the second third of the film involving a brief bit of subtitled dialogue between two of the felonious furballs that got one of the o.w. CARS BEARS 1 I I 2 lAlso Showing Winnie the Pooh OUT OF AFRICA Saturdays 11 a and 2 p.m. through April 12 OF THE BO flOOWE Jzy 472-5356 NOW, THEY'RE ON OUR SOE 7 WINNER ACADEMY AWARDS TRl-STAR PICTURES PRESENTS A MICHAEL MANN PRODUCTION "BAND OF THE HAND" STFPHFNLANG IAMES REMAR Executive Producer MICHAEL MANN INCLUDING Written by LEO CAREN JACK BARAN Produced by MICHAEL RAUCH WE8TRICT8P Directed by PAUL MILHAbL ULAbtK uusssJ A fMQW fV-ti. rrt UDEB 17 BtOOIKfS HCC0Pimil6 FdfllST OR AOULT SUAROiaN Thx Thx BEST PICTURE BEST DIRECTOR Sydney Pollack PBESIDIO THEATRES 346-6937 10000 Research PRESIDIO THEATRES 6406 IH 35 North 454-6469 1:00 PRESIDIO THEATRES I I 2428 Ben White 444-0552 1:00 ie pleasant yLit ut-mi 9:45 1 1:45 A UNIVERSAL Picture PG 1 Sourtdind Avmhblt on WCa tfgtnfa tJ CtwiuTj I PBESIDIO THEATRES ih 35 Ben wnne They loved. They laughed.

They lied. All in the name of friendship. Austin Premier! DIM SUM A LITTLE BIT OF HEART Cult Classicl FREAKS 12:00 Academy Award Winner THE TIMES OF HARVEY MILK 11:45 477-1324 CLASSIC SLEEPING BEAUTY DOLBY STEREO EXCLUSIVE! PRESIDIO THEATRES 2700 Anderson 451-6352 MARY TYLER MOORE CHRISTINE LAHTI SAMWATERSTON TED DANSON IHGWPLACE it- JEWEL OF THE NILE (PG) Q-rn An MTM Enterprises Production THE COLOR PURPLE (PG-13) 7:30 MARY TYLER MOORE CHRISTINE LAHTI SAMWATERSTON TED DANSON "JUST BETWEEN FRIENDS'Wic Composed and Conducted by PATRICK WILLIAMS Performed by EARL KLUGH Director of Photography JORDAN CRONENWETH, A SC. Produced by EDWARD TEETS and ALLAN BURNS Written and Directed by ALL AN BURNS IMURPHY'S ROMANCE (PG-13) A 4 a Color bv Deluxe Soundlrat Album Available on An WrvWf I PICTURES Release PG-13 PARENTS STRONGLY CAUTIONED PVNAVISfON Warner Bros. Records and Tapes.

BACK TO THE FUTURE (PG) (E)im Orion Piclum CorporatioB. All RijfhU RnnvmL town Mttfll Mty tmppropriatt for CMMrgw Umtf 13 lANN THEATRES! New Line Gncrrutn Association with Snwi tgg Pictures fvewnts a $ho Films Production CRITTERS Starring OEE WALLACE STONE M. EMMET WALSH SILl GREEN BUSH SCOTT GRIMES naDinE van DER vElDE DON OPPER AND TERRENCE MANN Director o( Photoyaohv TIM SUHRSTEDT music OV OAVIO NEWMAN Associate Producer Sara RISHER- Screenplay by DOMONIC MUIR and STEPHEN HEREK E.ecutive Producer ROBERT SHAYE Produced by RUPERT HARVEY Oirecteo by STEPHEN HEREK MANN WESTCATE 3 CRITTERS (PG-13) 4608 WESTGATE BLVD 692-2775 PO 1 31 wts STMMSii caenem 453-6641 2200 HANCOCK DR. APRIL FOOLS (R) PRESIDIO THEATRES i 2428 Ben White 444-0552 STARTS TODAYI Andersofl Laiw Bimst 454-5147 ISO" S. PLEASANT VALLEY 4M STARTS TODAY.