Chicago Tribune from Chicago, Illinois • 43

Chicago Tribune, Friday, June 13. 1982 Section 3, 3 Getaway Movie; 'An nie' has trouble leapi n' to film Milwaukee: Where a slice of the good life is found By Gene Siskel Movie critic NOW WHO would want to pick on a cute little movie Actually, you could go through "Annie" with a check-, list, and for every good thing that worked you could list two that didn't. What worked: Broadway dancer-actress Ann Reinking as a delightful and attractive secretary to Daddy Warbucks. She looks great in a tight skirt. What didn't: The production design is generally dull, hardly fitting the film's reported $40 million to $50 million budget.

The four new songs are not the least bit memorable. THERE MAY BE those who find this detailed analysis of "Annie" not to their interest. All they want to know is whether this is an acceptable family show. Of course it is. No one could botch it that badly, certainly not the celebrated John Huston, directing his first musical.

But I wasn't looking for "acceptable" when I went to see "Annie." I wanted a Christmas present in June. This version has many of the wrappings, but once you open it up, all you get of substance is Albert Finney. fr'XWf if 3 Wi v- "iim r- a 'I fx i about an 10-year-old orphan girl? I would. Why? Because it's so much less than it should have been. Because it's so much less than it 'was on Broadway.

What "Annie" was on Broadway, with Andrea McCardle in the title role, was a delightful piece of American musical theater. McCardle's remarkable voice and her adult technique of holding her notes for a long time gave the show a special polish. Her singing of the plaintive "Maybe," about her hope of being adopted, put a lump in your throat right at the start. This indeed was a show about a special little girl. And you saw FDR solve the Depression, too.

Unfortunately, Andrea McCardle is now in her late teens, too old to play "Annie" on film. And that's where the movie begins to go off track. Instead of McCardle, we get stuck with Aileen Quinn, a 10-year-old, tot-sized look-alike for Beverly Sills. Unfortunately, Quinn cannot sing like Sills or McCardle. And she often comes across as one of those self-conscious stage kids.

The smile is too big, indicating a nervous mind rather than a happy heart. What this movie could use is the kind of kid that Steven Spielberg found for "E.T." YET "ANNIE" MANAGES to develop some appeal. nonetheless. A different kind of appeal, owing directly to the performance by the best actor or actress in the movie. That's Albert Finney as Daddy Warbucks, the bullet-headed billionaire who discovers that what he' really wants out of life is not compound interest but to love and be loved by a little girl.

Finney is full of bluster at the start of the story, and he steadily turns into a quite wonderful father figure. In fact, his reprise of the song "Maybe," as he contemplates not having Annie as his ward, is the one moment that brought the same kind of powerful emotion I experienced during the play. The movie should have been titled "Daddy." when Joan kissed a stone on which she was kneeling, it turned cold. That stone, now mounted in the wall of the chapel, is said to always be 4 to 10 degrees cooler than others surrounding it. The chapel is open daily from 10 to 4 p.m.

St. Josaphat's Basilica, 2336 S. 6th also is worth a visit. It, too, was built somewhere else. The church was assem-.

bled from parts of an old federal building that was being demolished in Chicago. Tours are conducted after the 10 a.m. mass on Sunday. And, if you live in Chicago, you probably think you've had your fill of Frank Lloyd Wright. But if you want to see what the master's talents were like in his later years, drive past Annunciation Greek Orthodox Church, 9400 W.

Congress Wauwatosa. The last work of the world-famous architect, the blue-domed church with its circular design is far different from his Prairie School structures. Tours of the church are by appointment only. The phone number is 414-461-9400. And in case you decide you want to bring some of the flavor of Milwaukee back home, two shops which are on the" tourist- circuit but remain popular with locals are the Wisconsin Cheese Mart, 215 W.

Highland and Usinger's Famous Sausage, 1030 N. 3d St. At Usinger's the secret is to check what sausage seconds are available, because the price is lower. At the cheese mart, ask for Wisconsin specialties. Information about the city and its tour-: ist attraction are available from the Greater Milwaukee Convention and Visitors Bureau, 756 N.

Milwaukee Milwaukee, Wis. 53202. The bureau operates a fun line, listing daily activities. You can call it at 414-799-1177. Continued from first Weekend page offer free Saturday tours of their plants.

Pabst has. Saturday tours In the morning only; Miller's tours go mid-afternoon. Pabst will let you peek at the brewing process, while Miller will treat you to a multimedia presentation on brewing and its history. At the end of the line, you're invited to sample the suds. There's milk-or soda as pop is called in Milwaukee for the youngsters.

For anyone interested in good brew, the best beer in Milwaukee is that made right here in the city by either Pabst or Miller at present, the Schlitz plant is closed and served on tap. Andeker and Miller Special Reserve shine brightest in my eyes and taste better than they do in Chicago, probably because they aren't shipped far. There are four fascinating neighborhoods around the downtown area: Walker's Point, Kilbourntown East, Yankee Hill and the Water Tower area. Tours of them are offered on weekends by Historic Milwaukee, Archi-Tours. The tours cost $2 each and to find out more write to the organization at Box 2132, Milwaukee, Wis.

53201 or call them at 414-645-9222. THREE OF THE Milwaukee area's architectural treasures are churches, and one of them wasn't even built in Wisconsin. St. Joan of Arc Chapel, between 14th and 15th Streets on the Marquette University campus, was built in France in the 1400s and moved first to Long Island and then to Milwaukee. It's said to be the chapel in which Joan of Arc prayed before leading the French into battle against the English.

According to legend, WHAT THIS MAY mean for the potential viewer is that "Annie" is more likely to please children than adults. The children who saw it with me were enthralled, and why shouldn't they be? How often do they get to see one of their own triumph over a bad hand dealt by fate. Little ones are certain to root for "Annie." So, a mixed review for "Annie," with an overlay of disappointment. Albert Finney lived up to his part; in. -fact, he exceeded it.

But the same can't be said for any other major character, not even Carol Burnett as the evil Miss Hannigan, who runs the orphanage in which Annie suffers a hard knock life. Burnett plays Hannigan as a jolly drunk, not as threatening boss lady. She's too likable to be scary. I could go on, but you get the point. In a summer season of one surprisingly good film after another, "Annie" is a bit of a letdown.

Rating for "Annie," Vk stars. At' I Aileen Quinn in title role of "Annie" just doesn't equal Andrea McCardle's portrayal in the celebrated Broadway version. Eastwood's ponderous pacing almost misfires 'Firefox' Two galas for the summer of '82 A "FIREFOX" ya Mlnl-revlaw: Slow burn Productd and tfiradtd by Clint Esstwood; tcnMnptay by Aim Unkw and WndU Wdlman bawd on tha noval by Craig Thamaa; photographad by Bruca Surtaaa; mualc by Maurle Jarra; a Wamar Broa. ralaaaa at tha Unltad Artiata and nalghborhood thaalara. Ratad Fa Seeing Eastwood shake and sweat isn't convincing the third time he does it.

Another weak side to the character is revealed when he asks the motivation of the Russian Jewish dissidents who are assisting him in Russia. The answer seems obvious, I think, to anyonWn the audience. The captive Jews don't like Russia. It's a shame this film has those faults, for if there is a movie star who can get us to follow him anywhere, Eastwood is it. Watching "Firefox," THE CAST Kannath Aubray.

Paval Upanakey ftamatovaky Col. Kontaraky CHntEaatwood FraddlaJonaa David Huffman Wanon Claika Ronald Laoay Kannath Col lay By Gene Siskel Movie critic IN "FIREFOX," Clint Eastwood makes another important costume change. Gone is the nameless cowboy's serape, gone is the dirty detective's shoulder holster Now it's Clint in Space. Eastwood plays Mitchell pant, a shell-shocked Vietnam veteran, who comes out of retirement to try to do three things for his country. Enter Russia, steal a supersonic plane that is years ahead of anything we have and -fly it back to the United States Three tasks in a l-hour-and-50 minute movie Unfortunately, the film doesn't really take off until Clint does, and that comes too late, at the l-liour-and-20-minute mark However, once Eastwood is in command of the plane, which travels six times the speed of sound and has a Wars," with planes darting through channels.

It's Eastwood in the Video Age. "Firefox," which is generally entertaining, would be a lot more so if who served as producer-director, had excised some of the laborious buildup to the final shootout. INSTEAD, WE ARE asked to sit through some boring patches in which he avoids detection by Russian security officers, who seem to speak Russian or English whenever they like. What's uninteresting about all of this is that we know that Clint is going to make it to the plane. So, let's get on with it.

'But Eastwood prefers to give us scenes of unnecessary character development, including his character's history of getting the shakes in tense' situations whenever he flashes back to his Vietnam combat days in which he saw a young Vietnamese girl turned into a fireball by an aerial bomb. such headliners as the Commodores, Johnny Mathis, the Charlie Daniels Band and the Steve Miller Band, to name a few. Another new feature is a dance pavilion, featuring music of the big bands of the '30s and '40s. There are a number of other festivals, many of which are ethnic. Five major ethnic festivals are held at the Summerfest Grounds.

Festa Italiana will be held from July 29 to Aug. German Fest, from Aug. 13 to 15; Irish Fest, from 19 to 21; Fiesta Mexicans, from Aug. 27 to 29; and Polish Fest, from Sept. 3 to 6.

For some of the festivals, tour packages are available from Chicago. This weekend, the Lakefront Festival of Arts is on and runs through Sunday. A huge, juried art show with thousands of works on sale, the festival also features music and other activities. It's held on the lakefront just north of the Milwaukee Art Museum. FESTIVALS ARE as much a part of summer in Milwaukee as the beer consumed at them.

In fact, on any given a visitor is likely to run headlong into anything from a local church picnic to a major event. The two biggest events in Milwaukee's summer are Summerfest, to be held on its lakefront grounds southeast of the downtown area from June 24 to July 5, and the Wisconsin State Fair, to be held in West Allis from Aug. 5 through Aug. 15. Summerfest has spent more than $3.5 million on improvements to its lakefront grounds, including a huge play area for children that will stay open, just north of the grounds, after the festival is over.

The fest's main draw is entertainment with jazz, country, folk, rock and ethnic music, along with comedy and children's age. There's also a main stage with even in its dull passages, wasn't that dull, can sit there and marvel at the impassive Eastwood face and try to figure out what it is about that squint that makes you watch. bombing system activated by brain waves, "Firefox" provides the controlled excitement that is an Estwood trademark. With one big difference: special effects aerial battle that concludes "Firefox" was created by John Dykstra, who also worked on "Star Wars." The result is a battle that has some of the same look and energy as the final' aerial shootout in "Star I guess it is that we know he's a lot smarter than he looks, that he's not immobilized by fear. He has a job to do, and he always does it.

In "Firefox," though, I just wish he had done it a lot sooner. DINING OUT fc-ININO OUT DININO OUT DININO OUT DININO OUT Introducing Chicago. Abar and grill so great they named a city after it Now enjoy a lot more Tavern MiM: foralotless. We've just lightened our prices, not our choices. Simply clip this ad and bring it to the Tavern for a lot more lunch or dinner.

(Our offer is good for up to four people.) This does not apply to Sunday Brunch. i 1 Regular Price Slash Price JUtS 195 JrTS 2.95 JrfT 3.75 MfT 3.75 3.75 125 Regular Price Slash Price OAST 10.95 JWT 9.95 1TW5" 7.95 JtSf 5.95 JtST 5.95 6.95 JWO. 5.95 LUNCH Cape Cod Sandwich Hamburger Quiche Spinach Salad Chicken Pasty DLNNER Maine Lobster Prime Rib (12 oz.) Veal Devonshire Flounder Amandine Scrod Game Hen Bostonian Sole Offer good through June 30th. Discounts not applicable to alcoholic beverages. This offer cannot be used in conjunction with any other coupon offer.

Reservations Suggested. JAMES TAVERN 1000 31st Street at Lake Cook Road at ieaks with sizzle, fresh fish crackling on the grill plates piled high with pasta specialties, and lighter fare, too. That's why our waitress may be the most popular gal in Chicago. Unless it's our bartender, who pours drinks just the way you like' em Make the trip to Chicago, downstairs in the Prudential Building. Where all the city meets for breakfast lunch dinner, caidclrinks.

VI t. i Downers urove 960-5700 'tT'ff- Bring this ad to the Tavern to receive special prices. iV A GRI I I Pnidfntial Building 120 E. Randolph Street.