Chicago Tribune from Chicago, Illinois • 59

Chicago Tribune, Tuesday, April 15, 1986 Section 5 3 Tempo 'Critters' has fun with fright hid i la linn. mini. i. mtvunmmmmmmmmmmmmm jiiii iiiih uimi mmm aeii mm 1MUiiim I By Rick Kogan hat a pleasant sense of humor Critters has it I and it is this attribute ') Dee Wallace Stone battles the fnvacflnlgCntters. "Critters" Mini-review: Frightening fun Directed by Stephen Herekj screenplay by Herek and Oomonkc MiHn photographed by Thn Suhrstedt; music by David Newman; produced by Rupert Harvey; New Line Cinema release at Dearborn, Water Tower and local theaters; rated PQ-13.

THE CA8T Helen Brown Dee Wallace Stone Harv M. Emmet Walsh Jay Brown BHIy Green Bush Brad Brown Scott Qrimee April Brown Nadine Van Der Vetde Charlie McFadden a Opper Johnny Steele Mann "Commissioner Fred Gwynne right congratulates Judge Reinhold in "Off Beat." 'Off Beat' a case of arrested fun that is most responsible for making this playfully scary film more satisfying than most of the other items on the monsters-from-outer-space-come-to-Earth-and-try-to-kill-everybody menu. That's what the title characters are and attempt to do. They are furry little monsters who have escaped from a prison asteroid far, far away, stolen a space ship and journeyed to Earth to do some mayhem. Called Krites back home, these eight beasts have appetites that would shame former Bear coach Abe Gibron or William Perry.

Landing on a farm in Kansas they first chow down on a cow and some chickens, but, obviously having palates that demand more exotic morsels, they soon begin a toothy assault on the Brown family. Dad Billy Green Bush has a number of chunks taken out of his hide. His wife Dee Wallace Stone, daughter Nadine Van Der Veldel and son Scott Grimes get off a little easier. And as an example of the sort of understated good times that pepper the entire film, Dad declares deadpan at first tiite: "I don't know what those things are, but they're meaner'n hell.r Indeed, and they are also cagy, little devils, cutting phone lines and destroying potential getaway cars. In close up, with their many-toothed snarls and bright red eyes they resemble the sort of mad-looking dog one used to encounter behind the bar in neighborhood saloons.

They fire paralyzing darts at their victims, speak in a way that sounds like a walkie-talkie on the fritz though in subtitles they have many of the film's best lines and when moving, roll around like motorized sagebrush. They are also considerably brighter than the intergalactic i "Off Beat" V2 Minl-revlew: Cotton candy Directed by Michael Dinner; screenplay by Mark Medotf bated on a atory by Deiao Magyar; photographed by Angelo Corrao; produced by Jo Roth and Harry Uflend; a Touchstone Fllma release at local theatere. Rated PQ. THE CAST Joe Dower Judge Reinhold Rachel Wareham Meg Tilly Abe Washington Cleavant Derricks Pete Peterson Joe Mantegna August Jacques d'Amboise Mickey Harvey Kertel and to love will see him through. As Gower, Judge Reinhold is" in virtually every frame of "Off Beat." That's unfortunate.

He has an easy, ambling manner, but the slack and wide-eyed look on his face does not so much imply naivete as it does vacancy. Boorish rather than boyish, he's a wimp. This damages most seriously the film's central romance, which moves quickly from unlikely to vapid. This is not an affair to remember and the movie crumbles around it. Though one can admire Harvey Keitel's hamminess as a bank robber and Jacques d'Amboise's steely sensitivity as the dance instructor founder and artistic director of the National Dance Institute and a leading exponent of introducing dance to ordinary folk, d'Amboise is essentially playing himself, it is clear that the filmmakers and their cast have no real sense of the zany and madcap.

They just don't know how to have fun. By Rick Kogan Dt's obvious that.the people who made "Off Beat" are attempting to recapture some of the pleasurable zaniness that characterized the best of the romantic film romps of the 1940s. What they have provided instead is a soft and goofy confection, a cotton-candy movie that is not goofy enough when it counts and too soft where it matters. It does, however, have plenty of goofs. The central one is Joe Gower, an aimless 28-year-old fel-: low who works in the bowels of the New York City Public library.

His best friend, Abe, is one of New York's finest, and the film concerns what happens when Gower is persuaded to take his pal's place at dance auditions for a police benefit. Naturally, Gower wins a spot in the program and we are off and prancing there are cheap ballet jokes aplenty. Gower falls for a pretty lady copper, played as if in around trying to locate their prey. Full of funny human failings and an occasional snappy line, they are memorable creations. For its many lighter moments, "Critters" is careful to balance its ilaughs with a number of chills.

It unabashedly and wittily pays to other films, most (noticeably "E.T." not only does 'one of the Krites hide amid a shelf of stuffed animals, but another, after unsuccessfully trying to make friends with an E.T. doll, bites the toy's head off; "The Terrfiinator the bounty hunters make a shambles of a church and bowling alley; and "Close Encounters of the Third Kind" a quivering road sign. But ultimately it stands firmly on its own, a little bit frightening and a lot of fun. a daze by Meg Tilly. He is at loud odds with a tough cop and Tilly's former one-night-stand, played with considerable pizazz by Chi-1 cago's Joe Mantegna.

And we see him with a number of grating stereotypes: The double-knit boss, the sex-starved former girlfriend, the whacked-out co-worker. Play-acting the cop, Gower gets in a number of scrapes. He is forced to nab a car thief, be shot at by a purse snatcher, be terrified in a high-speed chase and be held hostage during a bank robbery. But, oh, how the desire to dance Terrence Iviann is bounty hunter Johnny Steele. bounty hunters sent to destroy them.

Able to transform themselves into human form, one bounty hunter becomes a rock star named Johnny Steele while the other takes on a number of townsfolk two chaps not only have problems learning to drive a but make a shambles of the town as they bumble i i i Rick Kogan Take care in handling sex charges 501 OFF By Abigail Van Buren ear Abby: My 15-year-old grandson, Mark, has an 18-year-old girlfriend who has taken over his life. He is sexually involved with her with Abby wit mi fi frrmnrmn 1 1 three things that I must do, but by' the time I get out of the shower and near a pencil and paper to make a note of them, I forgot what they were. Is there any help for me? Space Cadet Dear Cadet: How long has this been going on? If it's fairly recent, see your physician for a check-up. If you're physically healthy, forget the strings on your fingers and the notes you will never look at until it's too late. Get professional help.

You are creating additional stress by trying to solve this problem alone. Now, there are just two things to remember: First, make an appointment with a therapist. Then, keep it. Good luck. Dear Abby: I'm an attractive 24-year-old woman singte, self-supporting and still looking for "Mr.

Right. I met a man last night who was so handsome he nearly took my breath away. He was also intelligent and a great conversationalist He's the kind of man I could really be serious about, but here's the problem: He's married, but he said he has an "open marriage." What should I do? Marcie Dear Marcie: Tell him you have a closed mind and the answer is no. his mother's knowledge and consent This girl has quit school, quit her job, stolen from her grandparents and was kicked out of her parents' home, so my daughter-in-law is letting her live with them. She says this girl is "good" for Mark because he is now getting As and Bs instead of failing, and is not, skipping school anymore.

My son is not in favor of this setup, but says he feels like an outsider and can't do anything about it. Meanwhile, it's setting a terrible example for the two younger children in the house. Please advise the best way to handle this disgusting situation. New Mexico Mess Dear Mess: If this situation is as you have described, the 18-year-old girl can be charged with contributing to the delinquency of a minor. Furthermore, your son and daughter-in-law couH be in trouble with the law for aiding and abetting this unlawful situation.

Whether you want to alert the authorities and blow the whistle on your son and his wife is something you should carefully consider. Unless you have proof that the young people are sexually intimate, it might be in the best interest of everyone to back oft Dear Abby: I am the original space cadet. I space things out of my mind very easily. Unfortunately, it's embarrassing and often gets people I'm close to angry with me. I forget to pick' up needed items after work and must return for them after I've arrived at home.

I space out doctor's and dentist's appointments, meetings with teachers, school supplies for the kids, commitments to my wife, etc. I am plain unreliable. I do remember some things, but it seems there are so many details to remember'as part of day-to-day tasks, it's overwhelming! I've tried appointment books and tying strings around my fingers, but I forget to look at my appointment book, and I forget what the string on my finger is supposed to remind me of until it too late. I am an intelligent person; I just can't seem to get myself organized. Sometimes when I'm in the shower I will remember two or if Machine detects bone loss the far side 1M6 Universal PreM Syndtcele A medical test that detects bone-destroying osteoporosis in its early stages has been developed by researchers at Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, Tenn.

Using a device called an absorptiometry machine, physicians led by Dr. Martin Sandler are determining whether patients are losing bone mass at an abnormal rate. If the disease is occurring, physicians can slow its impact with medication and exercise. Approximately 20 million American men and women, most of them elderly, are afflicted with Osteoporosis. Scrlppt-Howard News Service THE LOCKHORNS Make your rooms sparkle for spring.

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