The Kansas City Star from Kansas City, Missouri • 72

JV II I Appeal of is lost in movie version Slumberiand venture may extend to viewers By ROBERT BUTLER Arts and Entertainment Editor How it rates 2 Nemo: Adventures in animated fantasy is rated Running time is 1 hour 23 minutes The stars of including Professor Genius (Rene Auberjonois) far right Winsor "Little Nemo" holds a prestigious place in the pantheon of American pop culture as the first newspaper comic strip It began at the turn of the century and ran for nearly two decades in publications around the world The new animated film based on the strip will be lucky to last a week in the theaters Despite a couple of surreal visual passages and some impressive names in the title credits there's little to recommend this JapaneseAmerican effort: no captivating characters no compelling story line no memorable songs flat and dull and the kids will fidget while the grown-ups nod off Set on a tree-lined New York street circa 1900 Nemo" centers on the dream life of its hero a pajama-clad boy whose nocturnal adventures make up the bulk of the story In a remarkable opening sequence bed Hies out his second story window MOVIE REVIEW AN UNADULTERATED DELIGHT! Superbly acted directed and written" Robert Butler KANSAS CITY STAR carrying him down the street and into a surreal landscape (indeed visual style deeply influenced such artists as Salvador Dali) Nemo escapes only when he tumbles out of his bed onto the floor In subsequent nights dreams become more amazing picked up by a huge dirigible from where he is taken as the heir to King Morpheus He becomes the playmate of Princess Camille and befriends the cigar-puffing jokes-ter Flip (voiced by Mickey liny FriKtlk US MAGAZINE "TWO THUMBS UP! Warm Funny and -Gw Sisfei SISKEL It EBERT Enchanted rIl A film by Mike Newell iPGjpt missr 1992 Miramax Films all rights reserved 474-4 AMC NOW PLAYING! 2:004:30 7:00 9:15 11:181:153:25 5:357:45 10:05 mm MOO WAftO PARKWAY CROSS BETH KEN 'NAKED (if AM) 'SAITRDAV NIGHT LINE'" 1 a Carr BOSTON (ilOltE Rooney) who tempts our hero to unlock a massive door deep below the city Alas this unleashes the Nightmare King a sinister being who threatens to engulf all of Slumberiand in his foul black grip Nemo: Adventures in is topheavy with impressive credits The story is credited to Jean Mobius Giraud (famed for his distinctive artwork in Heavy Metal magazine) and Yutaka Fujioka the screenplay was written by Chris Columbus (director of "Home and Richard Outten Moreover science fictionfantasy great Ray Bradbury is credited with for the whatever that means Wait more Among the consultants" is screenwriting legend Robert Towne Richard and Robert Sherman the brothers who set a record for quantity and quality with their score for Pop-pins" provide several songs Maybe too much talent pulling at the material because the result is bland boring and unsatisfying All too often in fact "Little Nemo" seems to be a third-rate counterfeit of a Disney film Nemo has a flying squirrel sidekick who ups the cuteness factor without adding anything to the story and the Nightmare King is a dead ringer for the demon from the Night on Bald Mountain sequence in "Fantasia" The character animation is just adequate The one area in which shines is in its graphic design which closely copies original style The film's visual look most certainly will remind many viewers of Maurice In the Night Kitchen In fact Scndak created that best-selling children's book as a tribute to McCay and Nemo" THE MOST EXCITING PART OF THE ADVENTURE IS THE TALE THAT HAS NEVER BEEN TOLD! Christopher Columbus THE DISCOVERY Alexander Saikind Marion Brando TomSelleck George Corraface Rachel Ward' pr Alexander Salkind Maeon Brando TomSelleck $5hngibu Christopher Columbus-The Discovery GeorgeCorraface RachelWard RobertDavi BenicioDeiToro QuintoCentenario Spain Cliff Eidelman ohn Bloomfield taVGilPaprondo Bob Simmonds -ane Chaplin Mario Puzo ohn Briley-Cary Bates- Mario Puzo 1 IlyaSalkind ohn Glen Alexander Jiya SalkinD' Ft lVWWHrtllTMMUCMIUMHl'n DOLBY STERBO major NO PASSES ACCEPTED BANNISTER SQUARE a 33 75HHO 474-4 AMC l( 357334 wuwYmniltinw4Hourtmi OPENS TODAYH The Knahlcs signed up for a cable system out of this world JOHN PAM RITTER IMWBER iB' A comedy adventure on the wrong side of the screen fe iJSWiKCertPiotelions me NOW SHOWING mmk0 114-0500 1 I 474-4AMC 1 351-2 Ha BLUE RIDGE WEST BLUE SPRINGS I CROWN CENTER ANTIOCH MMHWjinn TM leWMBMHNel JUMWMflnaj1 tJ KINSON lOAK PARK PLA2AI0LATHE LANDING I SUMMIT WARD PARKWAY mvjzyco Ht6 The Kansas City Star Friday August 21 1992.