Word: melodrama
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...throb of a Mahalia Jackson spiritual. Jungle Fever is no less brazen -- or assured. A righteous man shoots his deranged son, and the man's wife unleashes a scream that blends with the gospel wail of . . . Mahalia Jackson. Here Jungle Fever ascends fearlessly into the delirium of high Hollywood melodrama: it's berserk Sirk...
Late night melodrama: An hour or so later, David Letterman says, "Before we continue, I think we should congratulate our friend Jay Leno for being selected as the host of The Tonight Show. And the good news for us is, we get Stump the Band." This hoariest of Carson time fillers is no silver medal for Letterman, in his 10th year as star of his own NBC chatfest. The world had long known that the anvil-jawed Leno, Tonight's exclusive guest host since 1987, was bound to succeed Carson. But press tattle hinted that Letterman, who gave Leno...
...FEMME NIKITA. Sleek spy stuff in this melodrama about a killer (Anne Parillaud) recruited by French intelligence. Director Luc Besson serves a handsome mix of violent action and sulky introspection. Look for a Hollywood remake, minus the navel gazing...
...RECORD: Neil L. Rudenstine does not read People magazine. Ditto for Omni and Playboy. His taste in periodicals is much more highbrow: The New York times, Art in America, Harvard magazine. Overall, a most impressive reading list--although somewhat lacking in melodrama and intrigue...
Writing with the urgency of someone who is unsure he will have enough time to finish, Monette delivers heavy-handed riffs on alcoholism, domestic violence, artistic freedom and the church's stand on homosexuality. He also indulges a fondness for melodrama that results in a climactic shoot-out and several teary reconciliations. But underneath all this activity rests Monette's gritty reminder, particularly relevant in these plague years, that the value of life is determined by what we are willing to risk...