A Scene From A Metrosexual Streetcar Named Desire
Act 1, Sc. 3: The Poker Night
Stanley and his friends, all looking as if they've stepped out of the pages of GQ, have been sampling various Syrahs at their weekly wine-tasting. Pottery Barn and Crate and Barrel catalogues are open on the table. Stella and Blanche have returned from their night out, and Blanche changes the radio station from NPR to KOMP.
STANLEY: Blanche, really! Please switch the station back! That was Brahm's Concerto!
STELLA: Drunk—drunk—animal thing, you! All of you—please go home! If any of you have one spark of decency in you—
BLANCHE: Stella, watch out, he's—
[Stanley undoes the top button of his shirt, tjuzs' his cuffs, and gets up to turn the radio dial.]
MEN: Take it easy, Stanley. Easy, fellow—Let's all—
STELLA: You lay your hands on me and I'll—
[Stanley turns the station back to NPR. Stella cries out. Blanche screams. The men wring their hands.]
BLANCHE: My sister is going to have a baby!
STELLA [in a high, unnatural voice]: I want to go away, I want to go away!
MITCH: Wine-tastings shouldn't be held in a house with women.
BLANCHE: Lunacy, absolute lunacy!
MITCH: Stanley, please sit back down, won't you?
[The women storm out. The men place their hands on Stanley's shoulders and he slouches down weakly.]
STANLEY: [dully]: What's the matter, what happened?
MITCH: You'll be fine. I think you just stood up too quickly.
STANLEY [thickly]: I'd like some Fiji water, please.
[Stanley reaches into his pocket for his flip-phone and dials.]
STANLEY: Stella! My baby doll's left me! Eunice? I'll keep on ringing until I talk with my baby! [with heaven-splitting violence] STELL-LAHHHHH!
DVDs
Duel, The Sugarland Express (PG) (4 stars)
$19.98
Steven Spielberg's prowess in these obscure early films convinced Universal he was the perfect person to direct Jaws. Good move. In Duel, Dennis Weaver plays cat-and-mouse with the faceless driver of an 18-wheeler. In The Sugarland Express, Goldie Hawn is an ex-con desperate to free her husband from prison and stop authorities from taking away their child.
Showboy (NR) (3 stars)
$24.95
In describing what might happen when a writer fired from a hit HBO series becomes obsessed with becoming a Las Vegas dancer, Lindy Heymann and Christian Taylor's quirky mockumentary combines all of the goofy pathos of reality TV with the understated humor of a Waiting for Guffman. Whoopi Goldberg, Siegfried & Roy and Six Feet Under creator Alan Ball have cameos.
The Martin Scorsese Collection (R) (5 stars)
$59.92
Included in this valuable overview are three films premiering on DVD: Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore, After Hours and Who's That Knocking at My Door?, as well as special editions of Goodfellas and Mean Streets. Who's That Knocking is the film debut of the Scorsese-Harvey Keitel team, and introduces recurring Scorsese themes like repressed sexuality and Catholic guilt, the seductive thug life, and the enduring relevancy of vintage rock 'n' roll.
CD
Cell (2.5 stars)
Know Thyself
Lest you think all local bands are as innovative as the Killers, Cell reminds you on its self-released debut that generic hard rock still rules much of the Vegas music scene. The album has decent production values and competent musicianship and writing, but the music is a bland Incubus/311/Tool derivative that retains none of the originality of any of those groups.