Skins

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VSPACE="0" > <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 20 WIDTH="575"><div> <B>Skins </B><FONT SIZE="3" COLOR="#FFCC66" FACE="Wingdings 2" ><B>êêê</B></FONT><B> 1/2  </B> ( R ) </div> </tD> </tR> <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 19 WIDTH="575"><div> Reviewed by Cathy Edsey Collins</div> </tD> </tR> </TABLE></div> <bR> <DIV ALIGN="LEFT"></DIV> <div> <TABLE BORDER="0" CELLPADDING="1" CELLSPACING="1" WIDTH="580" BORDERCOLORLIGHT="#C0C0C0" BORDERCOLORDARK="#808080" FRAME="BOX" RULES="ALL" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" > <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 19 WIDTH="269"><div> Eric Schweig: Rudy</div> </tD> <tD VALIGN=TOP WIDTH="304"><div> Graham Greene: Mogie</div> </tD> </tR> <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 19 WIDTH="269"><div> Director: Chris Eyre</div> </tD> <tD VALIGN=TOP><NOBR><div> Writer (novel): Adrian C. Lewis</div> </NOBR></tD> </tR> </TABLE></div> <bR> <div> <B>30 Second Bottom Line</B>: A sobering tale of despair, this sophomore effort from director Chris Eyre explores the relationship between two Sioux Indian brothers, living on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation, in South Dakota.</div> <bR> <div> <B>Tell Me More About It</B>: Within the first few minutes of "Skins," the sad facts of the Oglala Sioux tribe on the Pine Ridge Indian reservation are routinely revealed. The average yearly earning is $2600 with 70% unemployment and life expectancy 15 years less than most Americans. Alcoholism is the area's major affliction, an ironic aftermath of decades of abuse from the white man, with Wounded Knee its closest reminder.</div> <bR> <div> Amidst the squalor and despair of the area, the fictional story of two brothers emerges-siblings who cope with their surroundings in very different ways. Rudy is the local cop, preoccupied with breaking up drunken brawls. Unmarried and tentative in his relationships with women, he is troubled by the desperate plight of his people and resorts to his own form of vigilantism to make sense of it all. </div> <bR> <div> Mogi lacks the directness of Rudy's approach. Where Rudy believes in action, Mogi buries himself in liquor to mask his helplessness. A continual source of embarrassment to his brother, Mogi eventually is diagnosed with fatal liver disease. Faced with mortality, Rudy repairs his bond with Mogi and in the film's final minutes, pays a sort of tribute to his brother via a can of red paint.</div> <bR> <div> The unblinking realism of this film's setting is shocking and laudable. Certainly pictures speak a thousand words here. Life on this reservation reeks of poverty and hopelessness. That the liquor store-owned by a white man<FONT SIZE="3" COLOR="#FFCC66" FACE="Symbol" >¾</FONT>does brisk business only adds to the sad irony of the situation.  And when that establishment is burned to the ground in an arson raid instigated by Rudy, the futility of the whole situation is magnified as it is announced that a new, bigger and better liquor outpost will be constructed with the insurance money. It seems the Indians can never win.</div> <bR> <div> Though the messages are powerful, the weakness of "Skins" lies in the film's unbelievable conclusion. It is difficult to swallow Rudy climbing to the top of Mount Rushmore and throwing a can of red paint onto George Washington's face. What exactly does this prove? Why on earth would Rudy commit this ridiculous act? Perhaps it is simply to show the utter frustration of this main character. But really it just continues the downward spiral of these people for Rudy-one of the few in the tribe who rose above the rest-will surely be tracked down by authorities, arrested and lose his job. And so the cycle continues…</div> <bR> <div> Like director Eyre's first film "Smoke Signals," "Skins" offers a seldom-seen glimpse into modern-day Indian living, made memorable by the stirring performances of Schwieg and Greene. As a rarity among the glitz of Hollywood film making, "Skins" is worth viewing.</div> <bR> <div> <TABLE BORDER="0" CELLPADDING="1" CELLSPACING="1" WIDTH="621" BORDERCOLORLIGHT="#C0C0C0" BORDERCOLORDARK="#808080" FRAME="BOX" RULES="ALL" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" > <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 19 WIDTH="617"><div> Rated R for language and violence</div> </tD> </tR> <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 19 WIDTH="617"><div> Cathy Edsey Collins © 2002</div> </tD> </tR> <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 19 WIDTH="617"><div> <A HREF="Cathyedsey@aol.com" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Cathyedsey@aol.com"><U><U>Cathyedsey@aol.com</U></U></A></div> </tD> </tR> </TABLE></div> <bR> <div> Mini Filmography </div> <div> <TABLE BORDER="0" CELLPADDING="1" CELLSPACING="1" WIDTH="579" BORDERCOLORLIGHT="#C0C0C0" BORDERCOLORDARK="#808080" FRAME="BOX" RULES="ALL" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" > <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 19 ><NOBR><div> Eric Schweig: "The Last of the Mohicans"</div> </NOBR></tD> <tD VALIGN=TOP><NOBR><div> Graham Greene: "Dances With Wolves"</div> </NOBR></tD> </tR> <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 19 ><NOBR><div> Chris Eyre: "Smoke Signals"</div> </NOBR></tD> <tD VALIGN=TOP WIDTH="286"><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="1x1.gif" HEIGHT="19" ALIGN="bottom" WIDTH="286" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></tD> </tR> </TABLE></div> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> </td> </tr></table></body>