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8 • T he C lackamas P rint
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Inspector7 shows eye for comeq
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Karlin Johnson
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As audience members enter
McLoughlin Theatre for the
spring production, they will find
themselves in the company a
strange-looking fellow, seated on
the stage with others, waiting for
a play to begin.
Moon (Matt Morrison) is joined
by a tall, bald character that
strangely
resembles
Annie’s
“Daddy Warbucks.” The man is
Birdboot
(Michael
Gerber).
Instantly, thé audience is engaged in
the relentless and ridiculous chatter
between the two Englishmen as
they wait for the play to begin.
This play within a play starts, and
the characters come together in
Muldoon Manor, where the maid,
Mrs. Drudge (Sarah Griswold), is
tidying up the drawing room. She
does not notice the lifeless body in
the corner. She turns on the radio to
a bellowing announcement that
there is a mad man on the loose.
Dramatically overreacting, as any
good Englishwoman would, Mrs.
Drudge is terrified.
Enter Simon (Matt Strong), a
ridiculous Frenchmen with a strong
accent, who waltzes in with a some
what sneaky fhanper. He soon
comes into contact with buxom
blonde Cynthia (Daphne Starling).
The interaction between Cynthia
and Simon is outrageously over the
top, bringing much laughter during
their scenes together. Cynthia is
married, although she is strangely
attracted to Simon. The overly obvi
ous sexual tones portrayed between
dlSlIlB
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ma goofy. „lir Gerber,
! aPPe, with
uf| a
childlike attitude, makes
appear pampered and not
Strong portrays Simon as
top and lusty, while addin
French accent to the char;
Lastly is Starling, wh Í 1
most to her character,
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by JEFF SORENSEN
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C lackamas
ABOVE: Ultra-charming Simon (Matt Strong; left), and the married
Cynthia (Daphne Starling) begin to romance, much to the disapproval
of Magnus (Don Wright; middle) in ‘The Real Inspector Hound.’
RIGHT: Simon (Matt Strong; left) flirts with Mrs. Drudge (Sarah Griswold).
the two are funny, and surprises ate
in store for the audience.
Felicity (Lorieri Peterson),
Simon’s young, redheaded girl
friend, realizes immediately that
Cynthia is competition; retired
war general, Magnus (Don
Wright), thinks himself the
authority of the house, barking
commands and carrying a gun.
.As the party learns of the
escaped mad man, they call for help
from the Inspector Hound.
Bob Alsman, as the title charac
ter, clamors through the doors amid
roaring laughter. With disheveled
clothing and still wearing his large,
awkward “swamp shoes,” the detec-
tive does not quite appear the man
the party was expecting.
However, they follow his direc
tions to search the house. As party
members are picked off, the lines
between audience and cast are lost
and Birdboot and Moon are drawn
in, purely by accident, to become
part of the play.
In the end, characters may or
may not be who they say they are,
resulting in the audience’s discovery
of the identity of the madman.
Only an hour long, “The Real
Inspector Hound” seems not long
enough. Each character is comical,
often making the script more enter
taining just by the actors’ portrayals
muc\,(
watd|
of
their
respective
characters.
The dialogue
is
quick;
much can be
missed in a moment’s distraction.
The chemistry is better than in
previous productions, and all of
the actors add unique quirks.
Peterson does well as the prissy
Felicity, stung by jealousy. Wright’s
characterized wheeling of his
wheelchair and loud bellowing
makes his character comical.
Griswold skillfully gives Mrs.
Drudge an almost sarcastic,'dramatic
overtone. Mbrrison, as Moon, adds a
v
musti
E T
SpCCI, £
.. for the entire hour. I
Though v|
“The Real Inspector A
very humorous and hoL
of surprises for its
especially the two luA
bers who get to be a |
production.
“The Real Inspectâtj
continues production this IB
27 through 29 at 7 p.m., J|
at 3 p.m. in McLoughlin ■
'Shrek 2' lands on all four paws (feet, hooves, etc.)
Katie Funk
T he C lackamas P rint
2,”
Dreamworks’
“Shrek
released May 19, skillfully dupli
cates the cross-generational appeal
that wrought the original l an
Academy
Award
for
Best
Animated Feature in 2002.
The sequel picks up after the
honeymoon. Shrek (Mike Myers)
and Fiona (Cameron Diaz) have just
returned to the swamp when Fiona’s
parents, the King (John Cleese) and
Queen (Julie Andrews) of the
Kingdom of Far, Far Away, invite
them to a royal ball in their honor.
Unwillingly, Shrek agrees to take his
bride and sidekick Donkey (Eddie
Murphy) to meet his in-laws.
Tension between the ogre and
father-in-law is thick, for the King
has schemed with the Fairy
Godmother (Jennifer Saunders) to
have Fiona marry her son Prince
Charming (Rupert Everett), who
tries in vain to live up to his name
The King hires the famed ogre killer
Puss in Boots (Antonio Banderas) to
dispose of Shrek, but the pint-size
would-be assassin soon joins forces
with Shrek and Donkey. Displeased
with the alliance, Donkey tells the cat
that “the position of Annoying
Talking Animal has already been
taken.”
One-liners like this are rampant
throughout the film, as well as
spoofs óf other movies (like an
upside-down kiss reminiscent of
“Spider-Man” and a musical number
by the Fairy Godmother that rivals
Lumiere and Cogsworth’s “Be Our
Guest”).
Pop culture parodies
abound as well, with Oscar-esque
red carpet entrances to the ball host
ed by Joan Rivers and a poster in
young Fiona’s room of “Sir Justin,”
who bears an uncanny resemblance
to the former *NSYNC member of
the same name.
Although such Hollywood refer
ences and a bit of crude humor are
directed more at an adult audience,
the film is wholly appropriate for
children as well. The entire cast does
a fine job, with returning actors like
Myers, Murphy and Diaz giving their
characters the depth befitting a
sequel. The supporting characters
color the cast nicely, including reap
pearances by the Gingerbread Man,
the Three Little Pigs, Pinocchio and
the Dragon.
However, the new additions are
what make the movie. Saunders
voices the conniving Godmother,
rotten to the core.
Cleese and
Andrews play the King and
Queen, ill-prepared for the sight of
their once-human little girl and her
green husband, and give just the
right attitude of parental concern
and royal detachment.
The star of the show, though, is
undoubtedly Banderas’ Puss. A
thick Spanish accent, Zorro bravado
and feline cuteness combine to make
a hilarious, endearing character. ’
Rarely do sequels measure up,
and only a handful have ever sur
passed their originals.
“Shrek 2
may not be better than the first, but
it is certainly just as good. Taking J
in $104.3 million, it broke
dB
the record----- ------
set by “The Passion of the Christ’'
(which debuted in February with
$83.9 million) to become the
biggest opening of thes
year. It is also the best ani
mated opening of all time, Wl
ahead of the $70.2 million'’
grossed by “Finding Nemo
in May 2003. With a pre- j
miere, like this, “Shrek 2”
may well be on the way J
to another Oscar for
the lovable ogre and
his comrades.
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