Double Happiness

D: Mina Shum; with Sandra Oh, Frances You, Stephen M.D. Chang, Alannah Ong,
Callum Rennie, Donald Fong.
VHS Home Video
Vulcan Video, 609 W. 29th St.

Writer-director Mina Shum makes terrific use of comedic actress Sandra Oh as
Jade, the oldest daughter in a traditional Chinese family transplanted to the
United States in Double Happiness. Family problems often transcend
cultures, and this holds true in Shum’s film. Jade’s career and independence
create poignant and often humorous conflicts — when Jade’s attraction to the
appealingly goofy (and definitely not Chinese) Mark (Rennie) does not meet with
her parents’ approval, she must decide for herself how to answer the question,
“How do you please those you love and please yourself?” — Alison
Macor

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Honeysuckle Rose

Forget about a plot — this story of a Texas musician torn between his family
and the lure of life on the road is just too hackneyed to rehash. Nelson plays
Buck Bonham, legend and road addict, with Dyan Cannon as his former duet
partner/wife, and Amy Irving as the nubile daughter of Bonham’s retiring stage
partner/best friend. Wooden dialogue, a dated look, and even stiffer
performances from nearly everyone make this film almost forgettable. Almost.
What Honeysuckle Rose lacks in cinematic terms it makes by featuring
some of the most luminous musical performances to ever hit the screen. For
that, the credit goes to director Schatzberg as well as Willie Nelson himself,
for note-perfect authenticity on “Whiskey River,” “Angel Flying Too Close To
The Ground,” “You Show Me Yours,” and a stunning duet between Nelson and screen
wife Cannon on “Loving You Was Easier.” Try this one on a home double bill with
Songwriter. — Margaret Moser

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D

D begins in a hospital on the edge of downtown Los Angeles in the year
1997. The protagonist is Laura Harris, a student from San Francisco, who rushes
to L.A. to try to solve the mystery of what caused her mild-mannered father to
go on a killing spree. D has a two-hour time limit and no “save”
feature, so it’s not good to start if you don’t have a block of time to invest.
The graphics are more cartoony than realistic, and the characters’ movements a
little choppy, but D does have an intriguing story line. Both dreams and
cryptic poetry take you outside the story, while their careful analysis
provides clues to the mystery. — Paul Laster

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The Show

This documentary starts and ends at Riker Island, where old-school rapper
Slick Rick is serving time on an attempted murder charge. Prison has cooled his
jets considerably, and although this film isn’t heavy on the moralizing, it
does have a message about the way rap has been transformed by gangsta groups
whose roots actually do come as much from a neighborhood social system as the
music with which they grew up. Though the film suffers greatly from an
unfocused telling (commentary by Def Jam Records’ Russell Simmons is the only
real, though loosely wound, thread), The Show is full of interviews with
both the youngsters and the grandfathers of the genre; an invaluable history
lesson and for me, an update. Curiously, The Show received a very limited
release during its initial theatrical run. In fact, here in Austin, the movie
opened at two second-run movie houses where it played for one week only. This
video release presents the first solid opportunity to view The Show locally.

— Jen Scoville

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Torin’s Passage

You are Torin, embarking on an adventure with sidekick Boogle to find your
parents through the planet Strata’s five nested worlds. This adventure game
reminds me of my junior-high fantasy book stage (of course, the kids are
probably more advanced now). The game was a little slow and I got bored waiting
for the next scene, especially when I had to retrace my steps, but the graphics
are cool, and there is a hint bar if you get stuck. — Nisa
Sharma

This article appears in June 14 • 1996 and June 14 • 1996 (Cover).