By Anthony R. Ashley
Arizona Daily Wildcat
January 16, 1997

'Evita,' :history 101, Hollywood style

This, by all means, is not meant to dissuade you from seeing the movie.

Many people around the world have been anticipating the movie of the famed and fabled First Lady of Argentina, Eva Peron. A little history for those who do not know the story: Evita, as the Argentines called her, was an influential, inspiring, yet manipulative icon.

A champion to the poor of Argentina, she swept out the oligarchs and helped pass social reform, which endeared her to the urban masses.

Now, for the verdict of this long awaited, and much ballyhooed movie.

Alan Parker's glossy musical epic is much better than expected. It equates the theatrical musical element with the musical-movie element, mixed with a sort of a music video quality. These elements help the movie flow smoothly, weaving the tale of one woman's journey from the poverty-stricken pampas to dance-hall girl to radio star to beloved national icon.

Is Madonna any good? Yes, surprisingly. She is incredibly believable as an ambitious hustler and procurer, as we have seen throughout her career.

Rock operas, however, aren't really showcases for acting talent. Madonna's primary duty as Evita is to hit those notes not found in her songs, and strike the poses-and, as we all know, nobody doubts she can do that.

Madonna's latest performance though, more than makes up for performances in "Shanghai Surprise" and "Who's That Girl." Heck, it just about rivals her stand-out performance in "Desperately Seeking Susan."

As a teen-age vixen in the village of Junin, Madonna's performance is good, but could be better. You can't really feel or see the na‹vet‚ that most people who have never been outside of their own town would contain. But, as Eva moves from bed to bed on the class status ladder in Buenos Aires, you can see and feel the ambition of Madonna's Eva. In the end, as uterine cancer overtakes Eva's body, Madonna pulls out all the emotional stops, making you wish Eva would live, just to see what she would have accomplished past the age of 32.

Let's not forget the outstanding, and surprisingly well-sung performance by Antonio Banderas as scene-stealing narrator Che. He lends to the movie its humor, see-saw perspectives of Evita's actions, and of course, the story itself.

Most movies never really live up to there hype (i.e. "Independence Day"), but "Evita" meets all the expectations the American public may have. My friend Hell-ga, ever the critic, had absolutely no complaints for "Evita" whatsoever, which, trust me, is a first. Go see "Evita" because it's a piece of history.