Document 6460396
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Document 6460396
6A The Clarkson Integrator ENTERTAINMENT Monday, November 14,2005 www.Clarksonlntegrator.com Oscar Anyone? Awards Season Off to a Slow Start ten movies that — if they turn out well — could make the cut. Jack Mathews In order of likely success, they are: New York Daily News (KRT) 1. Munich. Steven Spielberg is racing to get his drama — With only eight weeks remaining on the 2005 calendar, it is about the hunt for the masterminds of the PLO raid on Israeli conceivable that we have not seen a single one of the movies athletes during the 1972 Munich Games — ready for release by that will share the Best Picture ballot for this year's Academy the end of the year. If he succeeds and it is in the quality range Awards. If that is the case, we are either facing a run of good luck of Schindler'sList, it will be the front-runner. 2. Brokeback Mountain. Ang Lee's adaptation of Annie at the multiplex or one of the dullest Oscar shows in history. Ofthe movies already released, I think George Clooney's Good Proulx's short story about a closeted love affair between two Night, and Good Lack is the only one with a serious shot at a Best gay ranch hands in 1960s Wyoming may be too much for redPicture nomination. The black-and-white drama is beautifully state audiences, but it gives the liberal-leaning Academy a great crafted, and its subject matter _ _ _ ^ ^ _ _ _ _ ^ _ _ _ _ ^ _ _ _ _ ^ _ _ _ _ _ — = = ^ = = = : chance to stick its thumb in conservatives' eyes. — the historic 1950s fight Of the movies already released, I think 3. Memoirs of a Geisha. between CBS newsman Edward George Clooney's Good Night, and Good Rob Marshall {Chicago) R. Murrow and red-baiting Sen. Luck is the only one with a serious shot at a takes on a different kind of Joseph McCarthy — resides entertainment with this epic Best Picture nomination. in the living memory of many = = = ^ = = ^ ^ = = = = ^ = tale of a fisherman's daughter Academy voters. Universal Pictures will campaign hard for Ron Howard's who becomes the most refined and celebrated geisha in postwar Cinderella Man, but that sentimental boxing drama has pretty Japan. It is the epic costume drama of the year. 4. The New World. Terrence Malick turns his artist's eye on much been counted out as a contender. Paul Haggis' Crash, about LA.'s shifting demographics, will get a good push, but the story of Pocahontas, John Smith (Colin Farrell), and the clash between thefirstEuropean settlers and the native tribes in it is all uphill. Meanwhile, critics' pick David Cronenberg's A History of Virginia. The toiler looks fabulous, and Malick's last film—The Thin Red Line — received seven nominations. Violence is likely to be too violent for voters' tastes. 5. The Producers. Mel Brooks won an original screenplay So, as we look ahead, with an open ballot, where are the contenders? Based on what I have seen, what I know about Oscar for the 1968 movie that inspired the Tony-sweeping voting patterns, and what industry insiders are telling me, I see Broadway musical that inspired this combination remake/ adaptation. If movie audiences respond like Broadway audiences, Mel could end up with the rarest of Oscar doubles — adding an adapted screenplay award for rehashing his original. 6. Mrs. Henderson Presents. Stephen Fr'ears' account of a London widow's attempt to revive an old Depression-era theater by staging nude revues was one of the hits of the Toronto Film Festival. It features another headline performance from Dame Judi Dench. 7. Walk the Line. Joaquin Phoenix and Reese Witherspoon acquit themselves well while singing their way through this rocky love affair between the late country legends Johnny Cash and June Carter. Look for them on the actor ballots. The movie itself is otherwise pretty ordinary biographical fare. 8. King Kong. The odds are against fantasies, but director Peter Jackson has already beaten those odds with his Lord ofthe Ringsfilms.If this remake of the 1933 classic turns out as well as those, count it in. 9. Syriana. Normally, you would not expect a political thriller to catch Oscar's eye. But if Stephen Gaghan's adaptation of disillusioned ex-CIA man Robert Baer's book about intrigue and corruption in the oil fields of the Middle East is seen as a referendum on U.S. policy in the region, it might break through. 10. Match Point. The early word from film festivals is that Woody Allen, Hollywood's favorite New Yorker, has returned to form with this story of love and emotional corruption among London's tennis set. How many more returns to form will there be? A Fantasy Feast for Readers New from Santana & Rod Stewart Marta Salij Detroit Free Press (KRT) What is A Song ofIce and Fire? It is the only fantasy series I would put on a level with J.R.R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings. It is way better than the Hairy Potter books and definitely not for children. It is a fantasy series for hip, smart people, even those who do not read fantasy. The fourth book, A Feast of Crows, hits stores this week. It is the bleakest of the books, and fans might be disappointed that only half of the characters appear in it. Be heartened: George R.R. Martin promises the rest in Book 5, A Dance With Dragons. But a little background, first. A Song of Ice and Fire is set in a medieval world, one that resembles Europe in the Middle Ages but that also has magical elements. The main action is on Westeros, a peanut-shaped isthmus that has one distinctive climatic feature: Seasons last many years each, which makes the winters times of great privation. Westeros was once seven kingdoms, but it was united under the Iron Throne, which until recently was the seat of the Targaryens. Less than 15 years ago, though, the Iron Throne was seized by Robert Baratheon and the last Targaryens, a brother and sister, driven to another continent. As the series begins, Robert's rule is in disarray. Soon, Westeros is engulfed in a cataclysmic war, in whichfivelords declare themselves king. Meanwhile, north of Westeros is a land rumored to be home to giants and to the Others, fearsome creatures that seem to have the power to claim souls that then rise as the walking dead. The Westerosi built a 700-foot- high wall of ice at the northern border millennia ago. Lately, the soldiers manning the wall have been seeing disturbing things — but they cannot get any of thefivecombatant kings to heed their alarm. And winter is coming. The characters are the best part of A Song of Ice and Fire, including: - Princess Daenerys Targaryen: The exiled princess is a beautiful and strong-minded young woman plotting her return to power. - Tyrion Lannister: The brother-in-law of King Robert, Tyrion is a dwarf who has endured his father's scorn. But he happens to be smarter than almost anyone in the kingdom, with a black humor. - Arya Stark: The youngest daughter of King Robert's ally, Lord Eddard Stark, she is separated from her family in the chaos of war while still a child. She grows up fast while conniving to save her skin. - Jon Snow: The bastard son of Lord Stark, he joins the watch on the wall. There he confronts great dangers almost immediately. If you are new to the series, you must begin with Book 1, A Game of Thrones. Give it at least 200 pages before you decide whether you like it; the vast machinery of the plot takes a while to get started. Once you are hooked, I predict you will read the next 3,000 or so pages at top speed, until you get to the end of A Feast for Crows. And then you will be like the rest of us fans, gnawing your knuckles until book five. Trey Anastasio: No Longer Phishing Ross Raihala some degree. There are a lot musicians who impress me of Phish songs I wouldn't at this point in my career are Knight Ridder ever play. I would never play those who continue to care." Newspapers 'Limb by Limb' or 'Run Like On performing live: Trey Anastasio began his an Antelope' without Phish. "Like surfing or any kind extracurricular solo activities But some of the songs, like of discipline, you're trying more than a decade ago, '46 Days,'fitthis band better to get to that moment when his band Phish was still than Phish. And it wasn't one where you're effortless an ongoing proposition. of the songs that was a real and vaporlike, because it's Now that Phish — which Phish staple, anyway." beautiful. But you have to many saw as the heir to the On opening be willing to ...Anastasio is Grateful Dead's throne — has for the Rolling do the work officially disbanded, Anastasio Stones: "It was back on the road to get there is back on the road on his own amazing. You and never on his own to to support Shine, his second know, I saw support Shine... start coasting. traditional solo effort that them in the The audience follows numerous side projects '80s and thought they were is your boss, and you can't and instrumental excursions. OK. But (seeing them now) ever forget that." In anticipation of his current completely blew me away. On his new backing tour, Anastasio talked about his I've seen a lot of the big band: "There are people in past and present during aphone shows this year, U2 and Paul the group who had never interviewfromNew York. McCartney. But the Stones heard Phish. Going into the On playing in seated theaters are at a completely different unknown is the quickest as opposed to a festival venue: level right now." path to having something "The audience won't be sitting; On his musical heroes: "I spontaneous happen. And they'll be standing. Phish just did this Jerry Garcia 10th that's an amazing feeling." played in theaters from about anniversary concert, and I got On the end of Phish: "We 1985 to 1996, and we loved it. to sit and talk to Mountain set the bar really high in that There are so many things you Girl, his first wife. She said world, in terms of trying to can do with production in a that everyone thought of Jerry outdo ourselves. We got tired; theater. You're right in people's as this easy-going hippie, but it got difficult. We didn't want faces, and you can really make that he was incredibly hard to continue if it wasn't at that contact with them." working and insanely driven. same level. I'd rather be able On including Phish songs I knew that in my heart, but to look back and be proud of in his solo set lists: "I do, to I was glad to hear it. The what we did." Howard Cohen Knight Ridder . Newspapers SANTANA -All That I Am (Arista) 2 'A stars It is comeback time again for Carlos Santana. His 1999 Supernatural CD was a staggering success, with some 15 million sold in the States and a basket full of Grammys. But the similarlystructured Shaman in 2002 was a comparative disappointment, notching two million in sales. So what does Santana and his co-producer Clive Davis do differently on All That I Am, the oft-delayed second follow-up to Supernatural! Nothing different. Once again, Santana exercises his Latinrockmuscle, contributing the best, most traditionalsounding cuts on the album (like the feverish openers "Hermes" and "El Fuego") and Davis brings calculated Top 40 duets pairing the elder statesman guitar god with, among them, American Idol runner-up Bo Bice, Aerosmith's Steven Tyler, Anthony Hamilton, Black Eyed Peas' will.i.am, and Michelle Branch, who returns to sing a carbon copy of Shaman's hit single, "The Game of Love." The collaborations are hit (willi.am, Hamilton) and miss (Sean Paul & Joss Stone), although the dueling guitars between Santana and Metallica's Kirk Hammett on "Trinity" are terrific. Still, not since Jefferson Airplane eventually morphed into the anonymous Starship in the '80s has a culturally significant rock group sacrificed its integrity as much as Santana has on this series of hit pandering discs. beyond conventional pop form, or show the slightest imagination or flair. The novelty in hearing Stewart sing a tune like "Blue Skies" has also grown stale. His raspy, thin voice is stripped of soul and though he tries a bit more on this one to inject a barely noticeable conversational tone into his singing, he still delivers every number in the same manner. If all you have ever heard are these four albums you may never know that Stewart was once a soulful, commanding rock singer. Ask a long-time fan about "(I Know) I'm Losing You" off Every Picture Tells a Story (1971) or "Scarred and Scared" off Blondes Have More Fun (1978) or "Weak" off When We Were the New Boys (1998), to name just three. The biggest blown opportunity here is "Makin' Whoopee," a duet with Elton John. These two pop rivals, pals and pranksters should have had a ball sending this one up — and Elton has even done so before by folding a bit of this tune into his obscure 1978 LP cut "Big Dipper" — but the two play it straight, humorless and surprisingly dull. So to my friend, the Rod Stewart fan, do not hate me for this review. Just think: Next time he feels compelled to make another standards disc you're getting another ROD STEWART - Thanks for the Memory: The Great American Songbook Vol. IV (J Records) 1 Vi stars A colleague's mother who has a seasoned taste in fine jazz, theater and contemporary music loves Rod Stewart's bafflingly popular series of standards CDs. I was delighted in giving her a copy of tins latest one — not only because I knew it would make the dear lady happy but because she would not have to buy it. On that end, I would love to give every fan a free copy of Stewart's Great American Songbook Vol. IV if only so that sales would be nil and he would never have the incentive to make another one. That is not to say Stewart's four standards albums are not without some campy charm. His duet with Cher on the second one found its way onto my iPod and Vol. IV's duet with Diana • Ross on "I've Got a Crush On You" has some appeal, too, all due to her suitable vocals. The problem with these records is not a lack of musicianship. But musicians like Dave Koz, Chris Botti and Roy Hargrove are given little to do (and no solos) in arrangements that never challenge, never stray free CD. Sadie Hawkins Dance Jackie Abrams A Sadie Hawkins Dance was held by the Executive Dorm Council Saturday night from 10:00 p.m. to 2:00 a.m. as a fundraiser. The dance drew a decent crowd of about thirty people. The dance team also performed partway through the event. Nickelback: All the Right Reasons to Continue Ben Morrow Staff Writer Well, the guys in Nickelback never fail to come through. Reliability is a hard quality to find in the music industry anymore, but this is one band that keeps using what works. For example, take a look at one of the biggest bands in the world, AC/DC. They took a simple formula and made it work for them, and you can see where they are now; AC/DC remains at the top of their game even after thirty plus years. Nickelback has taken a page or two out of this history book, which ultimately has its good and bad sides. Take All The Right Reasons, the newest release from the Canadian quartet, for instance. This album is, in its entirety, nothing new for the band and their fans, it's just better. The past five years on the road, doing just a bit of hardcore touring and pumping out an album eveiy other year or so has been the best possible thing for this band, if not for every decent act. The time on the road and little experiences along the get an apartment of your own at C5 Meadow East BO doesn't cost more than a dorm room just bigger, quieter, cleaner ...and comes with a kitchen and bathroom way have worked Nickelback into a quality product for the masses, one that emanates reliability and longevity. While not so much of an evolution as it is a refinement, these slight changes in songwriting started with 2000 's The State. Their major-label debut featured chunky distortion and rough vocals. But, by the time Silver Side Up came out in 2001, the progression within individual tracks was smoothed out a bit and Chad Kroeger's singing was maturing and gaining range. The next step was 2003's The Long Road, another successful album that had the same style and feel, but showcased a newer version of the band. Their third major album had a groove in the riffing that was the result of nothing but experience. Now, the most recent rendering of the band comes on the success of its first single "Photograph." With two years of new experiences and stories to tell, Nickelback jumped back in the studio after getting off the tour bus in support of The Long Road. Having no pressure and no 9 1 4 5 2 8 9 1 8 3 7 3 8 9 1 3 4 2 Coowiaht ©2005 PuzzleJundion.com ACROSS 1 Abrasion 7 Cook novel 11 That guy 14 Transport by Black Maria 15 Lion's den 16 Pay dirt 17 Western state 18 Gunfight locale 20 Marry 21 Bonkers 23 Entertained 24 Capital on the Mediterranean 26 Lummox 27 Awards honcho 30 Dry 32 Left aboard 35 Harvest machine 36 Neighbor of Tibet 38 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame designer 39 Whiteboard wipers 41 Guard 43 Periphery 44 Cartoon duck 46 Singer Jones 47 Folder flaps 49 Bouncy 50 Wine source 51 Comic strip cry 53 Co-renter 55 Water channel 58 Pants part 59 Afore 62 Indicate 64 Table setter 66 Actress Jillian 67 Otherwise 68 Good to consume 69 Put in the fix 70 Husky pull 71 Optometric concerns DOWN 1 Third place 2 Feel concern Crossword 1 2 3 4 5 7 8 9 6 14 15 17 23 •• » ?4 27 28 29 30 35 44 43 47 •• 48 51 55 I 56 . „ 36 40 39 " 45 34 60 61 ?6 32 •• 3, 38 46 1 50 54 53 •• 33 16 42 • 49 13 19 22 21 12 1 18 20 11 "1 ! - 59 " 62 L 66 64 63 1 r © 2005 Tribune Media Services, Inc. All rights reserved. 9 Flaky mineral 10 Bakery bouquet 11 Grade-B Western 12 "Dies _ " 13 Pinochle display 19 DebraJoof 'That 70s Show" 22 Hand over 24 Nectar collectors 25 Straining upward, informally 27 Critic Roger 28 Soprano Callas 29 Ascending with difficulty 31 es Salaam 33 Story so far 34 Church offering 37 Distance from Greenwich 40 Grammy category 42 Barreled along 45 Iced 48 Actor Connery 3 Felt sorry about 4 Math subj. 5 Led the way 6 Boredom 7 Termination songs would have easily 8 Adult acorn fit onto any of the previous albums. But, it is the melody and sentiment in "If Everyone Cared" and "Far Away" that keeps the progression moving forwards. The best part of the album though is the tribute to the late Dimebag Darrell, "Side of A Bullet". This track was given the stamp of approval by the fallen soldier's brother Vinnie Paul and feature clips of previously unreleased Dimebag solos pieced together. And while it was mentioned that sticking with what works can also be bad, as in the music becoming stale and uninspired, look at Nickelback's success and see how they made it worked in their favor. 6b 68 1h 69 Vour Favorite Number Crunching Logic Puzzle! 11/19/05 Sc)luiti(311sf or 11/07/fOi R 0 o M A B0 P S A R M s uRG E N F L 1 G T O N S N O O U P D 1 s H E R L E W A Y L 1 A T T A B O A A S C O S C O R E A S E 1 1 H T 1 T P S P 1 0 N A V 1 A T E D Y E N S B A G S U E T Y 0 R E T L A E D T s | H F E V E F 1 D T E S •M 52 Wind-blown boxes? 54 Normand of silent comedies 55 Make like a boxer 56 Writer Morrison s A M S B O D E A K E D G R A N D E P O 1 L T 1 M E O E U R F E D C O L E E E R 1 E B L E E S S E D T A R R A T E T u L s U G A L P S c^H K 1 M O N o s I 1 57 Turnpike payment 59 Recedes 60 Play part 61 Hurricanes' centers 63 Function 65 Transgression Sarah Silverman: Jesus Is Magic Chris Hewitt Knight Ridder Newspapers "I'll tell you why we make fun of midgets: We're not afraid of them," says Sarah Silverman in Jesus Is Magic, maybe the smartest and definitely the funniest movie of the year. Do not let the title fool you: Not one second of the profane, provocative Jesus Is Magic is appropriate for Sunday school. In a surreal stand-up routine that ruthlessly makes fun of all the things we are afraid of, Silverman does not just slaughter sacred cows. She sticks dynamite in sacred cows' mouths, blows them up and then fingerpaints with their entrails. Silverman adopts a self-involved point of view that makes fun of complacency. With topics ranging from 9-11 ("It was devastating, especially for me") to her grandmother's death to the titular Jesus ("He turned water into wine and, um, I think he made the Statue of Liberty disappear in the '80s"), Silverman unleashes an inventive assault of cracked insights. All her jokes get at the idea in her comment about midgets: If we stop being afraid of topics, we can begin to discuss and understand them. Silverman begins by making fun of herself ("I don't care if you think I'm racist. I just want you to think I'm thin.") and moves on to a million other topics. "Yeah," she seems to be saying, "the things I'm saying are outrageous but not as outrageous as the stereotypes and stupid behavior I'm talking about." I do not mean to make the movie sound like a lecture. More like a play than a stand-up act, the material is woven together so skillfully, it is not until you get to the end that you realize it all had a progression and a theme. Even the jokes are intricately structured: You experience a moment of discomfort before you laugh, and that moment is crucial, because it is in that moment that Silverman forces you to think. As the discomfort and laughs mount, Jesus Is Magic huilds to a climactic and, typically, offensive joke that implies we all have tiny, built-in pieces of racism, ageism or homophobia, and the only way to recognize them is to bump up against a different point of view. Or, possibly, to bump into a midget. To Solve the Sudoku puzzle, each row, column and box must contain the numbers one to nine. 4 7 move in now/reserve for next semester :n.v2().v2oi8 deadlines to deal with, the three axemen of the band sat down and started penning their next multi-platinum release. If you want to find noticeable differences with this album, there are two of them that stick right out, the first being the drumming. Before recording could really get underway, the band had to audition a new drummer, which they found in Daniel Adair. What really is clear about the skinsman change is the dynamics and style now, not simply the same snare-symbol-bass kick comhination with every song. The other is the use of more acoustic guitars and vocal melody on this album than previous ones, harking back more to Kroeger's contribution to the Spidennan soundtrack with "Hero" than say "How You Remind Me" or "Throw Yourself Away." The song style is ultimately the same though, with Ryan Peake and Chad Kroeger throwing up their walls of pulsing guitar, laden heavily with bass lines supplied by the latter's brother, Mike Kroeger. Listening to "Fight for All the Wrong Reasons" or "Next Contestant," these Sudohu! LIVE LIKE AX ADULT 7A The Clarkson Integrator ENTERTAINMENT Monday, November 14, 2005 6 4 5 (Solutions from 11/7/2005) 4 6 8 9 2 1 3 5 7 2 1 9 7 5 3 8 4 6 5 3 7 4 8 6 9 1 2 9 2 3 6 1 8 4 7 5 8 4 1 5 7 9 6 2 3 6 7 5 2 3 4 1 8 9 1 9 2 8 6 5 7 3 4 3 5 6 1 4 7 2 9 8 7 8 4 3 9 2 5 6 1 Chris Erat says: "Check out my review of Chicken Little on Page 8A."'