The gamecock. (Columbia, S.C.) 1908-2006, January 25, 1996, Page 4, Image 4
4
"Four R
lights! camera! reaction
STEPHANE SONNENFELD Features Edito
FOUR ROOMS
(out of four stars)
The only word to the wise upor
viewing "Four Rooms" is to definitely
take the old credo "never judge a boo!
by its cover" to heart.
Just because this movie boasts ai
all-star cast and a heralded array o
directors does not necessarily mean i
is good or well-made.
In feet, in the case of "Four Rooms,'
the exact opposite is true. This movi<
is fer from good and most definitely noi
worth recommending.
With a slam like this, it should b<
known just what makes "Four Rooms'
so foul. There is an easy answer: ploi
and acting are the culprits in this movie
The movie takes place on New Year's
Eve in Los Angeles in a the once-grand
now almost dilapidated Mon Signoi
Hotel. For that particular evening, th<
hotel draws quite an array of unusua
guests and a lone bellhop named lec
(Tim Roth) is left to fend for the guests
on his first night on the job. Sounds like
fun?
Actually, it sounds like a creative
idea for a movie. Ted visits four room*
throughout the hotel that evening, along
the way encountering anything but the
ordinary.
It is not in the main plot, but in the
subplots of "Four Rooms" that weakness
lack of originality and explanation appear
In the first room, Ted is called upor
to deliver a bucket of ice. Simple task
except Ted enters the wrong roon
interrupting a coven of witches trying
to resurrect their goddess, a 1950s
Ton Amc
sound
TERESA SAVIN Staff Writer
"BOYS FOR PELE" Tori Amos
jfkjrv2 (out of four stars)
Tori Amos returns after two years
with "Boys for Pele," and this CD is fiill
of surprises.
In the CD booklet, Amos is pictured
\ , V m
? II
s
o
0)
(R ^
looms" j
I stripper named
- Diana. Luckily, Ted H
arrives just as one |
goddess needs to I
fulfill a requirement H
i for the annual ritual 1
j The plot is fine in I
: this room, only the |
acting is poor. , j*?*
i In this episode, I
entitled "The
t Missing Ingredient," I
Valeria Golino, I
* Sammi Davis, Lili I
; Taylor, Alicia Witt I
t and lone Skye seem I
to be acting as if I
? they are reading off 1
" cue cards,
b The lines are I
delivered painfully I
5 and over-acting is I
much too prevalent I
r in this scene directed I
; by Allison Anders, I
1 known for "Gas Food H
1 Lodging" and "Mi I
3 Vida Loca." I
3 Madonna also had I
a small role in the I
? episode, but there |
3 realty wasn't enough
r to comment on, except Antonio Ban
? maybe she's saving up and created
her acting prowess for
? her role in "Evita."
In the next room, 404, Ted visi
Angela and Sigfried accidentty and ge
i a little more than he bargained fo
Sigfried (David Proval) gfeets Ted wii
i a .357 magnum and Angela (Jennif
r Beals), Sigfried's wife, is strapped to
3 chair. Sigfried accuses Ted of having i
>s tries to
breast-feeding a piglet. Believe it or no
the picture is serenely beautiful; Amo
appears content, bright and mature
The content of the album only reinforce
this.
Amos remains faithful to he
Bosendorfer piano, but experiment
with many other instruments to brin
a lot of life to "Boys for Pele." Preser
k So what.
\ passed e;
I The Adve
resume tl
l t i
W VVMIItJyUl
P more sub
? "5-minuti
I
I
/y^n0 Xa<N
I
:
>
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o
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co y
just may I
i li
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(p
dera and Tamlyn Tomita are just two of
by Allison Anders, Alexandre Rockwell,
affair with his wife. Ted knows nothing
ts of this and argues with Sigfried
throughout the entire episode while
r- trying to plot Angela's escape.
& "The Wrong Men," written by
er Alexandre Rockwell, was awful in both
a the acting and plot. Jennifer Beals
m should take a hint and realize her glory
score big1
t, on her fourth full-length album are
s strings, horns, bagpipes, additional
percussion instruments and even a
ss Gospel Choir, all fitting beautifully into
their repeatable songs. r
The raunchy harpsichord in
;s "Professional Widow," along with Amos'
g raw lyrics and breathtaking, roller
it coaster voice, make for a staggering
wrm'wn cnont ohm it 11
..yuu vg opuiiL uuuui i
<ams? What else will y
rtising Department @"
lat has more than just
jr competition is busy
istantial, you will have
3" interview.
Student Mi
Applications \
4th Floor, Rus:
For more infoi
777.1184
be Tarai
jjjl
* \ ^
^ < IgMi
i ^ ** m?
the many actors in "Four Rooms/
Robert Rodriguez and Quentin Tara
days of "Flashdance" fame are over and
take her royalties from the '80s glam
movie and enroll in some acting classes.
Like many of the women in the room
before her, Beals delivers her lines with
much too much effort and little emotion.
David Proval plays his part of a
psychopath well, but his talent barely
with new
piece reminiscent of "Space Dog" from
"Under the Pink." This song comes to
a near climax and settles down a few
times before reaching its unbridled
conclusion.
The lyrics of "Boys for Pele" are, for
the most part, thematically consistent
with Amos' earlier lyrics.
She writes of childhood experiences,
20 hours sitting in (
ou have to show to
rhe Gamecock offei
fluff.
using the thesaurus
a solid trek record ;
idia Adver
available:
sell House
rmation,
ntino's \
overshadows th(
lack of continuity
in the loose ploi
lines.
Finally
just when yoi
think you've
entered movit
hell, a bit o
humor makes ifc
way into this
I movie, with"The
I Misbehavers."
I Directed bj
I Robert Rodriguez
I director of the
I acclaimed "E
I Mariachi," this
episode proves he
I is able to make
the transitior
H from action te
comedy with ease
I and success.
Misbehavers'
stars
Banderas as ?
H handsome
gangster fathei
M\ who decides to g(
Special to The Gamecock out for a night or
' a new film directed the town with his
intino. wife (Tamlyr
Tomita). Thej
decide to leave
their two young children in the care o:
Ted, who accepts the job under duress.
As one might expect, Ted has to deal
with the antics of two young children,
as well as cater to other guests. The plot
is well-developed in this room and the
acting is extraordinary by Banderas and
rn
\JJL/ JLFV/J U
religious ambiguities and women's issues.
In these songs, Amos uses, to be tactful,
"female imagery." "In the Springtime
of his Voodoo" and "Mr. Zebra" include
some lines many women may easily
understand. For example, "furry mussels
marching on/she thinks she's Kaiser
Wilhem."
But, Amos is not just for women.
classes, done severa
r these four (or so) j
-s you the opportuni
; to make their part-1
ind something to sa;
i
tising Deps
'
Thursday, January 25, 1996
Waterloo
i fV>o turn pfiilrl nrtnrc T.nnn Mr>TCiceirk
/ and Danny Verduzco. By far and without
t any question, "The Misbehavers" is the
most entertaining and humorous room
, in the entire Mon Signor Hotel.
1 Just when you want the movie to
; be over comes the last and most
3 unsatisfactory room, the Mon Signor's
f penthouse.
3 There, Hollywood superstar Chester
3 Rush (Quentin Tarantino) and friends
j check into the suite, and Ted was
instructed to give the best of care to
r these guests. Ted walks in on the group
, (including Bruce Willis and Jennifer
j Beals again) and interrupts an interesting
I scenario.
3 In the penthouse, Tarantino and his
; friend, Norman (Paul Calderon) try to
; recreate an episode of the old "Alfred
1 Hithcock Show."
) In this episode, "The Man from Rio,"
; Peter Lorre makes a bet Steve McQueen
can't light his cigarette lighter ten times
; in a row. If McQueen can, he wins Lorre's
' new car, if he can't, he loses his little
) finger. Chester makes this bet with
i Norman and the two pressure Ted to
iu i r
piety Lite i uic ui txic IICLLLUCL man iui
$1,000.
The main problem with this room is
Tarantino. Why can't somebody in the
movie industry tell Tarantino to stop
acting. He's horrible, horrible, horrible.
It churns your stomach, literally. He
speaks so fast and is obviously using
f his fame to cash in his burning desire
to act. If Tarantino wasn't in the last
episode, it would have been well-executed.
Bad plots and poor acting are too
much to blame on Tarantino. Four
Rooms" was a good effort, but an effort
was all it was.
i for Pele"
True, she does speak often for women
and to women, yet she addresses genderblind
issues as well on "Boys for Pele,"
such as life in the South and failure.
As a Tori virgin or as a devoted fan,
one can't be anything but pleased with
"Boys for Pele." Amos is in fjne form,
as always. This album is beautiful,
feminine and powerfully eloquent.
I
I projects and
/ears or your life?
ty to build a
time jobs sound
\i in that
J ?
irtment
We're looking
forward to
hearing
from
YOU