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Wmar w ..M* ' *w<J ?| The Whit* Hous* got* blown to bits by p E wit Atti A stellar ca special Independence C see t? By Tina Morgai rhe television reception has croaked and Fi the sun has disappeared from sight. The news anchor is narrating over clips of worldwide destruction. They claim alien ships have landed. qt Ifs not hard to believe the premise as presented a( y Roland Emmerich in the movie Independence hy. And, judging from the unplanned opening ^c day eariy, people want to believe. an The cast includes the unusual ensemble of c^, Vill Smith as Captain Steven Hiller, the daredevil a(j ying ace who manages to save the day with the telp of Jeff Goldblum's character, David, an fir lectronic wizard who first discovers the alien's Ian to blow up the world's major cities. pr Bill Pullman plays the president, a young ^ nan faced with leading not only the United States ut also the worid into a fight against extinction. ^ lis character is a Gulf War veteran who flew ge ombat missions and personally leads the squadron nto the spectacular fight. His wife Marilyn, "* >layed by Maiy McDonnell, is out of town giving m ^speech when she is unexpectedly evacuated al: "?ng with the rest of the city. Not to give out USCPD offlc COOPER Staff Writer selected." " 7" After 9 University of South Carolina Police was told department's own Melody Wright is Septembei ??ing to the Olympic games. "Septei The desk corporal is not going to assumed I Atlanta to compete in track and field or "I thoughi n gymnastics. She is going to the In Nov Olympics to provide security. white envd Wright, who is one of the thousand her on bei picked from six thousand applications She sa world wide, said she first heard about walking oi the opportunity from a flier on the police Wrigl iepartmenf s wall. Olympics?. Wright said, "I held onto it for a while Jifly 3. before I sent it in because I didn't think She sa it would be possible that I could be security v ' - . cs to Impressive special effects, movie goera 4j* jb A I Sj l| p ^ |y?? LStic Sl^H hit to Chief wmSmlth(,aft)and 1 July 2 to the massive destructi lependence Day moves quickly th to all of the rave reviews and, ie is fast-moving and hard hi s to make you care about the cha een, but the development is wei: Randy Quaid, most notably from The Paper and Harvey Fierstein, the whiny, obsessive compulsive brother from Mrs. Doubtfire lead the way with bit-parts. Quaid is an Vietnam veteran who is now crop dusting fields while taking sips from his flask and who claims to have been abducted by aliens years ago. Fierstein works with Goldblum at a television station. Their demise is found embedded in scene-stealers. Rounding out the cast are Harry Connick Jr., a flying buddy of Smith's, Vivaca Fox, Smith's love interest, and Brent Spiner, best known from his days of playing Data on Star Trek, The Next Generation. Connick's stint in the movie is far too brief, but his performance of a cocky, gungho fighter pilot is one of his best. Fox's character Ide security ly going to come in contact with people trying d things into the venue areas. I'm sure you're [ HfUan onrf noonlfi nettinn ?irlf_ Pennlp are nnir Ul toll mw r"T B? S -?r -? ?? 11, and people are probably going to try to get i tickets." Melody Wright, I providing security i echnology or Moorehouse hand and hand with fe 3 Olympics will pay for law enforcement, and uniforms. She said, "We are jui 3d to do is show up," Wright eyes and ears, just like c "Tin probably going t< not know her job position with people trying to brii said she will be working things into the venue ^ m 9? V m v ^ * "I'm probab ending in her application, she ?nai.*hnrim she would be notified in UnailtnOflie r if she was selected. YOUr lOSt Chi nber came and went, so I just things StOlBI didn't get selected," she said, rmmtprfoH < t, 'Oh well, at least I tried.'" wumenwii rember, she received a large lope with a letter congratulating ng selected. Institute of T lid, "I was so excited. I was College Th< U will be leaving for the ^"8'food fuly 1 and has to be in Atlanta we ne< said. lid she thinks the Olympic She does rill be housed at the Georgia yet, but she lst and reali effects make . +--u^ TTi /V 'a.y uiit; incya.Lis summer, i, Editor in :om the alien's arrival on Low-out fight on Jtily 4, Inc is special effects live up lirky plot twists, the mov :complishirtent of the movie i )r each character on the scz y secrets, but it is the subtle plight of this aracter to return to her husband and child that ds the needed emotional touch to the story. Judd Hirsch plays Goldblum's father and ids himself unexpectedly at the side of the esident while Goldblum and his ex-wife and esidential staff secretary Constance, played Margaret Colin, struggle to get word to the esident of the impending danger. Robert Loggia id James Rebhorn play the army general and scretary of Defense, respectively. Loggia turns a top-notch performance as the tough-as-nails ilitary leader while Rebhorn can make the idience cringe as he gives a realistic impression a nasaly-sounding secretary who knows more an the president does, but shouldn't. pv tn fimm wH&^^ |?ky alius In Independence Day. Thanlj ?T. fa ax i4~n#" . ? "' *% i < %r %& SPECIAL TO THE GAMECOCK ng pilots In tho blockbuster Independence Day. ae a countdown. He takes it to the president via his 3. ex-wife, the president's press secretary. Intertwined gw in all this, is an old battle ranging between 31 Goldblum and the president, as well as Goldblum and his ex-wife. From the alien's arrival on July 2 to the massive destruction of earth on July 3 to the >tic _ . auuictimes nau tu aaiv tuc ontract security, what they have said and s ) come in contact slower, but we eventually lg unauthorized they are saying and get th areas. I'm sure they need." Goldblum locks onto the alien's signal and disooi at centenn, to bring you're going to have your 1 ininn tn have and 2ettin2slck- Peo: loing 10 nave to have thingg stolen> anc ig tO have probably going to try to n with counterfeit tickets." Wright said she does nc USCPD, will be ProW* .'in dealing with , Dignitaries and visitors Olympics countries. She said the lang deral and state no* ^eeP ^er from do "I have already dealt ^ w wl students on campus," she i 3t there as extra ^ u fairy Connlck, Jr. (right) play alien flghtli .on of earth on July 3 to t] rough its 2-and-a-half houri with the exception of a f< tting. Perhaps the greatei tracters. There is little tii L-rounded. set-up is a little far-fetched (she plays an exc dancer who also happens to have Rambo-1: qualities to make it out of a destroyed city) 1 the chemistry between her and Smith is exciti It's as if your rooting for them to get together ? stay together. Spiner also has a brief part as1 scientific leader of the military's secret "Area project. He, too, dies early on, but if anyom going to make you laugh, he will. In case you've missed the previews, the pren of the story is the arrival of alien beings who here to harvest whatever resources they can f useful on earth. To do this, they use our o satellites against us to coordinate a mass destruction of all of the world's major citi * fV ,'4 i"-X ^ ',yj ^BBajj^Baj : .' * - -j " '., : ^7 I can witness the destruction of several i ' \jt*' M wB> &&& tt-? 5as^BWMa?H8BLsMiSf j, w I i WikSm* - v * ^tiD&l*:m SPECIAL TO THE OAMECOCK I Important American landmarks. jjk 9 j^B < ?'* ^jHP*Jj| - ^;^aLnt?*nMjB hOI^ *!! M HTr HaM ?, IS: iWWm^^KF'^^ ike blow-out fight on July 4, Independence Day moves lut quickly through its 2-and-a-half hours Hie special ^ effects live up to ah of the rave reviews and, with t^e the exception of a few quirky plot twists, the 51" movie is fast-moving and hard hitting. Perhaps 81S the greatest accomplishment of the movie is to ^ make you care about the characters. There is are little time for each character on the screen but ind the development is well-rounded. There is no question the movie will make lve ri_ ies money. But, it does accomplish its goal of being rers a feel-good, all-American movie. ial Olympics ost children Wright said she will have to be carefu pie are going about what she says and the gesture 1 people are shemake8. | "They told us to be careful becauS' ?t expect any w^at we sa^ or ma^ ?^ensive * Olympians, other countries." from other During her time volunteering for th page barrier Olympics, Wright said she hopes to gai] ing her j ob. experience that will help her oommunicat V^d ^ better. She said would also like to mak ? some new friends and make som nn to repeat -ay it a little memonesget to what "I'm a bit nervous, and it's a bi iem the help expected," she said. "I would be foolis to say that I weren't."