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Tie Gamec Page 4 Humor, sadi "Life is Beautiful" UU combines satire, physi cai comedy, social com; iSfiiitQ mentaiy and surrealism : ?; UHlllo, into a moving story of : Camera, love set against the ? Reaction backdrop of wwnitaly. Starring Roberto BeI I | j I" nigni, Nicoletta Braschi I B 1 1,11 rrrrTTi and Giorgio Cantarini Out Of four stars Written and directed by Roberto Benigni. by Sara Ladenheim Gamecock Critic I had never imagined something as dark as the Holocaust being expressed through comedy. In the 10 years that I've studied the Holocaust, every movie I've ever seen related to it has been filled with death, skeletal figures and brutality of the highest level. "Night and Fog" was the most haunting of these films and scares me to death to this day. "Life is Beautiful" changed all that, however, and made me see that horror wasn't the only way to cinematically express the Holocaust. Roberto Benigni is brilliant, not only as the movie's director but also as lead character Guido. The central theme of the film isn't the Holocaust, or even being Jewish. The first time you know Guido is Jewish, the first instance of him expressing his religion at all, comes when his uncle's prized horse is painted green and scrawled with the words "I am a u?? ? ? ticwidii iiui&c;. VJUIUU eventually maiiico uic wuiiiaii of his dreams, Dora, whom he calls "Princess," and they have a son, Giosue. The movie is more about love and how far a father will go to protect his child than prancing Germans and barbed-wire enclosures. Giosue, Guido and Dora are taken to an Auschwitz-type camp. One of the most heart-wrenching scenes here is when Dora learns from a fellow inmate that all the children are taken immediately to the ovens. What she doesn't know is that Giosue, upon being told he had to take a bath, avoided the gas chamber because he didn't like to take baths. Guido and Giosue manage E-candy j. sites on VP the WWW ? by Valerie Byrd //*! Web gURI My favorite game as a kid was The Candy Land. I had visions of sugarplums dancing in my head every These yoi night, not just Christmas Eve. I get ^ave decided upset if I forget to bring a candy stash stay awa>' & to class. I apparently have a problem, taste-tested Luckily, there are web sites to help ^dy not jag jetas, Tamari er foreign-soi kttp:imn.m.202.83l Jy is te<) * indexcur.htmlfrom the loo Candy USA (pictures are these kids ar Candy USA helps me learn more .. about candy. Here, I can learn candy http:Hwm trivia, candy statistics (candy consumption per capita in 1997 was 27.3 . p , pounds!), as well as nutrition and y" Lanay health information. I've been telling ^dy while s people all along that candy is nutri- Patertious, and this Web site proves it Al- Choo^from so available here is candy wallpaper . um> for your computer. J http:ffwww.geocitie8.comi NapaValley/2066/ W yourself, t en eek We eke less make L Guido Orefice (Benigni, left) protects his son Giosui in Miramax's "Life is Beautiful." to take over the camp intercom system, and Dora finally finds out they're safe. "Life is Beautiful" will take your breath away with its reality, but also manages to convey what the actor/director wanted so badly to get across to the audience: Smile. In the face of something more horrific than anvthiner imaginable, the father's most important message to his son is more powerful than anything that could be written. by Rob Fleming Gamecock Critic The essence of a great film is the ability to suspend all disbelief while the viewer is watching. With "Life is Beautiful," all signs of reality are wiped away as you become lost in this wondrous world placed before you. Director Roberto Benigni, who also wrote and stars in "Life," manipulates his camera as if it [Soderbu v5\| Droves f ,U7?L) I % of versa -??* V-J by Chris Richter Hie Richter Scale ige of Bad Candy Typically, the work ... directors can be identi ^men.MaAandBen, eristics present in all I m help addicts kke me This idea, known as tt om bad candy. They've , , what loot* litre , h.,?eh ioeSn t h< from tom^'-Ca- 'de"^' th!]work of ind,IndyDedosandoth- bui^i, whose fflm^rap aiding treats. Each can- ^e)!pressjfflnstic"Ka? >r its texture and taste. ^ut of Sight k of some of this candy Soderburgh's 1993 included!), I'm surprised the Hill," is based on e still alive. er's memoir, "Looking Jesse Bradford stars c v.candycenter.com/ lander, a bright eighth indyCenter ing up in St. Louis in 1 He lives in a hotel wf Center, I can buy all my salesman father (Jer itting naked at my com- mother (Lisa Eichhom by the case, my friends! Sullivan (Cameron Boy Bag Candy, Chocolate, memorable chare d^yandtnote-Ttas fend by the Depression it Web site if you want hruauL favorite candy is still ,^^"^ ,-,7 d candy to your friends, o everyone you know. urghs recreation of D few JLOtllS. New dono srsl can earn uf -SSN $215 pei i, maybe he 1 i. * X I I - month! Just a few hours out of 3 week could earn you $1 Help children, hemophilia and heart patients who receive products made fro the plasma of our donor: nIII. The Quality Source NABI BloMedlcal Center Assem^'y Columbia SC 2S CON nl & E I i All Aboard For Fun Time ife' beautifu IBr -'ii.' j^r f Jmm Special to The Gameo 5 (Cantarini, right) from the horrors of the Holocau were a magic wand, creating a story that shows tt love can conquer the most formidable of obstacl The film is propelled by Benigni as Guido, a m with incredible imagination, wit and heart. Gui is a true family man and does anything within 1 power and imagination to keep his family safe fft the horrors of the Holocaust. Benign i's acting is pi nnmona 1 urilVi q t-*Vi\7Cipq1 c+t/lo nf nnmar\\r romin AXVUXV/11U1 TV1U1 U pilj U1VU1 Ul/J IV l/i VWlllUVlJ' 1 ViUXli cent of Charlie Chaplin. Exceptional roles are a played by Nicoletta Braschi and Giorgio Canta ni, as Guido's wife, Dora, and son, Giosue. The script beautifully mixes the triumph of 1 against the tragedy of the Holocaust. It's filled w many magical moments of comedy and drama tl sometimes seem too tragic to be funny. "Life is Be* tiful" delivers an outstanding message of hope, the understanding that the one gift that mak life beautiful is the gift of love. A film truly wort of "Two thumbs up!" (Have a good journey, Gen rgh King' fPFTI ..... \ -ffcfc- I tikty gSlPj ' ' ' ' ' - of established To save money, Aaron's fai Bed by charac- wde to a sanitarium and of their films bvan ^ bis brother. Soon afterw le "auteur the- ^ gets ajob as a traveling sales] .Id true as ev m Nebraska and Kansas. Aaron is .Id true, as ev- fend for himseIf , ven J01"" Aaron's penchant for telling by ranges torn tales finally catches up to him, f Ka to the hip ing him to escape from his weal classmates with little more thr film, "King of shred of dignity. He spends the ret A. E. Hotchn- the film trying to maintain his sa for Miracles." as he attempts to find food, avoid is Aaron Kur- tion and bring his family back toget -grader grow- Aaron is the kid everybody wi he early '30s. to be. He's bright, creative, sensi th his candle- and confident, but awkward; his oen Krabbe), m a continuous adventure. In a toi ) and brother! ^8 scene, his sense of humor shi d), along with as ^Torms" a conversation cters each af- tween Ws shoes, re in soiiie heart- 311866111 of Chaplin's dancing roll rttararive "Th6 Cold Rush." All of these asp, ol ullUICboiVv i * >!*/* 1 i v ? . make Aaron s life an amalgamat HfllisSoder- , .? * ., . , ,5 of everythmg that makes being a epression-era r i four S5! 1i(zath(zr Natalia G " ; Km f 1<&~~ ?! ' t a I a m a t I Band take. i _ ' i _ Ti 1 W IIS KOOIS i q Sound j /"> ^ ^ Advice Out of four stars by Marcus Amaker Gamecock Critic The fans have come to expect greatness every time The Roots release a new album. Their first three CDs, Organix, Do You Want More1? and Illadelph Halfiife, are arguably the best three hip-hop albums of the decade because of The Roots'abil- S8SBjjjHj ity to push themselves I and their music to un- I ock limited possibilities. I ist For those who don't I know, The Roots are . more than the average eg hip-hop group. They're a band. Their first two fl albums might be the on :?i x '1 J )m wiuiuul samples anu ie recorded absolutely live. Do You Want More ? was the record that gave them j a buzz around the industry, as critics r immediately compared The Roots with groups like De La Soul, A Tribe Called Quest and Pharcyde because of their ith off-beat, anti-mainstream rhythms. iaj. The anticipation for Things Fall Apart, their excellent new CD, marks a new era for the band. They will uneg doubtedly rise from the underground i scene to become one of the most rec^ ognizable names in hip-hop. The first single, "You Got Me," is beginning to get more spins on big ra dio stations and MTV, and a lot of music magazines around the country are hailing Things Fall Apart as one of the best albums of 1999. That doesn't mean The Roots will compromise their talent for a chance at Man or Astrothe New Broo] Std- by Erin Reed ard, Features Editor nan i left They won't admit to being human. They claim to be alien life forms whose tall spacecraft malfunctioned and Dlum "ore- meted to Earth right outside Auburn, [thy Ala., in 1992 on the "current Earthm a based calendar." 3t of Man or Astro-man? has played Cooity lumbia shows for several years now, *vie~ each one being original and severely her. entertaining. Their music is most aptly described as very tight '50s and tive '60s "surf rock," with Dick Dale-ish guitar lines and fast melodies. They cite ich" influences such as The Ventures and nes LinkWray. But fans don't go to the shows just mi" . for the music. Man or Astro-man? puts 3111 on a very visually stimulating performance, always dressing up in outlandish ^ costumes and using unique props on . stage, such as little televisions and tricky lights. Who knows what they've >ngratulati< K aooa K aooa Ciami - ^ I I ~ ? > >ring 1999 Mprr - Carroll ?ran< ~hambors K.at<z )ruck(zr Mand 01ain? Mann Sectlu Friday, February 26,1999 s hip-hop : with CD success. In tact, Ihings fall Apart is close to being their best ever. It combines the live, jazzy feel of Do You Want More? with the gritty, darker moods of Illadelph Halflife. Black Thought is one of the most fluent start-and-stop-on-a-dime rappers in the business. Drummer ?uestlove is the perfect behind-the-scenes bandleader, keeping the beat better than any drum machine ever could. The other band members have matured and hold nothing back on any of the CD's 18 tracks. Things Fall Apart is a massive album with elements of old-school hip-hop, live instrumentation, poetry and hard-core realism. A lot of its songs, fcjj like "The Next Movement," "Dynamite," I New" display The Roots I at their best? live,energetic and raw, with subtle keyboard and guitar in the background. Then there are tracks like "The Soark" and "Sten Into the Relm" that capture the mood of the streets better than all of Master Fs songs put together. It's this wide array of styles that make Things Fall Apart different from many CDs out this year. It won't take long for the world to catch on to The Roots. Things Fall Apart is an important CD for hip-hop because it's not just a collection of singles meant to sell millions of copies. It is a full body of work, with each song as important as the others. For example, take the penultimate song, "The Return to Innocence Lost," a five-minute spokenword poetry track featuring Ursula Rucker. This song caps off the album perfectly and proves The Roots are still pushing the envelope musically. man? to play kland Tavern got planned for their show this Saturday at the New Brookland Tavern? Man or Astro-man? will be playing with two new members: Trace Reading, who has replaced Starcrunch, and Blazar (sometimes called Blazar the Probe Handler), who is taking over for Dexter X. According to the band, the show will include an "over-the-top sensory overload, complete with sunspots, fire and an unmistakable itchy sensation." They are working on a new album, due out in April, called EEVIAC. But for now, you can pick up Man or Astroman?^ latest seven-inch (from summer '98), and their last full-length album, Made from Technetium. * They will play Saturday at the New Brookland Tavern on State Street. Purchase tickets at the door. And by the way, their ultimate plan here on Earth io 4-* 1 ' * io w tunquur me pxanei, so Deware. onsl ma ibgrs iy !>ehultz (bamm^r iy Stamps <& ? -L