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Open your eyes
Crowe tackles
pop culture once
more in remake
of Spanish film
BY TUG BAKER
THE OAMECOCK
When thinking of Cameron
Crowe’s work, one can’t help
but think of pop culture. Just
look at his last two films,
“Almost Famous” and “Jerry
Maguire.” One is about a young
music journalist, one is about a
sports agent, and it’s easy to see
that both films are bursting
with pop iconography. His new
film, “Vanilla Sky,” which
reunites him with Tom Cruise,
is no different.
While his previous films
have indirectly dealt with pop
culture, “Vanilla Sky,” a
remake of the 1997 Spanish film
“Abre los Ojos,” instead takes
the subject head-on and tries to
find its effects on modem
society. The journey to this
discovery is a long and strange
one, though, and many will find
it much different from what
they probably expect from
Crowe and star actor Tom
Cruise.
At a press conference
attended by The Gamecock,
Cruise was asked why he chose
such an offbeat film. He replied:
“I’ve always wanted to make
different kinds of films. It’s
definitely a departure. It is out
of bounds. It is a subject matter
that I’m interested in that I love
talking about... and that is pop
culture’s effect on society. What
is casual sex? What is love?”
“Vanilla Sky” tells the story
of David Aames (Cruise), the
wealthy owner of a publishing
house. He is the stereotypical
young millionaire, keeping
strings of women around and
trying to shun as much
responsibility as he can. When
he finally meets Sophia
(Penelope Cruz, who is
resuming her same role from
“ Abre los Ojos”), he can see his
irresponsible days coming to an
end. But Julie (Cameron Diaz),
one of his “casual” lovers,
doesn’t take too well to David’s
settling down. If any more were
revealed, it would ruin the film,
but be assured that by the end
of the film, it has taken as many
twists and turns as a
psychological thriller possibly
can.
Cruise called the film “a pop
culture ride,” and Crowe
echoed these sentiments,
saying, “I wanted to get into the
idea of pop culture and its
hideous wonderfulness.”
Of course, examining pop
culture can’t be done without
close attention to one of its
biggest aspects, music. Crowe
has always been known for
paying dauntingly close
attention to the music used in
his films, and “Vanilla Sky” is‘
no exception. The soundtrack
includes a number of musical
gods, such as Radiohead,
R.E.M., Paul McCartney and
Bob Dylan, but it also gives
voice to some relatively
unknown artists like Jeff
Buckley, Red House Painters
and Icelandic rock group Sigur
Ros.
Crowe said the music used in
the film actually had a hand in
shaping the mood and feel during
shooting. “We played a lot of that
music while we were making it -
those bands, particularly
Radiohead. We listened to
[Radiohead’s 1999 album] “Kid A”
constantly.” Crowe later gave the
reason for his close involvement
♦ SKY, SEE PAGE 8
MOVIE REVIEW
Narration, cast make Tenenbaums a standout
THE ROYAL TENENBAUMS
Bill Murray, Ben Stiller,
Gwyneth Paltrow
BY BROOK BRISTOW
THE (.'AMKCOCK
There is no such thing as a
normal family. No family is the
same as any other, and no family
can emulate anyone from “Leave
it to Beaver.” Instead, families
are much like the Tenenbaums:
where dysfunction is fun.
The Tenenbaum children
were all prodigies in their youth,
but adulthood brought
hardships upon them they are
not equipped to cope with. The
oldest son, Chaz (Ben Stiller),
was a financial whiz kid but is
now a sorrowful widower and an
overprotective father of his two
sons. The youngest Tenenbaum,
Richie (Luke Wilson), was a star
tennis player until he had a
mental breakdown in a
championship match. He now
sails the seas, lusting after his
adopted sister, Margot (Gwyneth
Paltrow), who used to write
award-winning plays. Now she
is a depressed woman unhappily
married to a neurologist (Bill
Murray). She spends her days
sitting in a bathtub smoking
cigarettes and feeling sorry for
herself while having an affair
with Richie’s best friend, Eli
Cash (Owen Wilson).
The downfall of the
Tenenbaum children can be
The star cast
of Wes
Anderson’s
film make
dysfunction
fun to watch.
Bill Murray
(third from
left) gives a
performance
that could
help restart
his flagging
acting
career.
PHOTO SPECIAL TO
' THE GAMECOCK
u
contributed to one man -- their
father, Royal (Gene Hackman).
As his children’s adult lives are
anything but stable, Royal has
decided he wants to make
amends with his wife, Etheline
(Anjelica Huston), and the
children. He has been kicked out
of the hotel where he lived for
more than 20 years; so he makes
up a story to convince Etheline
to allow him to stay in the house
and reunite him with his
children. But he doesn’t know
Etheline has been seeing a
devoted colleague named Henry
(Danny Glover).
In a word, “The Royal
Tenenbaums” is brilliant. It is a
stellar, utterly refreshing film in
the recent world of movie trash.
Writer/ director Wes Anderson
(“Rushmore”) does a phenomenal
♦ TENENBAUMS, SEE PAGE 8
Modern
covers,
classic
material
“I AM SAM”
Soundtrack
*★★★ out of iririrtrit
BY JUSTIN BAJAN
THE GAMECOCK
The Beatles left the pop
world 32 years ago having
established themselves as
giants of a growing genre.
Their indelible impression
survives through an
anthology of songs with a life
expectancy reaching to a
cultural infinity. The
soundtrack for “I Am Sam,”
which opened Friday and
stars Sean Penn and Michelle
Pfeiffer, serves as a gentle
reminder that the Fab Four
made irreplaceable classics
worthy of such musical
praise.
Covering the music of the
Beatles is a demanding task;
greatness is hard to mimic,
and deviating from the
original can be disastrous. On
“Blackbird,” Sarah
McLachlan finds a way to
excel under such strict
conditions. Her tender voice
is as calming as Paul
McCartney’s, as the cover
carefully follows the original,
adding some minor vocal
layering to supplement the
basic acoustic arrangement.
Ben Harper covers
“Strawberry Fields Forever”
with the exact subtlety of
John Lennon’s voice, further
validating his underrated but
undeniable skill. Harper’s
band is joined by a powerful
string arrangement and a
pulsing horn line to match the
original’s dynamic quality.
Out of the spotlight for a
while, Sheryl Crow shows up
to cover “Mother Nature’s
Son.” Her interpretation
remains faithful to
McCartney’s creation,
bringing in a well-placed
banjo to add to the song’s
organic styling. Crow’s airy
voice lacks the conviction of
McCartney’s, but the musical
arrangement makes up for
her weakness.
Modem rock greats the
Black Crowes, deserving of
their own cover album,
appear to redo the classic
“Lucy in the Sky with
Diamonds.” Chris Robinson’s
powerful vocals outmuscle
♦ SOUNDTRACK, SEE PAGE 8
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