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THE GAMECOCK ♦ Wednesday, April 3,2002 ~J Ml TTT71 H /TTT7" they said it CONTACT US ^Si I-1 wA l/l I \ W.H. AUDEN: “Whatthemass media offers I I I ' J I • / I I /* is not popular art, but entertainment which Stotj ideas? Questions? Comments? I I I J j W I I / is intended to be consumed like food, for E-mailusatgamecockmixeditor@hotmail.com —®— —M m M -1- T —I ■_ <1 M gotten, and replaced by a new dish.” ===^ - ■ —- ' ' ' ' ' - ' ' ■- - - ■ --- ■ ' -- - - — The Gamecock reviews two disappointing weekend releases z ‘PANIC ROOM’ Lack of better plot foils success PANIC ROOM Starring Jodie Foster, Jared Leto *★ out of BY BROOK BRISTOW THE GAMECOCK From the outside looking in, “Panic Room” seems to have it together. It has an outstanding cast that includes Academy Award winners Jodie Foster and Forest Whitaker, Kristen Stewart, Jared Leto and Dwight Yoakam. It has a great director in David Fincher, who gave us “Seven,” “The Game” and “Fight Club.” It has writer David Koepp, who penned “Stir of Echoes.” So now, the thriller is set. The lights are dimmed. The screen comes up. And what should you do? Panic! Let’s get one thing straight: Foster saves “Panic Room” trom its utter demise, bne plays Meg Altman, a newly divorced woman who apparently got a big enough settlement to live in a luxurious new house. She and her daughter, Sarah (Stewart), move into the three-story home on a dark and stormy night, of course. The cornerstone of this extravagance is the panic room, a “safe place” with surveillance monitors, a private telephone line and survival supplies. Enter our bad guys. They break in and are looking for a vault. And where is that vault? You got it. It’s in the panic room. The villains’ leader, Junior (Leto), is related to the home’s PHOTO SPECIAL TO THE GAMECOCK Jodie Foster and Kristen Stewart hide In “Panic Room.” former owner and seeks the money his relative failed to give him. Junior’s comrades are Raoul (Yoakam), who loves the destructive nature of dishing out pain, and security guru Burnham (Whitaker), whose conscience often gets the best of him. As there must be in any thriller, there are other little things going on to deter our attention. For instance, Sarah is a diabetic. And guess where her insulin is? Well, it sure isn’t in the panic room. The problem with “Panic Room” isn’t the acting. Far from it Foster and Whitaker both give fine performances, as we have come to expect. They both shine. Leto isn’t convincing, however, and Yoakam might as well not even be there. The direction is all right. Fincher is trying to become the next Alfred Hitchcock. The problem is, he isn’t Hitchcock. Some of the camera shots are interesting and show potential, but they just aren’t enough to make “Panic Room” a good ♦ PANIC ROOM, SEE PAGE 9 ^ PHOTOS SPECIAL TO THE GAMECOCK f ‘DEATH TO SMOOGHY’ Dark comedy lacks comedy DEATH TO SMOOCHY Starring Robin Williams, Edward Norton ★ out of ☆☆☆☆☆ BY TUG BAKER THE GAMECOCK The dark comedy. It’s an oxymoron, right? One expects certain things from this often misunderstood genre. According to its name, it’s supposed to be “dark,” i.e., the characters are murderous caricatures that could exist only in some crazed fantasyland of death and morbidity. Also, according to the word “comedy,” it’s supposed to cast these morose acts in a humorous light. “Death to Smoochy,” while succeeding in the “dark” aspect, completely fails to add any semblance of jocularity, and, therefore, it misses the “comedy” part by 10 feet. There has been a rash of unfunny dark comedies lately, and “Death to Smoochy” had the possibility of reviving the dwindling genre. After all, take a look at the people making it. One would think that, at some point during his illustrious comedic career, Danny DeVito (whose merit as a director could be questioned) would have picked up a trick or two. Then there’s the plot. “Death to Smoochy” portends to unveil Robin Williams, left, stars as Rainbow Rudolph, and Edward Norton portrays Smoochy the Rhino in Danny DeVito’s “Death to Smoochy.” PHOTO COURTESY OF KRT CAMPUS a secret, sinister side of the world of children’s television. Robin Williams plays Rainbow Randolph, a former children’s TV star who has been debunked for taking bribes from parents who want to get their kids on his show. The studio executives are furious and give Nora Wells (Catherine Keener) and Frank Stokes (Jon Stewart) the task of finding a suitable (and squeaky clean) replacement for Randolph. They exceed their duties when they discover Sheldon Mopes (Edward Norton), aka Smoochy the Rhino. Mopes takes Smoochy and his Magic Jungle to the top of the ratings by providing wholesome, uncommercialized “edutainment” for kids. Just to give an idea of how “wholesome” Smoochy is, he encourages kids to eat only natural foods and sings songs such as “My Stepdad’s Not Bad, He’s Just Adjusting.” Enter conflict: Randolph wants his time slot back, and he’s willing to kill the rhino to do it. Throw in Nazis, a charity organization run like a black ops mission and a family of Irish mafia, and you have what seems to be a highly entertaining movie. What the studio doesn’t want you to know, though, is that this film came from the mind of Adam Resnick, the comedic cavity who gave us “Lucky Numbers” and “Cabin ♦ SMOOCHY, SEE PAGE 9 wusc TOP TEN 1. “LOVE APPLE” Love Apple 2. “TELL ALL YOUR Taking FRIENDS" Back Sunday 3. “SKORBOREALIS” Danielle Howie and _ theTantjums 4. “BLADE II” Various SOUNDTRACK Artists 5. “TIME” Richard _ Hell 6. “SELECTIONS Trey FROM HJS ...ALBUM” Anastasio 7. “ABOUT A BOY” Badly Drawn Boy 8. “BYO SPLIT” ” NoFX and _Rancid 9. “IF I WERE Various PRINCE..."_Artists 10. “BAMBOO Sparkle LOUNGE" Jets UK CD REVIEW CD gives mainstream a fight “ARRHYTHMIA" Antipop Consortium ★*★★★ outof*£i!rtV* BY WILLIAM MILLS THE GAMKCCSCK Antipop Consortium’s new album, “Arrhythmia,” gives mainstream hip-hop a run for its money. The album is full of the unique, inspirational sound of New York underground hip-hop, and this group might be the one that brings this sound from small clubs to large venues. Though its unique underground style is different from conventional hip-hop, its sound might be just what the genre needs to capture the interest of a wider range of listeners. This trio of cosmic poets has held the interest of three very different music genres ever since its early days in the underground hip-hop arena. Hip-hop, indie rock and New York jazz scenes have all taken an interest in Antipop Consortium, which sets its rhymes to eclectic techno-style beats and takes samples from a variety of sources. “Arrhythmia” is one of the most creative and intricately produced hip-hop albums I’ve ever heard. High Priest, M. Sayyid and Beans—the rappers that make up Antipop Consortium—are easily distinguishable by their lyrical styles, but it’s hard to pick a favorite. Priest’s voice is deep and aggressive, Sayyid plays with the words and uses them to create intricate rhyming patterns and Beans uses a rapid delivery style that’s impossible to imitate. The poetic rhymes are as rnnny as they are fluent, and the beats are so different from mainstream hip-hop that Antipop Consortium is in a group all by itself. The trio uses a wide variety of sources to create the beats it rhymes to. The song “Ping Pong” uses something as simple as a ping-pong game for the beat. It seems as though these guys realize there’s an entire world of beats, rhythms and sounds that are waiting to be manipulated into songs. It’s about time hip-hop reached outside the monotony of the same 10 beats we’ve all heard on the radio. In “Silver Heart,” Antipop Consortium uses an array of jungle noises to enhance the sound, as well as a break in the song during which a female opera singer sings for half a minute or so. “EKG” uses a skat style that’s common in vocal jazz but unique in hip-hop. Other songs are cosmic and remind listeners of a rave. This album ♦ ANTIPOP, SEE PAGE 9 VH1 ‘Band on the Run’ takes Columbia stage BY CARRIE PHILLIPS THE GAMECOCK Harlowland is a place where angst rules, unbridled guitars roam free and four girls rock out. It’s the title of Harlow’s debut al bum, set to be released in stores this summer. Harlow is the Los Angeles based all-girl rock band that gained national attention after its eight-week stint on VHl’s “Bands on the Run.” The Emmy Award nominated show profiled four bands as they toured the United States and competed against each other for prizes, including a grand prize of $50,000. Harlow came in third at the show’s end. Wednesday night, Harlow will bring its goth-rock sound to New Brookland Tavern. The band comprises Amanda Rootes, Chimene Gonzalez, Rebecca Gibb and Melody Patron. Rootes, a Londoner who began her musical career in the all-fe male punk-rock band Fluffy, re located to Los Angeles after tour ♦ HARLOW, SEE PAGE 9 Harlow, one of the groups featured on VHl’s show “Band on the Run,” will bring Its goth-rock sound to New Brookland Tavern tonight. PHOTO SPECIAL tItHE GAMECOCK