The gamecock. (Columbia, S.C.) 1908-2006, October 04, 2002, Page 6, Image 6
Dawes
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 5
“American Vision: Writing on
Art” began from the ambition to
bring patrons into the museum
by offering a program that com
bines the written word with the
visual arts.
“The truth is that art feeds on
itself and artists are inspired by
other artists regardless of
genre/ Dawes stated.
Although Dawes is Friday
night’s only speaker, the events
will typically feature two au
thors. Masters of Fine Arts grad
uate student Ed Madden and
Masters of Library and
Information Science student
Jean-Marc Sens will speak at
the next “American Vision:
Writing on Art,” which will be
on Nov. 1.
Comments on this story?E-mail
gamecockm ixeditor@hotma il. com
First-year _
business t
students |
Patrick Knie
and Andrew
Drozdak play ■
Madden 2003, I
one of the I
many games |
coming to the 0
online gaming I
community. I
PHOTO BY ANDY I
EVANS/THE ■
GAMECOCK ■
ONLINE GAMING
Online video games
becoming new craze
Xbox, PlayStation2 and GameCube
capitalize on the Internet’s potential
BY ANDY EVANS
THE GAMECOCK
Video games have come a long
way and are still proceeding into
an endless frontier of possibilities.
Back in the day of such systems as
the original Nintendo, friends
would get together and play for the
thrill of the challenge.
Most games had a two-player
option that enhanced the video
gaming experience. Soon, game
developers were coming out with
ways to connect more players to
the same game at the same time.
Video-game companies introduced
multiple controller ports, which
led to the release of link cables for
the PlayStation and Nintendo 64.
The N64 was the first system to
have four controller ports built in,
rather than the standard two.
Then the magical word “on
line” came along. With game com
panies always trying to expand
their possibilities, they introduced
online gaming, which has its hum
ble origins in “Doom” death
matches that required players to
dial over a phone modem on their
PCs to participate.
“Subspace,” which is still wide
ly played today, was the first mas
sive multiplayer online game, and
it linked thousands of players
across the nation and world.
The last thing a company wants
to do is get left behind by the rest
of the competition or lack the tech
nology to keep up. Computers
have been dominating and, for the
most part, still dominate the on
line gaming world. There is some
thing about playing a game online
against friends or people from
around the world that sparks a
drive for competition. And oppo
nents are actual human beings,
not artificial intelligence.
The big names in console gam
ing — Xbox, PlayStation2 and
GameCube — are now getting
their feet wet in the online gam
ing market. Sony and Xbox are in I
traducing their component online
hardware and compatible games
and hope to see an increase in on
line gaming by the holiday season.
Gamers can expect games such as
“Madden 2003” and “NCAA 2003”
to be played by thousands of col
lege students around the nation.
Nintendo will follow suit by
putting its games online, as well.
Game boxes will include labels
saying whether they are compati
ble with online play. With the
“Xbox Live” online program,
gamers receive microphones to
chat with other gamers online;
players also get a year’s worth of
service and an online game bun
dled in the package. For roughly
the same price, gamers can get the-1,
hard drive and broadband con
nector for the PlayStation 2.
Expect online gaming to be the
next major breakthrough in video
gaming. “Return to Castle
Wolfenstein” for the PC is holding
an online tournament soon, and
Tom Hanks is one of the players
entering it. In big tournaments
such as these, winners receive
cash awards and prizes, such as va
cations, gift certificates and cars.
Comments on this story?E-mail
gamecockm ixeditor@hotma il. com
DVD REVIEW
‘Smoochy ’ exposes a *
corrupt world of TV
“DEATH TO SMOOCHY"
Starring Robin Williams
★★ out of
BY WILLMISCHNER
THE GAMECOCK
As proud members of the
“Sesame Street” generation, we
are all too familiar with the typi
cal sing-along children’s pro
gramming that captured our
imaginations in our formative
years. They were entertaining,
fun and even educational. But
what was going on behind the
scenes?
This topic is thoroughly ex
plored in “Death to Smoochy,”
which is now available on DVD.
If you ever felt a twinge of nostal
gia for your favorite childhood on
screen heroes, be prepared for it
tn ho rinrtoH anort
Robin Williams loses control
as Rainbow Rudolph, children’s
television show host extraordi
naire, in director Danny DeVito’s
fast-paced satire. After getting
busted by the feds for accepting
bribes to get a kid on his show,
Rudolph is fired and shunned by
his network, Kid Net.
The livid, disillusioned
Randolph is quickly replaced by
the squeaky clean Sheldon Mopes,
a.k.a. Smoochy the rhino, played
by Edward Norton. (Smoochy’s
striking resemblance to chil
dren’s star Barney is immediately
apparent.)
While Smoochy is busy be
coming a superstar, the old host
plots revenge. Smoochy insists on
having clean programming and
angers network executives, par
ticularly producer Nora, played
by Catherine Keener, by refusing
to endorse junk food.
Smoochy quickly finds himself
in over his pink rhino head. His
run-ins with the Irish mob, his
misguided agent (DeVito) and a
corrupt charity put Smoochy’s in
tegrity to the test as he endures
the imminent threat of selling out.
In the meantime, Nora, a closet
children’s-show-host groupie,
finds herself growing an unyield
ing attraction to the man inside
the costume.
A Hansel-Derek “Zoolander”
esque rivalry remains between
the two smitten hosts, and this ri
valry controls the plot for the rest
of the flick. Cameo appearances
by Jon Stewart and Harvey
Fierstein keep things interesting,
however.
While a parody of children’s10^
show hosts doesn’t exactly change
the world, it is an interesting and
unique concept. At the same time,
it is disenchanting to shed light
on possible corruption in the in
dustry.
This film borders on black hu
mor, poking fun at those who
watch children’s programming.
But is this a low blow? One has to
wonder whether children’s shows
are really that foul. But this jab
would be excusable if the laughs
were not so few and far between.
It’s not all bad news, though.
Robin Williams is remarkable in
this film; he displays a side of him
self that is unparalleled in any
other role he has attempted.
Williams transforms himself into *l
a potty-mouthed lunatic, fully
shedding his good-guy image.
Norton’s performance is also
convincing and shows great depth
in his acting abilities. While he
might be better suited to a more
serious role, few people could pull
on as gooa a smoochy.
Visually, DeVito splatters the
screen with lavish colors and rau
cous camera angles. By providing
this vibrant eye candy, however,
he causes nearly all credibility to
be lost. But, hey, it is just a movie;
it’s not supposed to be real, any
way.
What the film lacks in sub
stance, the DVD makes up for in
special features. A rare DeVito
commentary maps out the film
scene by scene, proving that the
mockery of children’s television
is not child’s play.
The DVD also includes 10 addi- *
tional scenes that add new di
mensions to the film. Bloopers
and outtakes are also provided,
creating additional laughs where
needed.
Ultimately, see this movie if
you simply want to be enter
tained. But if you are not ready to
admit that Santa Claus and Big
Bird are not real, you might want
to pick something else.
Comments on this story?E-mail
gamecockmixeditor@hotmail.com
^ October 5 (USC vs. MISSISSIPPI STATE) 10 am - 12:30 pm [h
featuring live music by: THE ROOT DOCTORS
// Seawell's Parking Lot - 1125 Rosewood Drive / /
// across the street from "the ROCKET" at the State Fairgrounds. X/
// The best part is that it is all FREE: Music, lots of Great Food, Drinks k Door Prizes. ^ /
Souvenirs for the first 200 USC students in attendance at each Tailgate Party.
// THESE TAILGATE PARTIES ARE AN AIjCOHOL & OTHER DRUG-FREE ENVIRONMENT sponsored by the Russel! House Alcohol & Drug Programs. H / / /
M § Major funding provided by a grant received from the U S Department of Education Sale & Drug-Free Schools Program: The Prevention of High-Kisk Drinking & Violent Behavior .Among College Students Project \ V M M
i / Paid for. in part, with student activity fees. \A / /
i / Actual dates or times may change due to funding or programmatic decisions. For additional information, please call 777-7130. / jL jr
i t Department of Student life Division of Student & Alumni Services / / / \ \
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