The gamecock. (Columbia, S.C.) 1908-2006, December 06, 2002, Page 6, Image 6
• 6 THEY SAID IT*
MARY FRANCES KENNEDY FISHER:
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As the year winds down, The
Gamecock reviews the best in
movies, music and video games.
MUSIC
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— —I
“BLAZING ARROW”
Blackalicious
BY JUSTIN BAJAN
THE GAMECOCK
“Blazing Arrow” by
Blackalicious is truly a landmark
for modem hip-hop. The album is
composed of 17 tracks that fused
together the lyrical wizardry of
Gift of Gab and the sonic mastery
of producer Chief X-Cel. Songs
such as “First in Flight,” “Make
You Feel That Way” and “Green
Light: Now Begin” make you feel
good, while songs like “Paragraph
President,” “Chemical
Calisthenics” and “Release” blow
your mind. It’s rare to find good
hip-hop on a major label these
days, but Blackalicious proved to
be an intelligent, soulful excep
tion.
I_^_I
“SEA CHANGE”
Beck
BY TUG BAKER
THE GAMECOCK
Beck’s “Sea Change” is a
singer-songwriter masterpiece,
the likes of which have not been
heard for many years. Beck has fi
nally managed to take all the mu
sical-genre hodgepodge he has
produced over the years and melt
it down to its purest form, a fusion
based plainly on country-rock.
While the music is what drives
the record, the words are what
make it a worthy contender for al
bum of the year. The last time
lyrics were this personal yet con
veyed such universal feelings was
on Nick Drake’s “Pink Moon.”
Listeners can only hope Beck
stays with us for much longer.
“SONGS FOR THE DEAF"
Queens of the Stone Age
BY CHARLES TOMLINSON
THE (iAMECOCK
The newest incarnation of
Queens of the Stone Age looks
like a grunge supergroup from
the ‘90s; Dave Grohl plays drums,
and Screaming Trees’ Mark
Lanegan sings occasionally. It’s
important, despite the big names,
that the musicians make strik
ing music together - and that
they do. Guitarist Josh Homme
and bassist Nick Olivieri, who
form the group’s nucleus, make
every song a memorable kick in
the pants. “No One Knows”
earned the band mainstream suc
cess, and Grohl pounds the
drums like he hasn’t done in
years.
“ALL OF THE ABOVE”
J-Live
BY TITAN BARKSDALE
THE GAMECOCK
It was almost the middle of the
year, and still no hip-hop album
had been released that had “it.”
Many of them alienated too many
potential listeners because of a
lack of balance. But J-Live’s “All
of the Above” was quite the con
trary.
J-Live boasts an aggressive de
livery and diverse subject matter
that engage listeners. While many
albums contain intricate produc
tion that suffocates artists’ voices ^
and messages, “All of the Above
heightens the mood J-Live creates'
with his words. “All of the Above”
is a pure hip-hop album that has
“it.”
Honorable
Mentions
Music
Coldplay: “A Rush of
Blood to the Head”
Movies
“Spider-Man"
Video Games
“Neverwinter Nights”
Alumnus tries to make
a slash in Hollywood
USC graduate
in media arts
filmed around
Columbia
BY PAT CAULEY
“THE GAMECOCK
In 1992, Jeff Miller graduated
from USC with a degree in media
arts. Ever since, his life as a film
maker has been a roller-coaster
. ride all the way to Hollywood.
Miller started Millman
Productions, which he operates
now in California. But after
working as a producer for the
films “Hell Block 13” and
“Freakshow,” Miller decided it
was time to make his own film.
So Miller wrote, produced and
directed the movie “Head
Cheerleader, Dead Cheerleader,”
which features Airport High
School’s District Stadium and the
exterior of Brookland-Cayce High
School. Most of the film, howev
er, takes place in the cheerlead
ers’ homes; for that, houses in
West Columbia, Lexington, Cayce
and Irmo were used.
The film’s plot follows a cheer
leading squad the night before a
big football game. But a killer is
on the loose, and he is stalking
the vulnerable cheerleaders and
anyone else who gets in his way.
The movie comprises a decent
cast that features Tasha Biering;
Bill Roberson, who appeared in
“Forrest Gump”; and Debbie
Rochon, who was brought in
from New York to co-star. The
film, which Miller described as a
mix between “Scream” and
“Clerks,” has scares and laughs,
and it keeps viewers guessing
about the killer’s identity until
the climactic ending.
Music fans will find the sound
track to be a killer as well. It fea
tures Hick’ry Hawkins and
Sidemeat, Isabelle’s Gift, Bone
Machine and Tarwater.
“Head Cheerleader, Dead
Cheerleader” is available at
Amazon.com, DeadAlive.com,
and specialty video shops around
Columbia. Hollywood Video
mighGalso pick up the film.
Miller, who now lives in
“Head Cheerleader,
Dead Cheerleader” is
about a killer who stalks
a cheerleading squad
before a big game.
California, said perseverance, tal
ent and luck are the keys for as
piring filmmakers and actors.
Miller tries hard daily to follow
his own advice. He constantly
networks, makes phone calls,
sends faxes and otherwise tries
to make contacts that could help
him move ahead in the film in
dustry.
“Plans for now include pro
moting the film, as well as work
ing on some intriguing new pro
jects,” Miller said. Independent
films often work as resumes for
new filmmakers and actors, and
that is what Miller wants his pro
ject to do.
For more information go to
www.geocities.com/hollywood
isbuming/hcdc.html or call 1-800
800-6665.
Commentsm this story?E-mail
gamecockmixeditor@hotmail.com
MOVIES
“PUNCH-DRUNK LOVE”
Starring Adam Sandler and
Emily Watson
BY TUG BAKER
THE GAMECOCK
Most people can’t talk about
“Punch-Drunk Love” without men
tioning the pure brilliance (or stu
pidity, depending on the viewer) of
putting Adam Sandler in a roman
tic art film. While Sandler’s perfor
mance is one of the most affecting
in Hollywood this year, the real
treat of the film is Paul Thomas
Anderson’s terrific screenplay and
brilliant directing. It is rare to find
a movie in which music, dialogue
and visuals come together and com
pletely relay the actor’s feelings to
audiences. When Sandler’s char
acter, Barry Egan, gets nervous, the
audience can’t help but feel his anx
iety. Ironically, romance and vio
lence for once go together in this,
one of the most neurotically beau
tiful movies of all time.
“THE SWEETEST THING”
Starring Cameron Diaz and
Christina Applegate
BY KRISTIN CHANDLER
THE GAMECOCK
“The Sweetest Thing,” adver
tised as “a romantic comedy with
out the sugar,” is a giddy, laugh
out-loud, dance-in-your-seat com
edy. The movie follows fun-loving
Christina (Cameron Diaz) as she
dates her way through San
Francisco’s men. Clubbing with
gal pals Courtney (Christina
Applegate) and Jane (Selma
Blair), Christina finally meets
Peter (Thomas James), who she
can’t stop thinking about; unfor
tunately, she can’t find him, ei
ther. While Jane encounters some
trouble with her well-equipped
boyfriend, Christina and
Courtney set out to track Peter
down, and they run into hilarious
obstacles with a distinctly girly
twist.
«
Starring Mel Gibson and
BY PAT CAULEY
THE GAMECOCK
Heading off the success of “The
Sixth Sense” and “Unbreakable,”
M. Night Shyamalan was deter
mined to make a film to scare and
inspire. He achieved this in
“Signs.” The plot follows Graham
Hess, a retired preacher played by
Mel Gibson who lives on a farm
with his children and younger
brother Merrill, played by
Joaquin Phoenix. Mysterious
crop circles begin to appear on
their farm and across the world.
The key to “Signs” is found in its M
stylistic diversity. The movie is ™
not merely a thriller—it also uses
elements of humor and drama to
relate the story. Although the end
ing is a little disappointing,
“Signs” truly does deliver.
BY BEN ANGSTADT
THE GAMECOCK
•Resident B 1
Evil’
Whoever '
said an old dogB “ ' , ’J|
couldn't learnB - ’*!’
new tricks', p
Capcom proved
the adage I
wrong when it
released a remake of the 1996 clas
sic “Resident Evil,” the first in a se
ries of “Resident Evil” games ex
clusive to the Nintendo GameCube.
You play as either Chris or Jill, op
eratives of the S.T.A.R.S. SWAT
team, as they investigate strange
goings-on in the Spenser Mansion.
With new puzzles, new monsters
and a redesigned mansion, this
new “Resident Evil” is for series
newcomers and veterans alike. It
won’t merely creep you out, like
the original did — it’ll just plain
scare the hell out of you.
VIDEO GAMES
‘Red
Faction II’
In a futur
istic world,
an army of
genetically
enhanced sol
diers who
were once the
military of the “Commonwealth”
are now enemies of the state.
Now, supersoldier-tumed-super
hero Alias must fight alongside
the Red Faction to overthrow the
oppressive regime under Gen.
Sopot. This sequel brought back
the same winning formula from
the first “Red Faction,” including
fully destructible environments,
and added a new squad-based
combat system in which comput
er-controlled allies fight alongside
players. Coupled with a greatly
expanded multiplayer mode,
“RFII” was one of the year’s best
first-person shooters.
‘Super
Mario
Sunshine’
“It’s-a me,
Mario!” After
six long years
with no true
sequel to “Su
per Mario 64,” those few words
were a breath of fresh air for plat
form-starved gamers and Nintendo
fans. And “Super Mario Sunshine”
didn’t disappoint. When Mario’s
vacation is ruined by a look-alike
with a penchant for graffiti, it’s up
to the plumber himself to clean
things up. This time, he’s got his
new water pack, Fludd, which lets
him spray water streams and hover
through the air. With rock-solid,
simple game play, "Sunshine”
brought Nintendo’s icon back to
the spotlight, where he belongs.
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