Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

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6 THE GAMECOCK ♦ Monday, March 24, 2003 CONTACT US 'eremy mE'1 SAI,) IT iEREMY BENTHAM: “The greatest happiness Story ideas? Questions? Comments? of the greatest number is the foundation of E-mail us at gamecockmixeditor@hotmail.com morals and legislation.” ‘Chicago ’ takes home six Oscars; Adrien Brody surprise best-actor winner for role in ‘The Pianist’ BY DAVID GERMAIN THE ASSOCIATED PRESS LOS ANGELES — “Chicago” led the Academy Awards with six trophies, including best picture, at a ceremony last night that al lowed Hollywood to exalt itself while muting the Oscar pageantry because of the U.S.-led war on Iraq. The razzle-dazzle satire “Chicago” became the first musi cal since 1968’s “Oliver!” to win the top Oscar. Its other awards were supporting actress for ’ Catherine Zeta-Jones, and four technical honors including cos tume design and art direction. Adrien Brody was a surprise best actor winner Sunday for his role as a Holocaust survivor in by hiding from the Nazis in the Warsaw ghetto. “The Pianist” was directed by Roman Polanski, a Holocaust survivor himself. The only best-actor nominee who did not already have at least one Oscar, Brody won with his first nomination. Over a 15-year career, Brody has focused on provocative films over commer cial ones, among them “The Thin Red Line” and “Summer of Sam.” The 6-foot-l, 160-pound Brody lost 30 pounds in six weeks to cap ture Szpilman’s gauntness after years of deprivation in the Warsaw.ghetto. “This film would not be possi ble without the blueprint provided by Wladyslaw Szpilman,” Brody said. “This film is a tribute to his survival.” The Pianist, and Nicole Kidman was named best actress for portraying nov elist Virginia Woolf in the somber drama “The i Hours,” at an Oscar show overshadowed by the U.S. led war on Iraq. Pedro Almodovar won the original screenplay. Oscar for “Talk to ^ Her,” and ^y^L Ronald Harwood fm the /■ adapted screen- IH play award for il “The Pianist.” ■MiFJm World events sparked sev eral emotion- « al highlights, including Brody’s tearful jHH speech and an attack on President Bush JH by filmmaker fm Michael Moore, winner of the best documentary Oscar for “Bowling for Columbine.” Brody played the title character in “The Pianist,” based on the real-life story V of musician Wladyslaw Szpilman, a Polish Jew who lived through World War II ^ “My experience mak ing this film made me very aware of the sad ness and the dehu manization of people in times of war, and the repercussions of war. And whether mu believe in God or Ulah, may he watch over you, and let’s pray for a peace ful l\ and swift HI reso r£ Ml iu FJ/ tion,” Brody said, fighting Wj^ml back Wm tears and Hr drawing a WKr standing ji ovation. Zeta-Jones Ml was the first tt performer to win an acting I I Oscar for a musical since Liza Minnelli and Joel Grey H for . 1972’s “Cabaret.” In W “Chicago,” Zeta Jones played a jailed vaudeville scamp scheming for celebrity after slaying her hus PHOTO COURTESY OF KRT CAMPUS Renee Zellweger, left, starred with Richard Gere and Catherine Zeta-Jones in “Chicago,” best-picture Oscar winner. band and sister. Due to deliver her second child with husband and Oscar-winner Michael Douglas in a few weeks, Zeta-Jones joined co-star and fel low supporting-actress nominee Queen Latifah in the Oscar per formance of “I Move On,” the best song nominee from “Chicago.” “My hormones are too way out of control to be dealing with this,” Zeta-Jones said. Documentary winner “Bowling for Columbine” is Moore’s alter nately hilarious and horrifying ex amination of gun violence in America. Moore, a harsh critic of the Bush administration, received a standing ovation. He invited his fellow documentary nominees on stage, saying they were there in “solidarity with me, because we like nonfiction, and we are living in fictitious times.” “We live in a time where we have a man who’s sending us to war for fictitious reasons. We are against this war, Mr. Bush. Shame on you, Mr. Bush. Shame on you,” Moore said, amid a mix of boos and applause from the crowd. Her Oscar win was a Hollywood ending for Kidman af ter a turbulent couple of years. She had a miscarriage in 2001 and broke up with husband Tom Cruise, in whose shadow she had lingered throughout their 11-year relationship. Kidman emerged as a big star in her own right later that year with “Moulin Rouge,” which earned her a best-actress Oscar nomination, and the horror hit “The Others.” In “The Hours,” Kidman played suicidal author Virginia Woolf, wearing a fake nose to capture the writer’s plain features. “Why do you come to the Academy Awards when the world is in such turmoil?” Kidman said. “Because art is important. And be cause you believe in what you do, and you want to honor that, and it is a tradition that needs to be up held.” Chris Cooper, a veteran char acter actor whose credits include “American Beauty” and “Lone Star,” won a best-actor in a sup porting role for his portrayal of a scraggly haired, toothless horti cultural poacher on a mission to preserve rare orchids in “Adaptation,” a film loosely based ♦ OSCARS, SEE PAGE 8 CD REVIEWS TkeAtaris ’ music turns mainstream “SO LONG, ASTORIA” The Ataris ★ out of ☆☆☆☆☆ BY CHARLES TOMLINSON THE GAMECOCK Add another mark to the tal ly of punk bands gone soft. The Ataris have forgone their super indie status for a Columbia Records contract and joined the punk-byproduct heap alongside Blink-182, Simple Plan and New Found Glory. The band’s major-label debut, “So Long, Astoria,” is a 13 song compilation — plus, for some reason, two hidden tracks — that fades away quickly after the final song. The title track opens the album and is stan dard emo-punk fare, but builds up to a glorious, dramatic cho rus. Two or three songs later, however, it’s hard to remember what the chorus went like. The title track’s lyrics also imply that it’s OK to mature as musicians and sell out. “We said that we would never fit in/ When we were really just like them/ Does rebellion ever make a difference?” sings vocalist-gui tarist Kris Roe. The prodigal sons that once slammed mainstream rock ra dio have decided to call it home. Back in their days with Kung Fu records, the Ataris recorded “The Radio Still Sucks,” in which Roe sang about how he was sick of Beck and 311 and how he wished someone would break Marilyn Manson’s neck. Now, the same band proudly boasts in its news release that it has toured with 311, among other big-time rock acts, and The Ataris are currently on the IUCIU Willi pup-i UUIV UCU1U Sugarcult. Roe gets few chances to scream on the album, while, in the band’s indie days, he tor tured his vocal cords with howls. With the piano opening on “The Saddest Song,” it sounds like producer Lou Giordano is trying to turn a punk act into Coldplay. Giordano has also worked with the Goo Goo Dolls, who once were actually a punk band. It sounds like Giordano’s having his way with The Ataris, too; a close listen to “Looking Back on Today” reveals an acoustic guitar strumming along. Acoustic guitar shame lessly opens “Eight of Nine,” and the second of the two hid den tracks is an acoustic ver sion of “The Saddest Song.” The album’s first single, “In This Diary,” contains the lyrics, “The only thing that matters is just following your heart/ And eventually you’ll finally get it right.” It’s hard to believe those phony feel-good lyrics come from the same band that once sang, “Why do I never seem to learn that/ Love is wrong and girls are f—ing evil?” “So Long, Astoria” also in cludes a cover of Don Henley’s “The Boys of Summer” that should have been saved for a novelty at The Ataris’ shows. They do put their own stamp on it, changing the “Deadhead sticker” lyric to “Black Flag sticker.” me Dana s last whimper about the mainstream is quelled after three and a half minutes of “Radio #2.” Roe sings, “Look outside your FM dial/ They’re preaching lies in 4/4 time/ A generation without a voice and stripped of pride.” Maybe, in all the sameness of Nickleback and 3 Doors Down, The Ataris want to be the saviors of rock radio. But they’re hardly their gener ation’s voice. Since the band has gotten airplay, The Ataris only add to the reasons why the ra dio still sucks. Comments on this story? E-mail gamecockmixeditor@hotmail.com VIDEO GAME REVIEW ‘Wind Waker’blows away ‘Zelda’players “THE LEGEND OF ZELDA: THE WIND WAKER” Published and developed by Nintendo of America ★★★★★ out of ☆☆☆☆☆ BY BEN ANGSTADT THE GAMECOCK The moment is finally here. After months of delays and a year of controversy, the latest incarna tion in the “Legend of Zelda” se ries has made its appearance on the Nintendo GameCube. Arriving less than six months after the crit ically acclaimed “Metroid Prime” took the gaming world by storm, “The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker” may now wear the crown as the ’Cube’s best game. “The Wind Waker” has a straightforward plot. On his birth day, Link, the game’s main hero, witnesses his sister’s abduction Dy a giant Dira. his omy cnoice is to follow this animal to determine the whereabouts of his sister. As he proceeds, however, he quickly learns that things in his world are much more complicated than they seem. It has not been easy for Link to come even this far. Poor Link has received countless attacks for his new look. In “The Wind Waker,” series creator Shigeru Miyamoto decided to use “toon-shaded” graphics that resemble the look of a Warner Brothers cartoon. Also, he is a small child in this game, rather than an adult as he was in “Majora’s Mask,” the last Zelda game on a home console. Regardless of whether “The Wind Waker” resembles a kid’s game on screen, there is no deny ing that its new look has created a seamless, consistent world with almost unbelievable detail. Water flows, trees fall and characters move with amazing realism. Even Link’s eyes shift as he moves around the world, depicting his emotions and giving clues to the player. But while graphics are a video game’s most obvious aspect, the actual game play is what truly matters, and this is where “The Wind Waker” really shines. Most of Link’s traditional tools, such as boomerangs, bombs, swords, shields and grappling hooks, make their return. He has many new and innovative tools, however, that are key to the game. One of the most important new aspects ot LunK s improvea in ventory is his ability to pick up the weapons of his fallen enemies. This is a crucial aspect of the game — Link must frequently use dropped weapons to solve puzzles and proceed to the next area. But Link’s most important new tool is a magical wand called the Wind Waker. After learning songs, Link uses the wand to con trol the wind in ways such as changing its direction and sum moning massive cyclones. Still, the game’s most engaging aspect is the massive, intricate world in which Link lives. The en tire game takes place on countless islands spread throughout the sea. L,inK must use nis newtouna ooat to take him from island to island on his journey. And of course, the classic Zelda dungeons are all here, with mind-bending puzzles and spectacular bosses. The latest in the “Legend of Zelda” series is a true gem — the best reason yet to own a GameCube. It’s a necessity for any avid gamer. So if people tell you “The Wind Waker” has inferior graphics and looks likes a kid’s game, just pity them. They truly don’t know what they’re missing. Comments on this story?E-mail gamecockmixeditor@hotmail.com PHOTO SPECIAL TO THE-GAMECOCK The new “Zelda” Nintendo game uses cartoon-like graphics. The other Kenny G speaks to listeners “STANDARD OF LANGUAGE” Kenny Garrett ★★★★★ out of ☆☆☆☆☆ BY MARIANNE PARRISH the gamecock The recently released “Standard of Language” pro vides listeners with a moody montage of saxophone stylings. No, this is not a Kenny G record. This is Kenny Garrett, a masterful alto-sax man with attitude, intellect and focus. This is his eighth Warner Brothers release. No offense to any Kenny G. fans, but this mu sic is quite different. Garrett has been involved in jazz as well as hip-hop music, and has played with Miles Davis and the legendary GURU. • UU1V1 VUt **wv«u UVU1UVV on “Standard of Language,’’but 1 it’s organized well; listeners can travel with the changes in tone, up and back down. The album kicks off with a solid selection of songs, each offering varying tex tures and temperaments. Vemell Brown really works the keys on track two, “Kurita Sensei.” It’s impressive and rhythmic without dipping into ♦GARRETT, SEE PAGE 7 PHOTO/VECIAL TO THE GAMECOCK Kenny Garrett’s album showcases his jazzy saxophone skills.