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MOVIE REVIEW Gere and Lopez stumble through awkward ‘Dance ’ “SHALL WE DANCE?" ★★ out of ☆☆☆☆☆ By LESLIE DENNIS THE GAMECOCK Don’t go into “Shall We Dance?” thinking it’s a romantic comedy — it isn’t. The trailers and previews give litde plot or insight into the film, which is a good thing for the studio because if they did, no one would go see the movie. While watching it, one wonders what type of movie “Shall We Dance?” is and how to classify it. Is it a teary-eyed drama, a laugh-out-loud comedy, a gut wrenching horror flick or possibly even a thriller in which dancers pull Out guns when they lose the competition and shoot the winners when they accept the award for best cha-cha? Actually, the latter would have been better than what “Shall We Dance?” is: a hybrid of all the above. Girls will tear up with the sight of Richard Gere in a tux holding a rose because no guy does that or will ever look like that. Men will stifle a laugh when Stanley Tucci has his wig yanked off by another dancer because they will feel the pain of receding hairlines. Most viewers will watch in horror as Jennifer Lopez attempts to be a “serious” actress because she looks more like a hamster trying to swim than an actual complex character, and everyone will be on the verge of sleep during the final dance competition because they all know what’s about to happen. With big name stars like Gere, Lopez and Susan Sarandon one would think, or at least hope, the film would at least be entertaining. But this remake of the Japanese smash hit with the same name twirls into a dizzying film about nothing in particular. Gere plays John Clark, a bored husband and father. Not bored with his wife or children, just inherently unhappy. He watches a detached dancer, Paulina (Lopez), night after night on the ride home from work on the L-train. One night, something pushes John off the train, (possibly his feet’s need to dance but more likely his libido) and into Miss Mitzi’s Dance Studio where he promptly joins a ballroom dance class for beginners. John joins fellow inept dancers Vern (Omar Benson Miller) and Chic (Bobby Cannavale) as the third member of the class taught by Miss Mitzi herself (Anita Gillette)." With other frequenters of Miss Mitzi’s such as Link Peterson (a self-tanned, wig wearing Tucci) and Bobbie (Lisa Ann Walter, the sarcastic “olive” to Tucci’s “toothpick”), John learns to let go with the music and begins to enjoy life again. Back at home, John’s wife, Beverly (Sarandon), begins to suspect he’s up to something. She hires an uncouth detective (Richard Jenkins) and his literature-quoting assistant (Nick Cannon) to spy on her husband. The movie drags on, feeling longer than an hour and a half. Although Gere is extremely talented as an actor and does what he can with the part of John, he is the wrong choice for the role. Gere, showing his dancing talent in the Oscar winning film “Chicago,” is unbelievable as the unnoticed, unhappy man and seems too suave for the character. But Gere is not as miscast as Lopez. Lopez’s portrayal of Paulina is like a beginner in the ballroom dance class: mechanical and unsure. Probably the best moments in the film, although these could also use some tweaking, ate the ones when there is no speaking, only dancing. Gere and Lopez’s steamy dance scene in the dark studio is passionate and detached, fitting both characters’ complex natures. While there are some touching moments in the movie such as Sarandon’s speech on why people marry and Gere’s romantic gesture to his wife, the movie fails to lift itself to its potential. With the right actors and more elaboration of the characters, “Shall We Dance?” could be a pretty decent film. As it is, the movie builds no emotional ties with the audience and has no firm foundation upon which to stand. Comments on this story? E-mail gamecockfeatures@gwtn.sc.edu PHOTO SPECIAL TO THE GAMECOCK From left: Stanley Tucci, Susan Sarandon, Richard Gere and Jennifer Lopez star in the new romantic comedy, “Shall We Dance?” This remake of a Japanese film falls short of expectations. Puppets do dirty work on screen, stage PHOTO COURTESY OF KRT CAMPUS The risque activities of the puppets in Trey Parker and Matt Stone's “Team America: World Police” nearly earned the movie an NC-17 rating. By CHRIS VOGNAR KRT CAMPUS Whether living on Avenue Q or working for Team America, puppets are engaging in the kind of behavior that could get you evicted from Sesame Street. Sure, they still walk and talk, sing and dance. They still act a little wooden. But they also vomit and have sex. Why the sudden surge in edgy, puppetry? They can do and say the kinds of things largely forbidden to real people in this complicated, politically correct world. Hey, it wasn’t me; it was the puppet. “People don’t expect to take puppets seriously, so there’s basically no material that they can’t do,” says Rick Lyon, who conceived and designed the all-puppet cast for the Broadway smash “Avenue Q.” The Tony-winning musical, which will set up shop in Las Vegas next year, spotlights a group of bawdy, multiethnic New York puppets who bear a suspicious resemblance to the Muppets. “But viewers do get the message, and they get it in a very profound way.” The word “profound” doesn’t immediately come to mind when you watch “Team America: World Police,” which hit movie screens Friday. Created by Trey Parker and Matt Stone, the guys who built a potty mouth, construction-paper empire out of “South Park,” the movie’s puppets blow one another away, throw up, give profane monologues and engage in some seriously compromising positions. That last part nearly got Team America the most restrictive movie rating — NC-17 — before the filmmakers made last second cuts. Parker and Stone got the puppet bug while watching a rerun of “Thunderbirds,” a futuristic ‘60s TV show from England with puppet heroes and model spaceships. “It just looked cool, especially nowadays when everything is computer generated,” Stone said at last month’s Toronto International Film Festival, where “Team America” footage was shown to critics. “Just watching the puppets say their lines and walk away was making us laugh. They had litde model cars and they just threw them off a hill. They tried to do the detail so that it looked real. They couldn’t, but even the attempt was visually interesting.” The filmmakers wanted to do a “Thunderbirds” movie with puppets and a bawdy “South Park” sensibility. But the rights had already been scooped up for a live-action version of “Thunderbirds,” which tanked this summer. Yet they still had the puppet itch. So they did something a little more topical. The puppets in “Team America” include an anti-terrorism strike force, a variety of terrorists, Kim Jong II, Peter Jennings, Michael Moore (holding two hot dogs, wearing mustard on his foce and explosives around his waist), Sean Penn and Tim Robbins. None, of course, voiced by the real-life models. They get chopped off at the waist and decapitated. The Moore marionette blows himself up. Giant house cats tear the Penn puppet to bits. Think poor behavior among our inanimate friends is a new phenomenon? Think again. The original Punch and Judy marionette shows, which date to at least the 17th century, were grisly affairs. Punch, an obese hunchback, throws a crying baby out the window, kills his wife (that would be Judy) with a stick, hangs a hangman, murders a doctor and eventually even triumphs over the devil. The shows were enormously popular across Europe. When the logistics of traveling with a full marionette show grew less cost-effective, Punch was converted into a hand puppet. After all, the puppet show must go on. Some shows featured a human Punch, in costume. But, according to “The Oxford Companion to the Theatre,” “it was as a puppet that Punch gained his great success, for it was as a puppet his physical disfigurements could be exaggerated in a manner impossible to a living actor.” Edgar Bergen and Charlie McCarthy, the courtly ventriloquist and his trash talking dummy, honed this only-with-a puppet approach in the mid-20th century. And today, it’s practiced by the likes of Robert Smigel, who took a crude ' doggie hand puppet, popped a cigar in his mouth and created the rudely hilarious Triumph, the Insult Comic Dog for “Late Night With Conan O’Brien.” And don’t forget the Comedy Central show “Crank Yankers,” in which celebrities give voice to crank-calling puppets. Comments on this story? E-mail garnecockfeatures@gwm.sc. edu ■ TRIO Continued from page 5 have his first three recordings reach No. 1 on Billboard’s traditional jazz chart, is coming to Columbia after playing a show in New York. “Students should take a chance and take a risk and if they have never heard of anything like they will say, ‘Hey this is interesting,’” ■ Gustnersaid. Some of Columbia’s at-risk youth will get to hear the concert as part of the campaign, “Give Our Kids a Seat at the Table.” This program allows corporate sponsors to reserve seats for children who would not normally be able to attend the show and be around the arts. Gallery 701, an area non-profit organization, has hosted jazz events in Columbia since 1996. The gallery previously featured Wynton Marsalis at the Koger Center in 2002 where it was the first soid-out concert in 12 years. The doors will open at 7 p.m. with the concert beginning at 8 p.m. Tickets for the concert will be on sale by phone at 544-6069 and by e-mail at tickets@gallery701 .org through Saturday morning. If available, tickets may be purchased the night of the concert. Student tickets are $12 and adult tickets range from $25 to $300 for a table of eight. Comments on this story? E-mail gamecockfeatures@gwm.sc.edu IF YOU’RE GOING WHAT: Marcus Roberts Trio concert WHERE: Columbia Metropolitan Convention Center WHEN: 8 p.m. 1 “The Grudge” “Surviving Christmas” Be In Good Company We're more than just the largest health insurance company in South Carolina. We are one of the nation's leading administrators of government contracts. And we operate one of the most sophisticated data processing centers in the Southeast. We are successful because our employees are dedicated to serving our customers. If you share this commitment, consider joining our team! 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Your progress will be monitored and you can expect to receive frequent training opportunities and excellent career growth! ■ FELLNER Continued from page 5 collared shirt, which would probably act as the most pronounced feature of the outfit if you like stripes or checks. For any event in which the invitation uses the phrases “pig pickin’” or “bluegrass” or even “BYOB,” it’s definitely your call. After all, you’re working with these people now and have had time to gauge their sense of formality. It’s never a problem to wear shorts to summer barbecues, just so long as you don’t show up to meet the boss’s wife in the khakis you just ripped in a tackle football game the day before, only to have your Spider man themed boxers showing through the frays. My problem when considering these events is that you only have time to get dressed once in the morning and have to pick something that will function for the day’s many events. It’s a problem when you’re trying to be casual for class, formal for your big meeting at work and then semi-casual at the cocktail party at the private club. Of course, there’s always room for improvisation like rolled-up sleeves or slipping off that tie and tossing it into your book bag. Clothes are fun because of how versatile they are, and, therefore, it’s just all in how you wear what you’ve chosen. BlueCross BlueShield of South Carolina An Independent Licensee of the Blue Cross and Blue Skidd Association To apply, e-mail, fax or send resume to: BlueCross BlueShield of South Carolina IS Recruiting M/S AA-175 1-20 at Alpine Rd Columbia, SC 29223 Fax: 803-264-8096 E-mail: IS.Recruiting@bcbssc.com US citizenship or permanent residency is required. An Independent Licensee of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association. ® Registered Marks of the Blue Cross and Bli^e Shield Association, an Association of Independent Blue Crt^s and Blue Shield Plans. ® The company provides equal employment opportunity without regard to race, religion, sex. sexual orientation, national origin, age or disability. ^ www.dailygamecoc I COED WEEK KICK Oil! OCTOBER 24, 2004 3:30-5:30 RU9SEEE HOUSE PATIO Carolinian SIGN IT. MEAN IT. LIVE IT. ,, Sponsored by Carolina Student Judicial Council