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THURSDAY
MARCH 8, 2001
8A
'Mexican'
mixes
'Sopranos' looks to
another hit season
comedy, romance
and great adventure
By Ryan Blay
Daily Arts Writer
8y Wlhelmina Mauritz
Daily Arts Writer
When you put Julia Roberts, Brad Pitt
and "Sopranos" star James Gandolfini in
t movie together, you are bound to pro-
duce a pretty enjoyable flick. "The
The
Mexican
Grade: B+
At Showcase
and Quality 16
Mexican" is
exactly that: A fun
comedy with a lit-
tle bit of every-
thing in it.
Although the
previews to this
movie play up the
romance between
Julia and Brad, the
two do not actual-
ly have that much
screen time
together. This may
disappoint some
but it does give
of the movie. In a "Romeo and Juliet"-
style balcony scene, we see Julia throw-
ing out Pitt's clothing as he tries to calm
her down. He uses pet names like
"sweetie" and "baby" while she uses
psychobabble she has picked up from
their group therapy.
After a certain amount of escalation
has occurred, Julia issues a "timeout" -
something they have obviously picked
up from their therapy together. Although
Pitt wants to talk and is clearly frustrated
by her command of silence, he obliges
and waits. This is a perfect example of
how the two interact. At times they
sound as though they simply argue all
the time, but deep down they have noth-
ing but love and respect for one another.
The basic premise of the movie
revolves around an infamous gun they
call "The Mexican" James (Pitt) is sent
down to Mexico to pick up the gun and
deliver it back to his boss. Simple
enough for most people but James does
not seem to have luck on his side. His
whole life appears to be one mishap after
another and this does not stop once he
crosses the border.
Sam (Roberts) is upset with James for
not getting out of his job in order to
accompany her to Las Vegas. The two
part ways. As Sam heads to Las Vegas in
her lime-green Beetle, she is kidnapped
by Leroy (Gandolfini), a sympathetic
Cou"esy of D "r"mo"" Ksictures
Brad and Julia go through separate thrill rides in "The Mexican."
On HBO, they don't waste any
time. After a quick recap of season
two of the hit drama "The Sopranos,"
last Sunday the station decided to air
The
$opranos
HBO
Sundays at 9 p.m.
.. .a
feds wiretap the
back - to - back
new episodes of
the Emmy-win-
ning show. Just
as the late Livia
Soprano (more
on her later) did-
n't mince words,
the show wasted
no time in mov-
ing on and estab-
lishing new story
lines for its
junior season.
In the season
premiere, the
Sopranos' base-
each of the actors their moment in the
spotlight and makes the time when they
are together all the more worthwhile.
Julia and Brad have wonderful chem-
istry together. Even though a great deal
of their time together is spent bantering
(not fighting, mind you) back and forth,
you never doubt that the two truly care
for one another.
There is a wonderful fight scene
between their two characters at the start
killer who is sent to ensure that all goes
well with James and the transport of the
gun.
What follows is a wonderful mixture
of comedy, adventure, and romance. In a
movie such as this, it is easy to fall into
that trap where there is simply too much
going on so you never get to connect
with any of the major players. This is not
true of "The Mexican." Each of the char-
acters is given enough development so
you really get to feel involved with the
plot of the movie.
"The Mexican" brings us back to the
adventure movies of yesteryear.
However, as with most adventure
movies, there are tons of twists and turns
and major plot developments and "The'
Mexican" seemed to almost cram too
much of this into the movie. At times it
was more than a little confusing to dis-
cern what was going on.
If you try to break "The Mexican" up
into pieces it all fits together to form a
very good picture, but looking back
there was one element that seemed to
be lacking. Part of it might have been
the background story of the gun, which
did not really hold a lot of interest for
me. The story itself turns out to be a
good one but I personally did not con-
nect to it. Being that the entire movie
revolves around the story of the gun
made it somewhat difficult to truly get
into.
In the end though, "The Mexican"
doesn't take itself too seriously and
neither should the viewer. It's a fun ride
with plenty of twists for everyone. And
once again, how can you go wrong
combining America's sweetheart and
one of the sexiest men alive?
ment, hoping to catch Tony (James
Gandolfini) discussing some busi-
ness on tape. For the operation, the
FBI alludes to the Bada Bing, the
strip club Tony and his crew fre-
quent. Tony is "Der Bingle," daugh-
ter Meadow (Jamie-Lynn Sigler),
now at Columbia University, is
"Princess Bing," etc. Anthony Jr.,
AKA "Baby Bing," is a high school
slacker, smoking and skateboarding,
struggling to learn Robert Frost.
The next show focused on
Meadow's new boyfriend and the
death of Tony's mother. Tony is quity
unhappy with Meadow's selection, a
half-Jewish, half-black son . of
Hollywood big shots. Needless to
say, Meadow reacts harshly to Tone
bigotry. Meanwhile, the biggest bane
of Tony's existence is no longer
alive. Livia Soprano (the late, great
Nancy Marchand), brought to life
via creepy computer graphics and
old footage, passes away. As she ,vas
planning to testify against her son,
this comes as somewhat of a pleasant
surprise for Tony.
This week, among other subplo
Christopher (Michael Imperiol
becomes a made man, an official
party of the Mafia family. Also, Dr.
Melfi (the wonderful Lorraine
Bracco) gets more involved as Toby
explores a childhood trauma and
starts demanding tangible results
from his psychotherapy.
It is pleasant to see that
writer/creator David Chase is as
sharp as ever. Although the parts
with Livia were creepy, the rest
the show remains strong, remindirn
viewers why it is undoubtedly the
finest show on cable, if not all of TV
If, as Chase proposed, the show lasts
only four seasons, he must make
each and every episode count. The
show will go out on top, but won't
last for long. Make sure to catch a
well-written show before it disap-
pears like a stool pigeon at a Mafi
picnic.
, ,
5/'
q 1''
'4'y n
Mario-esque gameplay and atmostphere
makes 'Rayman 2' a must-have for Deuce
By Matt Grandstaff
Daily Arts Writer
Warning: For those who have played "Rayman 2" on other systems, there
is no need to read this game review; you may now go back to enjoying one
of the greatest games for any system in years.
Now for gainers looking for the next must-have game
on the Playstation 2, look no further than Ubi Soft's lat-
Grade: A est game featuring the bizarre joint-less hero, "Ravman
2: Revolution." Simply put, "Revolution" is perfect in
Rayman 2: every way from graphics and sound to gameplay.
Revolution In the graphics department, "Rayman 2" is the
For Playstation 2 Rembrandt of 3-D platform games. Gainers are
Ubi soft immersed in a world of bright colors and amazing visu-
al effects that will make gainers feel like Alice did when
she found herself in Wonderland. Additionally, the
graphics in this game will make believers out of those who underestimated
the power of the Playstation 2.
Adding to the atmosphere of an already amazing title is the sound in
"Rayman 2." For starters, "Rayman 2"'s soundtrack should be in a film, as
the game tunes resemble those of Tim Burton films, such as "Edward
Scissorhands" and "The Nightmare Before Christmas." On the negative side,
the voice acting is a little annoying at first. But once fully involved in the
game, however, gainers will appreciate the different personalities, especial
ly if one has had a few drinks during loading times.
Fortunately for gainers, "Rayman 2" isn't just pretty, the game has per-
sonality to boot. As the bizarre character Rayman, your goal is to rescue
your best friend Globox, a cute amphibian like creature with over 650 off-
spring, from Admiral Razorbeard and his minions of pirates. While the task
seems daunting, gamers will have a variety of moves and attacks. Rayman
can jump, climb, swim, shoot plasma balls and more - all of which become
easy to pull off with a little practice. Additionally, throughout the game are
enjoyable experiences such as a level where you water ski behind a friendly
whale, a roller coaster level and even areas where Rayman will ride an
intriguing creature that is actually an atomic bomb. Finally the objective*
puzzles and bonus stages make "Rayman 2: Revolution" a memorable gam-
ing experience that can be put in the same breath with other 3-D platform
classic such as Super Mario 64, Zelda: The Ocarina of Time and Banjo-
Kazooie.
L
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Courtesy of UDi Sott
Rescue your best amphibian friend in "Rayman 2."
x
If's
Friday
V P
4
Live music, qreat food,and a visit to Ancient Egypt.
It's Friday-ifs what you've been waiting for all weekl
March 9th
* Club Friday Music: Griswolds
(blues), 6:30-9:30 P.M.
* FREE tour: Complements, 6:45 P.M.
* FREE Performance:
Art & Musicfrom Around the World,7 P.M.
* Lecture: Scholars & Tourists Along the Nile:
The Photographic Discovery of
Ancient Egypt, 7:30 P.M.
419-2554000 www.toledomuseum.org -
Made possible by QFifth Third Bank
r
Open every Friday, 6-io P.M.
2445 Monroe Street Toledo, OH 43620
5 o
4
SinaI Ou
y waI, ,
~ t t
We'll pay your way!
Generous Financial Aid available for UMBS
Spring/Summer Classes
Spring Session (May 20-June 15)
General Ecology
Summer Session (June 15-August 18
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