12 - The Michigan Daily - Friday, April 12, 2002 FRIDAY Focus A Courtesy of Interscope Eminem. itRYa Sumier jobs l awaiting tables, internshps, the GRE and the LSAT all take a back-seat to mindless entertain- ment between May and August. Candy seems to be the preva- lent theme this sum- mer, both in the realms of major theatrical releases and Christensen comes of age dome-f'lling popular music. The sug- in "Star Wars: Episode II." ary gum bubbles of pop icon's 15 here's a lot to do this minutes find their way to the stage summer, and we've while eye candy rules the celluloid decided to help you think (or digital) jungle. It's important to by looking at some of the keep your eyes open to find the true summer's best offerings, gems wedged between ,the studio and contemplating a few hype. "High Fidelity" scribe Nick events too large to Hornby's novel "About a Boy" finds ignore. life on the very same day Hayden -Lyle Henretty 0 0 Our second favorite (but annoyingly over exposed) British spy returns in the formerly known as (and thanks to Hollywood back-rubbing, soon to be named again) "Goldmember." The franchise quickly grew from smart and satirical to gross-out humor with "The Spy Who Shagged Me" and No. 3 is sure to continue this downward trend while also ironically bowing to spon- sors that Wayne and Garth vowed to never do. If you thought Heather Graham's laugh-deprived performance was as low as a Powers girl could go wait 'til you get a load of Beyonce Knowles. Yes, that Beyonce. July 26. Woody Allen has made a film a year, every year, for the past 33 years, and major Hollywood actors still wor- ship his tiny little feet. In "Ending," Allen plays a film director hired by a studio boss to direct the boss' girl- friend (and the director's ex wife) in a new film. Tea Leoni plays the ex, and Treat Williams the studio boss. Let's hope that this revives Williams' career after he single-handedly soiled the good name of "The Substi- tute" franchise. May 3. MN 1N BLACKu1 Oscar-winning actor Tommy Lee Jones and the guy that sang "Nightmare on My Street" team up for a sec- ond outing as J and K, two government agents with the special task of keeping giant CGI aliens at bay. The first film was a brainless summer extravaganza pro- duced for the sole purpose of selling giant plastic cups at Burger King, so the it's doubtful the sequel will have any measure of artistic integrity. Though, in the typical summer fashion, the bugs will be bigger, the one-liners more plentiful and the exposition slightly less trite. On the plus side, what other special effects-driven fran- chise pays homage to Kafka? July 3. MINORIT1 '12 2 _T Like "Blade Runner" and "Total Recall," this film is based on a Phillip; K. Dick story. Tom Cruise plays Detective John Anderton, a cop in a division that arrests criminals before they commit crimes. But when he is accused of a crime, he has to prove his innocence. Colin Farrell, the best part of "Hart's War," and Max von Sydow ("The Exorcist," "The Greatest Story Ever Told") are in the supporting cast. Director Steven Spiel- berg could redeem himself for last year's pretentious "AI," or he could drag this story into the ground as well. June 21. ROAD T Mr. American movie star Tom Hanks teams up with acclaimed "American Beauty" director Sam Mendes for a Depression-era tale of a Chicago hit man. Hank's hit- man will less resemble Bruce Willis' "Jackal" and more closely mirror Jean Reno's "Leon," a killer with a heart of gold. Mendes' reputation for "spectacular" direction of actors on stage and in "Beauty" has lured a support- ing cast of Jude Law, Jennifer Jason Leigh and the almost retired Paul "Butch" Newman. The buzz is good so far but we all know that in order to be successful one must project an image of success at all times. July 12. It has Sugar Ray's Mark McGrath, and Rowan Atkinson ("Bean"), but what remains to be.seen is if Fred- die Prinze Jr. (Fred) and Matthew Lillard (Shaggy) can do better here than in their last disaster, 2001's "Sum- mer Catch." Sarah Michelle Gellar could be the perfect Daphne, but seeing the live-action Scooby in the trail- ers is just sad. What makes this movie any different than the on-stage production of "Scooby Doo in: Stage- fright?" Translating a hit cartoon series into a movie can be hit or miss. June 14. This is the newest film from M. Night Shyamalan, director of the wildly successful "The Sixth Sense" and less-than-successful but underrated "Unbreakable." "Signs" deals with those wacky crop circles that appear every once in a while in fields and frequently on "Unsolved Mysteries." Despite the fact that many of these supposed alien graffiti have been de-bunked as a prank involving two jackasses and a board, the film deals with the possibility that these circles are some sort of warning. Mel Gibson and Joaquim Phoenix star. August 12. Director Sam Raimi, a big fan of this weekend's Bill Paxton thriller "Frailty," has already signed on to direct the sequel. "Spiderman" will have to make money fast, because it has only two weeks before summer behemoth "Star Wars" hits theaters. Young heartthrobs Tobey Maguire and Kirsten Dunst fill the roles of Peter Parker and Mary Jane, while brilliant char- acter actor Willem Dafoe dons; the Green Goblin suit. Between "Spiderman" and its sequel,' Raimi plans on finally making the fourth installment in the cult "Evil Dead" series. Groovy. May 3. -AT TA~CK UF T> Most likely this will be the highest grossing independent film of the year. Yes, it's an independent film, don't argue. The thought of Yoda finally busting out his Jedi prowess and Anakin turning to the dark side has fanboys counting down the exact number of minutes until the May 16 release date. The opening box office weekend should be larger than most countries' gross national product. If Lucas is as smart as he is rich, "Episode II" will have a stinger ending, a la "The Empire Strikes Back," to start the early "Episode III" anticipation. May 16. like a poser by waiting till after it inevitable tops every critic's "best of list" at the end of the year. For those who just can't get enough of the spritely minx from Pepsi cans, MTV specials and Trapper Keepers, fear not. To prevent over-exposure, though, the blond's "limit- ed" tour only hits 33 locations, including Detroit on June 24th. The pop princess has shown, time and time again, that she's willing to do just about anything to please the thirteen-year-old girls and 55 year old men who make up her fan base. And admit it, there is not one of you cool enough to get "I'm a Slave 4 U" out of your head once it starts rattlin' 'round in there. After 30 years, more than 20 albums and countless per- sonal reinvention, David Bowie can do what ever he wants. Right now that's releasing an all-star record featur- ing guitar work from Pete Townshend and Dave Grohl, as well as remixes by Moby and French electronica duo, Air. Due on June 1l1th, Heathen is Bowie's first album in three years and his first for Columbia Records. Also the innova- tive rocker has signed on to headline Moby's 2nd annual Area One festival. Although still in the planning stages, the tour should start late this summer and will also include Busta Rhymes. Whohaa! The angriest blonde guy on the planet follows up his fiber-platinum The Marshall Mathers LP with a new CD set to drop June 4. The album, The Eminem Show, is another collaboration with old school Godfather Dr. Dre. How will Eminem play in a world where irony has report- edly collapsed? Will he be able to piss people off now that he has sang a duet with Elton John? Eminem is at his best as an intelligent wordsmith, provocative and creative. At his worst, he makes fun of Christina Aguilera's private parts. Either way, he's still one of the 10 best hip-hop artists in the country. IL, IOUR MTV Po~ - D)I SA.S TER The long-awaited follow-up to The Soft Bulletin, the Flaming Lip's stunning 1999 album is finally slated for a June or July release. Tentatively titled Yoshimi vs. The Pink Robots and produced by frequent collaborator Dave Frid- mann, the record promis- es to be one of the most brilliant, imaginative and just plain weirdest things you have ever heard. Ignore the Lips only at your peril. Buy it when it comes out and avoid looking Debuts nationally April 17 in California and sweep- ing through Michigan on June 11 at The Palace of Auburn Hills, MTV brings together for the first time the kings of pop-punk Blink-182 and Green Day. Brand new emo sensations Jimmy Eat World and Saves the Day are also on tap for divided openers. Both of these ultra-revered punk trailblazers are prodigies of the power of MTV, ironically, for making them popular. But how will the two antagonistic trios fair? A 182-degree convergence of Blink's juvenile rear-ended humor, with Green Day's unapologetically grungy sarcasm - it's the better way to jump-kick your summer. QUEE~NSU THE STONE AGE - oNng r Ihe Dea" QOTSA will release their third album of super heavy alt-metal early this summer, appropriately titled Songs For The Deaf and then hopefully proceed to take over the world. Dave Grohl helps by once again violently abusing a drum kit on all but one-track. England's New Music Express quoted the Foo Fighter as saying, "It's my favorite album that I've ever played drums on. They let me go off on this album like never before. It rocks ten times harder than anything they've ever done." Lis- ten to this man. He knows a thing or two about great records. WEEZER Maladroit Remember when Weezer were tagged slackers? Not anymore. Despite bizarre clashes with their label Gef- fen, Weezer will release Maladroit on May 14th, almost exactly one year after their comeback Green Album. The first single "Dope Nose" is already plowing up modern rock playlists, but it might be awhile before the boys return to Michigan. They take a 13-date survey of the Western states at the end of this month, briefly checkout Japan right as Maladroit hits shelves and then head back into the studio to work on their already-start- ed fifth record, slated for a February 2003 release. THEWHOROERT PLANT TOUR With Lollapalooza not returning untill summer 2003 and the Chris Cornell-fronted version of Rage Against The Machine quitting Ozzfest, music fans are looking a huge rock show to make up the loss. When in doubt, go with the classics. The amazing double bill of Robert Plant and the Who will play on Thursday August 23 at the Palace of Auburn Hills. Watch the ex-Led Zep frontman and the Who's Roger Daltrey duke it out for "Greatest Powerhouse Lead-Singer" honors. See geezers twice your age rock harder than you ever dreamed possible. VANSWARPED TOUR 2002 The Skinny: Pushes off June 21 in Boise, Idaho and culminates Aug. 18 at Comerica Park in Detroit. Skate- punk veterans NOFX and Bad Religion are among the 60 plus sensations in this annualtraveling punk-pil- grimage. The tour is multi-staged, known for its mosh- pits, and plays at gigantic outdoor venues - from Lake Tahoe ski slopes to Boston race-tracks -,all under the sweltering, static sweat of summer. It's simply the near- est comparison to Woodstock, sacred to the young American heart. It's where men and women rip off their shirts and body slam to the tune of skateboards swooshing off half-pipes and megawatts. of despotic punk harmonies as accompaniment. ToM AITS - Alice The toy-piano playing hobo with the voice broken glass is releasing two CDs on May 7. This pair comes after Waits rejuvenated his career with 1999's Gram- my-winning Mule Varia- tions. These acoustic albums are said to be completely different from anything Waits has previously been associat- ed with. He's remained a truly independent artist despite several chances 0 0 0 0 Courtesy of Sony S *