8A - The Michigan Daily - Monday, January 27, 2003 ARTS Inspired by the outlandish memoirs of the man who created the likes of "The Dating Game" and "The Gong Show," George Clooney's directorial debut confesses the life story of Chuck Barris. TV show producer by day, CIA operative in his spare time, Barris claims to have led a life that only some- one with a mind crazy enough to conjure "The Newlywed Game" could have lived. With the help of Sam Rockwell's ("Teenage Mutant Ninja Tur- tles") impressive portrayal of Barris and the writing of Charlie Kaufman ("Adaptation"), Clooney has taken the cult-status autobiography and constructed an imaginative and highly stylized "Confessions of a Dangerous Mind" Opening on a nude and disheveled Barris, the film begins by looking back on how his life became an enveloping force withering continually further from his control. His penchant for success arose more from his coital pangs than any true self-actual- ization driving force. As soon as he realized the sex- ual draw of being a person with power and fame, he made his way into the world of television. Moving up the rankings and finding many interludes of intercourse along the way, he eventually works his way into the executive offices to pitch "The Dating Game" and into the panties of a sexually free and mentally aloof Penny (Drew Barrymore). All the while, Barris also held a pejorative propensity for bar brawls, which led him into the guiding light of omnipresent and omniscient CIA man Jim Byrd (Clooney). Byrd offers him training and an inde- pendent operative posi- tion under his direction, and Barris willingly I accepts. Learning over 30 different ways to kill a man, Barris displays his prodigy-like talent and is given a mission almost immediately. Running under the cover of a chaperone for the winners on "The Dating BARRIS' ME Game," he makes his way around the world on assassination orders andI meets shady coopera- tives like Keeler (Sutger Hauer) and the stunning Patricia (Julia Roberts). Soon, his life becomes a dizzying confusion of hid- den identity, corruption and indeterminism where, as always, nothing is for certain. Obviously influenced by his numerous collaborations in acting for Steven Soderbergh, Clooney's fresh- man effort hints at Soderbergh's style but allows enough room to show off CONFES some of his own ingenuity. Playing A DAN with colors, angles and stylish sets M] shows his directorial sense, although At ual the film sometimes lacks a control-Mad ling tone due to the muddle of tech- niques he manages to dabble in. Mir While commanding some bright per- formances from the mass of talented actors at his Tooth Fairy doesn't deliver in 'Darkness By Josh Neidus Daily Arts Writer a There are horror movies, and then there are horrible movies. "Darkness Falls" can be classified as the latter. What begins as a movie with great potential delivers a waste of an hour and 15 minutes. While numerous scenes will make everyone in the the- ater jump, they are mainly due to the fact that the volume is explosively loud and the lighting is too dark to Fear of the d distinguish the unfolding events. This decibel level also provides a sleep A string deterrent, which is necessary with dia- deaths ensu logue dull enough to lull an insomniac horror movi to rest. The lack of memorable charac- rivals that o: ters or household-named actors is is just as p understandable because movies like might be ex this do more harm to an actor's career biggest cred than anything else. 90210" an However, it should be pointed out only persor that the entire movie is not worth- sense is Mi less. The potential for something dif- during his ferent and exciting comes in the Kyle, soun opening minutes with a story that for his age challenges our preconceived notions obviously do of the Tooth Fairy. One hundred and fifty years ago lived a nice, old lady who would give children a gold coin when they lost a tooth, DARKNESS FALLS appropriately dubbed At Quality 16 and the "Tooth Fairy" and Showcase loved by all. This loveC .b is abandoned when two Columbia children turn up miss- ing, and the Tooth Fairy is blamed. movie, quit Courtesy of Miramax Clooney takes his first stab behind the camera, but steals some of the scenes as a CIA operative. Cur[esy o.oumia dentist taken too far. of inanely predictable ue accompanied by some e "don'ts" whose stupidity f horror spoofs. The acting oor as the dialogue, which .pected from actors whose [its include "Beverly Hills, d "Legally Blonde." The r in the movie with any chael (Lee Cormie), who, first conversation with ds incredibly provocative Kyle's thought process oesn't contend with that of Michael's as he only incessantly repeats, "Stay out of the dark! Stay in the light!" The villain is even less consistent than the bad acting and dialogue. Supposedly, the Tooth Fairy only attacks those who have looked at her, yet throughout the e a few of her victims are EMOIRS BROUGHT TO LIFE BY RYAN LEWIS DAILY ARTS WRITER ble in their exactness. How Clooney portrays them in the film make them stand out as the torch-passing influences for today's lowbrow reality television. Rockwell's skill- ful underplaying of Barris make his character all the more compelling- k** as the distraught founder of these institutions that flaunted the inane But Master Shredder give SSIONS OF desires of the American public. GEROUS Every performance in "Confes- cohorts add a number of IND sions" is what you'd expect from the lant introductions of the ity 16 d high-caliber portfolio of the ensem- ing fulfillments in their re ston and ble. Clooney's supporting role as Aided by a hit list sot Byrd almost outshines the rest of the The Who's "Won't Getl amax cast, but no lack of passion can be sions of a Dangerous Mi found in Roberts or the deeply philo- of Charles Barris and doe sophical acting by Hauer. Somewhat surprisingly, lags in pacing and often1 Barrymore's ditzy hippie-girl portrayal may actually drama and action withou be the most refreshing of her career and one of the Clooney always manages best in the film. Plus, in the manner of Soderbergh, as an ethereal depiction{ .,qmi :a wdrop-in cameo s .e rys past .wn purpose ws. Courtesy of Miramax s us a home. chuckles, and the noncha- main players have satisfy- spective exits. undtrack, front loaded by Fooled Again," "Confes- ind" delves into the claims sn't hold back. At times, it ventures between comedy ut any clear direction, but to pull it back into place of a man uncertain of his She places a curse on the town before being hung, promising to exact her revenge on any child that loses a tooth. Thus ends the potential and begins the 70-plus minutes of predictability and senselessness. Enter Kyle Walsh, a 10-year-old who has just lost his last tooth. After a brief visit from his childhood crush, Caitlin, he tries to fall asleep. His efforts prove fruitless as the Tooth Fairy attacks him, and, unlike his mother, he is lucky enough to escape. The escape is only physical as, 12 years later, Kyle (Chaney Kley) is still haunted by this memory. Oddly enough, Caitlin's younger brother, Michael, is now being terrorized by the Tooth Fairy as he has just lost his last tooth. Caitlin (played as an adult by Emma Caufield) must convince Kyle to help her younger sibling before Michael is considered insane, since he and Kyle are apparently the only two people who have seen the Tooth Fairy and survived. attacked completely by surprise. Sup- posedly, staying in the light equates staying out of harm, but the amount of light that will stop the Tooth Fairy in her murdering tracks wavers uncontrollably and annoyingly. And supposedly, the Tooth Fairy seeks to exact her revenge on the children of Darkness Falls (the title comes not from the impending doom of the dark, but from the town in which the Tooth Fairy lived and has sworn vengeance), but even grown up Kyle, who has moved to Las Vegas, still feels the need to carry an array of flashlights wherever he ventures. So what's next? A movie exposing the Easter Bunny as the greatest bank robber in the world? If movies like this were made better, the fact that they smear the reputation of children's fairytales could be overlooked. How- ever, this is not the case with "Dark- ness Falls'" as the once beloved Tooth Fairy is turned evil in a movie that is just plain awful. disposal, his real triumph exudes through the con- stantly-flowing intrigue and deepening chaos of the film's construction. |e recreat d ar'how&,are-impdcca- A --_. i 0 Tired of being a . 1 Want to be a 9 You've got the business savvy, but things aren't challenging. Well, come join the Business Staff at the Michigan Daily and become an Account Executive for Spring/Summer or Fall/Winter '03/'04. You will sell advertising locally and nationally, manage your own account territory, create ad copy, and earn commission based pay.