ART S The Michigan Daily - Tuesday, September 2, 2003 -11A Swo fford gives an inside look at the Marine family By All Ahmad For the Daily The many faces ofJennifer Garner By Katie Marie Gates Daily TV/New Media Editor DVD REVI EW The average college student can hardly imagine receiving an offer to work for the CIA, but Sydney Bristow (Jennifer Garner) is far from average. She speaks a dozen languages and sports even more varied hairstyles. With impeccable instincts, she runs, Anthony's Swofford's "Jarhead: A Marine's Chroni- cle of the Gulf War and Other Battles" is about the process of becoming and the practice of living as a Marine. The cover image of a lone Marine watching burning oil wells is telling: Here, the gulf warr mainly acts as the back- ground for a story about the Marines, both as indi- viduals and as a group. Swofford offers a poignant, honest and sometimes disconcerting d thM depiction of the Marine a Corps, commenting on the fraternal order of soldiers who became part of a tra- dition that itself became an indelible part of who they are and who they SWOFFORD wanted to be. Swofford pulls no punches, recalling not only the daily humiliations and frustrations of being a Marine but also the related lows of his personal life, thus revealing a vulnerable side with which readers can readily empathize. "Jarhead" is very readable, because Swofford writes with a candor and honesty that makes his own charac- ter quite likeable. Indeed, sometimes one wishes he had held something back, perhaps keeping some of the sadder incidents to himself. To read how Swofford, motivated by fear of an unknown war and despair over she fights, she makes grown men cry and she man- ages to return home each time unscathed. After seven years of Alias: The Complete First Season Buena Vista ence hoping the storylines will seem more realistic. His jump from the angst of "Felicity" to the action of "Alias" is astonishing. At any rate, watching Golden Globe winner Jennifer Garner run around in ridiculous costumes fighting for God-knows-what can be entertaining and thrilling. Presented in Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound and widescreen for- mat, "Alias" plays more like a movie than a television show. The DVD set mimics that idea with more special features than most other television dramas. Abrams and Garner provide the conventional audio commentaries on the first episode and director Michael Bonvillain, producer Sarah Caplan and creator Ken Olin speak over the second. The former is more interesting while both describe the motives behind each scene and humorous tales from filming. The true treasures of this set are on the sixth disc where lively audio commentary by eight cast members is supplied for the last episode and bonus features are bountiful. They include a brief gag reel montage, six deleted scenes, an interesting ten- minute stunt documentary, an exten- sive pilot production diary and various commercials for past episodes, an upcoming video game working for a covert CIA branch, she finally tells her fiancee of her involve- ment in spy operations. When he is killed, Sydney discovers the people she works for are not the good guys after all. Now, her only chance is to report the enemy organization, SD6, to the real CIA. Thus, the young super spy begins her life as a double agent. The first season of ABC's "Alias," now available on a six disc DVD set, follows our heroine through one far- fetched and often confusing, situation after another. Perhaps creator J.J. Abrams intentionally baffles the audi- and the second season DVD. While the premise is far from realis- tic, even absurd, as Abrams comments, this impressive set amply matches the above average heroine of "Alias." It is a worthwhile watch for first-time viewers and will become a favorite to fans who long for the exciting life of agent Sydney Bristow. Show: *** Picture/Sound: ***i Features: ****i Rock over London, rock on Heaven an unfaithful woman, placed an M- 16 in his mouth, seconds away from a suicide but was saved by a fellow Marine and miles of "lap therapy" in the Saudi Arabian desert is to receive a small window into life in the Corps. It is a pleas- ure to read such an honest account, and yet sometimes it feels like an almost guilty one. Swofford makes the admittedly cliche observation that a combat Jarhead: A Marine's Chronicle of the Gulf War and Other Battles By Anthony Swofford Scribner his old unit, most notably the funeral of a comrade killed in a car accident, begin with drunkenness and frequently end in violence. The bond between the Marines is self-fulfilling and circular: Brotherhood is not just about what is shared between fellow Marines; it is also about how this bond pushes them away from everyone else. To the outsider most familiar with the Marine Corps from sanitized images of almost-too-young Marines walking down Iraqi streets, "Jarhead" gives the reader some sense for that part of military life that will likely never make it into the news cycle. And yet it is the most lasting part of the experience for the soldiers actually involved. The effect of the experience never fully wears off; in an April Slate magazine article, Swofford wrote of the experience of seeing his old training ground in San Diego after more than a decade: "I cried for the boy I once was and for the Marines who died in the last few days, and their families, and their brother Marines who might at this moment be fighting close quarters. The Marine Corps breaks my fucking heart. I still love it and hate it." At its essence, Swofford's book is about both the physical experience of being a Marine and the emo- tional burden of remaining part of the corps, and "Jarhead" gives us some sense for the depth and nature of this defining bond. By Todd Weiser Daily Arts Editor schizophrenic had a whole legion of indie followers hum- ming the words to "Rock N' Roll McDonald's" and "I Wupped Batman's Ass." In early June, Willis was rushed to the hospital with inter- nal bleeding. News slowly hit the Internet. The little blurbs that appeared on music websites could have easily registered as non-stories, but a quiet yet loyal fan base passionately responded on message boards, like the one on Punknews.org, and with get-well cards to the hospital. The online sentiments were mixed in with the perplexed rants of non-Willis fans, lost in their attempts to understand how others could care so much for an artist whose "every song sounds the same." While a novelty act to most, Willis' two-minute rants were perfectly suited for the Napster era, providing the quick mindless bursts of riotous joy that fit right into any playlist. Standing six-feet five-inches tall and weighing over 300 pounds, Willis never played the part of rock 'n roll god, but always served as a reminder of the joys of pure personal rock expression. . Often labeled as an "Outsider Artist," the debate has raged for years about whether Willis' fans laughed with or at him, but the singer's beloved habit of distributing handshakes and headbutts to anybody who was willing showed that Wesley had a real affection for the people who liked his music. Jello Biafra's Alternative Tentacles label will release Willis' "Greatest Hits Vol.3" on October 7th. "Rock over London, Rock on Chicago." unit is like a family, but then adds the important insight that "the best unit works like a dysfunctional family, and the ways and means of dysfunction are also the ways and means of survival." Preparing for war means suppressing one instinct for another, replacing fear, doubt and youth with machismo, over- confidence and fraternity. However, this change is not without costs; after the war there is a sense of no longer belonging to a group and rejection by society. These themes underlie many of the civilian experi- ences of Swofford's Marine Corps friends and help to explain why so many of the post-war reunions with WESLEY WILLIS 1963-2003 Wesley Willis, the '90s wonder of rock fanaticism and comic book envy with a simplistic approach to guitar play- ing and lyrics, died last Thursday from complications of chronic myelogenous leukemia. Willis never rose above his underground cult status, but thanks to some high profile fans (Jello Biafra, Smashing Pumpkins, Pearl Jam) and a much publicized record deal with Rick Rubin's American Recordings, the one-time homeless man and certifiable The Office of the Registrar has Moved! Making World-Class Physicians & Veterinarians Today, For Tomorrow's World Programs to meet the needs of high school and college graduates. More than a half century old well-recognized and established European medical and veterinary universities. * Programs recognized by the National Committee on Medical Education, Accreditation, and the U.S. Department of Education. " 100% financial aid is available. The U.S. government provides subsidized loans to qualified students in our programs. " Approved by New York Medical Education Board for clinical training in the state of New York. (A state with a high number of residency positions.) * Medical and veterinary clinical clerkships/training in the USA. 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