U A *tganllad chigandaily.cor or@richigandaily.com 5 By Todd Weiser Daily Arts Editor The common tragedies of war and romance are all-too often the subject of literature and cinema. It's just plain easy to produce a tear-jerking plotline that mixes the brutality of battle with the heart-breaking distance of destined lovers. "The Odyssey" (the Homer THE HOTTEST PICKS IN ENTERTAINMENT FROM A DAILY ARTS WRITER S Crooked Fingers - The band, not the congenital defect. Their lat- est, Red Devil Dawn, might be the best unsung album of 2003. Oh. Wait. Well, it definitely isn't now. Rats. poem, not the Armand Assante TV movie) is mostly to blame for this classic storytelling device, yet"The Odyssey" also lends its struc- Cold Mountain At Showcase, Quality 16 and Madstone Miramax ture to the epic Civil War love story of Anthony Minghella's "Cold Moun- tain." And that's a good thing on this occasion. Like his Oscar-winning "The Eng- lish Patient," Minghella finds his material in a best-selling novel of trag- ic proportions (this time in the work of Charles Frazier) and then assumes the None of what you see is American in this Civil War tale. perfect perspective that makes for classic Hol- lywood romance. Par- tially drawing from his ' oNA N "Patient" follow-up - the underrated style of MINGHELLA'S EPIC CAST DEL the disturbing "The Talented Mr. Ripley" - for the casting couch, "Mountain" fly-by cameos. and Union-p one-ups "Patient" in its ensemble. In The cameos make the movie. actor creating fact, the talent assembled here rivals While the Inman-Ada romantic acters with th that of any motion picture of the past angle remains vital enough to Ada's home five years (key word being talent, and never fall below the audience's the cliched w not just star status). threshold of caring, it also goes grubbing ba Inman ("Ripley" co-star Jude Law) entirely by the book, never achiev- Winstone, "S calls Cold Mountain in North Caroli- ing that quality of a once-in-a-life- (Charlie Hu na his home and a brief, repressed time love that dominated the clared"). Wi courtship with the preacher's daughter superior romantics of "The English somehow over Ada Monroe (Nicole Kidman) prel- Patient." With Inman deserting a overdone thea udes his call to the North-South battle- Confederate hospital for the long grace, both li fields. Through wartime letters, the road back to Cold Mountain, a flur- is Renee Zel1V two share more words on paper than ry of characters (and character Ruby Thewes. they ever exchanged face to face. Law actors) greet him on his journey. In Zellweger's and Kidman more than fit their Peo- isolated sequences, Philip Seymour the film wit: ple's "50 Most Beautiful People" roles Hoffman's lascivious reverend, With the dea with each displaying a solid fore- Veasey, and Natalie Portman's for- could not su ground of gorgeousness and shy sexu- lorn widow, Sara, provide Inman's knowledge of ality that Minghella surrounds with odyssey with saw-stealing laughs Mountain" Courtesy of Miramax COP IVERS ChristianAnswers.net - If you've ever caught yourself wonder- ing not only what Jesus would do, but also which books He'd read and movies He'd watch, just point your browser to christianan- swers. net. Warning: May lead to total cognitive collapse when used as directed. The "Big Fish" soundtrack - Danny Elfman's original score plus Buddy Holly, The Allman Brothers, Canned Heat and Pearl Jam equals one elated Daily Arts writer. "Blind Date" on the WB - Watching this daytime WB staple is a lot like having mad cow disease: It eats your brain from the inside, but at least you go down laughing. And twitching. Jon Stewart - Long before Newsweek told us to keep our collective eye on this dreamy fake newsman, Stewart was daz- zling "Daily Show" disciples with his bril- liant political satire. If only he'd run for president. Of the world. Sigh. Courtesy of Comedy Central n S O T "she's like a F'rappucino." E E L S HO RTS Cheesy lines aren't the only foul ideas that appear in the remake of the l980's "Can't' Buy Me Love."' Breyer LOVE DON'T COST A THING took the already corny ideathat a'loser AT SHOWCASE guy (Nick Cannon) could pay off a WARNER BROS. popular girl (Christina Milian) to help him rule the school with coolness and Now that Starbucks has invaded smothered it with overused stereo- every street corner, it's taking over the types of popularity and dorkiness. movies as well. We've reached that The only savior of the fim is Steve day and age when there are no more Harvey. His embarrassing father-and- original adjectives for screenwriters to son talks provide laughs, but not use to compliment the ladies. "Love enough for the already drawn out two Don't Cost A Thing' writer/director -hour-long film * Troy Breyer goes low enough to write JernnieAdler illaging sadness, each g depths to their char- he blink of an eye. stand finds her fighting oman-wanting, money- ddies of Teague (Ray exy Beast") and Bosie nnam, TV's "Unde- instone and Hunnam =come silly dialogue and irics, but the true saving terally and figuratively, weger's talkative tomboy ball of energy injects I an unexpected jolt. ath of her father, Ada rvive without Ruby's the rugged, and "Cold would not survive a Curtesy o Miramax Let's put him in a pot. viewer's patience without the scene- stealing Zellweger. There is more joy in watching Ruby's buried tender- ness unearthed than the remote lovers reunited. This observation reveals the film's failure and also its greatest asset. U U elcome to _o0ege & ' Resrve oulr books @ Irchscon or wwwJmi ook Com It's simple and hassle free.. Buy USED books and save 25%! 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