8 - The Michigan Daily - Tuesday, September 12, 2006 'Idlewild' offers nothing new By Anthony Baber Daily Arts Writer 4 4 4 THE BOSTON CONSULTING GROUP zg a '' i ITHE COMPLEXITY OF A PROBLEM DISAPPEARS IN THE SIMPLICITY OF THE SOLUTION. BCG invites the Class of 2007 to our Fall Presentation Wednesday, September 13, 2006 at 5:00 p.m. Michigan Union, Ballroom ALL MAJORS W4ELCOME BCG M U S C REFV IE W in As dominant and innova- tive forces in Atlanta hip hop, Big Boi and Andre 3000 have personified themselves as the Southernplayalistic group Out- kast. But in recent years they haven't OutkaSt been seen Idlewild anywhere La Face near each other, with the exception of the dual album Speakerboxxx/The Love Below on which they did their own thing on two solo efforts under the umbrella of one album. Their last true collaboration was 1998's equally stunning Aquemini (Stankonia is ques- tionable). Since then, the two have pur- sued different careers as Big Boi, the patriarchal head of Pur- ple Ribbon, and Andre Benja- min, the dextrous star of the big screen. With the release of their new film "Idlewild" comes an album of the same name, with the two boys together again as Outkast. Idlewild the album flows as a cultural odyssey through ragtime, smoothly sung R&B and bass-heavy hip hop, sup- plemented by the R&B styl- ings of Purple Ribbon artists Sleepy Brown, Scar and Janelle Monae, particularly in the col- orful, big-band single "Morris Brown." Throughout, both artists pose the question of whether the group is still together. In "Life Is Like A Musical," talking about making plans before col- laborating on another song, Dre says, "Say no matter what goes down we stand strong / 'Cause ain't nothin' changed." But in "The Train," Big Boi goes on to claim that "The second hand won't never stop and nei- ther will the clock / That nigga Big still hit the stage by him- self and still rock," obviously acknowledging that though he's done well with his partner, he can do fine by himself. But words don't always equal Dismissab 'Invincibk By Ted Chen Daily Arts Writer A A Prohibition. But with slick beats. action. There are only two songs where they perform together. The group no longer has the chemistry that produced classic Southern hits like "Elevators (Me & You)" and "So Fresh, So Clean." Their styles have now reached opposite poles. Not only is the teamwork lacking, but the album also drags, with an eight-minute ending that should've been cut to three. , Andre 3000's bizarre style, coupled with a jazz/blues- based premise, is particularly hard to appreciate on songs like "When I Look In Your Eyes" and "Idlewild Blue." His attempt at reinventing ragtime flops in 2006, when the beats and sounds of today's modern hip hop rule the airwaves. Though the ATLiens are firmly established in the hip- hop industry as a duo, the pair should think about sticking to their own projects in the future. Idlewild, though not a soundtrack for the film, serves as an accompaniment to the big-screen project. It attempts to stand alone as an album, but without knowledge of the film it's easily misunderstood. Many of the film's characters appear in the album's interludes, and some songs, including "PJ & Rooster," have Andre 3000 and Big Boi appearing in character. Other movie-cameos-turned- album cameos are Macy Gray, as Taffy in "Greatest Show On Earth," and clips of dialogue featuring Terrence Howard and Malinda Williams. Although somewhat relevant, these vocal cuts tend to slow the pace of the album, and were better off left on the cutting-room floor. Sports movies are nothing if not predict- able. Surprises aren't even in the playbook. So to viewers who like knowing how movies end, "Invincible" might fit the bill. But for the Invincible rest of us, the film is just be At the Showcase another brick in a football and Quality 16 movie marathon. Disney "Invincible" is the account of real-life Philadelphia Eagles receiver Vince Papale who rose from part- time bartender to NFL star status in the late '70s. Mark Wahlberg ("The Italian Job") convincingly plays the 30-year-old Papale, a football fan from south Philadelphia with financial struggles and an absent wife - in other words, without much to hope for. Papale's saving grace arrives in the form of Dick Vermeil (Greg Kinnear, "We Were Sol- diers"), new head coach of the Philadelphia Eagles. Hoping to revamp his club, Vermeil holds open tryouts to non-professionals, and the movie quickly unfolds as Papale's one-man jour- ney from runt to runner. But all movies suffer when events become too predictable. When Papale struggles with roster selection or expressing his feelings to Janet (Eliz- abeth Banks, "Catch Me If You Can"), everyone knows that he won't possibly be kicked off the team or rejected by the girl. The film belabors the obvious when more screen time could've been devoted to the development of supporting characters and team dynamics. Sadly, "Invincible" hardly bothers with char- acters other than Papale. There are no indica- tions of team spirit - everyone just seems to be waiting around for Papale's magic to appear. Even off the field, Papale's many drinking pals are spread too thin for any kind of emotional attachment. And left ,with the lead and most I I look super sweet. of the screen time, Wahlberg doesn't push his acting ability. He looks as though he's simply going through the motions - are his stone-cold expressions supposed to conceal some inner tur- moil? Wahlberg doesn't make that clear enough, settling for bland frowns of stress and heavy grunting on the field. Good marketing sense ensures that "Invincible" arrived on the first kick of the football season, and it appropriately screams football in every scene. If a chara.'ter isn't talking about football, they're playing it. Actual game footage is well execut- ed, with some inevitable slow-motion sequences mixed in for maximum crunch effect. But even good football can't save the film from weak acting and a narrowly-focused plot. "Invin- cible" may be about Papale's life, but there is too much focus on him. Success in life (and in film) doesn't come from one man alone. 'I JUSTIN Continued from page 5 admires. And it doesn't make him David Byrne, but on Future- sex Timberlake leans toward the experimental. "Sexy Ladies - Let Me Talk To You" serves as a prelude for "My Love," ref- erencing the latter in a quirky call-and-response with Tim- baland over light, clattering percussion, while the "Love- Stoned" interlude and its stut- ter-stop beat makes way for the moody, quasi-indietronica of "I Think She Knows." But when Futuresex fails, it trips in embarrassing fash- ion. Timberlake has too much potential and name-brand help to be choosing staid weepers. "Losing My Way" - with Tim- berlake playing a washed-up crack addict - is simply out of place next to cuts featuring Three 6 Mafia ("Chop Me Up," one of the album's weakest) and semi-homoerotic Justin/Timba- land sex banter. Timberlake is currently the best at doing what he's doing - dancing, hitting that bird- song falsetto and foraying into movies without being laughed out of the park. It's impossible not to judge him or desperately search for one of his contempo- raries that's qualified to show him up. But what's scary is that there's no one else around him at that same level. That might not be so much a sign of his ability as a consummate enter- tainer/performer but an alert that we're seriously lacking quality pop music. Futuresex isn't the Thriller follow-up to his Off the Wall (Justified). Maybe that's a far stretch of an analogy to make. But from now on, Timberlake is going to have to face up to these standards. The kid's not only competing with Usher anymore.