The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com Friday, January 15, 2010 - 5 The Michigan Daily - michigandailycam Friday, January15, 2010 - 5 Bombastic 'Black' PHOTOS COURT ESY OF DEF JAM/ROCK A FE LLA "I'm gonna let you finish, but the arts section is the best section of The Michigan Daily of all time." Kanye's stories By NICK COSTON Daily Arts Writer In 1971, Melvin Van Peebles made "Sweet Sweetback's Baa- dasssss Song" as an indi- rect response to Sidney Black Poitier's per- formance in Dynamite 1967's "GuessS Wh' a- Saturday at Who's Com- the State ing to Dinner." While the Apparition '60s and '70s introduced more prominent roles for black actors, many like Van Peebles felt their charac- terizations were conciliatory, subservient and emasculated. With the graphic violence and explicit sexuality of "Sweet- back," Van Peebles obliterated the industry's prevalent "ebony saint" image and created a new genre of film: blaxploita- tion. Apart from a big-budget Samuel L. Jackson remake of "Shaft" in 2000, blaxploitation has been dormant for nearly 30 years. Or rather, it was. But not anymore. Enter "Black Dynamite," a film so perfect in its recollec- tion of movies like "Shaft" and "Sweetback" that Van Peebles himself would swear it's been in a vault since 1975. "Dyna- mite" is in fact the brainchild of novice director Scott Sand- ers and screenwriter Michael Jai White ("The Dark Knight"), who also has the starring role. The collaboration results in a truly uproarious parody. Like Van Peebles before him, White's career preceding his blaxploitation debut was mired in anonymity. Despite a star- ring turn in 1997's "Spawn," audienc glimpse artistf he's im titular mite." Yes, name, quality one wh like ast mite h Jimmy, Jimmy drug d Man" s ful ku BlackD boobsa Corn (T boozled "Confe and aN namedc Se an All t to thei if they names t "Black ing in; straigh scene I ously, s they w but wh "FirstI slapped cabine of a sm do just who th always. absurd ces have only caught gain the most enjoyment. es of the trained martial Adding to the film's humor from Connecticut. But are its backward technical ipossible to miss as the achievements and attention hero of "Black Dyna- to subtle details. Poorly devel- oped film, equipment creeping Black Dynamite is his into shots and off-kilter stag- not just his explosive ingare all unintentional staples , and he's not the only of blaxploitation's greatest rose given name sounds entries, and "Black Dynamite" picy licorice. Black Dyna- employs them to terrific come- as a little brother named dir effect. but not for very long; In one scene, as Black Dyna- 's murder at the hands of mite delivers an impassioned ealers working for "The speech, the boom microphone pur our hero into venge- lurks into the frame, settling ing-fu action. Joining right next to his forehead as )ynamite on his quest for he glares at it in annoyance. and revenge are Cream Sanders reached deep into Tommy Davidson, "Bam- the annals of poor filmmak- d"), Kotex (John Salley, ing by shooting the entire film ssions of a Shopaholic") on Super 16 Color Reversal whole slew of strangely Kodak film stock. Black Dyna- companions. mite himself enters every scene accompanied by a musical cho- rus blaring his name. It's possible to be offended by "Black Dynamite." The fact that 1dkregeugeuS the film could be mistaken for a d re ge, genuine relic of blaxploitation's golden age is not due simply to the accuracy of its costume :hese characters answer department or its visual cues. r ridiculous handles as Women's bare breasts are wan- were perfectly normal ton and without reason. Cream to have. It's what makes Corn is the silver screen's most Dynamite" so unrelent- politically incorrect gay man its hilarity - the rigidly since Serge from "Beverly Hills t face worn in every Cop." None of these come across by each character. Obvi- as mean-spirited, but may the Sanders and White knew more culturally sensitive viewer 'ere making a silly film, be warned. en Black Dynamite says, Every comedy tries to be Lady, I'm sorry I pimp funny. It takes a unique com- d you into that china edy to make that effort look t" without even a hint accidental. "Black Dynamite" ile, it's impossible not to has the requisite jive to stand that. Admittedly, those tall among its blaxploitation rink things like this are predecessors, but its true value funny (and not just as an shines in its preposterous sense list change of pace) will of humor. West is all arrogance, no insight on his DVD performance from 'VH1 Storytellers' By SASHA RESENDE Daily Arts Writer Kanye West's persona rests upon his legendary ego. Long before the Chicago-bred artist infamouslystole the mic from the dainty *** Taylor Swift, West wan recognized Kanye Wvest for his pompous, VH1 post-Katrina Bush- Storytellers bashing bravado. Def Jam/ This arrogance is Rock A Fella as much a part of Releases Jan.19 West's image as his affinity for shutter shades and use of Auto-Tune. During a recent "VH1 Storytell- ers" live performance, now available as a CD/DVD combination, West rec- ognized his mixed public perception and all the negative press. But rather than apologize for this impression, "Storytellers" reaffirms West's posi- tion as the King of Swagger. "I real- ize I make some mistakes," he admits, "but I grow from them." The "Storytellers" series is VH1's attempt at recreating MTV's once- popular "Unplugged" franchise. Instead of showcasing a featured art- ist's acoustic prowess, the VH1 series allows its guests to preface their per- formances with an intimate explana- tion of the personal significance of their work. Recent guests include acts as disparate as Pearl Jam, Coldplay and Snoop Dogg. Refusing to conform, West's per- formance fails to follow the tradition- al format. Rather than give away the secrets behind 808s & Heartbreak's bigger hits, West uses the forum to freely broadcast his thoughts, offer- ing commentary on everything from "spoiled little L.A. girls" to his morbid desire to murder the plastic surgeon responsible for his mother's prema- ture death. At one point, West admits the forum's original purpose, saying, "I know I'm, like, supposed to talk about what some of these songs mean ... but some of these things are too serious." While it's understand- ably difficult for an artist to dissect his work's inner meaning under the glare of the camera, endlessly reverting to trash-talking to avoid such introspection quickly gets old. It could be argued that a live Kanye show wouldn't be complete without such free-flowing remarks, but "Sto- rytellers" would have benefited from more insight into the music and less arrogant spontaneity. West's original "Storytellers" per- formance clocked in at over three hours, but the broadcast version was pared down to 90 minutes. The CD/ DVD combination also cuts some songs, including West's rendition of "Love Lockdown." Despite these edits, this live act will surely satisfy West fans, especially those who favor his later discs over his earlier efforts. The majority of the setlist covers the Graduation and 808saEt Heartbreak era, with lively versions of "Flash- ing Lights" and "Stronger." West's reworking of "Amazing," off his mostS ~Storyt~V recent record, is one of the album's more engaging cuts, clocking in at nearly nine minutes and offeringzany off-the-wall analysis. The collection of selected songs reaffirms the artist's appeal, with plenty of infectious beats and many of his more popular efforts. While the performance may have benefited from the inclusion of ear- lier West tracks, it seems apt that the star chose to appease his fans with his more recent songs. By offering an engaging live per- formance packed with plenty of recent hits, West's "Storytellers" appearance is a must-have for any Kanye enthusiast. While it lacks true artistic engagement, the DVD of the performance still offers a live rework- ing of some of his most thrilling jams, providing fans with a morsel of enter- tainment until his next full-length release. And though West deviates from the show's intended format, such trans- gressions are fully expected from the egoist. Hopefully in the coming years, West will mature beyond such a stale persona and finally reveal theinner- workings behind some of the era's catchiest hits. All glitz and no glamor as 'Nine' goes big screen By EMILY BOUDREAU . Daily Arts Writer The plot of "Nine" gets swal- lowed whole by its bright col- ors, flashy costumes and * horrifically bad songs. Nine Supposedly, it tells the story At Showcase of a washed- The Weinstein out-but-once- Company great director, Guido Contini (Daniel Day-Lew- is, "There Will be Blood"). Con- tini is trying to make an epic Italian movie while avoiding the paparazzi and sorting out the tangled relationships with the women in his life. Really though, it seems like Day-Lewis just smokes a lot of cigarettes while all the women prance around in bejeweled lingerie. The film is an adaptation of the Broadway musical, which is an adaptation of Federico Fell- ini's "8 1/z." Somewhere in the production process, a crucial element must have been lost, because "Nine" has no visible spark on screen. Unlike many other adapted musical films like "Chicago," "Nine" doesn't have much of a plot, the characters aren't relatable or entertaining and the songs don't make any- one want to get up and dance through the aisles of the theater. The cast, however, is immensely talented. Day-Lew- is, Marion Cotillard ("Pub- lic Enemies"), Penelope Cruz ("Vicki Christina Barcelona") and Judi Dench ("Quantum of Solace") can all sing and act, but what they say and do in "Nine" still comes across as flat and boring. They need a script that provides enough room for their talent. It's like when Meryl Streep decided to take her role in "Mamma Mia": These actors can make sophisticated movies, there's no need to try to throw something like "High School Musical" on the resume. Perhaps it would have helped if the songs they were forced to sing were actually catchy. Or, even if each song consisted of more than a lot of humming and wailing Guido's name over and over again, conjuring up images of the characters from "Jersey Shore" rather than Day-Lewis's character. Musicals should have songs that move and add to the plot, but the majority of the songs in "Nine" have nothingto dowith what's going on in the story. Kate Hudson ("Bride Wars"), who playsa reporter inthe film, sings about skinny ties, hip cof- fee bars and men wearing dark sunglasses in a song devoted to Italian style. Fellini's films cap- ture the very essence of what Hudson tries to sing about, but "Nine" has none of their effort- less elegance. In "8 a," the characters glide across the scene impeccably dressed in black and white attire. "Nine," by compari- son, is chaotic and gaudy. "Nine" tries to borrow a lot from "8 1/a," especially when a young Guido encoun- ters the Saraghina (Fergie of Black Eyed Peas) - the scene is essentially the same as it was in the original film, except Fergie does a raunchy dance A Vegas-esque take on chic 1960s Italy. with a tambourine. Perhaps the problem is that many consider "8 i/2" an artistic masterpiece, and "Nine" is not interested in preserving this reputa- tion. Instead, "Nine" hopes to entertain. Director Rob Mar- shall's ("Chicago") occasional attempts to recreate pieces of "8 1/2" are admirable, but lack tasteful freshness. He fails to embody the chic Italy of the 1960s, and instead ends up somewhere between a flamboy- ant Broadway production and a tacky Las Vegas show. A homemade attempt at celebreality By ROBERT SOAVE Daily Arts Writer VH1's newest addition to its "celebreality" TV block seems to further stretch the definition of what constitutes a celebrity. While Frank the the channel's other VH1 real- EFtertainer in ity dating shows a Basement typically fea- ture stars with fair at least some Sundays at name recogni- 8 p.m. tion, the leading 981 man of "Frank the Entertainer in a Basement Affair," Frank Mar- esca, has no claim to fame beside his previous contestancy on other VH1 reality programming. His debatable celebrity status is perhaps most evi- dent in the pilot episode, in which Maresca eliminates one of the girls vying for his affection because she doesn't seem to know who he is. The premise of "Basement" is similar to most other VH1 dating shows - 15 women compete for Maresca's heart by participating in challenges and going on dates with him. The twist: Maresca lives in his parents' basement, and thus his par- ents - but mainly his stereotypical overbearing Italian mother - have a say in who stays and who goes. The problem is that for a lead man boasting the moniker "Frank the Entertainer," Maresca just isn't very entertaining. Or likeable, for that matter. His pitch to viewers is that he just can't catch a break, having lost on "I Love New York," "I Love Money" and "I Love Money 2." And because he can't win on a VHL reality show, he's forced to live in the basement of his parents' house (comfortably, at that). It might seem that get- ting his own reality show would silence Maresca's whining. Instead, he complains incessantly about his mother's involvement and that the whole thing is taking place in his family home instead of a luxurious mansion. Maresca is such a loserthat it's impossible to do much more than occasionally laugh at him out of pity. The question of whether Maresca will finally meet a girl and move out of the home overwhelms the show so completely that it detracts from the romantic/sexual focus common to most dating shows. Instead of wondering and waiting for Maresca to hook up with someone, the only question is whether or not such-and- such contestant will enable Maresca to move away from home. While this departure makes "Basement" some- what unique among dating shows, it doesn't make for especially com- pelling TV, and Maresca just comes across as even more pathetic. But though Maresca and his mother are each irritating in their own right, they improve slightly when interacting together. The elimination phase, when Maresca's mother predicts which girl he is going to kick off - of course, object- ing to the choice - is arguably the Frankly, we just don't give a damn. most engaging moment. And while they bicker constantly, it's pretty clear that underneath the repeti- tive mantra of "Frank needs to move out," he and his parents love and respect each other. "Frank the Entertainer in a Base- ment Affair" may actually be more genuine than most of VHI's reality programming. But while the family dynamic somewhat mitigates the show's shortcomings, it doesn't offer a reason to keep watching. Even in 1960s Italy,'Single Ladies' was a dance sensation.