6A - Wednesday, September 8, 2010 The Michigan Daily - michigandailycom .
achete' slices for slicing's sake"
Danny Trejo has a thing for
blades in wild and violent
action flick
By TIMOTHY RABB
DailyArts Writer
Most of us would likely agree the most
absurd entries in the modern "B-movie" tra-
dition are those pretending
to be so much more than *
what their shallow content
suggests. Critics have been M
complaining for years that
films that once bore the At Quality 16
definitive marks of B-movie- and Rave
dom - namely, shamelessly 20th Century Fox
shoddy production values -
have undergone a grotesque
transformation into the well funded, polished
blockbuster drivel of today.
Fortunately, a timely double feature titled
"Grindhouse" (directed by Quentin Tarantino
and Robert Rodriguez) was precisely the film
fans of a violent, blood-spattered exploita-
tion film genre had been waiting for. It set in
motion a new wave of appreciation for a gritty
form of entertainment, a medium that seemed
lost when mainstream Hollywood reinvented
it for monetary gain. Rest assured the true
B-movies of yesterday are back with a ven-
geance, particularly if Machete Cortez (Danny
Trejo, "Con Air") has anything to say about it.
"Machete" is a politically fueled thriller
about an ex-Federale whose penchant for
sharp objects and brutal manner of dealing
with evil men will have right-wing moralists
and immigration officials talking for the next
decade, and rightly so. Machete has stunning
pros and crippling cons, but throughout all the
chaos, it never once gives us the impression
that it takes itself seriously; for that alone, it
deserves a measure of our approval.
As for any perceived political or racial moti-
vations, there are none in reality. It's simply
the good old Tarantino formula appropriated
by Rodriguez: Take an exploited demograph-
ic, give them omnipotent strength, turn them
against their aggressors and watch the fire-
works. It's a work of paracinema that will both
offend and disgust, but it somehow manages
a successful combination of the glamorized,
crowd-friendly violence that pervades Holly-
wood and the downright sadism of films like
"I Spit on Your Grave."
"Machete" loses points for its extreme sac-
rilege that's devoid of humor and serves no
See MACHETE, Page 7A
"Act now and get the complete set for only four easy payments of $9.95!"
A ballet biopic to make you bawl
By CARLY STEINBERGER
DailyArts Writer
Although at times rivet-
ing, "Mao's Last Dancer" is
riddled with
sentimental,
gratuitously
melodramatic s
moments. The
story alone is Danw&
what makes At the
the movie tol- Michigan
erable, coun- Godwyn
terbalancing
the over-the-
top artistic vision.
"Mao's Last Dancer" is the
story of Li Cunxin, a Chinese
ballet dancer with peasant roots
who receives the opportunity to
dance in America in the 1980s.
-The film is adapted from Li's
autobiography and directed
by Bruce Beresford ("Driving
Miss Daisy"): Upon his arrival
in Houston, Li wishes to main-
tain his Maoist beliefs, but he
quickly and happily gets sucked
into an American lifestyle of
liberal spending and free atti-
tude. Throughout the rest of the
film, Li struggles to find a bal-
ance between these two distinct
worlds.
There's no denying that
"Dancer" is entertaining, as
it's a recreation of a very com-
pelling story. The film does an
especially good job at juxtapos-
ing '80s China and '80s Texas.
The dancing in the film is also
quite beautiful; it seizes audi-
ences and transports them to a
different kind of theater, mak-
ing them feel like they're watch-
ing a real ballet.
Newcomer Chi Cao does a
convincing job of playing Li. A
leader at the Birmingham Royal
Ballet Company, Cao dances
the part of Li with elegance.
He even manages to deliver a
solid performance outside of
the dancing, believable as the
naive, abashed Chinese peasant
experiencing the culture of the
United States for the first time.
But along with the intrigue,
the film has a few too many
senselessly sappy moments.
When Li dances in front of an
audience in Houston for the first
time, he freezes up just as he's
about to begin, and has a dra-
matic flashback to his childhood
in China that's obviously trying
to evoke an emotional reaction.
This moment, like many others
in the movie, simply feels too
contrived.
The film begs its viewers to
tear up. Take the moment near
the end when Li's parents come
to America to see their son per-
form professionally for the first
time. After he finishes danc-
ing, his parents are escorted
on stage, whereupon the family
cries incessantly and Li collaps-
Culture clash
and crying
abound in
'Last Dancer'
es to the ground. Regardless
of whether this moment was
included in Li's autobiography,
it should have been omitted or
portrayed in a different man-
ner in the film. As presented,
it feels grossly affected and
schmaltzy.
"Mao's Last Dancer" is worth
at least one viewing; Li Cunxin's
true story definitely holds atten-
tion. But after that, one may find
it too corny to bear.
YOU KNOW
WHAT THEY
SAY ABOUT "
DAILY ARTS
WRITERS...
BIG SHOES.
CAN YOU FILL
THEM?
E-mai joinats@umich.edu for
information on applying to Daily Arts.
America's Next Mao's Last Dancer.
RELEASE DATE- Wednesday, September 8,2010
Los Angeles Times Daily Crossword Puzzle
Edited by Rich Norris and Joyce Nichols Lewis
ACROSS DOWN 37 Begs to differ 47 Pan-fries
1 Bit ofcat chat 1 Kate of "We Are 39 Jackie's "O" 49 Prayer beads
5 Phobia Marshall" 40 Sloth, for one 52 Trojan War king
10 Cell signal r 2Airline to Ben- 41 Price indicator 55 Brand
stength 3dicato furitonh 43 Hall of Fame 56 Computer nerd
154 .. n mater 3 Prefor with bus NFL coach 57 "Happy birthday"
15 Unconoentioeal 4 Oxford vestsa Ewbank writer, perhaps
6e Angyto-he's 5 Moola 44 Dillon of "There's 58 Org. that
challenge n ermanssoalvSomething About reaches for the
18 Flightless birds 7 Riviera season Mars"' stars?.v,
t9 Where some s Emirate natives, 45 Happee to 55 "I'm -it'seoer'"
descents start mostly 46 Shakersfounder 62 Brandy letters
20 Elite socialite 9 Menu heading ANSWER TO PREVIOUS PUZZLE:
22 Place for a 10 Not at all
finance major scintillating WA S P T H E M E B LA B
24 Dick and Harry's 11 Comparable to a H U L L R A V E L E U R O
leader? cucumber ID E A 1SI TI A TM S
25 _ name: 12 Punkrock icon M I D N I G H T E X P R E S S
computerID Joey E N G E R I E
26'Di rets all" t3 Inscribed slabs SPA G E S R A D I S H
27 Delinery method 2t Young 'uns POWDERKEG SINCE
31 Russian coins 23 Rock's Motley- P OW 0 E 8 K E G 5 I N C E
33 Grinders 25Yet to be had LUAU S IfT I N NCO S
341960s Canadian 27 Revolutionary A C R E S N A V Y B E A N S
prime minister Guevara T H E L A M E Y E S E E
Pearson 28"Oh yeah? H U T S A T L
36 Pound of poetry who?" R O Y A L C O P E N H A G E N
37 Planned attack 2Misjudge AB E L K. I O S K M A M A
time 30Autopioeer I 0 T A E L O P E B L U E
38 Middle 32 Bit of a fairy tale L E TSA DE L OPE S A U E
42lIronic tales' tails trail LEIS 08F0E SASS
44 Sharapooa of 35 Process: Abbr. xwordeditor@aol.coms 0 E 07t1
tennis 1 2 24 s 6 1 8 a arita2r1
45 Low parts
48BOnline investing ro 15 15
5H Bambi's aunt
it "Baseball
Toeight" channel as 1t 22to 2o
53 Like some
stocks. for short 24 as2o
54 Camera lens
ratio 27 28 2s 30 31 32
56 Bars wear 3
60 Hasatch
Mountains ski o 373 s as ao41
resort
61 Body-care brand 42 03 . a
namedifrom the
Latin for "snnw- 47a
whe" no0 51 52 5
63 Sch. with
Riverside and 00 ]v 56 57 58 59
Irvine campuses
64 Soupoveeable 80 s1 IIs21s3
65 Staeningweapn Is II f5
66 Tableland
67 mae noesdy s no n6
68 Like some bars
69 Pitt in films By Mangesh sakharam Ghogre08
(c)2010 Tribune Media Services, Inc.
FOR SALE
THE BIGGEST POSTER SALE.
Biggest and Best Selection. Choose
from over 2000 different images. FINE
ART, MUSIC, MOVIES, MODELS
HUMOR, ANIMALS, PERSONALI-
TIES, LANDSCAPES, MOTIVA-
TIONALS, PHOTOGRAPHY. MOST
IMAGES ONLY $7, $8 AND $9. SEE
US AT Michigan Union Ground Floor
ON Sunday Sept. 5th thru Friday Sept.
10th, 2010. THE HOURS ARE 10 A.-
M.-7 P.M. THIS SALE IS SPON-
SORED BY University Unions Arts
and Programs.
PARKING
PARKING AVAIL- 408 Hill & 930 S.
Forest & 1026 Vaughn. 734-222-9033.
JMSprop@sbcglobal.net
GARAGE FOR PARKING or stor-
age. 10 min walk from central campus.
$100/ month 207-233-1051.
FOR RENT
* NOW LEASING FOR 2011*!
www.carlsonproperties.com
734-332-6000.
! 4 ELEVEN LOFTS - U-M's best DRIVING/AFTER SCHOOL' SU-
housing, 2 blocks from Central Cam- PERVISION for 2 ninth graders.
pus and downtown. Just a few bedrooms Must be available/fiexible 2:45-7:-
left to lease for 2010-11. One bed left and 30pm, M-F, although in general hours
reserve now for 2011-12. 734-998-4400. will be 10-15/week. Prefer a commit-
www.4elevenlofts.com ment for the entire school year. Must
be a non-smoker, with car, excellent
! NORTH CAMPUS 1-2 Bdrm. ! driving record, and references. rglick-
Incl. Heat/Water/Parking. @umich.edu
www.HRPAA.com 996-4992. LIKE TO CLEAN and organize? My
home needs your perfectionism!
!!CLASSY 7-BR/3-BA HOME Greal $10/1st. Tassavat@omatn
Location! Remodeled! Fireplace/cool comcuotnet
kitch. Must see! $3850 (313) 215-8115. MANAGEMENT OF LABORA-
TORY operations, including the super-
LIVE ON A LAKE. Recently reno- vision, training and mentoring of under-
vated furnished 2 bedroom 2 bath graduate students and lab members. As-
home. Available for Fall. 20 minutes to sist in the management of research
campus. $995/month plus utilities. Call project(s) directed at' lipid biochem-
313-363-2984. vrbo.com/176976 istry. Provide expertise in biophysical
chemistry with preferred expertise us-
WWW.800FULLER.COM ing mass spectrometry, chemical syn-
(734)769-7520 thesis, chromatography and microbiol-
1 & 2 bdrm., modern, clean, quiet ogy techniques. Bachelor's degree in
5 min. walk. Free Wi-Fi. biochemistry or related field, plus four
years of related experience in a bio-
chemistry laboratory setting required.
In-depth biochemical experimentation
laboratory knowledge essential. Prefer
(1) Master's degree in biochemistry or
SERVICES related field; (2) extensive lab manage-
ment skills; (3) experience with mam-
malian cell culture techniques; and (4)
EDITING SERVICES - All disci- experience using mass spectrometry,
plines and formats. Reasonable rates. chemical synthesis, chromatography,
734/996-0566 or writeon@iserv.net and microbiology techniques. View
requisition 100472 at hnps://employ-
mentunleds for qualifications, details
and to apply. Review of applicants be-.
gins Aug 11. UNL is committed to a
pluralistic campus consmunity through
HELP WANTED affirmative action, equal opportunity,
work-life balance, and dualtcoreers.
!!!BARTENDING!!! $300 /day poten-
tial. No exp. nec., training provided.
AGE 18+ OK. 800-965-6520 x 125.
BABYSITTER FOR TWO 11 yr.olds
afterschl. Must be friendly w/own car
649-2401 or appelkraut@tds.net
STUDENTPAYOUTS.COM
Paid survey takers needed in A2.
100% FREE to join. Click on Surveys.
P/T HELP NEEDED with home orga-
nization, light cleaning, grocery shop-
ping and child care for kids: 12, 6 and
4 yrs. Rm. available if you are looking
for quiet private accommodation. Non-
smkg, caring, responsible students with
clean driving record and baby sitting
exp. needed. Please respond to
rsatyak@med.umich.edu
PART TIME AFTER-school help
needed to drive kids to after school ac-
tivities (12-15 hrs/week). School days
from 4-7, some Saturday mornings.
Looking for someone experienced in V
childcare. Must have a clean driving
record and excellent references. Please
respond with a resume and list of 2-3
references as well as contact informa-
tion to lonamody@umich.edu.
UM LAW PROFESSOR seeks re-
sponsible student for part-time care for
our 10 & 13 year olds. After school
help a few days a week and occasional
evenings. Car req, close to campus.
Ref needed. French speaker a plus.
Call Steve or Nancy at 734-761-7752.
NEED AFTERSCHOOL CARE for
two girls, 9 and 12, starting Sept 7. Ap-
prox. 10 hrs/wk. No smokers. Close to
central campus. Rcaston@umich.edu.
CHILDCARE: AFTER SCHOOL
for active 9 yr old boy. 20 hrs/month.
$10/hr. Tassavatnaocomcast.net
MICHIGAN
S 9025
Stu et/positions Ivailable notw
APPLY AT
0
-,