The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com

Friday, February 18, 2011 - 7

'The Eagle' won't fly

A step up from dubstep

Swords sandals and controlled south by the histori-
cal Hadrian's Wall - to reclaim
Channing Tatum's the lost eagle and, effectively,
his family's name. Along for the
bad accent ride is his slave, Esca (Jamie Bell,
"Billy Elliot"), a British native
By STEPHEN OSTROWSKI who helps navigate treacherous
Deputy Magazine Editor terrain and stubborn regional
countrymen.
Outmuscled by "300," "Gladi- Bell's convincing turn ,as the
ator" and other steroidal jug- stoic but contemptuous Esca is
gernauts, Kevin Macdonald's one of the lone bright spots in
("The Last King an otherwise gloomy Hollywood
of Scotland") revision of Roman history. While
slickly shot but Bell breathes life into the mas-
unconvinc- ter/slave dynamic that provides
ingly acted and one of the film's more interest-
unevenly paced At Quality16 ing subplots - will Esca turn
"The Eagle" and Rave on Marcus on his home turf? -
is the latest Tatum's uninspired performance
unmemorable Focus Features suffocates it. Tatum flirts with a
flick strong- faux accent from scene to scene,
armed to the children's table in frequently relapsing to a mum-
the over-saturated historical epic blecore that harkens to his danc-
market. ing days in the first "Step Up"
The ever-brooding Chan- installment. Given Tatum's acting
ning Tatum ("Dear John") slips chops - he gave an exceptional,
into gladiator sandals as hotshot visceral performance as Antonio
Roman military officer Marcus in Dito Montiel's "A Guide to Rec-
Flavius Aquila, whose father's ognizing Your Saints" - the fact
Ninth Legion was infamously that his soundly-coiffed Caesar
squelched by opposition war- cut is the most authentic part of
riors in enemy territory in 120 his performance is regrettable.
A.D. Lost in battle was the film's The rest of the cast proves
namesake: a golden eagle said deflating as well. While Tatum
to represent the glory of Rome. at least engages in vernacular
Purely symbolic, yes, but the warfare, most of his Roman coun-
Romans are pretty pissed off that terparts wave the white flag and
the elder Aquila coughed it up. surrender to a dull, American
Honorably discharged after "Office Space" drone suggesting
suffering an injury in battle, that under their antiquated garb
Marcus treks to northern Britain are pleated Dockers and a cozy
- separated from the Roman- 401K. Accountability does not

rest strictly with the cast, as a dry
script births stale dialogue bet-
ter served in a stock sports flick,
which ultimately blunts and trivi-
alizes the characters' oft-conten-
tious relationships.
Fortunately,wellcraftedaction
scenes.add some necessary spark
to a sometimes inching story.
Though the combat sequences
offer nothing new, their attention
to detail helps articulate the com-
plex dynamic between the film's
leads. Attractive frames of the
handsome, Middle Earth-esque
landscape also add some visual
punch, with a rough, expansive
countryside subtly highlighting
the magnitude of the characters'
caper. Yet a magnetic aesthetic is
not enough to combat a narrative
that more often than not emo-
tionally and intellectually short-
sells its audience.
Alas, on a supplementary note,
was there ever much hope for
"The Eagle?" To be awkwardly
sandwiched between power-
ful weekend releases like "Just
Go With It" and Justin Bieber's
"Never Say Never" 3-D docu-
mentary is a marginalizing fate
for any film to suffer, much less
one with comparatively dim star
power. Perhaps only a rogue
"Twilight" release could mute
a messy Sandler-with-Aniston
rom-com and the almost endemic
puppy love for the Bieb. Such is
obviously not the case, and this
eagle, hardly flashing unique
feathers, is ultimately left croon-
ing an unbecoming swan song.

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By JOE DIMUZIO songwriter." lapse. The album functions nicely
Daily Arts Writer So the album's title feels more in a living room, but if you don't
than appropriate. Blake's music have nice speakers, do yourself
's be out with it now, this still has the anxiety and gloom of a favor and get some nice head-
dubstep. At least, not any- great dubstep, but he's married it phones. Blake's facets deserve
James Blake has been to an almost unfashionable vul- your attention, especially when
i as some nerability. If Burial's Untrue was the songs fail tograbit.
of ambas- the sound of pop's ghosts cutting Because Blake sits on a sort
for the through atmospheretoward emo- of nebulous divide, its songs do
- but James Blake tion, then James Blake grabbed too. Looking for the warmth and
it comes the baton, sat down at the piano openness of the singer-song-
to it, James Blake and decided to let them rest in writer? These songs won't pro-
nusic's so peace and do it alone. vide that cleanly but emotional
ed from A&t/Atlas James Blake doesn't sound release. Looking for bangers, or
ep's dis- much like anything else right more appropriately, bumpers?
ons that it falls somewhere now, but shares common ground
ar beyond it. There's pre- with a growing renaissance in
ion for bass, syrupy key- electronic music vocals. If we're Blake lively on
s, low BPMs and all - sure. to trace it back, any number
an artist, Blake is now cut- of relevant name-drops would debut album
loser on territory we might help explain things. Prince, '90s
t be as willing to admit lov- R&B, D'Angelo, early house ... in
ecause when all is said and it all, there's a willful desire to
James Blake, his singular expose the singer but manipu- These songs have their moments.
is a chilly piece of white late his or her voice. Nicolas Jaar Blake is an album filled with great
susic. is doing it in the house context, moments, wading mid-tempo in
e 22-year-old producer- How To Dress Well's carving his unfamiliarterritory, butyou wish
d-midnight soul man's third own niche, and even, say, Autre Blake would dig into both pools
ourth EPs hinted at the Ne Veut's pop is reveling in the even deeper.
. CMYK, released in 2010, proximity and distance of his Songs like "The Wilhelm
d the dub game a bit, with own vocals. Blake's treatment of Scream" condense everything
d vocal samples, stuttering his voice echoes these contem- Blake's done well into four-and-
and ketamine keyboards. poraries, but treads transparent a-half minutes. With a steady
Klavierwerke, his second water. metronomic pace, Blake croons,
elease, pulled the rug from Like any great producer, the "I don't know about my dreams /
the wobblers. Here, Blake's talent is clear in Blake's atten- I don't know about my dreamin'
and keys subdued, spaces tion to detail. His beats, chords anymore" as lines of melody drip
left blank and the only voice and grooves swerve and lock and spin around him. Building
e whole thing was Blake's with steely precision, tension and to a furious surge of texture, he
Topping the year with a color. The songs without "beats" repeats his mantra, admitting,
of Feist's "Limit To Your per se make their own; wheth- "All that I know is / I'm fallin',
" with its stately piano, hol- er paired with piano or vocals fallin', fallin' / might as well fall"
lences and Blake's voice in flipped up and down on a chro- and we're more than willingto go
ude, reviews seemed afraid matic dial ranging from ghoulish' with him - even if we know he
n usherthe word ... "singer- sub-bass to a tender falsetto col- can fall further.

Shakespeare on the screen

'Gnomeo' garden variety Disney

By LUCY PERKINS
Daily Arts Writer
This Sunday, a house full of
lucky Londoners will have the
opportunity to see London's
National The-
atre perform
one of Shake- NT Live
speare's greatest King Lear
tragedies: "King
Lear." But they Sunday at
won't be the 7 p.M.
only audience Michigan Theater
- across the Tickets from $12
ocean, theater
lovers in Ann
Arbor will be watching, too.
Enoch Brater, an LSA profes-
sor of dramatic literature, spoke in
praise of the broadcast.
"Theater is a handcrafted art
in an age of mass production, and
not everyone has the opportunity
to travel to theaters and see a pro-
duction like this," he said.
According to Truly Render,
press and marketing coordinator
for the University Music Society,
Ann Arborites have consistently
filled the Michigan Theater for
National Theatre live broadcasts.
This is the second year UMS
has collaborated with the Michi-
gan Theater on the program.
Past broadcasts include "FELA!,"
"Hamlet" and Complicite's "A Dis-
appearing Number."
"I think people are simply
hungry for high-quality cultural

experier
e-mail it
"King
turies a
relevant
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test to p
The tw
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says she
her love
Lear di:
spirals i
ing in C
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us."
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Shakesp

nces," Render wrote in an and demandingworks to perform.
nterview. Accordingto Brater, the lead must
g Lear" was written ten- have an incredible amount of
go, but its values are still stamina.
. In the play, King Lear "It's attracted the talents of
three daughters through a some of the greatest actors of all
rove their devotion to him. time, and this is the case for this.
o older daughters flatter production," he said. "It's icing on
t the youngest, Cordelia,. thecake for anygreatShaespea ;
has no words to describe ian actor."
e for him. Angered, King In the past, Christopher Plum-
sowns her and the family mer and Laurence Olivier have
nto chaos, ultimately end- taken on the role. This production
ordelia's death. will feature British actor Derek
a classic play of a dysfunc- Jacobi, who was a founding mem-
family," Brater said. "It ber of the Royal National The-
with the dissolution of a atre and appears in "The King's
amily, but it also signifies Speech."
olution of a whole society Render noted the broadcast
whole world." offers a different experience to
live theater.
"The cinematography is not
d play new static - it's not simply a camera
nevT on a tripod filming from the back
echnology of the house," she wrote. "The
performances at the National are
(selected) in advance to allow
cameras greater freedom in the
r added that the play is auditorium."
appreciated because any- Render also noted that each
relate to its themes. broadcast includes pre-show
kespeare's) plays are con- interviews and behind-the-scenes
redone in productions all footage so audiences can glimpse
.e world by professional what goes on before the curtain
ies and student theater rises.
trater said. "It's all around "Audiences are makingconnec-
tions and really taking the deep
site of the play's general dive after seeing NT Live perfor-
"King Lear" is one of mances," she wrote. "And that is
seare's most challenging such a great thing to see."

By MACKENZIE METER
For the Daily
What's in a gnome? It could
be glass, ceramic or just plain
plastic. Or those gnomes could
be sworn
enemies tak-
ing part in an
ages-long bat- Gnomeo
tIe, in which and Julet
case they're
probably com- At Quality 16
posed purely and Rave
of bitterness
and revenge. Walt Disney Pictures
While a bit
kitschy, "Gnomeo & Juliet" actu-
ally provides a good introduction
to the next generation of Shake-
speare lovers.
In fair Verona where we lay our
scene (or, in some English suburb)
two families are divided by a feud
and one wall of their British row-
house. However, the story cen-
ters not on the actual hate-filled
Capulets and the Montagues, but
rather on the feud between the
Red and Blue gnomes who inhab-
it their backyards.
The unprecedentedly sexy
Gnomeo (James McAvoy, "Want-
ed"), the son of the Blue ruler-
queen Lady Bluebury (Maggie
Smith, "Harry Potter"), has been
laden with the task of keeping
the Reds at bay ever since his
father was tragically smashed.
Accordingly, it seems neces-
sary for the deliciously Scottish-
accented Gnomeo to engage
with the loathsome Red named
Tybalt (Jason Statham, "The
Mechanic") in a cheese-tastic
lawnmower race, resulting in the

destruc
mower
catalys
the wa
the res
Mea
all Jul
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have a
a partic
ing in
alley, s
the cos
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plot by
their I
sour, G
into th
Juliet a
straigh

tion of the Blues' lawn- essential to warn that Kleenex is
. This action provides the unnecessary.
t for the tension between While a good introduction to
rring gnome colonies for Shakespeare, the film has one
t of the film. downfall - its lack of respect
nwhile, on the Red side, for the classic tragedy. Between
liet (Emily Blunt, "The savage, destructive lawnmow-
Wears Prada") wants is to ers, brainless lines like "Let's
little fun. When she spies kick some grass" and the whole
ularly lovely flower grow- concept of a Shakespearean
a greenhouse across the adaptation told through gnomes,
he resolves to sneak out of it seems that some archetypal
nfines of the backyard no messages of love and loss are
how her father Lord Red- forgotten in the script. However,
(Michael Caine, "Incep- remastered Elton John songs like
tries to deter her. When a "Don't Go Breaking My Heart,"
the Blues for revenge over "Crocodile Rock" and the newly
broken lawnmower goes minted Elton John-Lady Gaga
nomeo finds himself flung track "Hello Hello" provide a
e very same greenhouse as nice distraction from the mind-
:nd, well, the film is pretty lessness for the older-than-eight
tforward from there. crowd. Additionally, utterly
hilarious lines from a Spanish-
accented pink flamingo named
Featherstone (Jim Cummings,
"The Princess and the Frog") and
Gnomeo Juliet's sidekick, Nanette (Ash-
n e ley Jensen, TV's "Ugly Betty")
provide some breathers from the
sometimes-tedious plot. Audi-
will the star-crossed lov- ences should also look out for ref-
able to-overcome the ten- erences to other Shakespearean
between their families plays, especially a particularly
ter yet, evade the tragic well handled proclamation of the
which undoubtedly await famous line, "Out, damned spot!"
Will they perish in each by Juliet early on in the film.
arms, realizing that their Generally speaking, this is a
ill only have a chance in cute film. Its intent isto introduce
xt life? Let's answer these Shakespeare, which it does -
g questions with another moderately - and to tell the story
Is this a Disney movie? to children in a way that's relat-
answer is yes, it is a Dis- able. While it might come across
vie. Without spoiling the as gratuitous and corny at times,
for the droves of Uni- its essential message is a timeless
students that will surely one: Fight for true love, because
o the theaters, it seems it doesn't come around too often.


But
ers be
sion 1
or, bet
deaths
them?
others'
love w
the nec
burning
query:
The
ney mo
ending
versity
flock t


MERCE
From Page 6
"With Merce, it's almost like
everyone has their own narra-

tive and experiences the work
differently, and I think so many
students are gonna groove on the
music 'cause it's so great."
In addition to the performanc-
es, the company is participating in

a week-long residency, which will
include heavy interaction with
the University Dance Department
and a class at the Ross School of
Business, film screenings and
other events.

U

Hillel ARTS JridE
0 2nd Cash >
O 2 Annual Art
E[Ahibit
Once We Were Slaves:
Exploring Beyond the Post Towards the Future
Inspired by the story of the Israelite Exodus froE gypt. The
EXhibit aims to draw together different perspectives from a
myriad of cultures and ethnicities to evoke dialogue and
contemplation.

INVITATIO N S Founded in 1897 at the University of Maine, Phi Kappa Phi
is the nation's oldest, largest, and most selective collegiate
AR R IVING NOW ! honor society for all academic disciplines.
Checkyour ;ailbox. Membership is by invitation only to the top 7.5% ofjuniors
and the top-10% of seniors and graduate students.
Each year the Society distributes more than $700,000
through national and chapter scholarships and awards.
Along with academic recognition, members are eligible for
exclusive partner discounts and networking opportunities.
DEADLINES:
THE HONOR " SOCIETY OF University of Michigan Chapter February 25, 2011
Scholarship Applications
PH IP A PH I CompletedElection Form and March 9, 2011
UP- HKAPPA HDues Paid
UMPHIKAPPAPHI.UMICH.EDU