The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com
Monday, September 16, 2013 - 7A
The Michigan Daily - michigandailycom Monday, September16, 2013 - 7A
Suliman powers
emotional'Attack'
Character-driven
film examines
class divide
By NATALIE GADBOIS
Daily Arts Writer
What drives people to sacrifice
themselves for causes that don't
directly affect them? Where does
the violent pas-
sion come from
thatincitespeo-
ple to perform The Attack
unspeakable
acts of vio- AtState
lence? Are all Scope
terrorists psy-
chopaths? Or is
there always another, more com-
plex explanation? "The Attack"
delicately delves into these ques-
tions, and the result is a bare por-
trayal of a woman conflicted and
the man who loved her.
Amin Jafaari (Ali Suliman,
"Under the Same Sun") is a Pales-
tinian surgeon living in Tel Aviv
- well respected and accepted
by the Jewish society that sur-
rounds him. Soon after the film
begins, a suicide bomb detonates
close to his hospital, killing 17
and injuring countless victims
who are rushed to his operating
room. His efficiency and dig-
nity are evident as he saves life
after life, only stopping when an
injured Israeli man screams that
he does not want Amin - an Arab
- as his doctor.
Hours later, exhausted and
beleaguered, Amin discovers that
his wife Sahim (Reymond Amsa-
lem, "Plasticine") was found dead
in the attack. We see her body
bluntly torn in two, her torso
lying meekly under a sheet in
the morgue. And as Amin pulled
shrapnel from children, hiswife's
body was floors below him, being
identified as the perpetrator of
the attack.
Director and screenwriter
Ziad Douieri ("Lila Says") doesn't
spend much time establishing
Jaafari's uniquely privileged
SCoPE
Look at this photograph.
world before it is explosively dis-
assembled, so he uses flashbacks
in Amin's gold-tinged memory to
create his wife, Sahim. Douieri
worked as a cameraman for Quen-
tin Tarantino, and his tutelage
shows, each shot perfectly fram-
ing the before and after of Amin's
life. Sahim, a liberal Palestinian,
is for the majority of the film a
beautiful enigma, defined by her
soulful glances and overly script-
ed declarations against Israel. As
Amin searches for answers, we
sense that he is discovering just
as we are: The question becomes
not about Sahim's innocence, but
one of Amin himself. How could
he love her so deeply yet know
nothing of the dark resentments
beneath her beautiful face?
The film masquerades as
being marked by contrasts: shiny
Tel Aviv with archaic Pales-
tine; Amin's granite-countered,
stainless-steeled mansion with
his humble birthplace; Sahim the
dream girl vs. Sahim the mass
murderer. However, all these dis-
tinctions mask the real ambigu-
ity of the film, as Amin unravels
the real complexity of Sahim's
political beliefs.
Suliman shines as Jaafari,
using masculine brevity to por-
tray the pillar of strength he
was before the attack. He shows
Amin's anguish through subtle
gestures: a downturned head,
a blank stare that lasts a second
too long. These little actions are
often drowned out by the script's
creative view of what "grief"
is. Amin constantly imagines
the living memory of his wife
standing next to him, a falter-
ing attempt to build her char-
acter without using flashbacks.
The film is strongest when Amin
bares everything - his anger,
confusion and all-consuming
grief - but it sometimes drifts
into symbolic theatrics.
Amin is interrogated, he is
pitied, he is rejected from a soci-
ety that once granted him spe-
cial access, and at the same time
distanced from his birthplace
because he betrayed them so
long ago. He is a man who once
had everything: a beautiful wife,
fulfilling career, wealth and most
importantly, a valued place in
a society that normally doesn't
accept people like him.
While "The Attack" grace-
fully examines how Amin reacts
when his entire life is upended,
it focuses on the reasons some-
one like Sahim would throw it
all away, sacrificing her life and
countless others to a cause she
can't even admit to her husband.
"The Attack" is powerful, and
while its consequences linger, the
audience never fully understands
the most burning question: Who
is Sahim Jaafari?
'I got your baby.'
'Insidious Chapter 2'
can-'t live up to original
14 A
'The Million Second Quiz
reinvents game-show genre
By AKSHAY SETH
Daily B-Side Editor
If you had a dollar for every
time I said, "I got your baby" on
the car ride over to see "Insidi-
ous: Chapter
2," you'd have B-
$8. My asshole
friends and I InsidiOUS
were excited. W er2
I'm pretty sure
all of us had At Quality16
seen enough and Rave
horror mov-
ies in our time Film District
to know that
sequels in this genre are almost
never bankable, but we were
hoping against hope. The trailer,
if not terrifying, had been an
experience, and without it, bel-
ligerent exclamations of "I got
yourbaby" to random passers-by
would never have been possible.
Oh, and #RoseByrne.
Hope can be a terrible thing,
and watching it get suffocated
at the hands of director James
Wan ("The Conjuring") over the
course of an agonizing 105 min-
utes only makes it worse. Agoniz-
ing may be the wrong choice of
word. This is by no means a ter-
rible film, delivering expectable
scares at unsurprising points,
but the problem, as it often is
with most horror sequels, is it's a
follow-up to a much better movie.
In a perfect world, we'd judge it
based only on its merits, and
not its
James,
Our opi
by our
if thatf
way, th
what w
The
sequels
exposit
should1
doing s
ever m
watchit
goes, "
don't u
ous: Ch
become
explain
flash: I
movies
an ima
Further
movies
whenl
anythin
predecessors, but sorry Wilson, "The Conjuring") has
this is not a perfect world. been possessed by the creepy,
inion on a film is dictated old demon-woman from the
viewing experience, and last film. So this time around,
experience suffers in any the son, Dalton (Ty Simpkins,
:e easiest target becomes "Iron Man 3"), is never really
e're viewing. in danger. Much like the rest of
problem with horror the supporting cast, including
is simple: They offer Rose Byrne ("The Place Beyond
ion for developments that The Pines"), he serves as a prop
be left unexplained, and in for the duration of the film, one
o inherently dilute what- of the countless people daddy
tade the original worth could hurt if his evil side final-
ng. As that popular saying ly kicks in. Byrne's character
we're scared of what we runs around scared, hoping to
:nderstand," and "Insidi- keep her kids from harm's way,
apter 2" 's greatest failing but again, she doesn't have any
s that it tries too hard to meaty input in guiding the story.
the supernatural. News That rests on Josh and his weird
People who watch scary mom, Lorraine (Barbara Her-
don't really give a shit why shey, "Black Swan"), as they des-
ginary place called The perately try to figure out how to
r exists. We watch scary get da baby back.
to be scared, and since When I walked out of the
has someone explaining theater, the first thing I remem-
g been at all frightening? ber exclaiming was something
vaguely along the lines of "what
the fuck?" I think if someone
o t t asked me to elaborate, I would
have said, "the reason this film
xplain The doesn't work is that it gravitates
The too much toward two characters
Further. without really establishing an
atmosphere of tension for them
to react to. It uses the supporting
cast like cue cards, regurgitating
big "gotcha" moment that useless BS about the "why's" and
nsidious: Chapter 2" in "how's" no one cares about." It's
(relax, I'm not spoil- sad. But the saddest part? James
ything) comes when we Wan's next project is "Fast &
hat Josh Lambert (Patrick Furious 7."
By ALEC STERN
Daily Arts Writer
In 1999, ABC struck gold with
its question-and-answer mega-
hit, "Who Wants To Be A Mil-
lionaire?" Since
its meteoric
rise and quick
fall, the pri- The Million
metime quiz- - Quiz
show genre has
remained idle ... Pilot
until now. NBC
hopes to recap- NBC
ture some ofthe
magic with "The Million Second
Quiz," an innovative new series
hosted by Ryan Seacrest. Though
"MSQ" suffers from a somewhat
complicated premise, this fast-
paced game show should excite
fans of the genre.
"MSQ" is a two-week event
series and seems to be NBC's
kickoff to the 2013-2014 televi-
sion season, which officially
begins the week of Sept. 23rd.
The premiere episode is littered
with previews for the network's
new shows, as well as cross-
promotions with existing shows,
most of which will premiere the
week after "MSQ" 'a big finale.
And as "MSQ" airs every week-
day at 8 p.m. for the next two
weeks, all of NBC's series are get-
tingtons of free exposure.
"The Million Second Quiz"
's biggest issue is that it's hard
to nail down a description; it's
nearly impossible to fit all of the
show's parts into one succinct
logline. In other words, there's
a lot going on. At the most basic
level, "MSQ" is a head-to-head
quiz battle between two contes-
tants. The winner earns a spot
in the money chair and remains
in the chair until he or she loses
a battle. If you're sitting in the
D
e:
The1
sets "I
motion
ing an}
learn tI
You ain't no Regis, Seacrest.
chair, you're earning 10 dollars NBC might pick you as a "line
per second. Therefore, the aim of jumper" and give you an auto-
the game is to stay in the money matic spot on the show, as well
chair for as long as possible. as an interview on "The Today
Beyond that, there are several Show."
more aspects to the show, includ- Another defining component
ing a leader's room (where the top of "MSQ" is that the competition
four contestants must live until goes on 24/7. Though the show
they are knocked out) and a huge only airs for one hour per night,
interactive component. the quizzing never stops. Contes-
tants are playing the game at all
times, for one-million seconds
straight (12 days or so). When the
million seconds are up, the four
entertaining, people who have spent the lon-
gest time in the money chair will
but very face off with the potential to win
up to $10 million.
complicated. Ultimately, people tend to
respond to simplicity - a qual-
ity that is sorely lacking in "The
Million Second Quiz." However,
The interactivity of "The Mil- "MSQ" does complicated well,
lion Second Quiz" is one of the and with the help of Seacrest,
show's biggest strengths. The the show rarely falls from com-
"MSQ" app, which spent time as plicated to confusing. "MSQ" is
the No. 1 free app in the country atits best during the quiz battles,
(it is currently No. 10), enables which are fast, fun and thought-
viewers at home to play along ful. Viewers will just have to
with the contestants and even remain on their toes because at
qualify to be a part of the show. every turn, there are a million
If you can rack up enough points, more gimmicksbeing introduced.
M&M'S*Chocolate Candies can make any moment
more fun and delicious... even Monday morning.
On Monday: September 16, M&M'S*Brand is
enabling you to catch a few extra ZZZ's by providing
FREE rides to class in pedicabs.
Who knows, you might even get a ride from a
famous alumni(hint hint... think Fab 5).
Pedicabs wil be stationed at the corer of Hill and State Streets and George Washington Park from 1a.m. to 10a.m.
facebook.com/MMS #betterwithmms
( "Trademarks Wars. IremponmW 2013