6
Orientation Edition 2006
arts.michigandaily.com
artspage@michigandaily.com
ARlt Sdtnrlg
16
SOMETHING ABOUT
BOY WIZARD'S LATEST SOARS
TO NEW CINEMATIC HEIGHTS
a
By Amanda Andrade
Nov. 21, 2005
Muggles, rejoice.
Just four months after the release of
the long-awaited sixth
installment of the behe- HarryPotter
moth book series, "Harry
Potter" fans can now and the
savor two-and-a-half Goblet
hours of pure visceral of Fire
enjoyment with the boy warner Bros.
wizard's brilliant fourth
cinematic outing.
Following Harry (Daniel Radcliffe), Ron
(Rupert Grint) and Hermione (Emma Watson)
on their adventures around Hogwarts School
of Witchcraft and Wizardry for another year,
this film takes the franchise in an unmistak-
ably darker direction as spells turn morbid
and death takes the forefront.
Those who still abstain from the literary
"Harry" will be entertained, but true Potter-
heads are due to appreciate the allusions and
complexities layered into an outstandingly
efficient running time.
Given that the source novel is an epic 734
pages, that efficiency comes at a cost that may
offend "Potter" purists. Gone are Hermione's
passion for house elf liberation and Ludo Bag-
man's goblin gambling debts. Director Mike
Newell ("Donnie Brasco") and screenwriter
Steve Kloves ("Wonder Boys") ruthlessly tear
through the novel, cutting and rearranging with
stunning disregard for authentic reproduction.
What they get instead of a mere cinema
version is a movie that stands on its own.
After director Alfonso Cuaron's renegade
take on "Prisoner of Azkaban" garnered the
best reviews of the series, Newell follows
with a film that owes much of its free spirit
and panache to the stylish, sophisticated
"Prisoner."
Although "Goblet" lacks the strong nar-
rative cohesiveness of its predecessor, the
independent energy of the film is again what
allows for the emotional immediacy largely
lacking from the first two installments.
Newell, incidentally the first British direc-
tor to seize the reins, is to be congratulated
on tackling a project that many preemptively
called impossible.
"That's one huge goose laying huge golden eggs."
Rumors abounded in pre-production that
the highly episodic text would need to be
turned into a two-film undertaking. Yet the
movie, with its veritable parade of support-
ing characters and at least five major subplots,
holds together in a perfectly unified whole.
Magical, really.
Visually, too, this "Potter" is the stron-
gest. The whimsical cinematography that so
strongly stylizes the films is still here, but the
soaring wide shots linger longer, the sets are
more lavish and the CGl effects are among
the most impressive ever realized on film.
The young actors at the heart of these mas-
sive movies are also at their finest this time
out, inhabiting their characters more fully
than ever before. Radcliffe, who's been stilted
in the past, seems to have finally come into
his own. He's finally stopped trying to per-
form Harry Potter and simply is Harry Potter.
All around, the actors are refreshingly natural
and unstudied.
And though all good fans will miss their
favorite scenes - or characters, as Draco
Malfoy becomes a footnote - the trad-
eoff is a truly great movie. Whether you're
being dragged along by little siblings or
you've already got a favorite ship (don't
ask, really), the film is Hollywood's rare
holiday treat. Neither frivolous nor ponder-
ous, and serving up entertainment without
the condescension, "Goblet" is a warm mug
of butterbeer in these cold days of schlocky
wannabes.
a
Prince roeturns t sultry form y
By Kimberly Chou
Apr. 18, 2006
MUSIC REVIEW
Prince is a Jehovah's Witness.
Or so he says.
Sure, the days of assless jump-
suits and an ever-evolving rotation of
buxom proteges are gone. But if Prince
keeps coming up with such lascivi-
ous tracks as the
moan-inducing Prince
"Black Sweat," 3
the artist formerly 3121
(and once again on NP/Universal
his newest release
3121) known as a sexy motherfucker
just isn't convincing as a socially con-
servative Christian.
"You can act hard if you want to
/ This groove will make you sweet,"
Prince demurs over a rattling pat-
tern of handclaps on "Black Sweat."
"You'll be screaming like a white
lady / When I count to three." And
that high-pitched, melodic whine
cutting above the rhythmic din? Even
the studio's mixing board might be
having an orgasm.
2004's Musicology might have been
Prince's comeback album, and what
followed included both a surprise
Grammy performance and a Rock
and Roll Hall of Fame induction. The
release garnered a couple Grammy
nods, and Prince had his chance to
wax both politically and spiritually on
the record, but Musicology left some-
thing to be desired. At least it did for
those fans still desperately holding on
to their Purple Rain LPs.
During the last three decades,
Prince has proven his various talents
as an artist: He's an adroit songwriter,
an underrated multi-instrumental-
ist and a producer. For the most part
- save for that god-awful period in
the '90s - his notorious perfection-
ism has served him well.
While Prince is more than capable
when it comes to subtle love ballads,
there's a reason why he's known for
libido-driven funk jams. Prince made
the genre his own, mixing essential
influences like James Brown and
George Clinton with androgyny and
sexual promiscuity. If music could be
personified, Prince's catalogue would
be one saucy, well-traveled trick.
But on 3121, Prince get spiritual.
He gets political. And then he croons,
"Girl ... Eye'm gonna seek this thing
like a buried treasure." Goddamn.
It's a game of subtlety and innu-
endo; the man doesn't need to be as
explicit as he used to be (see: "Pussy
Control" on 1995's Gold Experi-
ence). On "Satisfied," a silken Prince
vocal wraps itself around old-school
soul horns. It'd be a fitting opener for
a late-'50s Sam Cooke concert, save
for Prince's demand that his lady
send her company home and turn off
her cell phone.
The title track isn't an apocalyptic
deadline like "1999," but the spacey
opener is still an invitation to party.
On an ode to a mythical address,
Prince teases his vocals; he tweaks
his falsetto and slows down the digi-
tized tenor melody, effectively sing-
ing a two-part harmony and backup
on his own.
The tight pop structure of classic
Prince shows up on "The Fury" and
"Lolita," with layers of bright synthe-
sizer and tart keys. It's not so much
he's ran out of ideas, but rather he's
finding new ways to revamp what
q
6
6
"I ain't the same man I was in 'Purple Rain.' I'm sexier. Much sexier."
works well.
But every once in a while, the lis-
tener is reminded why Prince fell off
the charts for most of the last decade:
overindulgent balladry and wholly
unnecessary rap passages. "Incense
and Candles" combines both.
There are definitely signs of Prince's
growing spirituality. A number of 3121
song titles could be strung together
for a sermon: "Beautiful, Loved and
Blessed," "Love," "The Word."
It's a precarious balance between
earthly and heavenly love, if you
want to get into Plato or St. Augus-
tine. On 3121, Prince gets closer to
reconciling his higher love with the
basic love of getting freaky. As he
says on the title track, its going down
like the Wall of Berlin.