Monday, June 9, 2008 The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com '9 ALBUM REVIEW Revenge of the nerds Red Album isn't great, but Weezer reclaims dignity By DAVID WATNICK DailyArts Writer Welcome back Weezer. No, you haven't returned to the unforgetta- ble, screaming cathartic geek bliss of your classic first two albums, but so what - you never will, and that's OK. We all peak sometime. With the Red Album, you've at least cut a record that I can comfortably listen to in my spare time with- Weezer out feeling like I'm on the verge Weezer of experiencing Geffen paralyzing clus- ter headaches. And in the wake of the unspeak- ably bad tweeny-bopper oh-my- god-make-it-stop train wreck MakeBelieve, that's a prettyserious accomplishment. Hats off! This latest album is easily Wee- zer's most adventurous effort, with songs covering great stretches on a spectrum that ranges from classi- cal to hip hop. It's no masterpiece, but its experiments give it creative energy and spine - attributes that Rivers Cuomo, one of the genera- tion's finest songwriters, has been unable to inject in his band's music for a painfully long time. The most noteworthy track on the record comes in the two-slot. Too erratic to be just a curveball, "The Greatest Man That Ever Lived ARTS IN BRIEF Film Sandler's charm redeems silly, but funny, comedy "You Don't Mess With the Zohan" Columbia "You Don't Mess With The Zohan" is one of those movies that you will either find your- self enjoying far more than you High-flying laughs By IMRAN SYED ley of Peace in China. The legend- Daily Arts Writer ary warriors known as the Furious Five protect the valley: Tigress Animated movies today fall into (Angelina Jolie), Viper (Univer- two categories: the ones that hawk sity alum Lucy Liu), Crane (David those painfully cheesy morals Cross, TV's "Arrested Develop- that even little kids have learned ment"), Monkey (Jackie Chan) and to laugh at, and Mantis (Seth Rogen, "Knocked those that have * Up"). But even these masters can- slightly amus- not save the valley from Tai Lung ing, yet com- Kung Fu (Ian McShane, "The Golden Com- pletely useless, pass"), a deranged evil warrior pop culture ref- PaNda who has just escaped from prison. erences jumping At Showcase Lung wants the Dragon Scroll, off the screen and Quality16 an ancient relic that contains at an alarm- Drathe secret enabling a warrior to (Variations on a Shaker Hymn)" is an absolute knuckleball - dip- ping, dancing and diving in nearly a dozen musical directions in just under six minutes. A gentle piano intro carries over into a raunchy police siren-stained rap section, sounding like a fantastic home mash-up. The piano figure, based on Joseph Brackett's "Simple Gifts," is the song's main melodic theme, appearing in one form or another through raw guitar rock, spoken word breaks and even baroque cho- ral movements that rival the color- ful classicism of uber-hip Animal Collective. It's not only the most novel track here, but perhaps Wee- zer's most novel cut ever, worthy of more words than this entire review. It's also the best song here by amile - a pocket symphony that in time should earn its due as a latter-day classic from a washed-up band. Elsewhere, "Dreamin"' is a pass- able electric guitar ballad immea- surably better than its gross club counterpart "This Is The Way" from Cuomo's solo Alone, and "Everybody Get Dangerous" is a fun, if slightly embarrassing, hard- rock stomp. "Heart Songs," mean- while, where Cuomo recounts his favorite songs from his formative years, is a little too cute. Cuomo's supremacy remains unchallenged by the other mem- ber's offerings. Rhythm guitarist Brian Bell's pop-rocker "Thought I Knew" is marginallythe best, while bassist Scott Shriner's "Cold Dark World" is easily the worst. Drum- mer Pat Wilson chips in the slight- See WEEZER, Page 10 ingly constant rate. Thank- fully, "Kung Fu Panda," the lat- est creation from the studio that brought us "Shrek" and "Over the Hedge," has nothing of the latter. Had it been able to similarly avoid the tepid, false sentiments of the former, it could have been a truly memorable film. The story of a young panda named Po (Jack Black, "Nacho Libre") - whose dreams are the only thing bigger than the flab under his belly - "Kung Fu Panda" is set in the mystical (fictional) Val- 'Panda' kicks high, misses the mark. become the greatest fighter ever. The Furious Five and their mas- ter, Shifu (Dustin Hoffman), have been entrusted with guarding the scroll until the true dragon war- See PANDA, Page 10 should or thinking that it's abso- lutely awful. It's also one of those movies for which both just might be entirely justified. Adam Sandler plays Zohan, an Israeli counter-terrorist who is so skilled that his father calls him "Rembrandt with a grenade." The hitch, of course, is that Zohan secretly dreams of becoming a hairstylist, which drives him to fake his death and pursue his dream in the United States. Much of the film's humor relies on its extreme caricatures of Israelis and Palestinians, and for those in the know, many of these jokes work quite well. Of course, there are several dead gags - is there really a need for so many hummus jokes? The film is definitely tasteless. The entire subplot with Sandler's characterromancingolder women in the backroom of the hair salon may incite some queasiness. Its failings aside, Sandler injects Zohan with such goofy charm that it's hard to feel repulsed. Peppered with inspired cameos (check out Dave Matthews as an angry redneck) and bizarre sight gags (a cat being used as a hacky sack), this film is fun and for the most part, pretty funny. You just might be too embarrassed to admit it. SHERIJANKELOVITZ Winner will receive two free burritos from Rio Wraps. Try to find the fake advertisement in this week's paper and throughout the month. If you think you've found it, e-mail your name, the page number of the ad and the ad caption to dailydisplay@gmail.com (subject: fake ad contest). One winner will be chosen at the end of each month and will be contacted by e-mail.