The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
Arts
Wednesday, October 26, 2016 — 5A

20TH CENTURY FOX

Okay, but in what universe does Zach Galifinakis land Isla Fisher?!

George 
Lucas, 
the 
brains 

behind 
the 
“Star 
Wars” 

franchise, purportedly hung up 
a release date for 
“The 
Phantom 

Menace” 
while 

filming. No matter 
what, he told his 
cast 
and 
crew, 

the 
film 
would 

be released on a 
specific 
date. 
It 

can’t be much of a 
surprise that “The 
Phantom Menace” 
lacked the nuance and heart that 
defined the earlier films, since 
Lucas’s team didn’t have the 
freedom to think through the 
film before its release.

That same predetermination, 

and its accompanying general 
disregard 
for 
the 
craft 
of 

filmmaking for profit’s sake, is 
vividly on display in “Keeping Up 
with the Joneses,” a spy action 
comedy 
from 
20th 
Century 

Fox and the latest project from 
“Adventureland” and “Superbad” 
director Greg Mottola.

Jeff 
Gaffney 
(Zach 

Galifianakis, “Birdman”), a nerdy 
and relatively socially inept HR 
manager at a large industrial 
facility in suburban Atlanta, and 
his wife, Karen (Isla Fisher, “The 
Great Gatsby”), become caught 
up in an espionage plot when they 
discover their new neighbors are 
government agents. The smooth, 
suave and stylish neighbors, Tim 
and Natalie Jones (Jon Hamm, 
“Mad Men,” and Gal Gadot, 
“Batman v. Superman: Dawn 

of Justice”), charm everyone 
around them, who all work for 
the same company with Gaffney, 
into revealing critical secrets.

The film, miserable as it 

is, does deserve some credit. 
An exhaustive list of its attri-

butes include: a 
decent (but very 
brief) title cred-
its sequence, a sly 
Nigerian 
prince 

reference, 
three 

“Veep” cast mem-
bers, 
a 
Busby 

Berkeley-inspired 
indoor 
skydiving 

sequence and two 
good songs (one 

by Blitzen Trapper, another by 
Anderson .Paak). That is, unfor-
tunately, the end of the list.

The film certainly defies 

expectations to the extent that I 
expected to see an action come-
dy. Rather, we are left with a film 
constructed from the tropes left 
behind by other superior films. 
There is one action sequence 
and fewer laughs. The prede-
cessors of “Keeping Up with the 
Joneses,” films like last year’s 
brilliant 
“Spy,” 
“The 
Other 

Guys,” and even “Date Night,” 
are funnier while being more 
drastic and creative in throwing 
average Joes into high-stakes 
action stories. They are simply 
more entertaining. 

But “Keeping Up with the 

Joneses” is nothing more than 
a failure. The film is beyond 
predictable, wearing its fore-
shadowing on its sleeve. The 
score, written by Jake Monaco 
(“Dinotrux”), seems to be stolen 
from other action comedies. The 
story is dull, using a slow reveal 

of facts (which, by the way, 
could be deduced by watching 
the trailer) until the plot is made 
clear way more than halfway 
through the movie. Galifiana-
kis, Fisher and Hamm have all 
proven their comedic chops but 
they are all each given just one 
joke to continue throughout the 
film; they lack complexity and 
the film just lacks fun. Gadot, or 
at least her performance, lacks 
any sense of comedy and she is 
reserved as simply a sex object, 
surely at the studio’s request.

But what’s most frustrating 

about the film, even more than 
its abject failure at simple film-
making technique (the film is 
horribly lit), is its unearned con-
fidence. Scenes that are meant 
to be clearly funny moments 
feel completely distant, as if 
studio executives thought, “Oh, 
this will surely get the audience 
laughing. Let’s stylize it, throw 
in some slow motion to capital-
ize on those laughs.” What is 
most troubling is that Mottola’s 
earlier films, especially, for me, 
“Adventureland,” strongly suc-
ceeded where his latest fails: 
comedy should flow naturally, 
not calculatedly or mechani-
cally.

The film’s marketing cam-

paign included an appeal as a 
great date movie. It can only be 
assumed that it would suit those 
who pay to see a movie then turn 
away from the screen and make 
out the whole time. I suppose, 
then, it fulfills the base require-
ment of a date movie in that 
it is, in fact, a movie. In other 
words, distracted audiences are 
encouraged, all others should 
avoid.

Don’t bother ‘Keeping Up’

DANIEL HENSEL

Daily Arts Writer

Greg Mottola’s latest isn’t as good as ‘Superbad’ or ‘Adventureland’

D

“Keeping up with 

the Joneses”

20th Century Fox

Rave & Quality 16

Michigan’s Jazz Ensemble 

will be playing at this year’s 
20th 
Annual 
Edgefest 
in 

Kerrytown. With a heavy lineup 
of performers and 
presenters, 
this 

year is expected 
to 
be 
bigger 

and 
better 
than 

in 
years 
past. 

Originating 
in 

1997, Edgefest has 
premiered a wide 
variety 
of 
jazz 

artists 
from 
all 

over the country in 
the decades since 
its inception.

Jazz 
pianist 

and composer Ellen Rowe has 
been a part of Edgefest since 
the beginning. However, her 
passion for jazz and her career 
began much earlier.

“In junior high and high 

school, jazz was more unique 
… not a lot of other musicians, 
especially 
women, 
were 

pursuing it,” Rowe said. “It was 
creative and allowed for a large 
degree of self-expression. I just 
loved the spirit and sense of 
community.” 

Rowe went on to create 

compositions and arrangements 

and lead her own jazz quartet. 
The Arizona Daily Star praised 
her when as a “rare ‘triple 
threat’ of pianist, composer-
arranger, and teacher ... the best 
possible role model …”

Not only is Rowe the director 

of the University of Michigan 

Jazz 
Ensemble, 

but she also works 
as the professor 
and chair of Jazz 
& Contemporary 
Improvisation.

The Michigan 

Jazz 
Ensemble 

has 
been 

preparing 
for 

Edgefest 
with 

other professors 
and 
composers. 

The 
members 

of 
the 
band 

are 
required 
to 
practice 

individually, 
in 
addition 
to 

rehearsing with their section 
and with the band altogether.

The first half of their concert 

this Friday will be a jazz piano 
concerto with composer and 
performing 
arts 
technology 

Professor of Steve Rush at the 
piano, with additional soloists 
from the ensemble. The second 
half will be a collaboration with 
award winning percussionist 
and composer Jon Hollenbeck. 

“He is in town once every 

couple years,” Rowe said. “So 

when students get the chance 
to play his music, it’s pretty 
special.”

Although 
the 
Michigan 

Jazz 
Ensemble 
will 
only 

be 
performing 
one 
night, 

Edgefest will be filled with 
iconic jazz artists, performers 
and 
composers 
throughout 

the week. The performances 
range from individuals to small 
quartets to entire bands.

“This year’s lineup is stacked. 

We are a lot more interesting as 
improvisers and composers,” 
Rowe explained.

Edgefest is unique to the 

Ann Arbor community because 
it only comes around once a 
year, and it allows room for 
non-traditional jazz artists to 
present their work. Rowe noted 
that “contemporary, improvised 
jazz is not generally on people’s 
radios, and they are not getting 
exposed to it. Some people have 
not experienced it.”

However, Rowe believes that 

it’s vital for people to hear this 
type of music and specifically, 
this type of jazz, adding that 
Ann Arbor often provides that.

“Ann 
Arbor 
has 
been 

somewhat of a leader in the 
country for presenting real 
contemporary 
music,” 
Rowe 

said.

Edgefest is a prime example 

of that kind of presentation. 

ERIKA SHEVCHEK

Daily Arts Writer

Kerrytown’s Edgefest festival to 
feature Michigan Jazz Ensemble

Festival will feature a variety of jazz artists from all over the country

Edgefest

Saturday at 8:30 

p.m.

St. Andrews 

Episcopal Church

$15 General 
Admission, 

$5 Students

COMMUNITY CULTURE PREVIEW

For many an awkward teen, 

myself almost certainly among 
them, music is often a way of 
feeling part of something, and is 
a way of escaping everyday life.

Being a teenager is that time 

in your life when you’re teetering 
on the edge of finding out who 
you are and what you like. You’re 
figuring out what kind of clothes 
you like to wear, what kind of 
jokes you find funny and arguably 
one of the most important, you 
find out what kind of music that 
you enjoy.

A lot of our music taste comes 

from those near us, especially 
those that we look up to, 
including our friends and what 
we see people listening to on the 
internet. Often there’s the singer 
(or band) of the moment, with 
prime examples being Justin 
Bieber and One Direction, who 
are known as having fanbases 
made of pre-teen girls. Whenever 
this is talked about, it is often 
derogatory, as if it’s bad to have 
this kind of fan. There’s several 
things that I find unsettling 
about this frame of mind, and 
it’s taken me a long time to digest 
and even realize that there’s 
something off with this way of 
thinking.

These young girls are no less a 

fan of music as anyone else on this 
planet is. Does being young make 

them less of a fan? No — as boys 
seem to never have this problem. 
Am I trying to insinuate that this 
is some form of sexism? Maybe, 
but I don’t want to detract from 
what I’m really trying to say.

Why do we view young girls 

as lesser fans of artists? It can’t 
possibly be due to the amount 
of money that they spend on the 
artist — think of the sheer amount 
of One Direction paraphernalia 
that has been floating around 
from the very inception of the 
band. Parents are never more 
willing to spend money than 
when it involves indulging their 
children, and getting them lots 
of merchandise of their favorite 
band would definitely be a part of 
that.

Is it a way of insulting the 

artist, by referring to how all their 
fans are young? Again, why is it so 
terrible to have a large amount of 
loyal fans, regardless of their age 
and gender?

Surely, the blatant stereotyping 

of fans in this situation is 
something that is unhealthy 
and 
shouldn’t 
be 
something 

that’s so commonplace in the 
world of music. Music is often 
a form of escapism and allows 
people to express themselves 
and what they’re interested in. 
Theoretically, this should be 
an environment in which other 
people’s opinions and passions 
are accepted and we can learn 
from each other by seeing what 

other people listen to.

I find nothing more satisfying 

than finding a new band and going 
through their albums, especially 
if someone has suggested their 
music to me. Discussing music 
has generally always been a safe 
conversation topic, and people are 
normally respectful. However, 
often hearing how other people 
in the music scene refer to fans 
of other bands, I wonder if this 
is becoming less true. Artists 
themselves are now more open 
about their likes and dislikes of 
other artists on social media, 
and this can lead to “fan wars” 
or straight up cyberbullying 
between groups.

I believe that musicians have a 

responsibility to be role models. 
Even if they are a small local 
band, there are still people paying 
to see them play and who look up 
to them. There is a built-in part 
of this that involves showcasing 
politeness and respect to others 
in the music industry, and with 
social media allowing artists to 
have such contact with their fans, 
this is now more important than 
ever.

The music industry is bigger 

than ever. It has the ability to bring 
thousands of people together at 
one for their love of music, yet it 
is also so divisive. It would be so 
much easier if people saw this 
difference as a great positive, 
instead of something that needs 
to be argued about.

MEGAN WILLIAMS

For the Daily

Reevaluating fan culture in the age 
of Justin Bieber and One Direction

As megafans get increasingly aggressive, artists have a dilemma

MUSIC NOTEBOOK

THE CW

When he says if you had a twin he’d still choose your twin.

When it premiered last year, 

“Crazy Ex-Girlfriend” seemed to 
be nothing more than a whimsical, 
goofy TV show about a 
girl who takes a crush 
too far. As the season 
progressed, it evolved 
into an unorthodox 
look at mental health 
and 
relationships. 

Buried in the silliness 
of each episode were 
moments 
of 
truth. 

Season one of “Crazy 
Ex-Girlfriend” was a 
fresh, witty profile of 
people desperate for 
companionship 
and, 

more 
importantly, 

love.

Season two moves away from 

the crazy things people do to find 
a relationship to the even crazier 
things people do to stay in one. 
The theme song, historically 
serving as a thesis statement for 
the season, begins with “I’m just a 
girl in love.” Clearly, this season is 
all about being together, not apart 
— whatever it takes.

Surprisingly, the first healthy 

relationship 
shown 
in 
the 

episode is Paula (Donna Lynne 
Champlain, 
“Birdman”) 
and 

Scott 
(Steve 
Monroe, 
“Miss 

Congeniality”), whose marriage 
was on the rocks for much of the 
first season. In their kitchen, they 
talk about normal, happy, healthy 
couple things like the arrival of 
their sex harness from Amazon 
Prime, kids and of course, Rebecca 
(Rachel Bloom, “Robot Chicken”) 
and Josh (Vincent Rodriguez, 
“Donny!”). For the first time since 
Paula joined Team Rebecca, she is 

not supportive of the relationship.

And what exactly is Rebecca 

and Josh’s relationship? It can best 
be described as a “live-in booty 
call.” They’re having sex and it’s 
clearly on Josh’s terms … despite 
the fact that he is now living 

with Rebecca. 
His refusal to 
sleep in bed 
with her is the 
first red flag 
that although 
Rebecca finally 
gets to be with 
Josh, 
she’s 

still in denial 
about 
the 

truth. 
“Love 

Kernels,” 
a 
hilarious 

homage 
to 

Beyoncé’s 

“Lemonade,” further explores the 
nature of the unequal relationship. 
Rebecca is so desperate to keep 
the relationship alive that she will 
trick herself into believing a 3:00 
a.m. “You Up?” text means love.

Both songs in the episode 

focus solely on Josh and Rebecca. 
This raises the question of 
what kind of season this will 
be. The songs usually heighten 
the main storylines of each 
episode; “Love Kernels” and 
“We 
Should 
Definitely 
Not 

Have Sex Right Now” make it 
apparent that Rebecca and Josh 
is the most important storyline. 
Season one spent so much time 
curating relationships and quirky 
characters that it’s important to 
see the payoff in season two. Will 
a 
relationship-themed 
season 

allow for that, or will it hurt the 
ensemble quality which makes 
the show so special?

Specifically missing from the 

first episode were two of those 

charming supporting characters, 
Darryl (Pete Gardner, “Project 
X”) and White Josh (David Hull, 
“The Middle”). Their storyline 
was in the episode just enough to 
make sure viewers didn’t forget 
about them. However, the pur-
pose of their presence, to cement 
the theme of “crazy for love,” was 
all they contributed to the epi-
sode. Similar to Paula and Scott, 
Darryl and White Josh are anoth-
er established, happy couple used 
to represent the overall shift from 
loneliness to love.

The only lonely person is prob-

ably the show’s most sympathetic 
character, Greg (Santino Fontana, 
“Frozen”). Greg’s discovery of his 
alcoholism was an unexpected 
twist, handled with exactly the 
level of humanity viewers have 
come to expect from “Crazy Ex-
Girlfriend.” His underlying issues 
— anger, escapism, self-depreca-
tion — from the first season finally 
come to fruition. If anyone in the 
cast is immediately set up for 
large personal growth, it’s Greg. 
In his poignant speech at Alco-
holics Anonymous, he shares that 
he is already “less angry.” This is 
huge for anyone who knows Greg.

It looks like “Crazy Ex-Girl-

friend” is poised and ready for 
another season of finding love 
and 
happiness 
through 
the 

worst possible methods. Already, 
Rebecca has taken a normal ges-
ture (giving someone a drawer) 
to unreachable heights (installing 
“The Entertainer” to play in said 
decked-out drawer). It’s exciting 
and a little scary to see what is 
in store for the characters.With 
Rebecca Bunch, a little goes a 
long way (from New York to West 
Covina, for example). Where, oh 
where, will she take viewers this 
season?

EMILY BICE

For the Daily

‘Ex’ shifts from loneliness to love

The CW’s musical comedy explores new themes in season opener

A-

“Crazy Ex-
Girlfriend”

Season Two 

Premiere

Fridays at 9 p.m.

The CW

