By wpengine October 19, 2001
Resistance is Futile The Recording Industry Association of America is taking the war against file sharing into your homes. The RIAA is experimenting with technology that targets individual personal computers. The method uses software to masquerade as a file-swapper online, according to industry sources. Once the software has found a computer offering a certain song, it attempts to block other potential traders from downloading the song. It repeatedly requests the same file and downloads it very slowly, substantially clogging the target computer’s Internet connection. RIAA lobbyists are also seeking a provision to a new anti-terrorism bill that would shield copyright holders against any damage done to computers in the pursuit of copyright protection. I guess that now you don’t need to check out CBS if you want to see Big Brother; just log on to your favorite file-sharing service. The Sound of Irony Meanwhile, the Justice Department has started an antitrust investigation of the Recording Industry Association of America. E! Online is reporting that the Justice Department has issued a subpoena to the RIAA to determine the extent to which record companies has sought to control distribution of music over the Internet. It should be a quick investigation — there’s a few million disgruntled teenagers out there who can give you the answer to that question. The C in CBS Stands For Crazy After weeks of a hypersensitive Hollywood going out of its way to eliminate images of the World Trade Center from movies and TV shows, CBS says it’s considering a new series set in the aftermath of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. And it’s going to be a comedy. Network president Leslie Moonves announced last week that he’s considering a romantic comedy series about two people brought together after their spouses are killed in the destruction of the Twin Towers. Moonves said a producer, whom he declined to name, pitched him a standard premise about a middle-aged couple. After the attacks, the producer suggested the idea be changed to “heighten the stakes” and tell some of the powerful stories that came out of the disaster. “Is it exploitative to do something like that? Not if it’s handled properly,” Moonves said. Moonves then dropped his pants for reporters to demonstrate that his balls were indeed made of steel. They were unable to confirm if Moonves brains were really cotton, however. Rollin’ Away Guitarist Wes Borland, more commonly known as “The Scary Puppet-Looking Guy,” has quit Limp Bizkit. The split is amicable, the band’s management said in a statement last week. “Both Limp Bizkit and Borland will continue to pursue their respective musical careers,” the statement said. “Both wish each other the best of luck in all future endeavors.” Borland, who usually appears onstage in elaborate face and body paint, had been the Bizkit guitarist since the group’s formation in 1994. According to MTV online, he was easily the second most popular band member behind frontman Fred Durst, inspiring a number of online fan clubs and Web sites. Rumors are circulating, meanwhile, that Borland has been tapped by George Lucas’s creature shop to play a horrible alien in the new Star Wars movie.Archived article by
By wpengine October 19, 2001
As is made abundantly clear by its title and establishing scene, Antione Fuqua’s Training Day is not concerned with breaking new ground in the areas of theme, style, and storytelling. The basic plot concerns a rookie cop being taken under the wing of an experienced detective. The title suggests, and the first shot of a rising sun confirms, that the action will take place during one (life changing, eye opening, world shattering, etc.) day. Obviously, if this film succeeds, it would be by eloquently presenting a well-written take on a well-worn motif. It doesn’t. Training Day is, however, one of the better acted failures of the year. The film stars Ethan Hawke, sporting an unfortunate mustache, who plays Jake Hoyt opposite Denzel Washington’s Alonzo Harris. Jake, who we know to be the hero because the movie opens with him watching his wife nurse their child with a beatific smile, wants nothing more than to make detective. Alonzo, easy to identify as the villain by his goatee, is the narcotics squad leader who can help him achieve his goal. There are other characters, including a crippled drug dealer (Snoop Dogg) who has a painful encounter with a pen, but these characters function solely as plot devices or for exposition. There is a minimal plot concerning Alonzo’s illegal activities, but it involves no surprising twists or momentum, and we are left with a series of violently punctuated vignettes. While the entire movie could easily be consolidated into one twenty-minute sequence (Alonzo does something illegal, Jake looks horrified; Alonzo justifies his actions, Jake looks guilty), the main body of it moves along in a fairly logical manner. The first 90 minutes of the movie, while by no means great, relate an interesting fable about law vs. justice, and how those intended to police the populace themselves need policing. The twist is that the crooked cop almost convinces the hero, and the audience, of the necessity of his actions. The film should have ended with the ambiguous shot of Jake climbing into Alonzo’s car, questioning his choice of profession. But, it doesn’t. Instead, the director has tacked on a nasty 30-minute chase sequence, which is thoroughly unnecessary, and has been done better. All traces of an intelligent film gone, the audience is left with an unconvincing hero and an unsatisfying end. This movie is saved from total failure by an excellent performance from Washington and several effective scenes. Washington is all feral elegance; his sense of entitlement radiates from his smarmy face. Hawke supports him in fine fashion, although the script never manages to make Jake compelling. They really get to show their talent in their first scene together, where Alonzo ignores, then emasculates Jake. The tense, dialogue-driven episode conveys Jake’s profound discomfort perfectly, and illustrates Alonzo’s dominance. It is everything this movie could have been, and sadly, was not.Archived article by Erica Stein