Reviews: music, book, film & games
MOVIE
Red Eye
PG-13, 85
minutes
South Wind 12
☆☆☆
Subtle and patient don't usually describe Wes Craven films. But the director of such gory horror films as A
Nightmare on Elm Street and The Hills Have Eyes delivers those two things in Red Eye. Craven and his two leads make it a solid, taught thriller that, at 85 minutes, is short and sweet.
Rachel McAdams and Cillian Murphy, two of Hollywood's biggest and best up-and-coming stars of the moment, are the two leads in Red Eye. McAdams stole Mean Girls from under Lindsey Lohan's heels, and hit all the right notes in The Notebook. Murphy gained notice for the modernized zombie flick 28 Days Later and a creepy performance as the Scarecrow in Batman Begins.
In Red Eve, McAdams plays Lisa, a hotel manager on a late flight back to Miami after attending her grandmother's funeral. Murphy plays Jackson Ripper (clever name), a charming gentleman with unknown motives. At first, it appears Jackson is trying to woo the beautiful Lisa, but as the two are sitting next to each other on the plane ride, he reveals that he's an assassin and their encounter isn't as random as it seems.
What follows is an expert exercise in tension. Sure, we've seen this before in a handful of movies, but what makes Red Eye successful is how well the two leads sell it. McAdams finds perfect balance between the vulnerable scream-queen we've seen in this position many times before and the strong-willed victim who's not going to take any more of her tormentor's shit. Murphy is picture-perfect for the role and picks up right where he left off in Batman Begins earlier this summer. He manages to pull off being charming and dangerous at the same time — not an easy task. Throw in a somewhat-wasted Brian Cox, one of the best character actors of this generation, and what results is a smart, tense thriller to end off the summer.
- Jon Ralston
Jayplay 8.25.05
BOOK
14|
Velocity Dean Koontz
☆☆☆1/2
Choice is at the center of Dean Koontz's latest dark fable, Velocity. How would an ordinary Everyman—in this
case a humble bartender named Billy Wiles—react if he had to choose between the lives of two people? Could he?
Upon leaving the tavern where he works, Billy discovers a note on his windshield. A killer promises to murder a schoolteacher or an elderly woman, based on Billy's actions. Believing it to be a prank, Billy writes it off. The next day, he learns that a young teacher has been found murdered. From there, the notes and the bodies pile up as Billy tries to both uncover the killer's identity and save himself and those he cares about from certain death.
The third principle is the seemingly preternatural intelligence and inhumane cruelty of the killer, who commits acts of violence so coldly that they must be brilliant, insane or both.
The second principle is the run-of-the-mill variety of the protagonist, who wields no authority but who by the end of the story has had to overcome his past, fear and doubt to stay one step ahead of his adversary.
Koontz's storytelling here, as in his novel Intensity, relies on three principles. The first of these is the pace of the novel, which starts almost immediately and keeps accelerating until the climax, when Billy has quite literally been through every sort of physical and emotional hell.
The upside of these principles is that they work together flawlessly. Velocity offers passages of intense drama as Billy must approach suspects and cover up the murders due to fear of becoming a suspect. There are enough red herrings and detours to keep the narrative tight but not stifling. And Billy makes a nuanced and fascinating lead.
The only real problem with Velocity is that it's an old road. It's the same basic version of Koontz's previous novels; there's really nothing new.
-Kelsey Hayes
For a well-executed formula, I commend him. For originality, he falls short.
MUSIC
Veda
The Weight Of An Empty Room ★★★
Veda is lead by the powerful vocals of Kristen May. Her voice is an immediate selling point as most people are blown away by the sheer power of it. The musical side is led by guitarist, Brian Little. His guitar leads mirror those of Coldplay and Kansas City's own, Elevator Division. Add in thunderous drums and bass lines and you have Veda, an indie rock band set to take one listener at a time.
The Weight Of An Empty Room has several standout tracks including "It's All Happening On Broadway" and "Song For A Friend" - with its added piano part and acoustic-driven bridge.
The albums only weakness is the fact that the band rarely goes more than five seconds without having a vocal part. The vocal parts are good, but the album lacks instrumental prowess. And although May's voice is incredible, it sometimes seems overused.
Overall, this album has incredible vocals, smart lyrics and interesting lead lines will help put Veda on the forefront of the Kansas City, indie-rock scene. If you'd like to see them, they're playing at EI Torreon in Kansas City on August 29th with MeWithoutYou and Dredg. Find their album in most local CD stores.
The bonus track on the CD, an acoustic version of "Lover's Lie," might be the best one. Its simple acoustic part lends itself perfectly to Kristen's soaring voice.
GAMES
—Chris Brower
Darkwatch
Playstation 2 or X-Box
☆☆☆
Recently, one genre has been completely disregarded by video game developers: the vampire-themed, western, first-person shooter. Fortunately, the folks at Capcom have released Darkwatch, arguably the best and only game the genre has ever seen.
The game puts players in the role of Jericho Cross, a veteran gunslinger out for one last train robbery. Unfortunately, this train happens to be carrying a vampire lord. Things continue to go awry for Jericho as he finds himself turned into a vampire.
Jericho's newly-found vampire abilities give the game much of its uniqueness. Players can use "blood-
vision" to see important items and enemies, float through the air using the "vampire jump," and utilize a number of short-term powers, learned throughout the game based on players' good and evil decisions.
Regardless, Darkwatch is highly recommendable, even as just a rental. Vampire-western fans should be pleased.
Graphically, the game looks superb. Environments are fairly detailed and the character design is great - although much of the game tends to be too dark to notice these things.
- Andrew Campbell
The only other drawback is its longevity. The game's singleplayer portion is fairly short, and the multiplayer component is a fairly bare-bones package.
Fullmetal Alchemist 2:
Curse of the Crimson Elixir
Playstation 2
☆☆☆
Edward and Alphonse Elric are back on Playstation 2 to solve the latest mystery surrounding the "philosopher's stone." The storyline is somewhat original, but takes a lot from the first few episodes of the animé.
The combat in this game is more fast-paced than its predecessor. The fighting is still pretty straightforward with hack-and-slashing button combinations, but it doesn't seem as sluggish as the predecessor. The graphics have had an upgrade as well, by way of Dragon Ball Z: Budokai - going from polygons to cell shading.
The game still harbors RPG (role playing game) elements with leveling up the Elrics — with each new level you gain points to disperse between them.
Transmuting has become easier too. One, it takes less time to transmute objects and two, the pair of brothers that play the protagonists of the storyline don't have to find objects to turn into weapons (like spears and swords). Now Edward has the ability to form these weapons from the ground.
This game plays a lot like the first one, but you can tell it's had some work done to it. Still, it may only appeal to those who enjoy the series. The game sells for $39.99 at stores like Best Buy.
Chris Moore