^ Eiitertaiiimciil ^
Solutions for a Long
Holiday
By Anne Zahran
Entertainment Editor
Ahhhh... winter break. After the last final exam is administered, those
of us without jobs and exciting travel plans will undoubtedly be left with
approximately four weeks of free time. Oh sure, the holiday festivities will
take up a decent portion of those hours-trimming the tree, buying those last-
minute gifts, and eating all those Christmas sweets, not to mention the hours
spent catching up with friends and family over eggnog and fruitcake.
But unless your idea of a great holiday is watching hours of mindless
holiday specials .and sleeping until noon every day (okay, so maybe it’s just
not my idea of a great holiday), you may find yourself with too much time on
your hands and not enough activities to fill it.
That said, for those of you non-holiday slackers, here is a list of fun
(and entertaining!) activities to do over Christmas. These aren’t real work
either, but at least they’ll keep your brain from completely atrophying from
Dec. 6 to Jan. 9.
♦Host a theme-movie party. You pick the theme, be it all movies star
ring Tom Cruise, all movies directed by Martin Scorsese, or even something
as silly as all ’80s movies. Think of the possibilities! Host after the holidays
in order to bribe guests into eating your leftover goodies.
*Go to the public library and browse the latest best-sellers. Pick up and
read the first book that looks interesting, whether it’s an Oprah pick or the
latest Jackie Collins. Quality is good but not necessary for a vacation read.
Pick something you always wanted to read but thought was too trashy.
*Or.. better yet, pick a book that you always wanted to read but thought
was too hard/too long/too classic. In four weeks, you can read Gdne With the
Wind, Les Miserables, maybe even War and Peace. And then you can come
back and brag to all your professors that you actually read it.
*Treat yourself to the best of the year’s entertainment. Rent Gladiator,
Frequency, or The Perfect Storm on video. Even if you’ve seen them once,
these choice flicks deserve another view
*ln music, check out the return of U2 to guitar-based rock on one of
the year’s most critically acclaimed albums, “All That You Can ‘t Leave
Behind.”
*Read the stunning Drowning Ruth, a haunting tale of how one
woman’s need to hide her past changed the lives of those close to her
forever.
■"Do something unexpected...the Cape Fear region offers plenty of en
tertainment choices hosted by churches, schools, and the Arts Council. Check
the paper for listings, and then go see a play or visit an exhibit.
*For a complete list of what Amazon.com subscribers voted the Top
100 books, movies, and albums of all time, go to www.amazon.com. The list
is a great starting place for broadening your mind and will surely provide
enough choices to keep you entertained not just over the break, but for weeks,
months, and maybe even years to come.
Drowning Ruth: A
Tightly Woven Tale of
Woe
The Grinch: Warm and Winsome
By Anne Zahran
Entertainment Editor
Are you dreaming of a white
Christmas, knowing all the while that
if you stay in Fayetteville, your
chances of seeing one are slim-to-
none? Well, if you can’t have one
here, the least you can do for yourself
is read Christina Schwarz’s Drowning
Ruth, which features enough wintry
weather to make anyone want to curl
up with a cup of hot chocolate and a
warm blanket.
The novel is a vivid and grip
ping debut sure to keep you up until
the last page is finished. It is the tale
of Amanda and Mathilda, two sisters
coming of age in WWI Wisconsin.
The Starkey sisters are eight years
apart and as different as two people
can possibly be. Mathilda marries
young and cares for her young daugh
ter, Ruth, while her husband is off at
war. Meanwhile, Amanda goes to
nursing school and becomes entangled
with a charming, wealthy, married
man. When their affair ends, Amanda
moves back home and makes valiant
attempts to return to normalcy with
unfavorable results.
Within a few months both her
sister and her parents tragically die,
and Amanda assumes the role of rear
ing her young niece Ruth until Ruth’s
father, Carl, returns from war.
Amanda controls and manipulates
^rduinin
rilKIM IN \ Si'inv vu/
By Anne Zahran
Entertainment Editor
It would be easy for me to blast
Ron Howard’s film adaptation of the
Dr, Seuss Christmas classic. How The
Grinch Stole Christmas. Too easy;
namely because this movie is another
vehicle for the multi-talented Jim
Carrey, and if you don’t care for the
on-screen antics of his other movies,
you probably aren’t even going to like
The Grinch any better. So, again, if
you’re not fond of the rubber-faced
follies of Carrey, just spend your
movie dollars elsewhere.
Also, 1 was somewhat disap
pointed in the lighthearted approach
taken with this dark tale, which has
so much potential to be really, truly
scary. In the hands of another direc
tor (say, Edward Scissorhands' Tim
Burton), The Grinch could have been
more fully realized as a tortured re
cluse, Still, Howard's adaptation is
appropriate for a more general view
ing audience, and both his choice of
actors and Carrey's incredible campy
comedy make the movie accessible
to all.
That said, let me continue with
my review by singing the praises of
one of the most talented and versatile
comedians in Hollywood today,
Carrey’s Grinch is more delightfully
sarcastic than wickedly sneering, and
I doubt any one except for very young
children will find his portrayal scary.
In the hands of another actor. The
Grinch could have been much darker
and more evil, but Carrey suits this
project, which was directed by Archie
Cunningham himself, Ron Howard,
An estimated $200 million dol
lars was spent in making this movie.
meanone.com
and from begirming to end, it shows.
The opening scene of The Grinch,
which features a bird’s eye view of
Mt. Crumpit, looks as if it’s been
lifted straight from the pages of
Seuss' book, and the rest of the film
is both visually stunning and sensu
ally stimulating. Whoville is a Christ
mas wonderland, complete with as
many lights, toys, and characters as
the eye can handle.
Howard has managed to con
vey an the warmth of Seuss’ Whoville
and translate it to the screen, perhaps
adding even more of his own. The
costumes are colorful and elaborate,
if sometimes laughable. And every
Who down in Whoville comes
equipped with a cute little nose re
sembling that of the Grinch’s long-
suffering dog. Max, and round little
tummies full of Christmas treats.
In order to make the story fea-
ture-film length, the original tale had
to be expanded. Little Cindy Lou
Who becomes more of a central fig
ure than she was previously, and the
actress shines in her first major role,
Molly Shannon and Christine
Baranski star as neighbors competing
Martha Stewart-style for the most
decadent Christmas displays. How
ever, the most interesting plot diver
sion is the story behind The Grinch's
deep-rooted hate of all things Christ
mas, We learn just how the Grinch
came to Whoville (and by the way,
he was a pretty cute baby) and how
an early childhood rejection shaped
the rest of his life.
The remainder of the Grinch’s
tale plays out the way we watched it
on TV; the Grinch plans to “steal”
Christmas from the Whos, taking all
their presents, decorations, and there
fore (he thinks) thwarting their holi
day experience. While he does suc
ceed in ridding them of the physical
aspects of Christmas, he isn’t able to
rob them of the spirit of Christmas,
for Christmas, as we all know, lies not
in the gifts we receive but in the joy
of family, friends, and love that sur
rounds us.
The Grinch does finally ac
knowledge this, but for those watch
ing the movie, it’s pretty obvious he
knew it all along, though it was bur
ied deep in his two-sizes-too-small
heart. In the end, he gets the girl
(Martha May Whovier, his childhood
crush) and the gifts, and he is wel
comed into the society he excluded
himself from so many Christmases
ago. And he even gets to carve the
roast beast.
Mazed™ "Santa Claus'
by Isaac Thayer
WWW.amazon.com/imai^es/P/
0385502532.0l.LZZZZZZZ.jog
Ruth, and the poor girl and her fa
ther are merely pawns in this des
perate woman’s schemes. Her need
to be in control at all costs drives her
to unimaginable lengths. One indis
cretion is compounded by extenuat
ing lies, and the aftermath negatively
impacts all of the major characters.
1 won’t reveal how Drowning
Ruth ends, but Schwarz brings all the
major plot diversions together quite
deftly. An astounding first effort
from a talented young writer, this
novel is great not just in itself, but in
the promise it exudes.
if
i
© Copyright 1998, Network Solution Developers, Inc., All rights resen/ed.
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Directions: Put letters back in end and rebuild the
puzzle.
■■
Top 10 Christmas Movies Of All Time
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By Anne Zahran
Entertainment Editor
♦Disclaimer; This list does not
include holiday specials broadcast on
TV. As good as How The Grinch
Stole Christmas and Frosty the
Snowman are, our list focuses specifi
cally on feature-length films. These
are in no particular order.
1. White Christmas. One of the
happiest movies you’ll ever see, and
a swell musical to boot. Stars Bing
Crosby, Rosemary Clooney, and
Danny Kaye.
2. It ‘s A Wonderful Life. Call
it sentimental, but this 1946 Capra
masterpiece is not only one of the best
Christmas films, it’s one of the best
films ever. Period,
3. A Christmas Story. All
Ralphie wants is a Red Rider B. B.
gun in this hilarious story of a young
boy’s 1940s holiday.
4. A Christmas Carol. Al
though there are many versions of this
classic tale (also, try The Muppets’
Christmas Carol and Mickey ‘s
Christmas Carol) the 1951 Alastair
Sim classic is the definitive, take-to-
the-desert-island version.
5 One Magic Christmas. A
modem spin on It’s A Wonderful Lift.
Mary Steenburgen shines as a strug
gling mother who comes to appreci
ate Christmas through a series of near
tragedies,
6 National Lampoon’s Christ
mas Vacation. A crazy squirrel, a tur
key, and the usual antics of Chevy
Chase make for another delightful
comedy about the Griswalds,
7, The Bishop's Wife. Cary
Grant stars as an angel sent to answer
prayers and bring a bishop and his
wife (Loretta Young) closer together.
8 Little Women. In 1994,
Gillian Armstrong directed an exquis
itely detailed version of the bestsell
ing children’s book. A stellar cast,
including Winona Ryder, Susan
Sarandon, and Christian Bale round
out this wonderful family film.
9. A Miracle on 34th Street.
Natalie Wood and Maureen O’Hara
realistically portray a mother and
daughter who don’t believe in Santa
Claus in this black-and-white Decem
ber perennial.
10. //ome Atone. Another great
family film by John Hughes (he also
directed National Lampoon's Christ
mas Vacation). Macaulay Culkin is a
resourceful little boy who fends for
himself when he is unexpectedly left
behind at Christmas.