Newspapers / The compass. / Dec. 12, 2002, edition 1 / Page 4
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The Compass Thursday, December 12, 2002 4 ^ Campus News j) v^^VlT’S A BRITISH CHRISTMAS ’ Take a look at some great movies and CD’s this Christmas Michael Webb Mdubb419@hotmail.com Whether you are going out on a Christmas shopping spree or sitting down with your family watching “It’s A Wonderful Life” on television, there are some exciting movies that are making a large impact on the big screens during this holiday season. Enter the wonderful world of wiz ardry as Harry Potter reveals his Cham ber of Secrets. This adventurous 161- minute film, the second of the J.K. Rowling collection, has already landed a huge amount of success in the box office racking in a whopping $32.2 million during the Thanksgiving weekend. It is one of the “must see” films during this holiday season. Is it so entertaining that millions want to take their children to see this fun- filled, magical movie for Christmas or even Hanukkah? How about the Harry Potter LEGO and video game as a Christmas gift? Whatever the situation may be, Harry Potter is sure that his Chamber of Secrets will be included in Santa’s Christmas list. The wizard boy of London has already made a huge impact on many young children during the past year with his thrilling premiere movie “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone,” which caught the attention of many viewers, retailers, and major companies. Although that was a humongous hit for all Harry Potter fans, “The Chamber of Secrets” has been rated as better. But what makes this movie so much greater than the last one? People magazine says that the “director ‘Chris Columbus’ and his team came together with their creative minds and were more confident on what they can do instead of being uptight about what they can’t.” People magazine also mentions the director adding a darker atmosphere and funnier scenes than the last one. The movie is said to be more interesting than the Sorcerer’s Stone, and “Slavish Faithful to the book,” says Glenn Lovell of The Mercury News. Harry Potter and his friends enter their second year at Hogwart School of Witchcraft and Wizardry where they learn new and more inventive wizard skills, but something or someone doesn’t want him back at school. Dobby the house elf warns him that if he returns for his second term to Hogwart’s, horrible things will happen to him. Moving on. Harry meets with some of his old friends, family and wizards in the movie, making it an obvious relation to the book. The movie has all the magic and wizardry that many Harry fans expect to see in this sequel. Mary F. Pols of The Contra Costa Times says “entirely computer-generated, Harry is a com plete realization of what Rowling has written.” The digital technology in the movie shows a great feature of graphic creation and blending, making it seem very convincing and giving the viewers a realism to the wonderful world of Harry Potter. “The Chamber of Secrets” has all the ingredients that many Harry Potter fans know and love from the Rowling book, from the giant serpent to the enormous spider. It’s a great movie for children to see during this holiday season and is also one of the most watched movies in the box office. So where does this put other movies such as “The Friday After Next,” “Eight Crazy Nights,” and “8 Mile?” These are some of the other movies that are out right now that may be on someone’s Christ mas Day agenda. While Eminem is cleaning out his closet, “The Chamber of Secrets” is drawing in plenty of young viewers to the movie theaters with wizard cloaks and magic wands ready to take on anyone that comes there way. How about Eminem and D12? Gary Thomp son of the Philadelphia Daily News comically says “This maybe another ignition of a new entertainment turf war.” Basically between Eminem and little Harry Potter. Detroit against London. Bad versus Good. Eminem would probably hurt little Harry Potter’s feel ings, but Harry probably has a couple of magic tricks up his sleeve. Just make sure the London boy wonder never sees the streets of 8 mile Road. He would probably loose his invisible cloak to a young Eminem fan name Stan. Adam Sandler would also show Harry Potter eight crazy nights with him. While trying to figure out what movie to watch, how about taking a look at some great Christmas gifts. Although Harry Potter is doing real well in the big screens, he probably wouldn’t like the rapid CD sales that his British buddy Craig David has been pulling in from his latest release “Slicker Than Your Aver age.” This is his second LP, which fea tures some wonderful collaboration with some of the best artist and producers in the music industry. On the “Slicker Than Your Average” CD, Craig David wants to take you on a lyric through what he been through, showing signs of maturity from his certi fied platinum debut album “Born To Do It.” “I wanted to push my music beyond average. I’m not going to ride on the success of the last album. I wanted to better myself and create something new,” David says about his newest project. David combines the sounds of R&B, soul, pop, rock, hip-hop, electronica and blends all of those ingredients into one soulful and extraordinary pack of smash ing hits. David breaks off his 12-track CD with the powerful single “What’s Your Flava?” With this single, David disguise’s himself as Willie Wonka from Willie Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, which he calls “the Craig David Factory.” In the video, David is in search of a good wholesome woman, which he refers to “Ben and Jerry’s cookie Photo Courtesy of http://search.yahoo.com/ bin/search ?p=Harry+Potter M 1 Photo Courtesy of Internet dough, with hot fudge on the top.” “I’m looking for a girl that is practi cal and wholesome,” David says in a recent interview. In the factory, David shows off different woman he has met in the past and he keeps searching until he finds the perfect woman (the perfect cookie dough). Another attractive single on his CD is the song “Rise and Fall,” which he did a collaboration with Sting. This single talks about how success can be taken away from someone very quickly. David says he wanted to tell newcomers to watch out for pitfalls. Another single, which David says is one of his favorites, is the single “Personal,” which is an autobiography of his life. He speaks on his personal experiences. Another admiration on the “Slicker Than Your Average” album is David’s choice in production, which brings an extraordinary sound of rhythm and soul showing another sign of progression. David brings in two new producers from the U.K. by the names of Marshall and Trell as well as the acoustic sounds of Mark Hill. “I like working with different people, it gives a different vibe on the album.” David’s innovative methods of putting his album together gives the CD a sound of distinction and clarity, which consists of different styles and sounds. “I wanted to create an album with quality. I want to gain a wider audience and have people to listen to the whole album.” Although David was born in Great Britain, he shows an influence of Ameri can music and culture in his album, which he says that he looks at America as his second home and will soon tour across the U.S. He calls the recent arrivals of British talents such as himself and Floetry as the “British Invasion,” which David says that they’re not trying to emulate what America has, but rather come in with a different style. “Music is international and it shouldn’t matter where you’re from.” David also gives advice to up and coming artist, telling them to be pre pared and to “home your own craft.” “Take your time; show people what your about. Do your thing and be you.” “Slicker Than Your Average” is in stores now and it would be a great gift for a friend or relative. DJ Myke Skillz rating: This album is really great and it shows a lot of style and clarity. I rate it *’*** THE FREEDOM TO TRAVEL BY PLANE Travis Billups Since Sept. 11 of last year, the American travel industry has experi enced many dramatic changes. Accord ing to the American Automobile Associa tion (AAA), the number of people flying will rise 6 percent 5.1 million, back to pre-Sept. 11 levels. With Americans moving back toward their normal travel habits, the holiday season will pose a major challenge to the new security regime that was put into place since the Sept. 11, 2001. “You’re going to see probably one of the heaviest congested periods of the year, if not the heaviest congested period of the year,” said Jerry Cheske, a spokesman for AAA. This holiday season travelers will also experience some dramatic changes an effort to minimize any hold-ups. The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) recommend that airline passen gers bring their holiday gifts to the airport unwrapped and not to wear any metal jewelry or clothing accessories. Congress has also instructed the TSA to equip all airports with technology to screen bags for bombs and hire another 20,000 people to handle that job. David Stempler, president of the Air Travel Association, said the new passenger screeners will be faster because they are better trained, but the additional security could also slow things down in some cases. “No matter how many times you get your bags checked or no matter how many security guards the airport has, if somebody wants to hijack the plane, it’s possible,” KerryAnn Cummings, a senior from Miami, FL said. Whether you are traveling on land or in the friendly skies, AAA has five primary goals, which govern their efforts to keep people moving and safe whether by bus, car, train or plane: 1. Protecting freedom of mobility 2. Promoting freedom of travel choice. 3. Restoring travelers’ confidence. 4. Providing an information clear inghouse for travel planning. 5. Improving the travel and tourism business climate. Happy Holidays! I IS THE SEASON TO BE SHOPPIISfG Shannon Penn Once again the holiday shopping season has reared its chaotic head. Millions of Americans trek up and down store aisles in search of that perfect gift. For many people the holiday season can be a very stress ful time, especially when their list is long and time is short. To help alleviate with the holiday shopping pressure, here is a list of some of the popular gifts this holiday season: Barbie- Introduced 43 years ago, Barbie is still going strong today. Price: $19.99 LEGO Harry Potter: Chamber of Secrets- Combines this year’s installment of the popular book and film series with a classic toy. Price: $69.99 Burberry- A British Fashion Company known for its classic plaid pattern, Burberry’s appeal has ex panded past its traditional clientele. Rappers Ja Rule and Foxy Brown have introduced the familiar English plaid pattern to urban audiences through the music. Prices vary de pending on the item. Chicken Dance Elmo- Elmo is back, and this year he is dressed in a chicken suit and singing the “Chicken Dance” song. Price: $19.99 Handspring Treo- Combines a cell phone and a hand held organizer into one package and allows user to dial straight from the Palm-based hand-held’s address book, which avoids duplicating dialing the same set of numbers. Price: $499 Video Games- There is not a new game console this season, but the Nintendo GameCube, Sony Playstation 2, and Microsoft Xbox are still great gift ideas. While you are shopping, take time and think about the spirit of th6 season whether you call it Christ mas, Kwanzaa,, Hanukkah, or Ramadan.
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