(THp Daily (Ear Uppl
Stage-Born 'Chicago' Melds to Screen
By Michelle Jarboe
Staff Writer
Applauding a film may be consid
ered a theater faux pas but Rob
Marshall’s on-screen version of
“Chicago” merits myriad accolades.
Musical theater breached the movie
genre with a bang when “Chicago” hit
select theaters ear
lier this month.
Perhaps the 2001
success of “Moulin
Rouge” paved the
way for other
review/
"Chicago"
musicals-tumed-movies to make some
headway -but the two films take place
on entirely different imaginative stages.
First written in 1926, “Chicago” was
brought to Broadway by the acclaimed
Bob Fosse in 1975. Revived in 1996, this
story of murder, mayhem and music in
the Roaring ’2os proved both pertinent
and captivating to stage audiences.
“Chicago” is the story of Velma Kelly
(Catherine Zeta-Jones) and Roxie Hart
(Renee Zellweger), respectively an
established jazz performer and a
wannabe trying to sleep her way onto
the stage. Having murdered her way
ward husband and sister, Velma lands
on murderesses’ row. Soon after, Roxie
shoots her boyfriend and joins Velma in
jail.
The two murderesses gain fame as
playboy lawyer Billy Flynn (Richard
Gere) takes their cases.
Zellweger mixes cute with sexy in a
dynamite performance, making Roxie
much unlike the actress’ subdued char
acter in “White Oleander,” her most
recent fdm. Despite a lack of prior
singing and dancing experience,
Zellweger masters the film’s choreogra
phy and feeds life to numbers both dra
matic and explosive.
Seemingly an odd choice for the
jazzy-sexy musical, Gere is properly
slimy as manipulative lawyer Billy
Flynn. In songs like the courtroom
number “Razzle Dazzle,” Gere takes the
Emma Gibbs Band Populist, Predictable
By Grey Huddleston
Staff Writer
The Emma Gibbs Band, a group of
country-rock road warriors from
Winston-Salem, proved its mettle Friday
night with a solid performance at a near
ly empty Cat’s Cradle.
While the show suffered from a lack
of variety and
spice, the band
persevered with
out apology and
with admirable
tenacity.
But it must be
noted that two
significant prob-
concert)
rey/ew/ J
The Emma Gibbs
Band
Cat’s Cradle
Friday, Jan. 10
★ ★★☆☆
lems faced the group before it ever
even took the stage: a surprising lack of
attendance for a Friday night show at
the Cradle -a discouraging prospect
for any band -and an ill-suited intro
duction from an opening act that
played music in a distinctly different
vein, surprising what viewers there
were at the venue.
One Year Later, a five-piece pop-rock
group from Charlotte, opened the show
with a set of tighdy constructed but uno
riginal rock ’n’ roll songs.
Despite this out-of-context introduc
tion, the Emma Gibbs Band took the
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PHOTO COURTESY OF MIRAMAX
Caterine Zeta-Jones plays the singing, dancing murderess Velma Kelly in
Rob Marshall's screen interpretation of the classic musicaL'Chicago."
focus off surrounding characters and
proves he’s in the right place.
But the real show-stealer in
“Chicago” is Zeta-Jones, whose looks,
voice, dancing and charisma make the
movie a success. Voluptuous, deep
voiced, sultry and prickly, she ties the
film to the lauded musical, much as the
sequencing and choreography tip their
hats to Fosse’s stylings.
With many numbers framed as
dream sequences and taking place on a
black screen, “Chicago” smacks of Fosse
without losing believability as a film.
Unfortunately, some original songs were
cut, making the film a comfortable fea
ture-length -but the music remains
both over-the-top and sensational.
“Cell Block Tango,” in particular,
honors Fosse’s choreography and musi
cal spirit while emerging as a stunning
on-screen number. This angry chorus
from the six murderesses on death row
sparkles with sexuality and humor as the
women brashly justify the murders of
their lovers or spouses.
stage with confidence, immediately dis
playing its best and most noticeable fea
ture -a unique instrumentation and
sound.
On top of the rhythm-section trio of
drummer Lauren Myers, bassist Bill
Reynolds and guitarist Richard
Upchurch, the group added Will
Straughan on mandolin and lap steel,
with Brent Buckner on harmonica for a
deeper, more textured feel.
The latter two musicians both defined
the band’s organic tone and contributed
the most dynamic and musically impres
sive playing of the evening.
The group’s sound was an effective
blend of country, folk and bluegrass, all
set within the frame of rock sensibility.
Vocal delivery was impressive, with
Straughan and Upchurch taking turns
singing lead and backup parts, weaving
in and out of each other.
Both men have clear, sweet tenor
voices. Their harmonized lines in many
of the choruses conveyed bittersweet
nostalgia for an era past.
But the performance began to suffer
after an hour as the band exhausted its
songsheet and subsequently its ability to
perform songs that sounded distinct
from one another.
The musical catalog seemed to con
sist purely of two-beat bluegrass-inspired
DIVERSIONS
Supporting cast members also add
musical shine to “Chicago.” Queen
Latifah takes the role of Matron
“Mama” Morton and stuns the stage
with “When You’re Good to Mama,” a
rippling, blatantly sexual number.
And John C. Reilly, of “Magnolia”
and “Boogie Nights,” steps out as
Roxie’s jilted and ignored husband,
Amos. Singing the famous “Mr.
Cellophane,” Kelly proves Marshall’s
casting impeccable - from starlets to
supporting actors.
Despite the challenge of bringing a
musical to the multiplex, Marshall cre
ated a film version of “Chicago” with
pizazz and style. With a faultless cast
and ties to the great Fosse, the film not
only successfully translates from the
stage to the screen but succeeds in
bringing the feeling and flair of the
musical with it.
By all means, applaud.
The Arts & Entertainment Editor can
be reached at artsdesk@unc.edu.
numbers and slower folk-rock tunes.
Both formulas worked well at first but
were abused in the end.
Lyrically, the band suffered from the
same malady - an obsession with
njptipn and travel characterized too
much of the songwriting. Repeated
m s of trams, highways and loneli
ness at first sounded mature but became
contrived by the end.
The vibe of the entire show was
encapsulated in the lyrics “I’ve got my
motor running/I’ve got miles under my
wheels,” or “I’ve come a long, long way/
But I know I’ve got a long, long way to
g°”
But even formulaic songwriting
couldn’t ruin the evening, as the band
displayed its apathy for attendence.
The band’s unique aesthetic was tradi
tional but with a relevant, modern
edge. The emotions the group
expressed were real, even if they
weren’t particularly diverse.
The Emma Gibbs Band is not a
group of flashy performers, but its trav
els have increased its credibility.
Underneath the weariness lies an
enviable wisdom about music, art and
people.
The Arts & Entertainment Editor can
be reached at artsdesk@unc.edu.
Wacky, Wonderful 'Adaptation'
Defies Conventional Movie Logic
By Brian Millikin
Senior Writer
“Adaptation” might be the worst
adaptation of any book ever brought to
the screen. That said, it’s easily one of
the best films of the year and surely the
most deliriously clever.
It comes from
the refreshingly
absurd and fertile
imaginations of
screenwriter
Charlie Kaufman
,
Jgwew
“Adaptation”
★ ★★★★
and director Spike Jonze. They last
teamed up for “Beingjohn Malkovich,”
an ingenious and twisted marvel in its
own right. Yet “Adaptation” makes
“Malkovich” seem plain and tall by
comparison.
Kaufman was asked to write a screen
play of Susan Orlean’s “The Orchid
Thief,” a nonfiction book chronicling the
obsession of a Florida flower poacher. But
Kaufman struggled with the task, going so
far as to mutate his screenplay into the
story of his struggle to adapt the book.
And that’s the film we’re now watching.
“Adaptation" revels in itself, ripping
apart its source material and becoming
a movie about itself. We’re actually
watching the movie that the characters
in “Adaptation” are fighting mightily to
produce. Or are we?
Part of the sharp charm of
“Adaptation” is that nothing’s certain.
Nicolas Cage offers a performance so
bleakly hilarious and painful that he final
ly seems to have deserved his Oscar. He
plays both Charlie and his identical twin
brother, the hyper-confident Donald -
who doesn’t exist in real life but who is
credited with co-writing the screenplay.
Meryl Streep, liberated as Orlean, and
Chris Cooper, a ranting and raxing reve- ■
lation as orchid thief John Laroche, have
a decidedly different relationship in
“Adaptation” as they did in real life.
Cooper, a journeyman character
actor, nearly steals the movie from Cage
- that’s quite a feat, considering that
Cage embodies two fully realized char
acters, a remarkable acting coup that
never falters. But Cooper is that com
manding in his career’s most bizarre
role. He transforms himself as the filthy,
toothless and strangely brainy every
man with scars to spare. It was a stroke
of brilliant casting by Jonze, choosing
the dramatic Cooper for such a comical
role.
The normally strait-laced Streep
shows a real flair for the absurdist com
edy as well, displaying a knack for comic
timing as the curious, conflicted author.
It’s a credit to Streep’s familiar and free
performance that the audience cares so
much for Orlean, who behaves in a way
so different from the real Orlean that a
lawsuit would’ve been understandable.
The mind-bending doesn’t end there
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- the film is a kaleidoscope of inside
jokes, each more amusing than the one
before. In one scene, Charlie decides
he’s adverse to voice-over narration in
his screenplay, and from that point on,
there’s no more narration in
“Adaptation” either.
But the film exists outside of its clev
erness, too. The actors inject their
trapeze act with a deep heart, and the
overweight, confidence-cracked Charlie
emerges as an emotional hero, battling
his integrity and looking for love around
every comer and on every page. We
root for him, especially when his world
starts caving in as his film concludes.
Much of the flak that “Adaptation”
has taken focuses on its conclusion, with
more than a few critics claiming
Kaufman doesn’t know how to end a
story. But it says absolutely nothing
about the greatness of “Adaptation” to
note that its final act is wretched -a dra
matic train wreck, really - because it’s
designed that way. The film is literally
about the collision between the conclu
sion and the rest of the film.
Like its ending, “Adaptation” is glori
ously self-indulgent entertainment.
Kaufman fought with himself to create
something, and in the process he creat
ed something of everything -a sarcastic,
melancholic comedy that’s equal parts
cold Hollywood expose, warm love
story and stark portrait of writer’s block.
The miracle of “Adaptation” is that it
works, like a mirror turned to face
another mirror, spiraling and stumbling
ever closer to some truth and more than
a little heart -and getting there in less
than two hours.
The Arts & Entertainment Editor can
be reached at artsdesk@unc.edu.
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\\The DTH's housing fair
*** brings the whole choice to you!
X
Wednesday, February 5
Union Multipurpose Room
11 am-3pm
Choose the next
DTH Editor
■Mciin wniiajiim manta — n qa———■ar
The Daily Tar Heel is seeking students to serve on the panel that will choose
the editor of the DTH for the 2003-2004 school year.
Applications for the seven at-large positions on the DTH Editor
Selection Board are available at the DTH Office and the
Carolina Onion info desk kiosk.
\pplicants must hr available for an orientation meeting
' rom 5-6 pm Thursday. February 2’ and from
approximately B:3oam-4pm Saturday, March 1 to
conduct interviews and make the selection.
\ii students may apply for at-large positions except
current DTH new staff members. If you have any questions
about the process, please contact Kim Minugh (962-4086,
Kminugh@email.unc.edu) or Janet Gallagher-Cassel (962-0520,
jgcassel@email.unc.edu).
Thursday, January 16, 2003
dive
' •
recommends
■ David Mamet, “Writing in
Restaurants” The Pulitzer Pnze
winning playwright (of “Glengarry
Ross” fame) showcases a collection
of essays equally riveting as his work
for the stage. Whether he’s poking
fun at the fine art of bitchiness or at
ridiculous human rituals, Mamet’s
anecdotes are filled to the brim with
humor and introspection. His witty
prose sears deep into the heart of
both human idiosyncrasy and idio
cy, and the essays are bound to be a
fun read - even in a restaurant.
■ Sigur Ros, Ageetis Byrjun and
() There’s a lot more coming out of
Iceland than Bjork these days, and
electronic chamber pop group Sigur
Ros is a fine example. It matters not
that the title of the latest LP is an
unpronounceable pair of parenthe
ses - the music speaks for itself.
Synthesizers, guitars and organs
sound like they’ve just arrived from
another planet, dominating with
aching beauty. It’s cutting-edge
background music at the least, but
ultimately these opium-laced epics
leave one with no choice but to hit
play once more.
Caroline Lindsey can be reached
at dind@email.unc.edu.
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