- Issue Archive for
- Feb 5-11, 2009
- Vol. 19, No. 5
News+Features
Back on the Map
Residents working with URA to revitalize Polish Hill
Power Plants
Wracked by change, Hazelwood tries to put down new roots.
Dance Block
Local protest of Israeli ballet company planned
Phantom Ballot Menace
Activists say machines show more ballots than voters
Food+Drink
StonePepper's Grill
Though seemingly calculated to be just another chain, StonePepper's kitchen relies on good proportions and expert preparations to make familiar fare stand out.
Morning Glory Coffeehouse
Morningside's spot for java as well as new treats like "chai latte oatmeal," Rhode Island Coffeemilk and the odd musical guest.
Music
The Jilted Brides celebrate new CD at The Warhol
"There's a long tradition of experimental/electronic music in Australia that not many people know about."
Larkin Grimm's album Parplar could help start a cult of her own
"It doesn't matter how much your parents love you -- if they choose your path for you, it's a trap."
Singer-songwriter Nathan Xander releases The Fear
"It's the kind of place that stays open 'til 5 in the morning and has a grand piano, and they let us sit there and drink and play guitar to our hearts' content."
On Screen
Coraline
For a bright, spunky tweener girl, the only thing worse than moving to a gloomy Victorian home in the sticks is discovering that the house harbors a monster that wants to suck the soul out of her. Such are the trials of Coraline, the blue-haired, snarky star of this eponymous animated feature, adapted from a Neil Gaiman story by Henry Selick. In select theaters, Coraline is presented in 3-D, and the extra dimension really helps make Coraline's adventures into fully realized weirdness. Coraline, which moves at a brisk pace despite its somewhat broody vibe, taps into a number of routine childhood preoccupations and fears. Some of the material is likely to be too dark and scary for younger children, but those older, adjusted (or comfortably maladjusted) sorts who like their entertainment on the gothic but upbeat side should find Coraline to be an engaging tale and visual treat. (AH) [3 out of 4 stars]
Short films with wildly divergent takes on shelter highlight Film Kitchen.
"If the window's open, you can just move in," she says.
Asur and Asmar
We've become so used to hyper-realistic computer animation -- with its fathomless depths and perfect shimmering surfaces bouncing light just so -- that any return to "flat" animation is startling. Who lights a candle when we've got the electric light bulb?! But after a few moments, you realize that although a candle casts light differently, it still illuminates, and indeed, offers its own charms.
So it is with Michel Ocelot's animated fable, which offers primarily two-dimensional images, with some aspects including faces and wondrous objects presented with more depth. After re-adjusting to the flatness and the rather slow start, the viewer can appreciate the richness of the colors, the intricate background drawings and some singularly gorgeous tableaux.
Ocelot, who made 1998's Kirikou and the Sorceress, tells an original fairy tale inspired by folklore. Long ago, two boys -- Asur, the blond, blue-eyed European, and the darker, Arab child named Asmar -- are raised as friends; Asmar's mother is Asur's nanny. Their paths diverge, when Asmar and his mother return to their faraway land.
The adult Azur, intrigued by wondrous tales of trapped fairies told by his nanny, sets out for this mysterious land. There he re-encounters his childhood pal, and the two embark on a quest to find the mythical fairy, gaining new insight, overcoming hurdles and dodging danger along the way.
Explicit in the narrative is much commentary about racial prejudice, as each young man takes a turn at being the despised "other," and the importance of cooperation. Adults may find such bromides overly simplistic, but this is a tale spun for children, though gilded with enough rich, exotic images to keep the (presumably) already enlightened adults marveling. Starts Fri., Feb. 6. Regent Square (AH) [3 out of 4 stars]
