Your Action-Packed, Double-Feature Review of "Grindhouse!"

(Boring editorial note: In case you're not a film geek and don't already know this, "Grindhouse is the new double-feature of gore, sleaze, and shock from Robert Rodriguez and Quentin Tarantino. In honor of this monumental event, Silverfish co-editors in training Jamie Hancock and Jack Baur split reviewing duties to give you the full picture of this face-meltingly awesome motion picture.)

Rose McGowan's career is death-proof. By my count, she's starred in two movies with Pauly Shore and two movies with Brendan Fraser. As if that wasn't enough wreck her credibility, McGowan played contemporary witch Paige Matthews on the WB's "Charmed" for five seasons. So how does a movie called "Grindhouse" catapult her back to movie stardom? It plays on her strengths. When she cut her teeth on "Bio-Dome" and "Monkeybone," McGowan was preparing for a role of a lifetime…much the same way Freddy Rodriguez and Josh Brolin earned their stripes in "Lady in the Water" and "Hollow Man."

In "Planet Terror" (the first feature of "Grindhouse"), Robert Rodriguez gathered an ensemble of actors and actresses who had proven talent in cheesy movies (including Bruce Willis). Since the movie is so sensational and over-the-top, the director recognized that it required a certain type of performance. After all, a film that marries zombies, martial arts, sexploitation, and splatter in B-movie fashion demands B-list celebrities. Casting Rose McGowan instead of Scarlett Johansen as stripper Cherry Darling may seem like a minor decision, but it is integral to the feel of the movie.

In allegiance to exploitation films of the 1970s, Rodriguez delivers fast-paced action with a series of predictable and unexpected turns. He masterfully layers tired stereotypes and storylines that don't always connect, much to the glee of moviegoers. The absurd notion that the death of Osama bin Laden somehow contributed to the proliferation of zombies in Texas is explained in a matter of seconds, and then the movie rolls right along to the next scene…where Darling blows ketchup-splattering holes into a mutant army with her recently-attached machine gun leg. While Darling is fighting zombies, she is also renewing ties with her ex-boyfriend and former rogue assassin El Wray (Freddy Rodriguez). This relationship culminates in one of the film's most memorable scenes. As the couple begins to "make love" in The Bone Shack, one of the film reels is apparently misplaced and, after a friendly apology, the movie continues in the absence of several plot twists- the building is now on fire and being attacked by zombies and the sheriff has been critically injured!

To sum up "Planet Terror": surprises on top of clichés with skin, violence, and gore! Rodriguez skillfully mixes genres, makes fun of them, and makes fun of his own movie at the same time. Upon viewing this film, you will be convinced that this is not a bad movie – it's one of the baddest mutha-fuckin' movies ever made! Sort of like throwing a Xena: Warrior Princess stunt double on top of a speeding Dodge Challenger…

(With that said, we interrupt this review for a word about our new hero, Zoe Bell, the aforementioned Dodge Challenger surfin' Xena double herself. That word is "Sigh…" Alright: onward)

Hot on the heels of "Planet Terror" (with some outrageous fake previews and an ad for the cheap-looking Mexican restaurant across the street) comes Quentin Tarantino's "Death Proof," a much different beast than Rodriguez's zombie gore-fest. It starts with a blast of Tarantino's trademark dialogue, as a group of four hip young women get together and get ready to go out for an evening in Austin, TX. At the bar that night, and amidst a backdrop of '70s music and references to cult films, the women get drunk, stoned, and never stop talking. They also meet a man named Stuntman Mike (a, and it pains me to say this, really good Kurt Russell), who flirts with the women, gets one of them into his car, and… but that, of course, would be telling.

Tarantino's playing several levels of games here: indulging his love of cool dialogue, plastering his myriad fetishes on the screen, directly and indirectly referencing decades of film history (I really need to see "Vanishing Point" now), and, most importantly, severely messing with our expectations. Plot structure goes out the window as Tarantino pulls the rug our from under us three or four times in his film's ninety or so minutes. It's all about rhythm, a game of lull, shock, lull, shock - a game that Tarantino proves himself skilled at in a way that we have never seen from him before.

He even had me fooled for awhile. There was a moment or two where I questioned whether or not I was still having fun, whether Tarantino hadn't crossed a line into sadism that he couldn't pull himself back from. Ultimately though, I'm happy to say that save it he does, and what I experienced in the theater as almost uncomfortably intense and terrifying, I now remember fondly as nearly twenty minutes of some of the most amazing car stunt work you have ever seen. Kiwi stuntwoman and our new hero Zoe Bell (who, in addition to Xena, was also the double for Uma Thurman in Kill Bill) plays herself and absolutely steals the end of this film in a final, breathtaking turnaround that had our whole row of iSchoolers cheering.

Final assessment: If you don't like fast cars, melting zombies, hot chicks flying through the air mowing down said zombies with machine gun legs, bad language, cheesy homages, or villains who collect the testicles of their foes in a jar of glowing green goo, stay the hell away from this movie! Everyone else: this may be the most perfect film ever.

Book Review: Infotopia: How Many Minds Produce Knowledge

Infotopia: How Many Minds Produce Knowledge
by Cass R. Sunstein, Oxford University Press, 273 p.


Reviewed by Sheri Boggs, MLIS

Even if the subject – the aggregation of the world’s information – didn’t hook me, the cover of Infotopia: How Many Minds Produce Knowledge would have. A simple red background with the black silhouette of a thickly-branched tree, the cover image looks remarkably like the neural circuitry of the brain; the visual suggestion is one of networks, connections, expansion and growth.

A notable professor at the University of Chicago Law School, author Cass R. Sunstein, is no stranger to the ramifications of mob mentality. He actively opposed the impeachment of Bill Clinton and has written prolifically on the importance of dissent, the dangers of right wing politics in the judicial system, and how the Internet can engender insularity and “information cocoons.” In Infotopia, he celebrates the potential of the Web—how it offers us the possibility of aggregating information like never before while simultaneously facilitating the movement of information out of individual heads and out into the open where it can be accessed and utilized – before exploring the pitfalls of information overload. Sunstein cites herd-like behavior, an over-reliance on heuristics and a very human tendency to shut out information that is too complex or that challenges our most cherished beliefs as examples of what can happen in an information-saturated society.

On the other hand, he finds fault with the time-honored process of deliberation, arguing that it is possible to “blunder, and blunder badly” even when many minds are working on an issue for a considerable amount of time. The greatest potential of the Information Age, in Sunstein’s estimation, lies somewhere in the middle. There is great promise in many minds working together, as long as those minds don’t get lost in the mire of endless and circuitous deliberation.

Sunstein looks to the power of “prediction markets” as well as the popularity (and surprising accuracy) of wikis for examples of “many-minded” information aggregation at its best. Along the way he also explores the blogosphere and the importance of open source software to a fully democratic information-literate society. While Infotopia takes a hard look at the more pessimistic possibilities of knowledge produced by the masses, it ultimately places its bets on optimism, concluding that “…for society’s most important institutions, dispersed information, if elicited, is far more likely to lead to better understanding – and ultimately to more sensible decisions in both market and politics.” Erudite and far-reaching in its implications, Infotopia deserves a place in many an iSchool faculty and/or student’s towering book stack.

Sheri Boggs is a 2nd year day MLIS student. Before coming to the i-School
she was a writer and editor for the Pacific Northwest Inlander in Spokane.

Concert Review: Malkmus & The Jicks @ Neumo's January 19, 2007

Stephen Malkmus

By Jamie Hancock, MLIS Day

Two of Portland’s biggest rock stars were in Seattle on Friday night, and for a couple of hours, the animosity between the Rose and Emerald Cities subsided.

We forgot about the sales tax divide, rent prices, and light rail transportation solutions.

On the last stop of their I-5 Corridor tour before heading home, Stephen Malkmus and the Jicks made an ambassadorial visit to Capitol Hill. Joining the musical envoy this time was Janet Weiss, longtime drummer of Sleater-Kinney and Quasi. The Jicks made a plea to the citizens of Seattle: “Our differences should never interfere with our ability to rock. Though some of us live on a river, and others of us live on a sound, we both live near water…and we both have sports teams owned by Paul Allen.”

That statement is, of course, a fabrication. But it would not be out of character for Malkmus, who regularly provides sarcasm mixed with social commentary in between songs. As the former frontman of Pavement and now a member of the Jicks, he has made a career out of clever wordplay in his songs (“carry on/it’s a marathon…carrion/it’s what we all become”), as well as lyrics that are hard to interpret (“swing your nachos like you just don’t care”?). Malkmus’ witticisms and goofy behavior come out in his performances as well as his recordings. At the beginning of the encore, he delivered an impromptu song about popcorn and then told the audience to get ready for some “rock action shreddage in the (206)/(503) corridor.”

His banter with the crowd, however, was sparser than usual. Likewise, most of the new Jicks songs (no album release date yet) are not as wordy and more jammy. By “jammy,” I’m referring to the nature of a Phish song, not a word choice made by Ice Cube. One of my friends left halfway through the show to go for a walk and he cited this characteristic as the reason for his departure. There is a noticeable increase in song length (average of four minutes) over the last two Malkmus albums. Whether or not that is attributed to old age or artistic freedom granted by his now legendary “indie” status remains to be seen. What’s clear is that Malkmus is still having fun and that he’s still an incredible guitarist. And Weiss’ addition to the Jicks is a welcome change. Besides raising the hipness quotient of the band by 75%, she’s an excellent drummer who provides spirited back-up vocals.

The set began with the first songs off the last two albums, “Pencil Rot” and “Water and A Rat.” Then the band veered into unknown territory and returned to crowd favorites at the end of the show. “Jo Jo’s Jacket” and “The Hook,” songs that glorify Yul Brynner and the pirate lifestyle, received the greatest cheers. All in all, concert goers at Neumo’s provided a warm reception for the Portland-based Jicks. During the lively encore, Malkmus revealed that all three of his band mates hailed from the Seattle area. So maybe it’s time we put aside our differences and realize--Portlanders and Seattleites are of one ilk. The small city-big city argument is not as important as embracing our common musical heritage.

But, seriously, who does that pansy Malkmus think he is with that pretentious Laurelwood mustache?