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Show I. SUMMER THE CHRONICLE UTAH "Swordfish" Delivers Nonsense Fast-Pace- d JEREMY MATHEWS Chronicle Feature Columnist "Swordfish" Warner Brothers Pictures Directed by Dominic Sena Produced by Joel Silver, Paul Winze, Jonathan D. Krane Written by Skip Woods Starring John Travolta, Hugh Jackman, Halle Berry Rating: R , lAr (out of four) z "You know what the problem with Hollywood is? It makes shit," says John Travolta as "Swordfish" opens. The character's problem with recent studio films is, in addition to weak writing and directing, that if a bank robber really wanted to escape death, he could, and the movie would have a happy ending. But people want the morality tale, so the robber dying is the happy ending, another character responds. The film's opening mimics the super-codialogue writers have been trying to recreate ever since Travolta starred in Quentin Tarinti-no'- s "Pulp Fiction." "Swordfish" soon reveals, however, that it has little desire to be bold. It's just a typical action movie often nonsensical, often cliched, with an inspired (but still unlikely) final chase scene. The story begins with Travolta's character, Gabriel, involved in a bank holdup with several hostages, all tied to explosives. Then there's a flashback to show how it all happened. There are several ambiguous scenes involving a myriad of characters, including a senator who is working with Gabriel, a Finnish hacker stopped at customs and an FBI agent who specializes in busting hackers. What's going on? The film rejoices in leaving ol you guessing. Then Aussie hunk Hugh Jackman comes in as the hero. Stanley (Jackman) used to be the best hacker in the world, then he was arrested by FBI agent A.D. Roberts (Don Cheadle). Now, legally banned from touching computers, he just plays golf on the roof of his trailer. He's visited by Ginger (Halle Berry), a woman who works for Gabriel (or is Gabriel's lover, or is spying on Gabriel, depending on what the film wants you to believe at the moment). Ginger offers Stanley $100,000 to fly to L.A. and meet with Gabriel. He reluctantly accepts, of course, because he wants to see his daughter again. Apparently, the overused device wasn't enough, because it also turns out that Stanley was sent to prison for protecting g FBI. America's privacy from the When Stanley meets Gabriel, the film reminds us that Skip Woods, who wrote and directed "Thursday" (a Tarintino wannabe that was heavily criticized for its racism and mindless sensationalism), penned the screenplay. Stanley walks into the back room of Gabriel's sexy nightclub where he finds him with goons and girls. Gabriel demands that Stanley break into a government computer in 60 seconds. Then, one of Gabriel's goons puts a gun to Stanley's head while one of his sexy women performs oral sex on. Stanley.' Something about that combination doesn't quite make sense. But back to the story: Gabriel offers Stanley $10 million to write a computer worm to break into a bank and do some fancy thieving. He takes it with some convincing flirtation from Ginger for the good of his daughter. The film has its moments, though. The level of intrigue is often suitable to hold some interest, and the action sequences with the exception of a mindless car chase that attempts a moralization at the end are Director Domenic Sena, who directed the supposed to identify with him, so the filmmakers made him an average man who can hack masterful "Kalifornia," then sold his soul to the devil doing Jerry Bruckheimer's "Gone in Sixty into computers. The film docs have some fine moments durSeconds," has made it to purgatory. d The MTV editing style seems to ing the ending chase scene, but when put to the have a point and there are several fun and imagtest, "Swordfish" doesn't quite succeed. The characters arc bland and silly, the revelainative shots. But the characters aren't very in the middle arc incomprehensible and tions interesting. and the final surprise is predictable and Travolta tries desperately to make a good vilsilly, half the time The result is a preposterous film with but hits the notes silly. lain, only right bookends suggesting something more. because of weak writing. Berry earned a lot of money to show her j mat hews (chronicle, utah. edu is which breasts, supposed to help establish Ginger as a vixen who manipulates men with sex. But all she really does is press her body against Stanley's and tell him to do it for his "Utah has incredible scenery-st- uff daughter. you can't find anywhere else. is It was also the birthing ground for Stanley the premise of the film, as well as pretty boring for a SALLAY BRENT home to many of the issues that computer Chronicle Feature Columnist drove me to write the script," King hacker who just of out got prison. explained. The audience is When Judd King, writer and "Meeting the Sun" features director of the locally Filmed many breathtaking shots of Utah's "Meeting the Sun," received a great outdoors, including scenes shot in the ghost towns of Eureka $5,000 grant from Colgate Univerwas he and Tintic, and the salt flats. sity, probably expected to a turn out more traditional philos"Shooting on the salt flats was delirious literally," King said. "I ophy project. But then, King is not your typistill cannot psychologically cal college graduate. account for 75 percent of the time we spent shooting out there." Although he was strictly a phiThe said meteor fell to earth and interrupted would-b- e This scenery forms a backdrop losophy major, making a film seemed like the next natural step for some serious firefighter Wayne (Seann William Scott) when it blew up his car. for him. on behalf of the film's protagoKane and Block find a strange liquid inside the meteor "I wanted to make a film that I nists. It is here that King's philoand go back to the college lab to examine it. Actually, Kane found personally compelling. I sophical prowess shines through, examines it while Block goes to coach the women's volleythink there are a lot of movies questioning strong societal mores ball team. about relationships, a lot of movies and clashing them against each Kane discovers that the liquid contains an unearthly about action, a lot of movies about other. The film deals with such Before he this can and too organism. discovery, report many 'interesting people beady topics as universal truth, d wantabout however, the organism evolves into a movies but I organism. nothing sexuality and the value of human cave the that the in a becomes ended ed make meteor a to film Soon, about ideas. This life. up It's an odd choice for a philosohopefully is one of them." see EVOLUTION, page 9 "Meeting the Sun" stars New phy project, perhaps, but an interYork talent Greg Lasky and local esting exercise in film, regardless. actors J.C. Ernst, Greta Schomburg As King put it, "Sometimes you and David Moffitt as four college-age- d have to face your interests and just students who, on the advice say 'Screw it. I'm going to jump of a mysterious figure, travel into this headfirst and hope that I through the desert in search of can make it to the other side of the "The Tower" an ominous site for river.' Making a film was one of those decisions." philosophical enlightenment. the the travelers face way, Along "Meeting the Sun" plays Friday, serious moral dilemmas that chalJune is, at the union Theater and lenge their perceptions of right Saturday. June 16, at the Orson and wrong. Spencer Hall Auditorium. Showtime is 7 p.m. Admission is free and free studied at Colgate Though King is in New a he York, University popcorn will be served at both Utah native and chose to shoot the screenings. film here. bsallaychronicle.utah.edu doing-it-for-my-k- id fast-pace- email-readin- high-securi- ty Pip; Mmimm n UiriSteHy fta 4 well-don- e. t hYQiUstlor) Is?) Evolved, Bust IV 5 JEREMY MATHEWS Chronicle Feature Columnist soul-searchi- "Evolution" DreamWorks Pictures Directed by Ivan Reitman Produced by Ivan Reitman, Daniel Goldberg, Joe Medjuck Written by David Diamond, David Weissman, Don Jakoby Starring David Duchovny, Julianne Moore, Orlando Jones, Seann William Scott Rating: PG-1- 3 ""jicT (out of four) At last, the year presents a film in which the tasteless jokes have a purpose. Most reviews of this year's comedies were spent explain- ing why pointless jokes involving uninteresting characters aren't funny. The filmmakers labored under the belief that films like "There's Something About Mary" were a hit simply because the humor was gross. "Evolution" contains two jokes involving an anus. While the first one is funnier (and less expensive) than the second, they have a common element: They have something to do with the story. That story starts with two instructors at Glen Canyon Community College, Ira Kane (David Duchovny) and Harry Block (Oilando Jones). Block the local United States Geotakes Kane to research a logical Service representative meteor landing. single- . -celled CHRONICLE FEATURE EDITOR multi-celle- jf. .. - KSS. CASSANDRA HARTLEY CHARTLEYCHRONICLE.UTAH.EDU 581-704- 1 |