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TATLER | Arts & Entertainment
Fall TV Review Modern Family
NISHKA MITTAL Now in its third season, “Modern Family” never fails to leave me gasping for breath from laughter. The show follows the seemingly mundane lives of three interwoven “modern families” living in Los Angles and turns them into twenty-minute-long hilarious spectacles. The families consist of an uptight homemaker mom with a goofy husband and three typical kids, an unemotional veteran, his younger Columbian wife and her son, and finally a gay couple with an adopted Asian daughter. The characters, though exaggerated, are surprisingly relatable. However, “Modern Family” isn’t all fun and jokes; it definitely has an undertone that gets serious controversial issues such as race, gender, and sexuality out in the open. In addition, the episodes often conclude on a touching note about the importance of family, friendship, and acceptance. The show does not follow a plotline and starting in the middle of the season is no problem, so don’t wait to start getting your weekly dose of comedy provided by “Modern Family” Wednesdays at 9pm on ABC!
Photo Courtesy of: ABC EMILY RUPPEL Season Three of Glee opened the same way as Season Two: Jacob Ben Israel, the school’s gossip blogger, interviews the glee clubbers about their plans for college, setting the stage for a season-long arc. This season aired three episodes before going on an ill-advised break until early November. Glee fans were subjected to a roller-coaster this summer, with the producers unexpectedly announcing that the show’s three leads would be leaving after Season Three, resulting in an internet uproar that left everyone wincing. The producers of Glee also attempted to channel the show’s profits into a reality show, to which the collective media reaction was: “Yawn.” However, the announcement that six new writers would be brought to the show was met with interest from fans and news outlets, that have criticized the writer’s tendencies to change their characters’ relationship statuses, life goals, and sexual orientations from week to week with no explanation (No, writers, we still haven’t forgiven you for the alcohol episode). To the delight of most fans, the first three episodes have managed to maintain a degree of plot consistency without sacrificing excellent music (highlights include “Run The World”, “It’s Not Unusual”, “Anything Goes/Anything You Can Do”, and “Cool”.) Often overlooked characters, such as Mike, Mercedes, and Brittany, are getting their own multi-episode arcs, and Quinn’s Season One pregnancy, which was inexplicably not mentioned in Season Two, is finally being revisited. Casual fans and obsessive viewers alike are rejoicing, and the show seems to be finding its feet again after last year’s train wreck of a finale!
New Girl
Glee
Photo Courtesy of: Fox
MARY KUPER At first glance, New Girl might seem a bit clichéd and reminiscent of Friends in that it stars four roommates trying to ride out the highs and lows of life together. But when you cast Zooey Deschanel as the show’s protagonist you’ll have a hit that is “simply adorkable,” as the previews for the show proclaim. The setup for the short but hilarious show is simple: the main character Jess, played by Deschanel, is a young teacher who moves in with three guys she doesn’t know after discovering her boyfriend has been cheating on her. New Girl has only aired three episodes so far, since it premiered in September on FOX, but it has quickly become one of the most popular shows on television, due to its comedic, quirky cast. Deschanel’s most memorable moments have been when she referenced Lord of the Rings (twice), professed her love for bubbles, and threw a potted plant at her ex. Deschanel’s character even has her own Twitter (@ ItsJessTweets) so she can produce comedic gems like this on the daily: “Lunching in the teacher’s lounge is like discovering a really fun group of aging wizards who can teach you anything.” This is seriously a show for the geek in everyone, so tune in every Tuesday at 9pm on FOX.
Photo Courtesy of: molempire
Movie Review: Raging Bull
KODY BURLESON
KODY BURLESON This month, we take a look at one of my favorite movies of all time: Martin Scorsese’s Raging Bull. First, a word of caution: this is not a family movie. Run this one by your parents before you watch it. The sheer anger portrayed in this movie may turn some people off, but let it be known that this is a true story. It chronicles the rise and fall of Jake LaMotta, played by Robert De Niro, a champion middleweight boxer during the 40’s and 50’s who was widely regarded as having the best chin in boxing. He utilized an aggressive style of boxing, always staying within range of his opponent, thus earning him the nickname “Raging Bull.” As Scorsese shows, however, his aggression did not stop outside the ring. The
film is as gritty as they come. Jake LaMotta proves to be one monster of a protagonist, abusing his wives, friends, and family. He is, to put it simply, an animal. With the help of his brother and the Mafia, he climbs to the top of the middleweight boxing circuit. Continuing his success becomes increasingly difficult as his private life deteriorates. Raging Bull is the story of a man who is a master at his craft, yet cannot keep a hold on anything else in his life. Robert De Niro’s performance garnered him an Academy Award for best actor. It’s easy to see why; this is method acting at its finest. De Niro trained with LaMotta himself until LaMotta was satisfied that he could be a champion on the real circuit. To show LaMotta’s decline, De Niro gained sixty pounds, going from
145 to 215 pounds in four months. It’s an absolutely relentless performance. The progression of his controlling nature and the increasing ease with which he flies off the handle are sickeningly realistic. His brutishness is palpable, and although the viewer invariably grows to hate LaMotta, one cannot but help but feel a twinge of sympathy for this beast as he hits rock bottom. Though Scorsese initially wanted nothing to do with the development of Raging Bull, his eventual commitment to its success is evident. Nowhere is his mastery more apparent than in the boxing scenes, which are some of the most brutal, visceral fight scenes ever put in film. The camera puts the viewer directly in the ring, with detail and care given to every crushing blow. Noses are broken,
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lips are split, blood and sweat flies, and Jake LaMotta refuses to go down despite barrage after barrage of unyielding strikes. It’s excruciating. It’s fantastic. Kyle Lee (’13) has a different take on the film. After watching the movie with me, he said that the plot is uninteresting, generic, and that he feels like “it’s the same as thirty other movies I’ve seen. It wants to be The Godfather, and it just isn’t. It isn’t close.” Contrary to my opinion, Kyle views the fight scenes as nothing special because LaMotta’s skill was so great that the fights weren’t real contests. One person’s masterpiece can be another person’s run of the mill picture. But in my opinion, Raging Bull deserves its place as one of the greatest films ever made.
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