LIFE & ARTS 4 Running ‘Like Hell’ benefits foundation Weekend Edition Nov. 1 | 2012
NEWSRECORD.ORG
tyler bell | senior reporteR A stormy night did nothing to stop hundreds of participants from running the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation’s 21st annual Run Like Hell 5K race through Spring Grove Cemetery Friday night. Costumed participants took off from the starting line at Woodburn Avenue to run through the cemetery in support of the foundation’s search for a cure for cystic fibrosis, a genetic disease that affects the lungs and pancreas and causes lifelong problems for victims. Leslie Lucas, a development director for the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, believed the event would still be successful despite the inclement weather. “There isn’t any other run that’s in full costume like this,” Lucas said. “It’s really unique — it’s in the evening time and it culminates with such a huge party that it’s really unique to the city and I think people really want to see it.” Lucas said she expected 85 percent of the 1,800 registrants to be in costumes. Steven Sharpshort, 18, of Cincinnati and his stepfather, Gene Perry, 41, ran the race as a team, both dressed in full-body, form-fitting spandex suits — Sharpshort was Slenderman, an urban legend made popular by the Internet, and Perry was a zombie.
Stories of haunted past at UC
Spokesman tells audience truth behind several myths
“I wouldn’t be freezing my ass off if it wasn’t for something good,” Sharpshort said. Peggy Veter, a volunteer of Cincinnati, wondered how participants planned to run in their costumes. “It’s hilarious,”Veter said. “The costumes — the runners — are just hilarious. We’ve been doing it for years. It’s just fun — people-watching for a good cause.” Anne Robin, a student at Thomas More College, said it was more about the run than the costumes. “We just added a little flair to our running gear,” she said. “I ran last weekend in a 12-mile race and it was freezing cold. I don’t think it’s going to be any worse than that because it’s only three miles.” Amy Famularo, a development director for the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, said Run Like Hell raised over $115,000 last year, and nearly 90 cents of every dollar goes directly to fund the cure. “Since the inception of this event, which was back in ’91, we’ve raised over a million dollars,” Famularo said. “This is our second largest fundraiser for the foundation.” Runners paid from $35 to $45, depending on when they registered, Famularo said. “Every dollar we raise here goes directly to fund our mission, which is to both control and cure [Cystic Fibrosis],” Famularo said. “We’re pretty close and we’re making great strides at doing just that.”
‘Wreck-It Ralph’ director talks video game movie kEITH BIERYGOLICK | MANAGING EDITOR Director Rich Moore (“Futurama” and “The Simpsons”) made the countless hours he spent at the video arcade growing up worth something in his first feature film, “Wreck-It Ralph.” “As a kid and a teenager I would get the conversation, I would get the talk several times from my parents,” Moore said. “It would go, you know, ‘you are wasting your time at that arcade, and no good will come of playing video games.’ So, I like to think I proved them wrong.” Walt Disney studios had been trying to make a video game movie for several years, and when Moore started working with the studio in 2008 he jumped on the chance to develop a movie based in that world. While Moore had all the prerequisite video game knowledge to make a good movie, coming up with an intriguing concept proved difficult. “Wreck-It Ralph” centers on the Donkey Kong-like villain, Ralph (voiced by John C.
dani kokachak | senior reporter
For more information about the haunting of UC, and an extended version of this story, go to newsrecord.org.
Approximately 2,300 to 3,500 people register each year, depending on the weather, Famularo said, estimating 2,000 at this year’s event. The total donations raised and total number of participants was not available at press time.
Villain aspires to become hero
alex weaver | staff photographer
Stories of the University of Cincinnati’s haunted history spooked faculty members into the Halloween spirit Wednesday. UC spokesman Greg Hand led members of the UC Association for Administrators, Managers and Professionals (UCAAMP) on a tour of “Haunted UC.” The presentation was seen as an opportunity to bring faculty and staff together to learn more about the university. “The board tries to do networking and tries to educate the members about what goes on around campus,” said Elizabeth Boland, former member of the board and faculty member in CCM’s preparatory department. Hand’s 30-minute presentation of scary things at UC included stories of the university’s vampires, catacombs, ghosts and other spooky incidents. “I had to get creative with the subjects, and it was tough finding information on some of this stuff,” Hand said. “Finding a vampire at UC and information about them took a little work.” Hoxworth Blood Center on Highland Avenue is the campus bloodsucker, Hand said. In order to satisfy their need for blood, Hoxworth takes nearly 400 victims a day — all volunteers, of course. “This campus isn’t all that haunted because it isn’t all that old,” Hand said. “We miss out on the whole Victorian, spooky ghost thing.” Nevertheless, Hand delivered information on the notorious UC catacombs that weave for miles under campus and are used as utility tunnels. Students are more likely to be electrocuted than scared down, Hand said, calling them the “Bearcatacombs.” The most regularly reported haunting at UC is the ghost in the rare book room on the ninth floor of the Blegen Library. Witnesses claim the ghost is a dapper man in his sixties. He is believed to be the wandering spirit of a classics professor killed in an automobile accident years ago, Hand said.
PROVIDED BY cystic fibrosis FOUNDATION
SPOOKY CEMETERY RUNNERS Thousands of people dressed up in Halloween costumes for the 21st-annual “Run Like Hell” event held at Spring Grove Cemetery.
Courtesy of Walt disney studios
VIRTUAL VILLAINS ANONYMOUS Wreck-It Ralph (voiced by John C. Reilly) attends a support group for video game bad guys. In the film Ralph embarks on an adventure to become a hero. Reilly), who wants to become a hero — but it didn’t start out that way. Initially it was Felix, the hero from Ralph’s video game world, whom Moore planned the story around. “Something about the perfect kind of hero character from a video game, it felt like so what?” Moore said. “He starts out a good guy and becomes a better guy?” “It’s more interesting to watch a story about Donkey Kong than Mario,” he said. “Especially if Donkey Kong is wondering why do I throw barrels at this guy? And why do people hate me for doing it?” After settling on the arch of the story, Reilly came aboard, showing a dedication that helped Moore develop the title character even further. “It’s not often that someone — that an actor in an animated film will kind of call up and say, ‘Can I come over and can we talk a little bit more about Ralph?” Moore said. “He was so kind of hands-on and so instrumental in really fleshing out who Ralph is and what he’s like.” Reilly’s ability to create characters the audience wants to root for pushed the film into the upper-echelon of animated Disney films. “He’s so funny, but, man, it’s like every character he plays feel like a real human being, you know, with a real heart,” Moore said. “You really care about his characters
and you really want them to achieve what it is that they want and desire. And I don’t think Ralph’s any different … I think he falls right into one of those classic [Reilly] characters.” The talented cast also includes Sarah Silverman, Jack McBrayer and Jane Lynch. Moore got them, along with Reilly, to record their voices together in an effort to maximize the actors’ potential camaraderie. “Usually in animation, the actors will be scheduled one at a time to come in and act just kind of in a vacuum,” Moore said. “[People] are coming to this because they want to see the chemistry — or they want to feel the chemistry — of John C. Reilly and Sarah Silverman together … We’re not really making good on that if we don’t have John and Sarah performing against each other,” Moore said. “Wreck-It Ralph” needed many more actors than Reilly and Silverman though, because the film contains the most individual characters (190) in a Disney film — “Tangled” only had 60. “I like ambitious stuff. I like big casts, and I like big movies, and big TV shows,” Moore said, who’s used to dealing with gigantic casts in his television work. “‘Simpsons’ in its day was very, very ambitious, and so, I’m never one to back down from a challenge or undercut what the movie should be. I’m really proud of what we achieved.” “Wreck-It Ralph” opens Nov. 2.
Realistic look at crime in Sweeden
Part crime, part drama, ‘Easy Money’ delivers ben Goldenberg | CONTRIBUTOR In “Easy Money” there is no pop music soundtrack, no expensive sports cars and no one is Italian-American — welcome to the real world of crime. Stockholm, Sweden: A place where people drive ordinary cars, gangsters have real-world responsibilities and the enticing possibility
PROVIDED BY the weinstein company
CRIME DOESN’T PAY Dragomir Mrsic in Daniel Espinosa’s film, “Easy Money,” which takes a look at the life of criminal. In the European crime flick, Espinosa shows there really is no such thing as easy money.
of easy money is the only thing holding them all together. The screen fades from black and before five minutes pass, there is a jailbreak. But after the opening scene, “Easy Money” turns from crime film into a drama. There are no more violent scenes until the film is almost halfway through. The abrupt change of pace makes the beginning feel misleading, which is bound to make action-lovers feel robbed. Despite the opening scene — and the intensity of violence when it does occur — “Easy Money” remains, at its core, a dialogue-driven drama attempting to be an action movie. The film is well-crafted with intricate plotting and unsuspected backstabbing. The Swedish-language movie manages to be a far-fromboring tale of ambition where no one walks away rich. Like most Swedish movies released in North America, “Easy Money” is dark. The parts of the soundtrack that aren’t morose, acoustic tracks are quiet. The acting is superb and the directing is phenomenal, it’s no wonder director Martin Scorsese presented it in North America. Unless movies involving violence, drugs or crime are an issue for a viewer, there isn’t much “Easy Money” lacks — except novelty. The central problem “Easy Money” faces is crime movies have been done millions of times before. They have been done on lower budgets, they have been done with less technology and they have been done better. Though it is refreshing to see a crime movie not directed by Guy Ritchie or financed in the Hollywood system, “Easy Money” fails to do anything to stand out. Despite a compelling plot,“Easy Money”will not make headlines for the best movies of the year. For all its virtues, it is not groundbreaking — but it will most likely entertain anyone who enjoys darker films.