ing barren and Skinner being
a loner? All that is gone, along
with the spaceship that took
Mulder away.
Last May, the season seven
finale of the X-Files took
away the normalcy that fans
had come to expect. The fi
nale came as a shock to most
Philers. At the time that the
finale was shown, a decision
had just been made to keep
the show on for another sea
son, with only half the prin
cipal players signed on again.
This left the fate of Mulder
and Scully up in the air, until
an eleventh hour ruling came
down from Fox that the show
would go on, with Mulder
(David Duchovny) only ap
pearing in 1 I of the regular 20
weekly shows. That left
Scully pregnant and sans part
ner, and Fox in a quandary.
Without an alpha male to
stand beside Scully, the net
work knew that they were in
trouble. Can we say 'casting
call?'
Enter the parade of actors
Top stars Pay
by Erin McCarty
staff writer
"Think of a plan to change the
world and put it into ACTION." This
is the challenge that seventh-grade
history teacher Eugene Simonet
(Kevin Spacey) issues to his students
on the first day of class in Pay It For
ward. It's a seemingly unattainable
goal for a room full of eleven-year
olds from whom society expects noth
ing. But as the other students snicker
and roll their eyes, the wheels in
Trevor McKinney's (Haley Joel
Osmand) head are turning. That af
ternoon, as he rides his bike past the
slums of Las Vegas, he begins to put
his plan into action.
The plan is simple: Trevor will per
form a major favor for three different
people, who in turn must promise to
"pay it forward" to three more people.
If the plan is successful, the random
acts of kindness will spread to mil
lions of people in just a few weeks.
His first favor is to house a homeless
Movies
10/13
Dr. T and the Women
Bounce
Lost Souls
The Contender
The Ladies Man
10/20
The Legend of
Drunken Master
Bedazzled
Best In Show
. .
4 k, - • • „. .„ .
ts '
, . . •
. .
who used to be a machine.
Robert Patrick beat out all
others to become Scully's new
partner while she searches for
Mulder. That's right, Patrick,
former T2OOO, or for the sci-fi
illiterate people, the evil cop in
Terminator 2, is now the second
BY KA
half of the X-Files. But
question remains; will this G
man be able to fill the shoes
of his predecessor? And the
even bigger question is,
will he be trying to
replace Mulder, or
simply step in for him
'file he is gone? Given
track record of
siders being
;epted on the show,
chances are slim to
,ne. Hope Patrick 4
(ows that nine out of
new characters
man named Jerry and give him money
with which to start a new life.
Trevor's mother, Arlene (Helen
Hunt), an alcoholic who is rarely
home because she works two jobs, is
horrified and proceeds to confront Mr.
Simonet. This initial encounter, dur
ing which Trevor attempts to bring his
mother and teacher together, sets the
stage for the rest of the film. The task
is not easy because Arlene is stubborn
and clings to the past, while Eugene
hides a dark secret about the origin
of the burns that scar his face. Fur
ther complications arise when
Trevor's hard-drinking and abusive
father, Ricky (Jon Bon Jovi), returns
after a long absence.
Meanwhile, as Trevor becomes
more and more convinced that his
plan is a failure, reporter Chris Chan
dler (Jay Mohr) is following a phe
nomenon that reached him when a
stranger offered him his brand-new
car after his own car was totaled. In
trigued, Chandler is determined to get
to the bottom of this "Pay it Forward"
Video *
10/17
Green Mile
James Bond Gift Set Vol. 3
Never Say Never Again
Three Kings
Toy Story 2
10/24
American Beauty
(Pan&Scan)
Batman Beyond/
Return of the Joker
Scream 3
Sin
introduced on the show are dead
three episodes later.
Where does this leave Mulder?
At press time, he was still off
cruising through space in the
mothership. Of course, like all
things X-Files, that too is
deniable. Last season Philers were
E G
promised that the whereabouts of
Mulder's long lost sister
mantha would be
'ealed, and it was.
idly no one will get to
'e her anymore,
lecause she's dead.
Heaven (or possibly
Hell) was not quite
the location that
most people were
hoping for. Guess
there won't be any
Oprah 'brother
sister' reunions in
movement, and when he finally does,
he has some important revelations
about the impact that one individual
can make on society.
Helen Hunt is very convincing in
her role as the tortured mother trying
to break out of a dangerous lifestyle.
Her tenuous relationship with her son
is strengthened through a series of ef
forts and failures, and her wall of self
centered tenacity begins to break
down as her friendship with Eugene
blossoms into love. Kevin Spacey ra
diates a calm intellectual aura
throughout most of the movie as he
uses complicated vocabulary in his
ordinary conversation. When he does
lose his cool, he explodes, and all of
the emotion that has been bottled up
for so long is let loose.
While both adult co-stars turn out
Oscar-worthy performances, it is once
again Haley Joel Osmand who steals
the show. It is a slightly more worldly
youngster we see here. While
Osmand's character in The Sixth
Sense took his co-star to task for say-
a
1 %
S 'i)
ALLEY
the near future
It Forward
Music*
10/17
Limp Bizkit
Enya
10/24
Chrstina Aguilera
(Christmas Album)
Lil' Moe
Megadeth
Tyrese
Scarface
Rosie O'Donnell
(Christmas Album)
won't even start showing
until late this season.
Apparently, the summer
hiatus did wonders for her
figure. But who will go to the
lamaze classes with her...and
oh yeah, who's the father
anyway?
Is the baby really an alien
human hybrid or is the
paternity of this child of a
more 'earthly' nature?
Rumor has it that this child
is Mulder's...hum, seems
like someone has been doing
a little 'investigative work' in
the office after hours. Let's
just hope that Scully's new
partner will be kind enough
to hold her hair while she is
heaving up her morning
coffee in her first trimester.
Can Mulder make it back
to see the birth of his child?
Can Scully manage to keep
her breakfast down
throughout the season? Will
Skinner ever grow hair? Can
Robert Patrick break the
vicious 'kill off the new guy'
cycle? All this will be
discovered on November 5 at
ing "the 'S' word," Trevor uses it
rather liberally. But he is no less kind
and compassionate than the boy who
saw dead people. Instead, we see the
constant conflict between the idealism
in wanting to believe that people can
change for the better and the reality
that life seems to be nothing but tur
moil and disappointment. His anguish,
joy, determination, and disillusion
ment are palpable, and it is the love
that Osmand causes us to feel for his
character that brings the movie to such
a stunning conclusion.
Rated PG-13 for language and a few
violent scenes, older children should
be encouraged to see this movie with
their parents. It may be just a movie,
but the premise has very real implica
tions. One person, even an eleven
year-old, can make a world of differ
ence, and this film has the potential
to inspire people of all ages to take a
chance and "pay it forward."
DVD*
10/17
James Bond Gift Set Vol. 3
Never Say Never Again
Rules of Engagement
Toy Story 1 & 2
10/24
American Beauty
Batman Beyond/
Return of the Joker
Sin
U-571 Collector's Edition
Britney Spears
Sic' Em
FID
4r. -
by Deanna Symoski
imp
'still have this memory when I think of The Simpsons. I was probably
ten or eleven, and I was shopping at Hills Department Store when I
found a T-shirt of Bart Simpson on the chest. He donned his now
traditional red shirt and blue shorts, and he was giving the thumbs-up.
The caption underneath him read "Cowabunga Dude." My mom agreed
to buy me that shirt, favoring it over the more flippant "Don't have a
cow, man," or "Underachiever and proud of it," shirts.
I always think of that scene when I read something that causes me to
reflect on the edginess of television through the years. When The
Simpsons first started, Bart was essentially the anti-Christ in the eyes of
parent groups and moral advocates. His name was only a letter-switch
away from brat, but the show snapped and crackled because of the young
one's seeming disrespect.
Controversy, like in all other cases, propelled The Simpsons into the
mainstream however, and the show became a FOX staple for ten seasons
But now as it begins its eleventh, some fans are vocalizing their desire
for a quick and painless end to a show that's lost its pop.
As trends go, the firepower of The Simpsons should have fallen by the
wayside when more controversial cartoons began appearing. Beavis and
Butthead, for example, became the next worse thing, and for a period the
next hottest thing, as kids and adults alike tuned in to see the birth of the
fart joke. But after a pleasurable romp through pointless television, the
popularity of Beavis and Butthead diminished, and finally the show fell
to the fickle tastes of television watchers.
Next at bat was South Park. Like The Simpsons, this animated vehicle
also thrived on its witty satire of world issues. With more backstage
intelligence than the majority of shows on TV, South Park became a
favorite among its target demographic. But the show's ratings have
decreased as of last season, partly because of South Park's lack of
subtlety. Also employing fart jokes and blatant bad taste, the intelligence
of the show has been all but disguised, and its tiresome quick- laughs
have taken a toll on the novelty of swearing cartoon kids. Even if you
want to argue that South Park is currently better than the last season of
The Simpsons, at least The Simpsons didn't see downward ratings until
several seasons into its career. South Park has lost momentum after only
two, signaling trouble for a long-term existence.
In the end, no matter what shape the Simpson family takes, its irrever
ent humor and timely satire will have outmatched any other nomination
in this field. Springfield has emerged as Anytown, USA, and given
viewers the intelligent laughs that a live-action depiction certainly could
Through its hallowed years, The Simpson's has birthed some unforget
table characters and legendary situations of its own. One of my favorites
is Groundskeeper Willie, who by all fairness stopped being cool about
five years ago, but his older episodes still make me laugh. I can still hear
"Ya used me Skinner, ya used me!" during the fictitious Scotchtoberfest.
Or "Argh! The wee turtles, they were too much for me!" in the episode
where Bart falls for Reverend Lovejoy's hell-bent daughter. I don't use
the phrases in common conversation or anything, but I still giggle when
they happen to cross my mind.
I guess the sad part is that they don't cross my mind so much anymore.
In fact, I had to brainstorm just for those examples. I knew they were
there, I just had to dust them off because, frankly, like Groundskeeper
Willie, the whole show may have lost its luster before now. Reluctantly,
I am beginning to see what the critics are talking about. Despite a rare
late gem like the Tomacco episode, The Simpsons ain't what it used to
be. Some say its Homer's emerging mean streak, which has all but
devoured the oafish yet lovable Homer. Some say it's the departure of
Matt Groening, leaving the show in the hands of a fresh set of writers
who don't quite remember the punch of Simpson glory days. And
finally, some say that like other great shows in its wake, The Simpsons
has finally run out of things to say. After all, where can you can take a
set of characters who do not age?
I guess you take them to your heart. Since my formative years were
echoed with the show's catch phrases, I've decided to quietly agree with
the naysayers and still catch an occasional episode in syndication. I may
not have that old Bart shirt anymore, but I'll always have reruns.
FRIDAY, OCTOBER 20, 2000
The