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Girl Power that lives up to its name

By -Paul Straw · Wednesday, July 30,2003 7:51 p.m.

There is a lot of crap packaged as chick flicks. Forget "Charlie's Angels" and "Legally Blonde 2," "Whale Rider" beats them both. Don't even lump this into the same genre. Despite its girl power themes, "Whale Rider" is so much more than that.

The subversive little world of 'Spy Kids'

By Michael Tapscott · Wednesday, July 30,2003 7:50 p.m.

Let's get it out of the way that "Spy Kids 3-D" is a terrible movie. Writer, director and 3-D artiste Richard Rodriguez phoned the third film of the series in, creating a movie that is visually nauseating and completely lacking in anything even a child would consider a plot.

Jolie makes a bad career move

By Jake Bilinski · Wednesday, July 30,2003 7:49 p.m.

Someone please tell me why it is that video game to film adaptations always seem to suck. The latest installment of the "Tomb Raider" series manages to fall infinitely short of its predecessor, which was in itself easily forgettable if not mildly entertaining.

'Seabiscuit:' Yet another reason to read

By -Alec Toombs · Wednesday, July 30,2003 7:48 p.m.

Three men suffering through the hardships of the Great Depression find solace in a common good. Strangely, the lynchpin that holds these downtrodden figures together happens to be of the equine variety.

'Not Everybody Loves Raymond'

By C. Warner Sills and Brian Elliott · Wednesday, July 30,2003 7:37 p.m.

Movies and television are big parts of my life. Certainly not the most important part, but I love seeing weekly episodes of "The Sopranos" and despite my problems with the ticket prices and commercials at the beginning of movies, I still think of going to the theater as a special treat.

Fighting King George

By Jessica Halverson · Wednesday, July 30,2003 7:35 p.m.

It wasn't as smoky as I thought it would be in the small backroom at Bear's Place last Wednesday for the return of the Booze.

Don't mess with Texas

By -Paul Straw · Wednesday, July 30,2003 7:34 p.m.

Kevin Spacey is a great actor who has made his mark in many great movies such as "The Usual Suspects," "Seven," "L.A. Confidential" and "American Beauty" to name a few. In fact, he's carved out such a niche for himself that by simply being in a movie it will have a twist ending. "The Life of David Gale" is no exception, as Spacey plays the titular character, a man sentenced to be executed, who may or may not be guilty of murder.

Censorship sinks drug-fueled flick

By by Isaac Edwards and Isaac Edwards · Wednesday, July 30,2003 7:33 p.m.

The directorial debut of Jonas Åkerlund, "Spun" is based on the true epic meth binge of its screenwriter, Will De Los Santos. Åkerlund has managed to capture one of the most repulsively kitschy cool atmospheres since Harmony Korine demonized Mulberry in "Gummo."

'Phantom Power' falters

By Seth Forster · Wednesday, July 30,2003 7:27 p.m.

The Super Furry Animals are another one of those bands who receive quite a lot of critical praise for what's in its record collection and what elements of that collection show up on their records.

Not so addictive anymore

By Seth Forster · Wednesday, July 30,2003 7:26 p.m.

It's been quite a long vacation for Jane's Addiction. If you don't remember the Jane's, after all it's been about 12 years, think Red Hot Chili Peppers with more hair, musically that is, and less funk.

'Murder, Mayhem and Madness' is riveting

Monday, July 28,2003 5:23 p.m.

The Bloomington Playrights Project's newest ensemble of four plays, all united under the theme "Murder, Mayhem and Madness," is for fans of bloodcurdling scenes, twisted plots and macabre endings. The location itself of the BPP reminded me of some sort of underground club, as you are led from a bright, well-lit front room into a dark, dusty, semi-creepy stage area filled with murmuring patrons.

U.S. troops come close to catching top Saddam bodyguard; marine killed

By D’arcy Doran · Sunday, July 27,2003 10:10 p.m.

TIKRIT, Iraq -- U.S. soldiers said they missed catching Saddam Hussein's security chief -- and possibly the former Iraqi president himself -- by a mere 24 hours early Sunday, while a U.S. Marine was killed in a grenade attack south of Baghdad. Troops stormed three farms in Tikrit, Saddam's hometown, in simultaneous pre-dawn raids after receiving a tip that Saddam's new security chief was staying at one of the farm houses, said Lt. Col. Steve Russell, who led the operation by the of the 4th Infantry.

Suicide bomber detonates explosives

By Sergei Venyavsky · Sunday, July 27,2003 10:09 p.m.

ROSTOV-ON-DON, Russia -- A female suicide bomber blew herself up Sunday near a base of a security force commanded by a son of Chechnya's Kremlin-appointed administration chief, wounding a woman who was nearby, officials said. The attack, which occurred southeast of the provincial capital of Grozny, appeared aimed at the administration chief Akhmad Kadyrov's son, Ramzan, Chechnya's Emergency Situations Minister Ruslan Avtayev said.

Family claims man lynched

By Jill Barton · Sunday, July 27,2003 10:08 p.m.

BELLE GLADE, Fla. -- Not long after the family of Feraris "Ray" Golden found his dead body dangling from a tree outside his grandmother's home, ugly suspicions began to surface.

Korey Stringer's widow plans to sue

By Joshua Freed · Sunday, July 27,2003 9:46 p.m.

MINNEAPOLIS -- An attorney for Korey Stringer's widow said she will sue the NFL on Monday, alleging that the league's policies led to Stringer's heat stroke death during Minnesota Vikings training camp in 2001. Stan Chesley said Kelci Stringer's suit would also name football helmet maker Riddell Sports Group Inc., and some NFL medical advisers. He said the federal lawsuit would include a wrongful death claim on behalf of Stringer's widow and son, and a class action claim on behalf of all NFL players.

No ID yet of remains

By Angela K Brown · Sunday, July 27,2003 9:45 p.m.

WACO, Texas - Investigators collected evidence Sunday in a field where they found a decomposed body, not far from where they were searching for missing Baylor basketball player Patrick Dennehy. There was still no identification of the remains found Friday, and officials said the process could take several days.

Give the women a chance

By Dan Patrick · Sunday, July 27,2003 9:44 p.m.

Why can't women's sports seem to get a foothold in America? Whether it is at the professional level with the WNBA's marketing woes or the seeming lack of attention to most women's sports at the college level, it seems that women's sports just can't win here in America. Even in Indiana, where the following of basketball is more of a religion than a sport, the IU women's basketball team could only muster just under 8,000 fans in a record-breaking fan drive this past fall. This stands in stark contrast with the 16,000+ fan average the men's team garners.

Gamers celebrate passions at Indianapolis convention

By Micah Sturr · Sunday, July 27,2003 9:43 p.m.

More than 25,000 gaming enthusiasts from around the world descended on the Indiana Convention Center from Thursday through Sunday, sporting witty insider jokes on their clothes and manifestations of their passion for hobby gaming everywhere. "Carpe DM" on one; "Jesus Saves -- on a roll of 16 or better" proclaimed another; "Chicks Dig Pale Skinny Guys" hopefully implored a third.

Lance Armstrong wins fifth championship title

By John Leicester · Sunday, July 27,2003 9:43 p.m.

PARIS -- Sipping champagne to celebrate, Lance Armstrong won his hardest but sweetest Tour de France title Sunday, a record-tying fifth straight victory that places him alongside the greatest cyclists ever. The 31-year-old Texan and Spanish great Miguel Indurain are now the only two riders to win the sport's most grueling and prestigious race five times in a row, a record Armstrong plans to break next year.

Federal grants offer flood relief

Sunday, July 27,2003 9:42 p.m.

Federal officials have approved more than $7.1 million in grants and loans to victims of this month's flooding across northern and central Indiana. The total is expected to rise as more applications are reviewed and approved. As of Friday, the Federal Emergency Management Agency had approved 2,224 of the 3,645 applications it had received from owners of Indiana homes and businesses affected by flooding during a weeklong string of storms that began July 4.