Living in the face of horror
'Project' recreates town's reaction Four years ago, in a university town not unlike State College, a 20-year-old man named Matthew Shepard was beaten nearly to death, tied to a fence and left to die.He remained tied there for more than 24 hours, in the deep cold of an October night in Laramie, Wyo. He died as a result of his injuries.
( jmichael, 10/11/2002 07:45 AM EDT)

'Rules' shouldn't attract audiences to theaters
If your heart's desire has always been to see Fred "The Wonder Years" Savage stoned -- in his underwear -- or James "Dawson's Creek" Van Der Beek making out with a guy, then "Rules of Attraction" is the movie for you.
( Wire DataFeatures, 10/11/2002 07:45 AM EDT)

Movie will 'transport' viewers to the edge of boredom
Writer-director-producer Luc Besson has a knack for making junk action films that are as fun as they are cheesy, faux epics like "The Fifth Element" and "The Professional." But for the past few years he's taken time off as a director to write and produce such lame ducks as last year's "Kiss of the Dragon" and now "The Transporter." One keeps hoping his typewriter will implode.
( Wire DataFeatures, 10/11/2002 07:45 AM EDT)

'Pumpkin' is a far cry from a 'Cinderella'-style love story
Under the headine "What were they thinking?" comes "Pumpkin," a witless, insulting satire of sorority girls that shamelessly ridicules the mentally challenged. The filmmakers aren't exactly Mensa candidates themselves.The style they were after, but which totally eludes them, is one that Paul Verhoeven has been able to pull off occasionally ("Starship Troopers," "Flesh + Blood"), in which an elaborate deadpan joke plays out on two levels, one of them sweetly earnest and the other a vicious, self-reflexive parody.
( Wire DataFeatures, 10/11/2002 07:45 AM EDT)

Creators made mob film too serious
Ignore the marketing. Anyone who expects "Knockaround Guys" to be another Vin Diesel vehicle, an after-"XXX" mint of sorts, is likely to be disappointed. He's a supporting character in this ensemble mobster mash, where he plays second fiddle to Barry Pepper. Diesel's presence, however, is most likely the reason this movie hasn't gone straight to video.
( Wire DataFeatures, 10/11/2002 07:45 AM EDT)

'Brown Sugar' is a sweet tale of hip-hop, love
Smarter than the average romantic comedy, "Brown Sugar" has all the ingredients for a worthy successor to the friends-versus-lovers territory of "When Harry Met Sally."The movie's formulaic ending proves a disappointment after almost two hours of thoughtful meandering through the obstacle course of platonic relations turning romantic. But the characters are engaging and full-blooded enough to compensate for the clichéd conclusion, and the story unfolds with a natural wit and energy that's far more authentic than most big-screen love stories.
( Wire DataStream, 10/11/2002 07:45 AM EDT)

'Oleander' adaptation doesn't quite blossom on the big screen
With moms like Michelle Pfeiffer, who needs enemies?"White Oleander" is the latest movie in which Pfeiffer plays pinched, brittle characters who are toxic to the people around them. As Ingrid, who commits murder and dooms her teen-age daughter to a life in foster homes, Pfeiffer is excellent -- tough and sarcastic. But she might want to rethink her attraction to this sort of wan, Intimate Human Drama With a Message, lest audiences forget the wit and pleasure she brought to earlier roles in "Batman Returns" and "Married to the Mob." She is in danger of becoming tastefully gray.
( Wire DataFeatures, 10/11/2002 07:45 AM EDT)

'1-2-3 ... Imagine!' takes kids on stroll along famous street
"1-2-3 ... Imagine!"Sesame Street Live Shut your eyes and think of all the fun places you'd like to go. As easy as 1-2-3, Mitchell Garrett and his fellow cast members of Sesame Street Live will take you there if you're in the Bryce Jordan Center this weekend.
( bendaz, 10/11/2002 07:45 AM EDT)

Florilegium band profile
Florilegium Members: Ashley Solomon, flute and recorder; James Johnstone, keyboards; Kati Debretzeni and Risa Browder, violins; Jennifer Morsches, cello; Robert Nairn, bass.Home base: LondonCDs: "Telemann 'Tafel' Music Part 1," due out in three weeks; other recent releases include: "Flame Fatale," "J.S. Bach: A Musical Offering," "Telemann: Paris Quartets and Solo Fantasies," "Bach: Sanguineus & Melancholicus," "Vivaldi: Concerti for Various Instruments"
( bendaz, 10/11/2002 07:45 AM EDT)