Movie

9
APRIL 6, 2005

Emotions Dominate Ladder 49

Ladder 49
Directed by Jay Russell

Br Sean Dopprn
STAFF WRITER

“Courage is resistance to fear, mas-
tery of fear, not absence of fear,”
quoted from Mark Twain. Ladder 49
is a film that seeks to shed the scales of
a firefighter and reveal to us what it
takes to be a hero. It goes beyond the
blazes, explosions, rescues, and
tragedies to tell the story of the men
that do one of the most dangerous
and yet necessary jobs in the confus-
ing web of our society.

Now the absolute key rule of
thumb in storytelling is simple: char-
acters first, circumstance second.
Ladder 49 understands this clearly,
for its dedication to character devel-
opment ensures that the film’s mes-
sage is clear and fully absorbed by the
viewer. The ending of this film is
powerful, and it is powerful because-

University of

Lethbridge

of the connections we draw to the
featured characters.

The central character of this film is
rookie firefighter, Jack Morrison. He
is played by Joaquin Phoenix who
proves yet again why he is one of the
finest actors of his generation in
Hollywood. At the plot’s beginning,
Jack’s job is search and rescue. He is
amongst the company of firefighters
with no water between them and the
inferno.

The film begins holding nothing
back as we are immediately intro-
duced to a spectacular blaze.
Following the initial series of events,
everything is refocused onto Jack’s
fledgling days with his firehouse. The
plot follows a fairly formulaic and pre-
dictable progression that won’t incite
much admiration into a hardened
and experienced movie-goer.
However, as any good character-play
develops, the people at the centre of
the story become more important to
the viewer because of what they make

of themselves, not what the plot dic-
tates they become.

There is action in this film; it is the
nature of the context of the players,

but all the players involved have been

givm dimensions relating to each
other. The emphasis on camaraderie
is cited through the choices and
actions everyone makes. Because of
that, the action becomes a genuine
drawing point of character for these
men, not something that is just there
to push the plot to where it needs to
be next.

The relatability of the characters
eventually, and predictably, leads to
some very
moments. These are not, however,
restricted to tear jerking sentiments.
There is an awards ceremony in this
film every bit as emotional and inspi-
rational as any other scene you will
come across.

There are people out there who
will be naively predisposed to being
offended by this film’s “manipulative”
emotions. This is their loss however,
for there is a story here worth being
engrossed by. Emotions ARE manip-
ulative by nature, denying them will
get you nowhere.

Ultimately, Ladder 49 truly is not
what most would initially expect.
Despite all the great action and
thrilling suspense, this film is still
about the camaraderie of the men
behind the heroes. Ladder 49 is excit-
ing, emotional, and thoughtful. I am
grateful for having watched it, and
amazed at how much I was moved by
it.

ADMISSION

In support of the Alberta government's
renewed commitment to post-secondary
access, the University of Lethbridge is
restoring the admission standards that have
served the University and students so well
for more than 10 years.

Please note the following U of L
admission changes:

- Admission GPA for new transfer applicants is 2.0*
(based on a 4-point grade scale}

- Admission deadline: June 1, 2005

_ “Based on traditional course-by-course transferable courses

For details, please visit www.uleth.ca

emotionally jarring ~

@ OUT OF THE MOVIE VAULT

Great Film
- =

Russian Ark
Directed by Alexander Sokurov

Br TRAVIS NIELSEN
DISTRIBUTION MANAGER

Shermitage Bridge Studios and
Egoli Tossell Films presents: Russian
Ark, a film by Director Alexander
Sokurov, director of other Russian
films such as Father and Son and
Elegy of a Voyage. Written by
Anatoly Nikiforov and _ Boris
Khaimshky, this film was no less than
a cinematic masterpiece. Filmed in
2002, the whole movie takes place in
the Hermitage museum in St.
Petersburg. It took 2000 actors, 33
rooms in hermitage, and three live
orchestras to cover the entire filming
of this piece. The story itself is an
interesting concept. A contemporary
filmmaker finds himself in the her-
mitage museum in St. Petersburg
back in the early 1700’s. After meet-
ing up with a interesting, yet cynical
French diplomat from the early 19th
century (played by actor Sergei
Dreiden), they proceed to travel back
and forth through 300 years of
Russian history, gaining an amazing

" insight into the life and times of many

great Russian monarchs, including
Peter the Great and right through to
Nicholas Romanoff II.

The film uses an amazing cast of
actors and amazing symbolism for the
title of the movie, showing the arc of
time that the main characters take
from the 1700’s to present day Russia.

is Ignored by Audiences

They move from the Ark of historical
treasures that the Hermitage in. St.
Petersburg truly represents to mod-
ern-day Russia. However, the main
reason that this film will truly go
down in cinematic history is that the
entire movie is done in one continu-
ous 96 minute shot, no stops, and no
cut scenes. Much of the equipment
and lighting setups for Russian Ark
had to be created specially for this
movie, because nothing like this has
ever been created before. It takes the
viewer on a roller coaster ride
through one of the most beautiful
and amazing museums in the world.
The film also has an all-star cast of
Russian actors, including Sergei
Dreiden (the French diplomat), Maria
Kuznetsova (Catherine the Great),
and Leonid Mozgovoy (the spy).
There is also a bit part where her-
mitage director Mikhail Piotrovsky
plays himself:

An amazing piece of cinematic his-
tory, Alexander Sokurov brings the
history of the hermitage to life like no
one before him could have ever
dreamed of. It is certainly one of the
best foreign films of all time.
Unfortunately, this film did not
receive the press that it was due in the
North American market. The film
can be purchased on DVD at most
big-box electronics outlets and can
also be rented at many local video
stores. Go pick it up and see one of
the most amazing pieces of cinematic
history unfold before your very eyes.

Word of the Week

Welcome, human worm babies, to the final edition of Word of the
Week. What better way to relax from the stress of finals that
expanding your vocabulary? And who knows, all those fancy words
-you know just might impress prospective employers. Not as much
as your cunnilingus skills, of course, but every little bit helps.

This week's word is geld. What does it mean?

A) Governmental: Geld was a tax paid to the Crown by landown-
ers during Saxon and Norman times. Of course, the Crown could
never really figure out what to do with all of those extra sheep, so
they shipped them out to Scotland for storage.

B) Geographical: The geld are the vast and wild plains located in
central Australasia, where the beefalo and kangaroos roam.

C) Biological: A polymorph, able to change its shape at will, in
order to catch its human prey in order to feed off emotional dis-
charges. Often found next to emasculated males wearing shirts

that say “Give Quiche a Chance”.

D) Medical: To castrate. As in “If my boyfriend cheats on me
again, I’m going to geld him but good”.

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