Shock Value: High Voltage cranks it up

Posted inCulture

Shock Value: High Voltage cranks it up

Mike Bookey

Shock me baby…all night long.Crank: High Voltage is an adrenalized rollercoaster ride presented in
overtly stylized hyper-surrealism. It's what the remakes of Death Race
and Fast and Furious strived to be.

The original Crank lifted its
concept from the classic D.O.A. starring Edmund O'Brien (re-made later
with Dennis Quaid and Meg Ryan). The hitman, Chev Chelios (Jason
Statham), mysteriously poisoned by a "Beijing Cocktail," races against
time to find his perpetrators. If Chev's heart rate slowed down he'd
croak. To keep his adrenaline up, he was off and running, punching
anyone in his path.
This sequel takes up the storyline when
Chev falls from a helicopter. After splattering onto pavement, he is
literally scooped up by some evil Chinese gangsters who want to harvest
his super organs. To keep him alive they transplant a battery powered
heart that needs a charge every hour or so. When they start to harvest
Chelios' well-endowed man part, he spurs back to life and the pummeling
begins. He spends the rest of the film repeatdly jump-starting his
heart any way possible.

Posted inCulture

Just Add Watergate: Political conspiracy thriller is paint-by-numbers, but effective

Mike Bookey

Journalists? They still have those?Think of all the things that people have seen with great repetition in
their lives but for which we continue to crane our necks to glimpse
again and again: Sunrises, sunsets, windstorms, the aftermath of car
crashes, Seth Rogen movies, etc. In a way, State of Play is the film
version of a sunrise - or at least a good morning coffee. We know
precisely what we're being fed, and that's why we keep coming back for
more.

That being said, State of Play throws enough twists around to
give this daily cup of Joe a pleasant aroma. Adapted from a BBC
television series of the same name, the film stars Ben Affleck as
Stephen Collins, a congressman with a bright future whose office
assistant dies under bizarre circumstances. Russell Crowe plays Cal
McAffrey, a streetwise journalist and old friend of the congressman,
who begins investigating the aide's death and its connection to the
murders of two other people. Things get murky when it turns out the
married Collins and the assistant were having an affair. Still murkier
is that Collins is skewering a private defense contractor at a
congressional hearing, and the defense contractor doesn't like it one
bit. Billions in no-bid contracts could be lost. And when billions are
at stake, lives aren't worth much, so people get killed. Rinse and
repeat, right?

Posted inMusic

Hardly Clumsy: Emma Hill boards her own bus

The Source Staff

Emma Hill: Always up for a good disguise.The last time Emma Hill played Bend, she told us about touring the West
Coast by bus - Greyhound bus that is. We caught up with Hill on the eve
of the release of her new record and a release party at the Tower
Theatre and learned that she still plans on touring by bus this summer.

But this time it's her own bus - a "short bus" she bought from a
church group in Arizona and plans to outfit with some personal touches
before she and her band crisscross the country…after finishing up the
school year at Portland State, of course. Transportation changes are
not the only shift for Hill since she packed the Silver Moon in January
of 2008, as evidenced by her new album, Clumsy Seduction. The record
showcases the 21-year-old's gradual shift from songwriting darling to
folk powerhouse. On Clumsy Seduction, Hill is backed by a six-piece
band, thus changing the name of her act to Emma Hill and Her Gentleman
Callers, and also allowing her to push her style closer to that of Neko
Case (and sometimes Jenny Lewis) and away from the whimsical folkie she
played (and played well) on her earlier release, Just Me.

Posted inMusic

A Loud Experience: Back from SXSW, the Pink Snowflakes return to Bend

The Source Staff

Sunshine, lollipops and plenty of feedback.The last time the Pink Snowflakes played in Bend, they brought their
bubble machine madness to Players Bar and Grill for a set of the
Portland band's quirky and loud-as-hell psychedelic rock. Back in town
this weekend, the band has covered some new ground since the last
visit, mainly in the form of a trek down to Austin, Texas where they
added their name to the list of 1,800 some bands that performed at the
storied South by Southwest festival.

For a band that seems to pride
itself on weirdness, the Pink Snowflakes kept it true to form at SXSW -
where guitarist Tom McGregor admits the band had "no idea what we were
getting ourselves into" - playing a show at a venue that professed a
"clothing-optional" policy.
"We figured it out a week or two
before we left and thought it would be perfect because we're all about
the slightly weird and thought it would be great to be listening to
this loud, crazy psychedelic rock and freaking out to it," says
McGregor over the phone from his Portland home, "But there only ended
up being one guy naked and it was the guy in charge."

Posted inCulture

Our Picks for the Week of 4/22-4/30

The Source Staff

Oregon Reads Reception

thursday 23

In a treat for the strong
contingent of literary folks here in Bend, all three authors from the
Oregon Reads project are featured in one event. Lauren Kessler, author
of Stubborn Twig, is an account of three generations of Japanese
Americans living in Oregon, will be on hand along with Virginia Euwer
Wolff and Deborah Hopkinson, the authors of this year's selections for
younger readers. All three will read and be available to sign books.
Also, you can catch Kessler at the Tower on Friday night for a free
event featuring the Taiko drummers out of Portland. 7pm Bend Public
Library, 601 NW Wall St. 312-1032.
40 oz To Freedom, Mirf the Bing
thursday 23
Mirf the Bing.We
told you, albeit briefly, about this San Diego-based act last week, but
figured we would mention that the Sublime tribute act is here in town
to drop some summery sounds to go with this summery weather we've been
experiencing. Local high school dudes, Mirf the Bing, open the show
with a set of reggae and ska originals that have the youth set buzzing
loudly. 7:30pm. $10. Domino Room, 51 NW Greenwood Ave.

Posted inOpinion

Facts vs. Faith

Eric Flowers

In Mike Epstein's bashing of the Jesus basher, Steve Humphrey, he asserts that St. Augustine argued God allowed Rome to become a great nation and did the same for the U.S. Neither Epstein or Augustine nor anyone else can prove this. It is merely Augustine's and Epstein's belief that this is so, not empirical fact. Therefore to call Humphrey "stupid" and "uneducated" is to open Epstein himself to the charge that he is also "stupid" and perhaps brainwashed as well by religious dogma that has no basis in fact.

"Easter" celebrations, really festivals honoring Spring, existed in many forms and civilizations long before the alleged existence of Jesus Christ. Mr. Epstein exposes his "stupidity" in asserting that the Constitution and Bill of Rights are "god-driven." The word "God" does not appear in the Constitution. The Pledge of Allegiance" did not contain the word "God" in it until conservatives in Congress during the Eisenhower administration changed it. As a kid in school in the late '40s and early '50s I learned the old Pledge that ended, "one nation indivisible with liberty and justice for all." God was not mentioned.

Posted inOpinion

The Bike Brigade

Eric Flowers

Hey there to all you fellow riders out there, roadies, mounties and commuters.
How about a biker coalition that patrols the roadways and the mountain biking trails? The purpose? We all get flats, have mishaps and need support - even medical aid. Out on the trails, such as Phil's Trail, a coalition would be wonderful with the millions of people coming from every planet around the universe to bike in Bend since this is the best place in the world to bike! (ha,ha…NOT) There are bike coalitions in northern California for a reason, mainly the population of riders being large. There are a lot of riders on the trails and a biker coalition would help educate riders on the right of way, friendliness, littering etc.

Posted inOpinion

Walking The Walk

Eric Flowers

I would like to send a tune of gratitude for a couple of un-sung heroes of our community. They will be moving on to new ventures and a life near Ashland. Richard Ziff and Helene Bisnaire are the owners and creators of "Of The Earth."
They are taking a break after many years of building and developing one of the world's first organic clothing and fabric businesses. I remember when they came to town and immediately took a leadership role in supporting causes, charities, and fashion events through their OTE Foundation. Although they did little of their business in Bend directly, they came in with open hearts to make their contribution to our community and town.

Sign up for newsletters

Get the best of The Source - Bend, Oregon directly in your email inbox.

Sending to:

Gift this article