Naptown's Finest Return Emotion, Laughter, and a Bit of Confusion In

November 4, 2003 THE RETRIEVER WEEKLY FEATURES Page 21 Emotion, Laughter, and a Bit of Confusion in Richard Curtis’s Love Actually MIKE MORROW As the movie’s poster implies, the direc- Retriever Weekly Staff Writer tor tries to wrap up all these characters and their stories in pretty little bow and deliver While most films based on a love story them to us on the screen. Every scene is today are content with a simple love triangle, linked together by another character and the movie Love Actually delivers what can every character seems to have some sort of best be described as a love dodecahedron. Set link to another. Playing six-degrees-of-Love in England five weeks before Christmas and Actually, The Prime Minister (Grant) is the then culminating on Christmas Eve, this film older brother of Karen (Thompson), whose follows an enormous cast as they each are husband is Harry (Rickman), who is Sarah’s separately thrown about in every situation (Linney) boss. With me so far? Great, involving love imaginable. From love at first because Aurelia (Lucia Moniz) has just been sight, to cheating lovers, to love overcoming introduced to Jamie (Firth), who was at the language barriers, to best friends complicat- wedding of Juliet (Knightley) and Peter Oliver Baranczyk / Retriever Weekly Staff ed by a marriage, to a child experiencing his (Chiwetel Ejiofor, yes that is his name), Playful Antics: Goldfinger lead singer, John Feldmann, helps to steal the show at first love, Love Actually has a bit of some- which Peters best friend Mark (Andrew the First MarinerArena, along with his bandmates. thing for everyone. Boasting through its tag Lincoln) has a problem with. Even I’m lost at line to be “the ultimate romantic comedy”, it this point and I’m the one writing this review. does deliver the romance and the comedy. Heavy on the romance, the audience is Naptown’s Finest Return In his directorial debut, Richard Curtis, bombarded with so much emotion we are #2: Thongs, Mohawks Fill Goldfinger Concert the man responsible for witting movies like Four Weddings and a Funeral, Notting Hill see LOVE, page 26 and Bridget Jones’s Diary, OLIVER BARANCZYK their brand of edgy pop punk with panache. brings together a huge cast of Retriever Weekly Staff Writer Quite a spectacle, however, was the obscen- mostly British actors, includ- ity-laden comments made in-between ing Hugh Grant, Emma Amidst a ravenous crowd gathered at songs. With verbal suggestions and offer- Thompson, Colin Firth, Liam the 1st Mariner Arena on October 25, home- ings that made the faces of even the most Neeson, Alan Rickman, town heroes Good Charlotte brought their cultured parents shrivel into a puzzled look, Laura Linney, Keira personalized brand of anthemic pop punk to lead singer Tony Lovato used his lyrical elo- Knightley, and Rowan an eager audience in Baltimore. In support quence to pump up the audience. Atkinson. Add to that list of their latest album The Young and the After the performance by Mest, other stars like Bill Nighy, Hopeless, the band is embarking a world Goldfinger graced the stage, introduced by Joanna Page, Martine tour that will keep them on the road until the drummer Darrin Pfeiffer, who cavorted on McCutcheon, and a ridiculous new year, after which they will retreat to the stage seductively wearing only a red thong, number of cameos, which I studio to work on new material. his antics serving to amp the crowd consid- will not give away, and With two other acts on the bill, punk erably. Leading by example, the band pro- you’ve got a cast for which I forebears Goldfinger and Chicago rockers ceeded to display their formidable skill and have no idea how they got Mest, the arena was full of energy and talent for catchy, upbeat, and thoughtful them all within a feasible vibrancy, as well as many children under the punk rock. Beforehand, UMBC’s own Phil budget. I will say, that actor age of eighteen. But before I digress into Owen had the opportunity to interview two who plays the American commentary on the age range of those in of the members of Goldfinger, singer/gui- President does such a dead-on attendance, I must elaborate on the actual tarist John Feldmann and Pfeiffer. impression of one of our for- performances of the groups, which, I must Following Goldfinger’s excellent per- mer leaders, I was almost say, were pretty enjoyable. formance, one that may have very well expecting him to give a Coming from a guy who listens to stolen the show, Good Charlotte had many thumbs-up to the camera and Death Cab for Cutie, the Strokes, and David expectations to surpass. The hometown proclaim “It true, I like Gray, among others, the music is a slight boys pleased the crowd with renditions of booty!” Although all these departure. However, unlike most preten- their neo-classic songs, “The Anthem,” characters and storylines add tious music listeners, I tried to maintain my “Little Things,” and “Waldorf Worldwide.” to the movie, the audience is objectivity, but perhaps it was most crucial Spicing things up a bit, the Madden brothers almost overwhelmed by too that I do so at the Good Charlotte concert. threw the audience a curveball with the many characters, some of Courtesy of loveactually.comf And so the concert began with Mest, a which we forget about for One Of Ten: Martine McCutcheon forms one of ten raucous band out of Chicago that played see GOLDFINGER, page 29 over half the movie. sides of the love dodecahedron in Actually..

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