For Tufts athletics, heading off to Williams is generally not the way to break out of a rut. Don't tell that to the Jumbo softball team, which won all four games at the Williams Invitational this past weekend, including three wins against NESCAC schools, to improve to 13-9 on the season. Prior to the weekend, Tufts had been stuck at .500, splitting its last three doubleheaders.
Disney sure knows how to put on a show, that's for sure. The company has decided to celebrate 75 years of wholesome family entertainment with a special production of Disney on Ice celebrates 75 years of Disney Magic. This is the 20th Disney on Ice production, and it features a large and loveable cast of some of your favorite Disney characters, including Mickey, Minnie, Pinnochio, the Mousekeeteers, Goofy, and Donald Duck. Disney, known for outdoing itself, has put together a spectacular production. Get prepared to sing along with your favorite tunes and be mesmerized by beautiful figure skating.
The regular season may be over for the men's and women's basketball teams, but the accolades keep on coming. After both squads overachieved in 1999-2000, players from each team received honors from the NESCAC on Monday.
The Office of Residential Life will release housing lottery numbers today on its website, commencing the long and complicated process of assigning students to dorm rooms. With the housing crunch becoming more severe, Res Life has significantly changed its room selection process to make it easier for the increasing number of upperclassmen who are denied on-campus housing to find apartments off campus.
Oliver Stone's latest film, Any Given Sunday, is yet another success for the prolific director. As a voyage into the realm of professional football, it reveals Stone's vision of what is truly important to the game and how commercialization has eaten away at its purity and glory. The film focuses on the head coach, Tony D'Amato (Al Pacino) of the fictional Miami Sharks, who, as he gets older, is trying to regain the feelings that football used to give him. At the opening, the Sharks are engaged in grueling play with another team that results in the injury of the team's legendary but aging starting quarterback, Jack Rooney (Dennis Quaid). He is quickly replaced by the second-string quarterback who, in turn, is injured. Finally the third-string, seventh-round draft pick, Willie Beamen (Jamie Foxx), is put into play. As the team is huddling, discussing the next play, the mighty warrior lets out his fear and anxiety as he vomits, starting what becomes a tradition for him. The Sharks lose the game. In the next game, the coach throws Beamen back out onto the field, as Beamen is the team's last quarterback. After being trampled for the first part of the game, Beamen finally becomes sick of letting the other team have its way with him and aggressively brings the Sharks back into the game. Beamen's on-field success immediately catapults him into the spotlight, and begins to increase arrogance both on and off the field. In games, he changes the coaches' plays. Outside the stadium, he makes music videos. His newfound popularity goes directly to his head, and he begins to make comments about the other players' ability behind their backs. Soon, he has managed to alienate the entire team, which has begun to lose again. When the coach finally pulls him, replacing him with the old and partially injured Rooney, he finally realizes the value of teamwork and cooperation. Rooney reinjures himself after scoring a touchdown in a playoff game, so the Tony is forced to put Beamen back in the game. Now knowing he needs to work with the other players, he manages to lead the team to victory. While the film is deeply engrossing, Stone hits the viewer over the head with his central themes and messages. This film is clearly designed to convey Stone's opinion of football. Most prominent is the idea that the team is more important than the individual. Stone seems to think the sport has lost this core and historical value, hence the title of the film. On "Any Given Sunday," a hero will rise or fall as opposed to an entire team. He also touches on a lack of ethics due to the pursuit of money by the management, such as encouraging injured players to return to the field after being pumped full of pain-killing drugs. Al Pacino delivers a typically good performance as the coach. While he is not in one of his traditional mob roles, the personality he develops for D'Amato is familiar to that of the various loners he has played before. He is able to convince the audience to feel sorry for him and the sacrifices he has made to be a coach of a pro football team. Convincing the audience of this is of central importance to the film, as it allows the viewer to see football as meaning more than a source of money. Convincing a skeptical viewer of this is something that is not easy to do. Most people believe that being a football coach would be a great and luxurious life, not something that requires any real or significant sacrifice. Al Pacino manages to convince us that he has indeed sacrificed a lot for something noble. Overall, Pacino delivers a solid if uninspired performance. The directing is excellent. Stone manages to maintain, and even enhance, the excitement of a football game, while at the same time giving each game its own story line and fitting that game into the bigger picture. The games are filmed with cameras on the field, in the middle of the action using quick cuts and first person views to enhance the excitement of the game play. Stone manages to draw convincing performances out of all of his actors/actresses and use them to effectively forward the plot. The themes in the film were too strongly presented, but, unlike all too many films, at least it has a point other than to make money (which it will also do). The film was entertaining and gave a different perspective on football that fans and non-fans alike should find entertaining. This is definitely a film worth seeing.
Last spring, I had a remarkable, life-altering experience living in Jerusalem, dampened only by the fact that I came home with a much bigger butt.
It's a damn good thing something out of the ordinary finally happened at Tufts. I'm not referring to the DEF Jam party - that in and of itself was kinda lame, as the alcohol was gone incredibly early and most people just spent their time trying to see if the next suite was any better than the one they were in.
Invite the five managers of the National League West squads over for a poker game, and you'll have a collection of some of the finest minds in baseball at your table. Dusty Baker (San Francisco Giants) and Bruce Boche (San Diego Padres) have both won Manager of the Year awards in the 90s, while Buck Showalter (Arizona Diamondbacks) and Davey Johnson (Los Angeles Dodgers) have won with every team they've been on. And guess who's been mentioned as a preseason favorite for this year's manager of the year award? Colorado Rockies' new skipper, Buddy Bell.
The events of the last week here at Tufts and in South Carolina have typified the problems with politics today. We all sit around and talk about the problems with government on a national and local level, but few of us actually do anything about it. If we are truly sick of the dirty politics displayed in South Carolina and here at Tufts, we must reject these types of campaigns and elect those individuals who take the high road.
To honor and celebrate Black History Month, the Tufts Music department has put together quite a few performances of varying music styles, with some of Tufts' best ensembles and faculty. It's a month of music to remember.
The women's track team exceeded expectations Saturday at Bowdoin College, pulling together for a third place finish at the New England Division III Championships. The Jumbos dominated much of the track to take third out of 20 schools with a team score of 82, just behind Wheaton (145) and Williams (127).
Two years after their chart-topping debut, Los Angeles's Third Eye Blind has returned to the airwaves and record stores with its sophomore effort, Blue. An overall solid album, Blue shows more classic rock influences and allows each band member to showcase his personal talent and style. The new disc opens with "Anything," a fast-paced tale of longing and confusion. Not your typical verse-chorus-verse rock song, "Anything" adheres to an unorthodox format. "Turn my bones to sand/ Just to see you/ I'll give you anything," screams lead singer Stephan Jenkins. His high-pitched voice adds a tinge of sadness to his already colorful lyrics. Clocking in at less than two minutes, "Anything" has not been a huge success on rock radio. "Never Let You Go," the album's current radio single, is a tad repetitive and not even entirely original, but its catchiness, spurred by Kevin Cadogan's almost human-sounding guitar leads and Jenkins' falsetto singing is also very effective. The lyrics tell of a failed relationship, something just about everyone has experienced. If Boston ever emerges from this deep freeze, it's safe to say that we'll be seeing plenty of people driving around with their windows down, blasting and singing along with "Never Let You Go." There are two distinct sounds to Blue. Starting off the album is a collection of hard rock-influenced singles - songs that make you want to leap out of your seat as soon as you hear the familiar opening chords on the radio. Perhaps the best example of Third Eye Blind's more abrasive edge is "1000 Julys," a song about Jenkins' favorite subject: sex. Though the lyrics might not be the most profoundly metaphorical ("I'm sex crazed/ I put it in with my animal ways"), the thick, syncopated guitar riffs and vocal melody make the song a classic. "The Red Summer Sun" and "An Ode To Maybe" exude similar qualities. Interspersed throughout the album are several softer tunes, such as "Darkness" and "Deep Inside Of You." They are well-crafted songs, but become virtually indistinguishable. Following a syrupy pace, their similar instrumental styles and whiny vocals make them more annoying than meaningful. "Darwin," Third Eye Blind's take on the evolutionary process, merits attention. An instantly memorable bassline, juxtaposed against soft acoustic guitars, begins the number. Jenkins' clever lyrics remain true to Darwinism, while allowing him to express his own lyrical and vocal style. While much of the group's first album is devoted to optimistic angst, a more mature sound characterizes this second effort. "Darwin" is the ideal example of the group's refined style: less shouting and distortion, with more emphasis on lyrics and Kevin Cadogan's guitar style. Traditionally, lead singers receive the most attention from the media, but Third Eye Blind's instrumentalists bring tremendous contributions to Blue. Cadogan's vintage-sounding guitars add a tinge of classic rock. His brilliant use of harmonics and delicate arpeggios on "Wounded" and "Darknness" testify to his skills as a musician. Most importantly, he displays his own pop-rock style, one that sounds a hundred times more musically proficient than today's Korn-esque noisemakers. Bassist Arion Salazar and drummer Brad Hargreaves round out the rhythm section. Salazar sticks to simple, yet perfectly effective basslines. When the guitars and vocals drop out for brief interludes, these basslines stand out, adding an air of welcome anticipation - a Third Eye Blind trademark. Hargreaves's drumming is noticeably heavier than his playing on the group's self-titled debut, but it more than adequately matches the slightly harder edge of much of the new set. Not to be left unmentioned, Jenkins himself plays rhythm guitar and keyboards on about half of the album's tracks, including the instrumental "Slow Motion." Blue is not exactly groundbreaking music. It is a solid, well-crafted pop album made by a group that has proven its musical abilities. Current fans will definitely want to pick up a copy, but if you're a newer one, you may want to hold off - or just make use of that CD-R drive you picked up over the break.
The Office of Residential Life is imposing a fine on all Wren Hall residents after a number of vandalism incidents have occurred there over the past few months. Last semester, a pinball machine was thrown off the "draw bridge," a ping pong table was stolen from the lounge, and a fire extinguisher was used when there was no fire. Last month, all of the suite doorknobs were stolen off of the doors.
Tufts students on their way to their spring break destinations have an alternative to taking the T or a taxi to the airport with the introduction of the Tufts Community Union Senate's spring break shuttle.
For the women's basketball team, Saturday afternoon was its final shot. Unfortunately, the Jumbos chose that time to take some of their worst shots.
The women's squash team has been on a bit of a surge of late, winning four of its last seven matches and gaining momentum as the National Tournament inches closer and closer. The Jumbos now boast a 9-10 overall record to go along with their 15th ranking in the Women's Intercollegiate Squash Association (WISA) mid-season poll.
Last weekend, the women's track team hosted its third meet in the new Gantcher Center, using its all-around depth to take first at the Quad Cup, and placing in nearly all events. It was just the second meet after winter break, but the women are beginning to see the effects of their extra speed and strength training.
Yesterday afternoon, the men's lacrosse team inaugurated the New England portion of its 2000 campaign with a close 11-9 win over Babson College. After a successful run in the Sun Coast Tournament in Florida over spring break, the squad now stands firm with a 4-0 record. This commanding opening to the season is phenomenal for the Jumbos - over the past three years, the team has not posted more than five wins in a season.
The men's track team had a long and frustrating experience this past Saturday at the Smith College "Last Chance" Invitational. The meet lasted from 9 a.m. to 7:30 p.m., and adding in the two-hour bus ride on either end of the event made for an extremely tiring day for the Jumbo squad. The meet was also delayed a number of times due to technical mishaps with the timing system.
I would first like to apologize for inappropriately interrupting Howard Lien's response to a question I asked him during the Tufts Community Union (TCU) Senate/TCU Judiciary debate last week. However, I believe that there are two larger issues at hand: 1) the true circumstances of Lien's resignation from the Senate and 2) the general misconceptions and inaccurate reporting of the debate in two Daily Viewpoints ("Impeach Larry Harris" and "Debate turns sour," 2/17).
