GORY, ILLOGICAL SECOND HALF DISTURBS SNOOP'S 'BONES'.Byline: Bob Strauss Film Critic Gangsta rap gang·sta rap also gangster rap n. A style of rap music associated with urban street gangs and characterized by violent, tough-talking, often misogynistic lyrics. troublemaker Snoop Dogg has logged a few decent movie appearances recently, in ``Baby Boy'' and ``Training Day'' as, well, a trouble-making gangsta Noun 1. gangsta - (Black English) a member of a youth gang AAVE, African American English, African American Vernacular English, Black English, Black English Vernacular, Black Vernacular, Black Vernacular English, Ebonics - a nonstandard form of American English . But he literally raises hell in ``Bones,'' his first sort-of star vehicle, as a ghetto ghost out to avenge his own murder and the subsequent decimation DECIMATION. The punishment of every tenth soldier by lot, was, among the Romans, called decimation. of his once-happy 'hood. A fright film with a bit of social consciousness, a few good laughs and some nice, formal nods to such baroque Italian horror masters as Dario Argento and Mario Bava, ``Bones'' nevertheless turns into a typical modern genre piece. Its better ideas whither whith·er adv. To what place, result, or condition: Whither are we wandering? conj. 1. To which specified place or position: away as gore and incomprehensible plot logic run exponentially riot. As for Snoop, he cuts a fine phantom pimp daddy figure, but really isn't given too much to do beyond intimidating mortals and modeling Dana Campbell's amusingly over-the-top costumes. The rest of the cast gets more opportunity to act, and does unusually well for this kind of thing. Pam Grier is especially enjoyable as a freaked-out, dreadlocked psychic who, in flashbacks that run throughout the film, remarkably recaptures her 1970s, Afro-wigged glory. Back in that day, Jimmy Bones was the benevolent, um, numbers racket kingpin who ruled the street from the backseat of his chauffeur-driven Lincoln, happily handing out winnings to grateful gamblers and laying some excess profits on the local kids. Whatever else hasn't been invested in rides, rings and ermine ermine, name for a number of northern species of weasel having white coats in winter, and highly prized for their white fur. It most commonly refers to the white phase of Mustela erminea, called short-tailed weasel in North America and stoat in the Old World. robes has gone into Bones' headquarters, an impressive gothic brownstone brownstone, red to brown variety of sandstone. Its unusual color is caused in some instances by the presence of red iron oxide which acts as a cement, binding the sand grains together. from which the fine fellow makes sure that his subjects are protected from crack and other scourges. Then something terrible happened, and the building and its surrounding blocks fell into ruin. But now a mixed-race family of enterprising DJs from the suburbs, led by eldest brother Patrick (Khalil Kain), buys the place for a song and sets about converting it into a happening after-hours club. Everyone from Greer's haunted Pearl to Patrick's upwardly mobile dad Jeremiah (Clifton Powell) advise against the initiative. The resident, glowing-eyed hound and infestation infestation /in·fes·ta·tion/ (-fes-ta´shun) parasitic attack or subsistence on the skin and/or its appendages, as by insects, mites, or ticks; sometimes used to denote parasitic invasion of the organs and tissues, as by helminths. of maggots should provide some clues, too. But not until Bones resurrects and opens the portal to Necropolis necropolis: see cemetery. necropolis (Greek: “city of the dead”) Extensive and elaborate burial place serving an ancient city. The locations of these cemeteries varied. on the dance floor do our young entrepreneurs get the message - and, needless to say, it's too late by then. Director Ernest Dickerson, who as a cinematographer shot some of Spike Lee's best films, brings a lot of style to the mayhem. But he is undone by its increasingly sadistic sa·dism n. 1. The deriving of sexual gratification or the tendency to derive sexual gratification from inflicting pain or emotional abuse on others. 2. The deriving of pleasure, or the tendency to derive pleasure, from cruelty. and arbitrary nature. Dickerson certainly knows how to frame Snoop for all the menacing charisma the recording artist has to offer, but it remains to be seen whether the rapper can move beyond outlaw icon status and prove that he can really act. ``BONES'' (Rated R: violence, language, drug use) The stars: Snoop Dogg, Pam Grier, Khalil Kain, Ricky Harris, Clifton Powell, Bianca Lawson. Behind the scenes: Directed by Ernest Dickerson. Written by Adam Simon and Tim Metcalfe. Produced by Lloyd Segan, Peter Heller and Rupert Harvey. Released by New Line Cinema. Running time: One hour, 38 minutes. Playing: Citywide. Our rating: Two and one half stars CAPTION(S): photo Photo: Pam Grier, right, loses Snoop Dogg to murder, then watches as his ghost enjoys revenge decades later in ``Bones.'' |
|
||||||||||||||||||
Printer friendly
Cite/link
Email
Feedback
Reader Opinion