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June 21, 2017 The Skanner Page 7 Arts & Entertainment Justices Say Law on Offensive Trademarks is Unconstitutional FILM REVIEW: BFFS Reunite for Raunchy ‘Rough Night’ By Kam Williams For The Skanner News J Portland-based Asian-American rock band The Slants By SAM HANANEL Associated Press WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court on Mon- day struck down part of a law that bans offensive trademarks, ruling in fa- vor of a Portland-based Asian-American rock band called the Slants and giving a major boost to the Washington Redskins in their sepa- rate legal fight over the team name. The justices were unan- imous in saying that the 71-year-old trademark law barring disparag- ing terms infringes free speech rights guaran- teed in the Constitution’s First Amendment. “It offends a bedrock First Amendment prin- ciple: Speech may not be banned on the ground that it expresses ideas that offend,” Justice Sam- uel Alito said in his opin- ion for the court. Slants founder Simon Tam tried to trademark the band name in 2011, but the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office de- nied the request on the ground that it disparages Asians. A federal appeals court in Washington lat- er said the law barring offensive trademarks is unconstitutional and the Supreme Court agreed. The Redskins made similar arguments af- ter the trademark office ruled in 2014 that the name offends American Indians and canceled the team’s trademark. That case, before a federal ap- peals court in Richmond, had been on hold while the Supreme Court con- sidered the Slants case. Tam insisted he was not trying to be offen- sive, but wanted to trans- form a derisive term into a statement of pride. The Redskins also con- tend their name honors American Indians, but the team has faced de- cades of legal challenges from Indian groups that say the name is racist. Tam said the band was “beyond humbled and thrilled” with the ruling. “This journey has al- ways been much bigger than our band: it’s been about the rights of all marginalized communi- ties to determine what’s best for ourselves,” he said. Despite intense public pressure to change the Redskins name, team owner Dan Snyder has refused, saying in the See TRADEMARK on page 9 essica (Scarlett Johansson) and Peter (Paul W. Downs) are on the verge of tying the knot. But prior to walking down the aisle together, they’ve agreed to simultaneously throw themselves bachelor’s and bach- elorette’s parties. But while she flies down to Miami for a swing- ing soiree’ with a quartet of her closest college classmates, his relatively-modest plan is merely to share a refined evening of wine tasting with a few nerdy buddies. Since Jess is also in the midst of a campaign for the state senate, she doesn’t want their reunion to get so out of control as to gener- ate the sort of negative press that might hurt her candidacy. How- ever, she’s blissfully unaware that decorum is the last thing on the mind of Alice (Jillian Bell), the girlfriend entrusted with sched- uling their agenda. Alice sees the getaway as an op- portunity for the BFFs to indulge “ What ensues is a relentlessly-hi- larious, ever-es- calating comedy of errors one last time in the sort of de- pravity they enjoyed on campus a decade ago, when they would get wasted playing beer pong on a typical Friday night. Consequent- ly, she’s prepared for a wild week- end which includes everything from cocaine to a male stripper. Such activities might not sit well with another attendee, Frankie (Ilana Glazer). After all, she’s not only a lesbian, but a repeat of- fender worried about violating the “three strikes” law mandat- ing a life sentence. However, pal Pippa (Kate McKinnon), a clown returning from Australia for a good time, is up for anything, as is overstressed Blair (Zoe Kravitz) who needs to decompress from ‘Rough Night’ an ugly custody battle. The mayhem starts right in the airport terminal when Alice un- corks a bottle of champagne in celebration, only to unwittingly trigger a stampede by passengers mistaking the pop for a gunshot. Then, upon arriving at their beachfront rental house, the girl- friends are invited by naughty next-door neighbors Lea (Demi Moore) and Pietro (Ty Burrell) to participate in an orgy. The plot thickens soon after the exotic dancer Alice hired rings the doorbell. Before he has a chance to shed all of his clothes, he accidentally hits his head and promptly passes away. Against their better judgment, Jessica and company decide to dump the body in the ocean rather than call the cops. And what ensues is a re- lentlessly-hilarious, ever-escalat- ing comedy of errors. Thus unfolds “Rough Night,” a raunchy romp most reminiscent of The Hangover (2009), although it also has moments likely to re- Review cont’d from pg 6 and the next thing you know she’s landed in France sporting a bright orange backpack fes- tooned with a Canadian flag. Her troubles start right off the bat, when she gets stuck in a sub- way turnstile thanks to that oversized valise. The slapstick escalates further when the weight of the knapsack causes her to topple into the Seine while posing for a photo on a bridge. She has to shed the bag to sur- vive the ordeal, and ends up separated from all her possessions, including her passport, cell phone, cash and clothes. It is in these dire straits that Fiona crosses paths ‘Lost in Paris’ with Dom (Abel), a man living in a tent pitched along the banks of the river who soon becomes hopelessly smitten with her. So, Fiona finds her- self having to fend of the advances of an ardent ad- mirer while frantically searching for her miss- ing aunt. The ensuing chase proves every bit as charming and sublime as it is hilarious and im- plausible. A disarming- ly-endearing homage to the silent film era! Excellent HHHH Unrated In French and English with subtitles Running time: 83 min. Distributor: Oscilloscope Laboratories To see a trail- er for Lost in Paris, visit T h e S k a n n e r. com. mind you of “Bridesmaids” (2011) and “Weekend at Bernie’s” (1989). The movie marks the phenom- enal directorial debut of Lucia Aniello, the first woman to direct an R-rated comedy since Tamra Davis made “Half Baked” in 1998 with Dave Chappelle. Laughs galore in a bawdy bach- elorette party gone from bad to worst! Excellent HHHH Rated R for crude sexuality, drug use, coarse humor, brief bloody images and pervasive profanity Running time: 101 min. Distributor: Columbia Pictures View movie trailers at TheSkanner.com