Cusack struggles with love in ‘High Fidelity’
Courtesy of Touchstone Pictures
John Cusack pulls the viewer into his latest movie, 'High Fidelity,’ where he stars as confused music store owner Rob Gordon.
Pizza for pizza, date weighs in
■ Date Night at Bellizzis’ is
the most expensive of our
cheap dates, but dollar for
dollar, it is a great value
By Joe Walsh
Oregon Daily Emerald
There’s definitely a line between
being romantic and being cheap.
While some of the most roman
tic thoughts are the ones that cost
nothing, it is usually much more
safe to find a good mix of thought
fulness and money to impress a
date. “Date Night at Bellizzi’s” of
fers a perfect balance that will im
press your date but won’t leave
you eating out of cans for the rest
of the term.
Every Wednesday night is Date
Night at Bellizzi’s Pizza and Pas
ta, located at 339 E. 11th Ave. For
just $19.95, couples receive a bot
tle of wine — a pitcher of soda is
substituted for couples younger
than 21 — an appetizer, salad,
bread, choice of entree and
dessert. While not the cheapest
date in town (Date Night at Bel
lizzi’s will likely be the most ex
pensive of our weekly cheap date
feature) dollar for dollar, it is one
of the best deals.
The best thing about Date Night
is the amount of food and enter
tainment you get for less than $20.
The service is great, the atmos
phere is fun, the waiters, sing and
there’s always enough food for
leftovers. Even if it were $30, it
would still be a good deal. But on
the other hand, you always get
what you pay for.
The appetizer is nothing more
than several pieces of garlic bread
covered with melted mozzarella
and oregano. It isn’t the most ex
travagant appetizer you’ll ever
have, but it is very tasty. The salad
is sub-par too. (“Salad-in-a-bag”
was how my date so eloquently
described it.) Again, it isn’t the
kind of quality you’ll find in many
restaurants, but it tastes fine.
But then again, Bellizzi’s isn’t
an Italian restaurant as much as it
is a pizza joint, which is why it is
difficult to compare it to the likes
of Beppe & Gianni’s.
Bellizzi’s specializes in “mafia
style” pizza, which is one of the
best pizzas in town. It even looks
like a typical pizza joint —which
detracts from the romantic atmos
phere that one would hope to ex
perience at Date Night. From the
glowing red, eight-foot-long neon
“Bellizzi’s” sign to the dozens of
Coca-Cola products — the clock,
drinking glasses and dry erase
boards to name a few — Bellizzi’s
definitely has the feel of a high
school hangout. This, along with
the noise and the close proximity
of the tables, does detract from the
romance factor.
But at the same time, the
singing waiters, the Frank Sinatra
background music and the fact
that you were thoughtful enough
to take your date to Date
Night”makes the place break
even.
Don’t get me wrong; there are
some great things about Date
Night at Bellizzi’s. I didn’t give it a
four-star restaurant rating with a
three-heart romance factor just to
be a nice guy.
Although Bellizzi’s excels in its
pizza-making, its entrees are also
quite good. Couples are offered
three choices on Date Night, with
several more choices available at
an extra cost. Each person gets his
Bellizi’s Pizza
and Pasta
Food: ★★★★☆
What: “Date Night at Bellizzi’s’’
When: Every Wednesday night
Where: 339 E.11thAve.
Cost: $19.95 for two
Romance factor: out of 5
Best bet: Baked ziti
or her choice of ravioli Florentine,
baked ziti or spaghetti with a
meatball. Covered with spicy
marinara and perched atop a serv
ing of spaghetti noodles, the ravio
li Florentine is an excellent choice
that is sure to fill the hungriest bel
ly. The spaghetti, adorned with a
fist-sized meatball, is also a fine
choice. But the best bet is the
baked ziti: a bed of penne noodles
in a tomato cheese sauce smoth
ered with baked mozzarella.
Couples also have a choice of
two wines on Date Night, with up
grades available. We passed on the
Chardonnay in favor of the house
red, without regrets. For a bargain
wine, it was reasonably flavorful
with a pleasant but subtle after
taste.
For dessert, we were each
served a slice of chocolate-iced
Boston cream pie (where’s the
tiramisu?). It was actually quite
good — just not the authentic, eye
pleasing Italian dessert you expect
from an Italian restaurant.
But just to be fair, it’s only the
details (the salad, appetizers, etc.)
that need improvement. Date
Night at Bellizzi’s is no Beppe &
Gianni’s or Ambrosia, but then
again, it never said it was.
■ The film explores one
man’s questions and
regrets with his love life
MOVIES
High Fidelity
Starring John Cusack, Jack Black, and
Todd Louiso
By Joe Walsh
Oregon Daily Emerald
It’s not rip-roaringly funny. It
won’t make anyone cry, and it
probably won’t win any Oscars.
Even so, “High Fidelity” is the
best movie in the theaters right
now.
Based on Nick Hornby’s 1995
bestseller, “High Fidelity” is a
glimpse into the strange, secretive
world that is a man’s head.
John Cusack plays Rob Gordon,
a confused 35-year-old music
store owner who, after getting
dumped by his long-time girl
friend (Iben Hjejle) for the guy up
stairs (Tim Robbins), struggles to
come to terms with life’s most baf
fling issue: love. His self-examina
tion takes place through narration
using the rarely effective, talking
to-the-camera style, but it works
surprisingly well.
After the breakup, Rob seeks
refuge in the company of store
employees Barry (Jack Black) and
Dick (Todd Louiso). The three
music junkies spend their days
harassing unknowledgeable cus
tomers and discussing pop cul
ture, passionately debating their
top-five lists for everything imagi
nable (top five first-track songs on
first albums, top five songs about
death, etc.).
Meanwhile, Rob takes the audi
ence through his top five most
memorable breakups as he tries to
figure out where he’s gone wrong
in his life. Starting with his first
kiss, Rob painfully, yet hilarious
ly, recalls the mistakes he made
with all the women in his life, ex
posing his faulty thought process
es.
Besides the amusing account of
Rob’s life, which reveals almost
too much about the male brain, a
good reason to see this movie is
the comedic performance of Jack
Black, lead singer of “mock rock”
heroes Tenacious D. His John
Belushi-esque comic energy per
fectly complements his charac
ter’s slightly crazed, condescend
ing,rock-star-wannabe
personality.
The more obvious reason to see
“High Fidelity” is the underrated
but always brilliant John Cusack,
who co-authored the script. Cu
sack pulls you in with his sob sto
ry and then slowly reveals that he
is usually to blame for his short
comings. But by then, it’s too late
because you’re already pulling for
this middle-aged adulthood
dodger.
Armed with great acting, a
smart script that nicely translates
the book and a knockout sound
track, this slice-of-life comedy is
one of those movies that will leave
you eagerly awaiting its home
video release. It won’t quite make
the top five movies of all time list
fri-apr. 14th eclectic open mic
9pm-midnight music ► performance art ► theatre
Sign-up to perform at The Break (located next to The Buzz)
For more info call Melanie at 346-3725
sat-apr. 15th jamie rust
9:30-11:30pm acoustic
mon • apr. 17th poetry open mic
Qnm 11 •'3f)nm Sign-up to perform at The Break (located next to The Buzz)
l.oupm For more info call Melanie at 346-3725
wed> apr. 19th
9:30-11:30pm
orange cow
alternative rock
thur • apr. 20th craig eihorn
9-11 Pm acoustic rock