Oregon Daily Emerald
Thursday, October 14, 2004
"In a hierarchy, every employee tends
to rise to his level of incompetence."
Laurence J. Peter | educator
■ In my opinion
RYAN NYBURG
BUDGET RACK
Chop-chop:
A history of
horror and
gore films
In my never-ending crusade to make myself
look smarter than you, I have come up with a
couple of projects over the years, each with the
goal of distributing my wealth of knowledge to
the masses, like a farmer spreading manure
over his land so the little green sprouts of
knowledge can grow in the sunlight of
information, performing the photosynthesis of
critical analysis, bearing the fruit of artistic
endeavor and spreading the seeds of... (Dave
Barry rip-off goes here). Beyond that the
analogy sort of breaks down.
One of these projects of mine is the
International Secret History Society (Official
Initiation Ritual: Hot Coal Flamenco Dancing.
Q: Hoods required? A: Only if by personal
preference). My other project, the Society for
the Preservation of Horrible Noise in Music, is
currently on hiatus while we wait for a
response regarding our application to become
the terrorist wing of the Experience the Music
Project. 1SHS, on the other hand, is currently
working on a wide range of investigations. Our
investigation into Disney’s secret plan to invoke
the spirit of the Zodiac Killer in order to have
him take over as Michael Eisner’s successor, for
example, is going along splendidly.
Another project we have had some success
in is our creation of a detailed history of slasher
movies. Given the time of year, 1 suppose a
presentation of our report would be
appropriate. For most people, slasher movies
begin with “Friday the 13th” (or “Halloween”
if you are a slightly more astute filmgoer) and
end with whatever the last script Kevin
Williamson shat out was. When most people
think of horror films, images from these movies
come to mind, which is sort of sad considering
the variety inherent in the genre.
The seeds of slasher films can be traced back
to the silent-film era, all the way to the German
expressionist classic from 1920, “The
Cabinet of Dr. Caligari,” widely considered one
of the first horror films. The film contains many
of the elements of a slasher film, particularly in
the use of a slow-moving killer who seems to
be in some sort of daze (in this case, a hypnotic
trance). The film can be seen separate from
many later horror films in the sense that the
killer is recognizably a human, albeit one
under mind control.
From there, we can trace the films through
some of the works of actor Lon Chaney Sr.,
in particular “The Unholy Three”
(originally made in 1925, remade in 1930).
The film was directed by Tod Browning, most
famous for 1931 ’s “Dracula.” He also directed
1932’s “Freaks,” one of the most controversial
films of the time. What “Freaks” and
“The Unholy Three” have in common is that
the killers are human murderers acting of
their own free will. But in both films the
killers are circus freaks, and in “Freaks” they
are displayed sympathetically. We can
understand their actions as the last defense
of outsiders against a cruel and
exploitative society.
All modern slasher films stem from the
NYBURG, page 7
Sweet is smart for wine beginners
Lauren Wimer | Senior photographer
Sweet and fruity wines are appealing to young people, but are often considered less sophisticated. Also known
as late-harvest or dessert wine, they are available at Cornucopia on 295 W. 17th St.
Dessert wines offer smooth tastes,
reasonable quality and make a
sensible choice for new drinkers
BY NATASHA CHILINGERIAN
SENIOR PULS£ REPORTER
If you are just becoming acquainted with
wine, the taste of heavy, red table wine can
bring on the equivalent of a bitter beer face.
But don’t give up — sweeter choices are out
there. Like Smirnoff Ice is to beer, dessert wines
are easier-to-swallow alternatives to their dry
wine counterparts.
Dessert wines are a popular selection
among college-age folk, since many are
in the just-turned-21 stage and starting
to learn about the world of wine. Wines that
are sweet, syrupy or fruity are a good place to
start because they can satisfy anyone
who is used to candy and not yet accustomed
to wine.
“For a person who is just starting to drink
wine, he or she would drink fruitier wines
first,” Cornucopia Deli wine buyer Louis Rodie
said. “Drier wines are an acquired taste; fruitier
wines are more user-friendly.”
The sweet flavor of dessert wine varieties
stems from a higher amount of residual
sugar, which is often the result of a late
harvest grape-picking time. When grapes are
removed from the vine past their traditional
harvest times, the fruit holds less water and a
higher accumulation of sugar. This is why
many dessert wines are called “late-harvest”
wines. One popular late-harvest variety is
“ice wine,” which is made from grapes that
have frozen on the vine and hold even
more sugar.
Other popular dessert wines include port and
sherry; Sauternes, rich French wines that re
ceive their sweetness from a grape-shriveling,
sugar-producing mold; and Auslese,
German wines that are also subject to
sweetening molds.
LaVelle Vineyards tasting room staff member
Tiffany Ambiel said she started out liking
sweeter wines and later developed a taste for
drier wines. She said although many wine ex
perts regard dessert wines as less refined than
other varieties, she believes that many dessert
wines are of high quality.
“There are a lot of good sweet wines," she
said. “Even though ours are sweet, they have a
SWEET WINE, page 7
Cheap campus flicks fire up Fridays
UO Cultural Forum's program aspires to answer
the question, 'What are we going to do tonight V
BY AMY LICHTY
PULSE REPORTER
There’s nothing like the
freedom that Fridays bring
to college students all over the
nation. With a long stretch
Prince Lucien Campbell 180.
Not only that, but viewers have
the power to decide what movies
will be shown, with choices
such as “The Bourne
Supremacy,” “The Village,”
Jet Li’s “Hero.”
again at 10 p.m.
Friday Nite Flicks is new to
the University. A special pro
gram set up by movie
distributing company Swank, for
college campuses across the
U.S., made Friday Nite Flicks
available to the University as a
fun, safe and inexpensive way to
spend a Friday night without
having to
ui wccivcuu aucdu, me unoo ul
Friday night makes Monday
morning seem distant, and
a great way to spend a Friday
night is by heading out
to the cinema. Unfortunately,
a lot of people share the idea
that long lines and sold-out
shows make it difficult to see
and “TYoy.”
The movies
featured are
fresh out of
the box-office
theater and
haven't hit the
local Block
hiietor nuita
“It looked like a fun thing
to do. YU definitely be
here for'Anchorman*
next week. ”
Alex Freauff | Biology major
leave campus.
Freshman
biology ma
jors Amy
Quinn and
Alex Freauff
attended Fri
day’s showing
movies, l ne uu cultural horum
has a solution to this problem:
Friday Nite Flicks.
With popular box-office hits
such as “Shrek 2,” “Anchorman”
and “Spiderman 2,” Friday Nite
Flicks gives students the opportu
nity to see movies at a low
price in a convenient location:
yet. This gives students the
chance to see pre-home video
movies in a movie-theater-style
atmosphere at a discounted
price: $1.50 for students with ID
and children, and $3 for general
admission. And Friday Nite
Flicks provides two showtimes a
night — one at 7:30 p.m. and
m
ui 0111 triv
“I hadn’t seen it, and it looked
like a fun thing to do,” Quinn
said. “I’ll probably come
back again.”
“I'll definitely be here for
‘Anchorman’ next week,”
Freauff said.
Although it’s a good way to
PPPPPPPWPWPPPPWPPPPW
spend a night with the family,
Friday Nite Flicks is aimed
and intended for students. The
movie companies prevent
the University from advertising off
campus, which can create road
bumps for publicity.
“We can only advertise on
campus, in the dorms and in the
Emerald,” UO Cultural Forum
adviser Darrel Kau said. “We
can’t even advertise over the
airwaves because it reaches
an audience too far from
the University.”
With a limitation set on
promotion, Friday Nite Flicks
had difficulty getting off
the ground in their first
scheduled event. For both
showings, they had a total of
about 50 in attendance, but Kau
remains hopeful.
“Our goal is that by the end of
this term, we’ll have a full
house,” he said.
amylichty@ daily emerald, com
mmm