‘supernatural |

Marcu 1, 2005

THE CADRE @ 11

A&E

Out on Video: “SAW” ...steak anyone?

Tim Wakelin A&E Editor

Are you tired of the ©

ghost stories that | have becomeall | too common recently in the new release | section of your favorite movie store? If your answer was yes, then I have to agree, and that is why I was actually excited when I heard that “SAW” was available on February 15th for my viewing delight. I decided to take a night around the end of February break and rent this suspenseful horror film to see for myself what all the stir was about. The storyline follows a somewhat traditional murder mystery scenario, but adds a psychotic killer who puts his victims in potentially life-threatening situations, ultimately putting their life in there own hands. We see early off however, that the so called “killer” never actually kills anyone himself, but rather places them in situations where if they do manage to escape, they have found some new appreciation for their life, that they had previously taken for granted in some sense or another.

In the light of this discovery, I found myself sympathizing with the deranged lunatic (named Jigsaw in the movie), but there were no tears shed folks, this I promise you. The movie opens with a scene in a rundown bathroom, in a location that is not disclosed until the movie’s climax. The main character Dr. Lawrence, played by Cary Elwes in the movie, finds himself chained by his foot to a metal pipe. After turning on the light, he becomes aware of his surroundings, which include another living captive, as well as a dead body surrounded by a

tremendous amount of blood (but believe me the gore has just begun). Soon the doctor and fellow captive find themselves being riddled with hints and : puzzles, which they must solve before their time runs out. Among flashbacks and memories of the two captives, we are given front row seats to the numerous other accounts in which Jigsaw has struck. Not only that, but we get introduced to a number of other characters, namely the cop which is the head of investigating jigsaw’s attacks.

Now I know you are wondering who this cop is, and let me give youa hint: think of elephants and army men...and yes you guessed it, the cop is played by Danny Glover. Of course my clever hint was referring to the early 90’s comedy “Operation Dumbo Drop”, but don’t judge him just yet folks, because he may just be the most talented of the entire cast. Saw is a low budget film, but nevertheless takes the viewer on a ride of puzzles, suspense, and of course blood and gore, and if you think that gives it away, you only have to refer to the severed foot on the

front cover to know I am not letting

anything slip. One of the downfalls of the film was the noticeably bad acting displayed by Cary Elwes, who at times made me want to laugh as oppose to stand up and clap at his cinematic performance.

On the whole, “SAW” held it’s own, with its twisted use of gore, it’s

delightfully unpredictable ending, and its

Continued on page 14

SPORTS

New England Patriots: One of the All-Time Greats?

Josh Lewis Contributor

With last Sunday’s 24-21 victory over the Philadelphia Eagles in Super Bowl XXXIX, the debate has begun over the New England Patriots’ place in NFL history. Are they a dynasty? Are they one of the greatest teams of all-time?

My understanding ofa dynasty is of a team that wins three or more consecutive championships. Professional sports has seen many of them, from the 1999-2002 Los Angeles Lakers, to the damn Yankees of 1949- 53, to the 1955-60 Montreal Canadiens.

In the NFL, however, such domination by a single franchise has been harder to come by. Football’s greatest ‘dynasties’ have been the Pittsburgh Steelers of the 1970s, the San Francisco 49ers of the 1980s, and the Dallas Cowboys of the 1990s. None of these teams won three consecutive championships. In fact, only the Cowboys managed three Super Bowls in four years.

So now the argument becomes, are the Pats the NFL’s version of a dynasty? They certainly aren’t a dynasty if the measuring stick is the whole of professional sports. You can’t look at those Habs or Yankees teams that won five straight titles and tell me that the Pats belong in the same league.

The question is: Do the Pats

rank as one of the greatest NFL teams’

of all-time? Good question. It’s hard to compare them to teams of the past for several reasons, not the least being the salary cap that exists today. Sure, the Pats are a good team. I'll give them that.

You don’t win three Super Bowls in four years without being a good team. But are they a great team? New England has few stars. Sure they have Corey Dillon and Rodney Harrison. And now all the female readers will say “But what about that heartthrob Tom Brady?” To them I say, Brady is a clutch player. But I wouldn’t call him a star, more of a 6"-round pick thorn in your side that won’t go away. This is a system team. Ifnot for coaching wizard Bill Belichick, the Pats would be nowhere. And now that co-ordinators Charlie Weis and Romeo Crennel have left, look for them to slide.

Look at the great NFL teams of the past. Terry Bradshaw. Joe Montana. Troy Aikman. Sorry Tom, but I don’t think you belong with these guys. “Everybody else sucks but me?” More like, “No one else sucks, only me

Cadre Players of the

Liam McKenn¥¥eeK

Sports Editor

The Cadre Players of the Week for this issue are Doug McKinney and Katherine Walters, both of UPEI’s basketball teams. In their battles against UCCB, both of these players brought their best game to the court in an effort to help their teams.

Walters managed to be a leader in team scoring for both games, whereas McKinney found himself throwing down some monstrous jams en route to be named to player of the game on Sunday.

Congratulations once again to the Cadre’s Players of the Week. Hopefully, these players and the rest of their teams can keep up their superb play as the regular season wraps up this weekend.

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