Chronicle is more of the same old story

First time director Josh Trank's Chronicle attempts to dazzle viewers with super human powers but falls short with typical teenage friendship flick clichés.

Despite the lack of a creative story line, silver screen new comers Dane DeHaan, Alex Russel and Michael B. Jordan are able to distract viewers from obviously recycled plot twists and deliver solid performances.

The film -- made to appear as though it was a first hand account of true events captured on a held hand camera (think "The Blair Witch Project") -- tries to sell believability with impressive CGI but fails to overcome gaping holes in the story line.

In "Chronicle" the son of an alcoholic father and dying mother, high school outcast Andrew Detmer (DeHaan), begins filming his miserable life with a camera.

Dragged to a party by his cousin Matt Garetty (Russel), Detmer is uncomfortable and embarrassed and retreats outside to be alone. Shortly after, Garetty finds him and convinces Detmer to follow him into the woods to film something. In the woods Garetty and Detmer join popular kid Steve Washington (Jordan), who is standing above the entrance to an underground cave.

Inside the cave the boys find a mysterious glowing rock and are knocked unconscious by a powerful force. We see the trio again several days later experimenting with their newfound telekinesis abilities, which causes sporadic and unexplained nosebleeds that offer little relevance to the plot.

Attempts to uncover the source of their new abilities prove as useless to them as it does to the film's story line as the friends discover the entrance to the cave has been strangely filled.

In true clichéd fashion the boys form an unlikely friendship thanks to their new powers and continue to experiment with and eventually abuse them. Outcast Detmer uses his powers to gain popularity, which backfires in his face, and he spins out of control.

When the film is over viewers are left with a feeling of deja vu, as it seems Max Landis' screenplay does little more than mash together the plots of popular films about teenage angst and mischief.

Chronicle is far from fresh. If you're looking for creativity, this is one to skip.

Prices soar for movie munchies

I love movies. So much, in fact, that I’d guess about half of my brain is devoted to lines from my favorites. But with my busy schedule being a full-time student with two part-time jobs and a handy Netflix subscription, I hardly ever see new releases in the theater. So it was a treat when my boyfriend told me he’d be taking me to see the new movie Chronicle as an early Valentine’s Day present this weekend.

Aside from seeing an actual film at the theater, my favorite part of the experience is the deliciously buttery popcorn. It has to be among the least healthy foods on the planet, so we try not to indulge ourselves often. But since this was a special occasion, when I asked my boyfriend if we could have some popcorn, he happily obliged.

My mouth was watering when we opened the theater doors and the sweet smell of freshly popped popcorn filled the air. It called to me. “Eat me. Love me,” it whispered. I was giddy. That was until I saw the prices.

Now, maybe it’s because I don’t frequent movie theaters enough and seldom stop at the concession stand, but when I saw that a small bag of popcorn at the theater cost $6, I nearly fainted.

Six whole dollars. That’s six bucks, six greenbacks, half a dozen clams, or what people making minimum wage earn in roughly an hour. That $6 for popcorn equates to a 1,275 percent markup according to Yahoo! Finance.

I understand that theaters are facing higher costs from studios to run movies, and the movie industry is trying to offset lost revenue from online piracy, but something has got to give.

Consumers already sent the movie industry a message when they banded together to successfully thwart the Stop Online Piracy and Protect Intellectual Property acts from passing last month. Perhaps industry leaders don’t realize that high costs passed on to consumers are one of the causes of online piracy.

One of the problems may be that there is no system set up to track rising concession prices. The Motion Picture Association of America and the National Theater Owners Association both record average ticket costs from year-to-year, but ignore concession prices completely. Without cost comparisons, consumers may feel intimidated to take a stand on the issue.

As for my boyfriend and me, we still bought the popcorn. But from now on I think we’ll skip the pricy theater and snuggle up at home with our Netflix subscription instead.

Pitts' effective argument

In his column “Boo! A scary word for bigots,” Leonard Pitts Jr. uses a college crowd’s reaction during presidential candidate Rick Santorum’s visit to expose how out of touch the nominee is with the youth of America and the progress they represent.

Pitts writes in a tone of voice that is friendly yet knowledgeable. He writes on behalf of Americans under 30 years old but does not pretend to walk among them. He writes for progress and against the social conservative views that Santorum represent.

Pitts uses quotes from Santorum’s appearance where when questioned about his position on gay marriage he expressed its legalization would lead to even worse things like the legalization of polygamy, a scare tactic often used by opponents of marriage equality. However, Pitts points out that polygamy is a choice, while being gay is a biological determinant and goes on to say Santorum acted surprised that the issue would be brought up among a college-aged crowd.

Historical patterns, Pitts argues, can be seen in social conservatism. Pitts reminds readers of past discrimination toward Jews and African Americans by social conservatives in our country. He reminds us that each time change comes and freedoms are won. The world keeps turning despite social conservatives efforts to stop us in our tracks.

Additionally, Pitt cites a survey by the Pew Research Center that shows support for gay marriage is on the rise among people under age 32, with 53 percent in favor and only 39 percent opposed. This contradicts what Pitt calls Santorum’s idea that children will grow out of their foolishness, an idea Meghan McCain, blogger and daughter of former Republican presidential nominee John McCain, called “gross” and “dated.”

To end the column Pitts brings up other dated ideas like women not working outside of their homes and Jews being banned from country clubs and claims the idea of same sex couples not being able to marry will one day be a dated idea too.

Overall, I think Pitts was persuasive without being pushy. He described a social trend of change that has happened throughout history, a trend that Pitts says will inevitably happen again in the case of marriage equality.

MNSU Smoking Ban Needs Revision

When Brittney Hedges returned to Minnesota State University’s campus for the spring semester, she took a deep sigh of relief and breathed in clean air. The relief she felt was due to the school’s new tobacco and smoke-free policy, which went into effect on Jan. 1 and bans all tobacco use on campus.

Hedges’ relief, however, faded in the following weeks when she realized that the policy, which relies on student enforcement, was unsuccessful and intimidating. Many students were still smoking outside of high-traffic buildings on campus.

The university policy regarding policing the ban states “all members of the campus community are empowered and encouraged to approach and advise violators in a non-confrontational manner.” However, this peer-to-peer enforcement puts well-meaning students like Hedges in uncomfortable situations.

And it isn’t just the non-smokers who are feeling uncomfortable. Holly Theobald, a regular smoker, has been adhering to the new policy and walking to nearby campus dorms – which don’t go tobacco free until this summer -- for her nicotine fix. Even though she is following the rules, she said she’s unlikely to approach anyone else who isn’t.

Issues about how to enforce a smoking ban on campus caused the university to reject the proposal in 2008. In an interview with the Reporter, the then Minnesota State Student Association President, Ryan Anderson, explained that cultural matters would stop students from taking action.

"In our polite Minnesotan society, not many people want to be the one to tell someone to stop smoking,” Anderson said. “We hope not to legislate common courtesy."

Now, four years later, that same ban requiring peer-to-peer enforcement is in place. The University may have intended for the ban to protect students and promote healthy lifestyles, but the ban is clearly being ignored. The enforcement policy should have been revised when officials tabled the issue in 2008, as it has proved ineffective.

If the University truly wants to protect students’ health the smoking policy must be revised. An amendment to the policy touting disciplinary action and fine implementation is necessary for the ban to succeed. But more importantly, university officials should enforce the policy.