Local Independent Theater Strives for Younger Audience (video)

West End cinema, on 23rd and M, shows independent films, shorts and documentaries. The local community has embraced the theater, but the ownership claims many GW students don't even know it's there. Recently, the theater has tried to draw in college students with special promotions and online advertising. To see a list of show times and special offers visit their website.

Created by Joseph Rabinowitz and Bridgett Lynn

Review: Burn After Reading

[caption id="attachment_605" align="alignleft" width="185" caption="Brad Pitt in Burn After Reading"][/caption]

Burn After Reading, the new Coen Brother's film is ridiculous.

This is not to say that it is bad, in fact, I quite recommend it.  Far from being the best of Joel and Ethan Coen's films (I'd give that distinction to Fargo), Burn is strangely subversive and very fun. Throughout the film, no one ever knows what's going on, least of all the puzzled CIA agents who try, through not very hard, to contain the concentrated madness that follows the main characters around.

One of the best elements of the film is its wicked send-up of the CIA-scandal genre of film that has become so popular in recent years.  This film category includes Breach, Syriana, The Interpreter, the Bourne series, and last year's Micheal Clayton.  The Coens have taken the intensity, the camera angles, the music cues and the pervasive feeling of doom that has become the hallmark of these films.  All these elements help to highlight the extreme nothingness at the center of the film's plot and in turn, this nothingness is great at pointing out the inherent silliness of the norms of CIA-scandal films.

Brad Pitt gives what his character, Chad, would shurely term an, "awesome" performance, as does John Malkovich.  The film overall doesn't amount to much, even with its many clever moments.  If nothing else, this film has compounded my faith in the Coen Brothers to make funny and subversive films, while also increasing my geneal fear of John Malkovich, tenfold.

- Ahna Olson

Happy August!

If you've ever been in DC during the month of August, you know how slow things can be.  Congress leaves town which means the city practically comes to a standstill. Not to mention, it's unbearably hot and muggy and you're forced to fight tourists right and left. So, in honor of the first day of the worst month for Washingtonians, some important (and not so important) campus updates.

• In case you missed it, WRGW is going to the Democratic National Convention in Denver. We'll be going on August 24th and returning on August 29th, so be sure to check back for event coverage during that week!

• President Knapp should be living on campus by the time the fall semester begins. According to University spokesperson Tracy Shario, Knapp's house will be ready by mid-August. If you haven't seen it lately, the old Alumni house has been extended and a large new bay window has been installed. An open house is scheduled for October.

• Restaurant week is almost here! What's that, you ask? Twice a year, DC restaurants, that on a student's budget you probably couldn't afford, offer three course meals for $20.08 for lunch and $35.08 for dinner. Make your reservations now, because the more popular restaurants book-up quickly.

• Cmail is a thing of the past. Welcome GWmail! To switch your email address to the new google-based GWmail, log on to my.gwu.edu and click on the mail option on the left side of your screen. Make sure to update all of your listings because email addresses now end with an @gwmail.gwu.edu. Cmail will forward your email for 6 months, but after that, messages with your old address will be bounced back. Now you can enjoy GChatting with the entire GW community.

• In honor of the summer Olympics, the Vern is sponsoring a sports themed summer film festival. On the Mount Vernon Quad (Eckles Library is the rain location) Remember the Titans will be shown on Wednesday, August 6, at 8:30pm and A Leauge of Their Own will be shown on August 13 at 8pm. On Wednesday, August 20, come to the Mount Vernon pool to cool off with Cool Runnings at 8:30pm.

• August also means that it's almost college football season! Now I know we don't get riled up about these things at GW (especially since we don't have a team), but for those of you who follow it, DC might be turning into a football town. According to a Washington Post article, DC will host the 9th ranked ACC team against Navy at Nationals Park. The inaugural Congressional Bowl will be held on December 20th. There's only one catch - there has to be nine eligible teams in the ACC. Last season, only eight of the twelve teams qualified. Regulations state that teams must win at least six games to be eligible for a bowl game. Fingers crossed!

• If you're stuck in DC this month, there is at least some good news! The District will offer buyers an exemption from the 5.75 percent sales tax for school supplies, clothing, shoes, and accessory items costing $100 or less. The Sales Tax holiday will begin on Saturday, August 2, through Sunday, August 10. A second tax holiday will be in November, beginning the weekend following Thanksgiving.

• UPD is celebrating "National Night Out" with food, music, and the opportunity for community members to speak with police officials from the university and MPD. The 25th annual "National Night Out" is a drug and crime prevention event designed to heighten awareness and strengthen neighborhood spirit. The event will be held on Tuesday, August 5, from 5 to 7 p.m. on the corner of 22nd and F Streets.

• The Princeton Review's annual survey was released this week and GW made four separate lists. As you might recall, GW had the distinction of being the "most politically active" school last year, but American University took over the top slot this year. GW was bumped to second place. As for the other lists, GW placed third in "great college towns," sixth in "dorms like palaces" (although students living in Thurston might disagree!), and 20th in "happiest students."

• Starting today, a local community college is banning tobacco anywhere on campus -- inside or outside. Montgomery College is one of more than 130 campuses nationwide that have gone smoke-free, according to the Washington Post. These schools are most commonly medical schools and community colleges. Montgomery College is the first college in the area to ban tobacco on campus. Most local universities, like GW, do not allow smoking in buildings, including dorms, and require smokers to stand a certain distance from entrances. In 2006, law professor John Banzhaf attempted to eliminate outdoor smoking at GW, but the school just enacted stricter outdoor smoking rules. Banzhaf told the Washington Post that he believes, "Almost certainly within five years, virtually all college campuses will be smoke-free."

- Mallory Thompson

Movie Review: There Will Be Blood

There Will Be Blood is one of two films leading the pack of Oscar nominees this awards season.

It has a total of eight nominations in categories including best picture, best actor for Daniel Day Lewis and best director for Paul Thomas Anderson. Anderson previously directed such critically acclaimed films as Magnolia and Boogie Nights.

The film's expansive storyline, is based off the Upton Sinclair novel, Oil!, and it follows Daniel Plainview, a self proclaimed "oil man" working in the American west around the turn of the century as he seeks his fortune. It tells the story how that search affects those around him, a cast of characters including his son, D.W., a long lost brother Plainview and a righteous young preacher played by Little Miss Sunshine's Paul Dano.

From the perspective of this reviewer, There Will Be Blood comes about as close to perfection as any movie in Hollywood's recent past. The performances, especially that of Lews, who delivers a typically powerful and convincing performance, are all impeccably acted and while Anderson's script is complex, it leaves us unsure about how we should feel about Plainvew, partly why the film is so intriguing.

Of course, no review of this film would be complete without mentioning the strikingly original score crafted by Radiohead guitarist Johnny Greenwood, which lends a special quality to the film.

There Will Be Blood is still playing in theaters across the District, so if you haven't made it out to see it yet, there is still time. A definite must-see!

- Jason Levin

"Hippo Video" Finds a New Home

GW has never seen a hippo move so fast – Hippo Video that is. The automated video rental machine has moved from its oasis in Gelman Library to the Ivory Tower food court following a request by Stephen Knapp who thinks the library should be a place of scholarship – not video rentals.

The GWorld accessible machine, which holds more than 2,000 DVDs, was placed at the Gelman Library by Hippo Video’s owners, who, according to their website, saw it as a place students were guaranteed to visit.

Other locations scouted for the machine include the Marvin Center and Thurston Hall, where foot traffic is among the highest on campus.

No plans are currently underway for the installment of a Hippo Video on the Mount Vernon campus, as Eckles Library has its own stash of movies that students may rent free of charge.

According to the alumni-owned and operated company, GW put up no money for Hippo Video.

Media inquiries to the “business and operations” office were not immediately returned.

- Jesse Regis

Program Board's Fall Film Series

As part of GW Program Boards ongoing Fall Film Series, there was a special screening of the summer blockbuster Transformers on Thursday, October 18th in the Marvin Center.

According to organizers, the series is part of an ongoing effort by the Program Board to host "Free weekly screenings of Hollywood's latest releases before they hit DVD."  Periodically, Program Board hosts screenings of films before release to the general public. Some recent hits that have been screened to GW students before release in theaters included Knocked Up, Thank You For Smoking, and The Pursuit of Happiness.

Transformers, which came out on DVD this past Tuesday, is a film adaptation of the popular cartoon series based off of the successful Transformers toys. The film stars Shia Lebeuf and Josh Duhamel and is directed by Michael Bay.

-Jason Levin