arts // no. 10

 

theotherpress.ca

Explore Chinatown with artist Jessie McNeil

» Collage art on display at Vancouver Art Gallery

Cheryl Minns

. Arts Editor
Marts
@theotherpress.ca

 

Vercouens vibrant and
colourful scenery is
beautifully reflected in Jessie
McNeil’s collage art, currently on
display in the Showroom at the

Vancouver Art Gallery until July 31. a personal connection for McNeil

: because the collages represent the
: Strathcona area where she grew

: up.

The exhibit features 27
new figurative collage pieces
that depict scenes from around
Vancouver’s Strathcona and
Chinatown neighbourhoods.
The artwork is based on street
photography done by McNeil and
made using magazine clippings.
“J just flip through magazines
and when I see a colour, I
immediately grab it and cut it
out. In some cases, if I see denim

: immediately, then I'll use that for
: jeans,” McNeil said.

The collages capture people

: going about their everyday lives as
: they shop, work, spend time with
: friends, and roam the city streets.

“There’s just something really

nice about the scene of public
; spaces around you being engaged
: with people using them,” she said.

This particular collection has

“When I look at these

: Chinatown collages, it reminds
: me of home,” she said. “But at

: the same time I think about

: the changes going on in that

: neighbourhood that aren’t

: benefitting the people.’

One of the collages from

: the collection that resonates

: with viewers is “E. Georgia.” It

: depicts three men in cooking

: uniforms taking a break ina

> back alley in Chinatown—two of
: them smoking and one of them

: checking his smartphone—while
? aman in jeans and a jacket witha
: blue umbrella passes by.

“Somebody just told me,

: ‘That is so Chinatown, It talks

: about light and you get a real sense
: of figure and of place with this one
: piece,” she said. “I tend to choose

: people who have clothes that

: reflect light or just show contrast

: in shades and stuff”

For more information

: on MeNeil’s artwork and her
: upcoming shows, check out
: JessieMcNeil.ca.

The Vancouver Art Gallery

Showroom is open daily from 10
: a.m. to 5 p.m. and McNeil’s exhibit
: will be on display until July 31.

 

Photo by Cheryl Minns

 

Immortal villainy

» Remembering Christopher Lee

Adam Tatelman
Staff Writer

he first time I ever saw Sir

Christopher Lee on the big
screen was in The Lord of the
Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring.
Having not yet read Tolkien's
epic, I didn’t know who this
Saruman guy was supposed to
be—only that he scared the life
out of seven-year-old me. Five
times Lee reprised that role
over the next 14 years, and |
remained rapt for every moment
he was on screen. Few actors can
lend believable gravitas to such
fantastical characters, let alone
make them feel truly immortal.

Lee was an actor who spent nearly :
: villain roles were Scaramanga,
: the classy rival assassin to

three quarters of a century doing
exactly that.

After a number of

unflattering roles in his early TV
: and film career, Lee was cast,

: thanks to his towering frame, as
: the Monster in Hammer Films’

: The Curse of Frankenstein. This

: began nearly two decades of

: Hammer Films horror sequels

: starring Lee as every abomination
: from the Mummy to Dracula,

: though his predatory portrayal

: of Bram Stoker’s legendary

: bloodsucker was by far his most
: defining role.

Lee’s career revolved around

: villainy. He was considered too

: tall to bea leading man, and

: instead found himself repeatedly
: thrust into the role of the

adversary. Two of his notable

: James Bond in The Man with

: the Golden Gun, and Count

: Dook, the aristocratic Sith Lord
: extraordinaire in Star Wars:

: Attack of the Clones.

Lee also enjoyed a number

: of more mainstream roles during
: the 1970s, one of them being his

: portrayal of the famous British

: sleuth in The Private Life of

: Sherlock Holmes. However, he

: swiftly returned to form as the

: nefarious Comte de Rochefort

: in Richard Lester’s The Three

: Musketeers. He also lent his

: spooky, gothic charm to Tim

: Burton’s Corpse Bride and Sleepy
: Hollow. His most quirky film was
: probably the Twin Peaks-esque,

: 1973 movie The Wicker Man.

But acting wasn't Lee’s only

talent. Being a classically trained

: singer, he formed a metal band

: called Rhapsody of Fire. He

: also published several concept

: albums such as Heavy Metal

: Christmas and Charlemagne, the
: latter of which had a personal

: connection for Lee since his

: family is partly descended from

: the real Charlemagne. In fact,

: some of Lee’s most uproarious

: roles include musical numbers,

: suchas the infamous “Name Your :
: Poison” scene from the corny

: 1980s superhero film The Return
: of Captain Invincible.

In addition to his dramatic

: work, Lee heavily donated to

: charity. Asa result, he was

: appointed a Commander of the
: Venerable Order of Saint John

: in 1997, then Commander of

: the Order of the British Empire

: in 2001, and finally a Knight
: Bachelor on the Queen’s birthday
: in 2009.

Lee’s naturally imposing

: charisma and melodic basso

: voice brought life to some of

: the most memorable villains of
yesteryear and modern cinema

: alike. His first role, over 80 years
: ago, was ina school production

: of Rumpelstiltskin as the

eponymous demon, which was

: perhaps foretelling of his future

: career, Lee had an undeniable

: talent for taking the corniest

: schlock imaginable and turning

: it into something entertaining, or
: even beautiful.

Time and again, he made us

all believe he really was immortal.
: So here’s to you, Sir Christopher.
: May your memory never die.

 

‘Mortal Kombat’ keeps it classic with latest release

» ‘Mortal Kombat X’ PS4 Review

Alex Stanton
Staff Writer

QO two decades, 10 titles,
and multiple spin-offs later,
the famous fantasy fighting
game series Mortal Kombat has
returned with Mortal Kombat X.
Created by Midway and currently
handled by NetherRealm
Studios, this one makes for the
most polished Mortal Kombat
yet.

A direct spiritual successor
to NetherRealm’s DC superhero
brawler Injustice: Gods Among
Us, Mortal Kombat X takes
everything that made the game
a smash hit and improves on

: it m every single way. The fully

: destructible stages, the realistic

: animation, and the silky smooth
: frame rate from Injustice all carry
: over to Mortal Kombat X to make
: fora much more user-friendly

: experience.

For all the brawling

: mainstays that make Mortal

: Kombat X what it is, there is one
: thing that makes the whole thing
: feel new even to the fighting

: game veterans: a complete and

: utter shake-up of the cast of

: characters. Palette swaps are all

: too common in this genre and

: with its respectable 24-character
? roster (eight of whom are new to
: the series), studying the combos

: of each character becomes an

: incredibly deep experience.

: Those who have returned to the
: series, such as my main man

: Reptile, are still the same basic

: characters except for completely
: different move sets and the

: option to pick one of three

: special moves before the start of
: amatch. Even the old characters
: feel fresh. As much as I miss

: Smoke, Cassie Cage and Takeda
: will suffice.

: The main reason gamers play :
: Mortal Kombat is because of the
: fierce competition that comes

: from brutalizing another player,
: but there is plenty to do for those :
: who predominantly play offline

: and alone. The story mode, while :
: sporting an acceptable plot and

: decent length compared to most
: other fighting games, still feels a
: bit less than substantial. A more
: streamlined way to play on your
: own is to play towers, which is

: basically Mortal Kombat’s take on :
: arcade mode. You can either play :
: astandard tower of 10 people

: or Test Your Luck, which is the

: new addition of a roulette that

: causes strange things to happen

to the arena and your characters.

: It’s highly unbalanced but you
: carrt deny the cool factor of
: ice missiles flying from the sky

trying to hit fighters who are

: surrounded by noxious gas.

Test Your Might deserves a

: mention only so that you know

: to avoid it. It’s the same kind of

: deal as a regular tower except

: that, instead of fighting, you

: mash buttons as hard as possible
: as you watch your character

karate chop various objects. You
can't beat the tower without

: cheating.

I haven't had this much fun

: with any other Mortal Kombat,
: or even any fighting game,

: in quite some time. Mortal

: Kombat X balances massive

: improvements to gameplay and
: aesthetic, combined with the

: qualities that make the series

: special.