Level Orange

As I contemplate the idea of getting an Xbox, I can’t help but thinking about just how big the long-awaited sequel to Halo is gonna be. Around this time two years ago, I made my way through the game several times over and I’m still blown away by it all.

Not only has the game won me over with it’s gameplay and graphics, but I’ve also been caught up in the story. I think I speak for a lot of gamers when I say that I’ve never seen this level of complexity and sheer scope in a storyline for a video game series. As I read through all three novels, I felt the history, the urgency of it all and couldn’t help but anticipate what might come next. At this point, I think the next game’s got a lot to live up to, but leave it to Bungie to get it done.

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Having been a fan of Prince’s music for over twenty years, sticking it out through the last ten years or so has been pretty rough. I can remember first seeing the video for “Little Red Corvette” on MTV back in grade school and thinking that there was something wonderful about this song and this man who had created it. I was still probably too young to understand the meaning of the lyrics, but just the music itself was mysterious and catchy all at once.

Of course, who could forget Purple Rain and how it launched him into complete stardom? This man had almost singlehandedly brought forth a new age of rock, funk, dance, new wave and popular music to the world. In 1984, the auspicious year when so many wonderful things came together, he seemed to have it all before him.

But then what happened? I think the sheer, unabashed virility of 1999 and Purple Rain (as well as the film) were simply too much for my mother to expose me to. So I was only able to hear his few mainstream hits after that, like “Raspberry Beret”, “U Got the Look” and “Kiss”. And for five years, Prince remained a distant musical aside as I started listening to more rock and heavy metal, then moved to rap and hip-hop. It wouldn’t be until Batman that I heard him on the radio again, and since the music was tied to a TREMENDOUS film of the same name, I was easily allowed to go out and make the purchase myself.

It was at this point that I began my second phase of Prince-liking-ness(?). I bought Batman and loved it, warts and all. Then I went out and bought Purple Rain and 1999, then still widely available on cassette. This time around, those albums had a totally new meaning and depth that I hadn’t discovered before. Now I was able to grasp more of what he was saying in his music. It was about love, sex, style and fun, but in a new way. What I heard made me want to live life on my own terms, play by my own rules. I was gonna do it and do it my way. It was empowering. But not every one saw it that way.

Even as Prince’s popularity faded, his talent stayed strong. My hopes that this musical genius might have another streak of hits beyond compare only led to disappointment after disappointment. I was there all the way up to “Crystal Ball”, which had enough stinkers to discourage me from ever buying another Prince album. Sad indeed.

Then, as if from out of nowhere, he showed up at the 2004 Grammy Awards. It was a rare event to be sure, with Prince having pretty much abandoned any televised performances outside of morning news shows or late night television. But he then followed with an appearance at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony that reportedly blew the roof off the place. The spotlight had come his way again.

Having bought my tickets months ago, I was more than ready to see Prince in concert. I figured it might be one of the last chances I ever have to see him perform live (and in Houston). The last time I can remember him coming to this city was back around 1998 or so, and I had thought I missed my chance. At the time, his stardom was beginning to fade into the history books, and with the year 1999 right around the corner, who knew what

One of the things I love about films is the ability to find trends and attitudes in storytelling, which more than often provide an interesting commentary on the world at any given point in history. Even though modern filmmaking has only been around for just over a century, one thing remains true. Artists create from what they know, hence the old saying ‘art imitates life’. Even in literature�”The Canterbury Tales”, “Gulliver’s Travels” and “Watership Down”�they all have a specific story to tell, but still tap into the attitudes of the day, giving readers a glimpse into the era in which they were created.

With film however, these trends aren’t always easy to spot. Being the powerful visual medium that it is, subtext and commentary can get lost beneath all that’s happening on the screen. It seems like they only reveal themselves in retrospect, like the added bonus after the credits for those who stick around to watch until the very last frame.

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