Fire destroys apartment building - Carolina Weekly Newspapers
Fire destroys apartment building - Carolina Weekly Newspapers Fire destroys apartment building - Carolina Weekly Newspapers
Christmas Gift PackSpecialsGift CertificatesWide variety of premiumcigar brands and bundlesin our large walk-in humidorCheck out the private loungetruly exclusive relaxation at its finestSpeCialSH. Upmann SungrownBuy 3, Get 1 Free262 and Savinelli CigarsBUy 4, Get ONe Free!through 12/31/10UnionCigarCompany1507 Skyway Drive, Monroe NC704-635-7915Monday through Saturday 11 am -7 pmwww.unioncigarcompany.comCall us, we are happy to shippersonal or gift selections.South Charlotte WeeklyCalendarEVENTS12.17.10FridayMonkey Joe’s Grand OpeningThe new Monkey Joe’s indoor play facility officiallyopens to the public in the Park Road ShoppingCenter. The center is full of inflatable slidesand play houses for children 12 and younger. Formore information, call 704-714-1141Park Road Shopping Center, 1601 E. WoodlawnRoad.12.18.10SaturdayHandbell Choir Performance, noonThe Chancel Handbell Choir from First UnitedMethodist Church in Gastonia will performin the main lobby of the Ballantyne Hotel andLodge, providing holiday cheer for hotel guestsand anyone who wants to come by.Ballantyne Hotel and Lodge, 10000 BallantyneCommons Pkwy.12.19.10SundayYMCA Christmas candlelight service,7 to 8:30 p.m.Join together with the community at the HarrisYMCA for candlelight, music and prayer. Theevent, aimed at “preparing your heart for Christmas,”is open to all ages. For more information,contact Kate Wheeler at 704-716-6927 or kate.wheeler@ymcacharlotte.org. The event is free.Harris YMCA, 5900 Quail Hollow RoadGot an event?Do you have an event coming up in south Charlotte?Well, we want to know about it. E-mail usat editor@thecharlotteweekly.com, call us at 704-849-2261, fax us at 704-849-2504 or mail us at1421-C Orchard Lake Drive, Charlotte, NC 28270.Calendar submissions will be edited for space.12.23.10ThursdayHoliday GingerbreadCome to the South County Regional Library todecorate your very own gingerbread person totake home. Event is held in the library’s children’sroom. For more information, contact EmilyNanney at 704-416-6600, ext. 2.South County Regional Library, 5801 Rea RoadOngoingCharlotte Woodcarvers, TuesdaysInterested in learning to carve wood? Visit andcarve with the Charlotte Woodcarvers clubthat meets on Tuesdays at Cathcart Center,behind Carmel Presbyterian Church. The meetingslast from 5:15 to 7:30 p.m. The organizationhas about 80 members, and 15 to 25meet weekly – men, women and youth – tocarve on various projects. Newsletter, instructionand annual shows of woodcarving. Carvingkits available, and the club provides woodinitially. For information, call Ray Branch at704-544-2417.2048 Carmel RoadGRASS SOD®of CharlotteA DIVISION OF PATTEN SEED COMPANYAlso askabout our...ProfessionalGradeTall FescueGrass SeedLarge or SmallQuantities(704) 525-887312600 Downs CirCle • PinevillePage 22 • Dec. 17-23, 2010 • South Charlotte Weeklywww.thecharlotteweekly.com
‘Tron: Legacy’by Hugh Fishermovies@thecharlotteweekly.comI’m an unapologetic sci-fi fan. Computers,space battles, strange alien worlds– all of these sparked my imaginationwhen I was a kid, and still do. If you findyourself in that category, you’ll love “Tron:Legacy.”The sequel to the 1982 film about warriorsfighting for freedom inside of a computersystem is full of action and is visuallystunning. If you grew up with “Tron,”you’ll find a lot that’s familiar here.Programmer Kevin Flynn (Jeff Bridges)got control of programming giant Encomin the original, but disappeared undermysterious circumstances. Young son Samwas left behind with millions of dollars instock and the ability to control the companysomeday, if he chose.Flash forward to today, and Sam (GarrettHedlund) has no desire to follow inhis father’s footsteps. Instead, like BruceWayne crossed with Julian Assange, heuses a blazing-fast Ducati motorcycle andsome high technology to pull pranks onhis dad’s old company.Olivia Wilde and Garrett HedlundAlan Bradley (Bruce Boxleitner), Flynn’sold sidekick who’s still on the board ofEncom, sets Flynn on the trail to solvinghis father’s disappearance. Like father, likeson, Sam ends up being pulled inside theworld of the computer, forced to fight on“the Grid” for his survival.When we finally meet him, and hisapprentice Quorra (Olivia Wilde), Flynnclaims to have found inside the systemthe secrets of how the universe works.Learning those secrets leaves Sam facinga choice: saving his father, or saving theoutside world.Even if you’re decidedly not a fan of“Star Wars”/“Star Trek” sci-fi, this is still aride worth watching. And it’s worth watchingin 3-D, which I typically consider agimmick, but “Tron: Legacy” does it right.Grade: HHH out of 4MPAA Rating: PG for sequences of sci-fiaction violence and brief mild languageCast: Jeff Bridges, Garrett Hedlund,Olivia WildeGenre: Action/Sci-FiStudio: Walt Disney PicturesThe filmmakers mix 2-D and 3-D scenesand make good use of visual effects, especiallyin fight sequences. The result is milesbetter than other recent films which, in myopinion, try to self-consciously remind theviewer that “this is a 3-D experience!” byshoving monsters and such at the screen.A couple of effects in “Tron: Legacy”made most of the people in the theaterjump in their seats. That’s how smoothlythis is done. I won’t say more because youneed to see it yourself.A lot has changed about computers,both in movies and in day-to-day life, since’82.I could wax philosophical for a momentand say that “Tron: Legacy” does whatscience fiction ought to do by making usthink about our own world differently.That’s what the first film managed to do,whether that was the intent or not.And there’s certainly room to thinkabout how technology affects our livestoday, and how jaded we’ve become. Theoriginal “Tron” had a storybook quality.Computer programs were cheerful andeager to serve the godlike human “Users”on the other side of the digital veil.The lines are blurry today. Clu (playedby a digitally-animated younger version ofBridges) was a good-guy program in thefirst “Tron.” He’s now a megalomaniacaloverlord, determined to “create the perfectsystem” even if it means destroyinghumanity in the process.Other programs are jaded and cynical,seeing belief in “Users” as outdated andlaughable.Unfortunately, the storyline feels abit shallow. There are plenty of actionsequences, and all of the favorite scenesfrom the original are updated with cuttingedge technology.The only other franchise to come closeto this kind of questioning, the “Matrix”trilogy, went way too heavy on the symbolismand the deep philosophical questions.“Tron: Legacy” left me wanting a littlebit more than what we saw. There’s a lotleft to be done with the “Tron” universe.The effects department outdid themselveswith a digital re-creation of a youngerJeff Bridges as Clu – a stark contrast tothe grizzled Bridges of today. I would’veliked to have seen the same attemptedwith Boxleitner’s characters. We hardlysee Tron, the hero program of the originalfilm, which he also played.Bottom line: “Tron: Legacy” will makescience-fiction and action fans happy,and will leave fans of the original wantingmore.For a movie audience that can be jadedand cynical about sequels and remakes,that’s good news. And it’s good news, too,for those of us geeks who see sci-fi as away of looking at our own world from aslightly different angle. qOPEn I n GFriday, 12/17Black Swan (r)The FiGhTer (r)hOw dO yOu knOw (PG-13)Tamara drewe (r)TrOn: leGacy (PG)yOGi Bear (PG)wedneSday, 12/22liTTle FOckerS (PG-13)True GriT (PG-13)BOx OFFICEWEEkEnD TOTAL1. The chrOnicleS OF narnia:The vOyaGe OF The dawn Treader (PG)$24M $24M2. The TOuriST (PG-13)$16.5M3. TanGled (PG)$14.3MOn videO dec. 21Devil (PG-13)easy a (PG-13)salt (PG-13)steP UP 3D (PG-13)Wall street: Money neversleePs (PG-13)$16.5M$115.4M4. harry POTTer and The deaThlyhallOwS – ParT 1 (PG-13)$8.5M $257.7M5. unSTOPPaBle (PG-13)$3.7M $74.2M6. Black Swan (r)$3.3M7. BurleSque (PG-13)$3.2M$5.6M$32.5M8. lOve and OTher druGS (r)$3M $27.6M9. due daTe (r)$2.6M10. meGamind (PG)$2.5M$94.9M$140.2MTv On dvdBilly The Exterminator: Seasons 1 & 2Family Guy: It’s a Trap!Futurama: Volume 5Gene Simmons Family Jewels:The Complete Seasons 4 & 5The Secret Life ofthe American Teenager: Volume 5www.thecharlotteweekly.comSouth Charlotte Weekly • Dec. 17-23, 2010 • Page 23
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Christmas Gift PackSpecialsGift CertificatesWide variety of premiumcigar brands and bundlesin our large walk-in humidorCheck out the private loungetruly exclusive relaxation at its finestSpeCialSH. Upmann SungrownBuy 3, Get 1 Free262 and Savinelli CigarsBUy 4, Get ONe Free!through 12/31/10UnionCigarCompany1507 Skyway Drive, Monroe NC704-635-7915Monday through Saturday 11 am -7 pmwww.unioncigarcompany.comCall us, we are happy to shippersonal or gift selections.South Charlotte <strong>Weekly</strong>CalendarEVENTS12.17.10FridayMonkey Joe’s Grand OpeningThe new Monkey Joe’s indoor play facility officiallyopens to the public in the Park Road ShoppingCenter. The center is full of inflatable slidesand play houses for children 12 and younger. Formore information, call 704-714-1141Park Road Shopping Center, 1601 E. WoodlawnRoad.12.18.10SaturdayHandbell Choir Performance, noonThe Chancel Handbell Choir from First UnitedMethodist Church in Gastonia will performin the main lobby of the Ballantyne Hotel andLodge, providing holiday cheer for hotel guestsand anyone who wants to come by.Ballantyne Hotel and Lodge, 10000 BallantyneCommons Pkwy.12.19.10SundayYMCA Christmas candlelight service,7 to 8:30 p.m.Join together with the community at the HarrisYMCA for candlelight, music and prayer. Theevent, aimed at “preparing your heart for Christmas,”is open to all ages. For more information,contact Kate Wheeler at 704-716-6927 or kate.wheeler@ymcacharlotte.org. The event is free.Harris YMCA, 5900 Quail Hollow RoadGot an event?Do you have an event coming up in south Charlotte?Well, we want to know about it. E-mail usat editor@thecharlotteweekly.com, call us at 704-849-2261, fax us at 704-849-2504 or mail us at1421-C Orchard Lake Drive, Charlotte, NC 28270.Calendar submissions will be edited for space.12.23.10ThursdayHoliday GingerbreadCome to the South County Regional Library todecorate your very own gingerbread person totake home. Event is held in the library’s children’sroom. For more information, contact EmilyNanney at 704-416-6600, ext. 2.South County Regional Library, 5801 Rea RoadOngoingCharlotte Woodcarvers, TuesdaysInterested in learning to carve wood? Visit andcarve with the Charlotte Woodcarvers clubthat meets on Tuesdays at Cathcart Center,behind Carmel Presbyterian Church. The meetingslast from 5:15 to 7:30 p.m. The organizationhas about 80 members, and 15 to 25meet weekly – men, women and youth – tocarve on various projects. Newsletter, instructionand annual shows of woodcarving. Carvingkits available, and the club provides woodinitially. For information, call Ray Branch at704-544-2417.2048 Carmel RoadGRASS SOD®of CharlotteA DIVISION OF PATTEN SEED COMPANYAlso askabout our...ProfessionalGradeTall FescueGrass SeedLarge or SmallQuantities(704) 525-887312600 Downs CirCle • PinevillePage 22 • Dec. 17-23, 2010 • South Charlotte <strong>Weekly</strong>www.thecharlotteweekly.com
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