Word: actioner
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Dates: during 1990-1999
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...glory and passion that defined U2 in the 1980s is here in full force. Starting with the anthemic "Pride (In The Name Of Love)," their memorial to Martin Luther King, Jr., the album is an emotional ride wrought with equal amounts of politicized calls for action and elegant longings for love. For those people less than enamored with U2's dabbling into electronica, this collection is like coming home to a time when Bono's long hair and earnestness were a comforting alternative to the cold, mechanical music of the 1980s...
...action film taut with suspense, The Siege has also raised the ire of Arab-American groups fuming at yet another portrayal of Arabs as crazed religious zealots and bombers. The Council on American-Islamic Relations has demanded that the religious symbols be removed from the film, fearing another rise in the already prevalent hate crimes against Muslims. Hopefully, once these groups see the film however, they will realize that it makes a concerted and obvious attempt toward the opposite direction and seeks to raise awareness of the dangers of this prominent stereotype...
...Siege as the terrorists blow up a bus full of people, a packed theater on Broadway and threaten a room of schoolchildren. Despite the desperate manhunt being carried on by Hubbard and Bening, the government is forced to react as more people are killed and the public cries for action. In comes General Deveraux, with thousands of soldiers and tanks, blockading the Brooklyn Bridge and sealing off the entire borough of Brooklyn. Martial law is declared and all Arab men are rounded up and sent to concentration camps set up in the city, similar to the way the Japanese were...
Despite a lack of vibrant action scenes, The Siege still manages to keep things interesting. As patience grows short in the city, it seems at first that the city will become Balkanized as Arabs are subject to racial violence, and the police are needed to protect them. Once the Army steps in however, the city begins to bull back together to support the Arab community and to resist what is seen as the heavy hand of the federal government. Those who have decried the film as racist are correct in that yes this is another film about shady Arabs...
...Siegehas many shortfalls, including two-dimensional characters. Some are even incomprehensible, such as the character of Elise Kraft. The climax has potential, but ends up as a typical action stand-off with few deviations. Bruce Willis seems confused, as his character initially warns the government against an army invasion; yet moments later, he has morphed into a power-hungry zealot, relentlessly pursuing all those he views as enemies of the state, Hubbard included. The Siege has its thrills and suspenses, and its big name cast shouldn't fail to lure the crowds, but don't expect much more than...