‘Despicable Me 2’ earns brownie points for pleasant familiarity

by | Jul 6, 2013 | Opinion

The art of the animated sequel is a funny thing. On occasion, we get nearly-eclipsing pieces of beauty that attempt to transcend the genre (the Toy Story sequels). But more often than not, we get mind-numbing bores (Shrek the Third). Easier put, animated sequels are usually hit-or-miss commodities – many unsure of whether or not to expand the first into a larger ballgame or just provide a cruddy copycat of the original. I’m all for animation pushing cinematic boundaries (think Pixar), but sometimes, it’s just fine to offer more of the same. For the folks at Illumination Entertainment, making a follow-up to 2010’s surprise hit Despicable Me could have been a disastrous move. The strikingly original first installment had impeccable animation, heart-warming sentiment, a delicious sense of rapacity and those brilliantly addicting Minions that nearly set the bar for the phrase “implausibly-cute-yet-voraciously-annoying-in-high-doses.” Despicable Me wasn’t high art; it was the best kind of kiddie fun. So, why try to double it? Okay, yes, a sequel was bound to make a boatload of cash, but from a creative standpoint, what was left to say about Gru, his daughters and the Minions? The universe set up in the first was interesting to explore, but a sequel could have tanked the entire formula. There was such a sweet simplicity to the first movie that I didn’t think could be duplicated, thinking that Illumination would just overload on Minions and slapstick to the point of blasting the franchise into oblivion. Thankfully, the animation studio proved me wrong. Despicable Me 2 is the exactly same movie as Despicable Me, and I couldn’t be more...

‘The Lone Ranger’ puts on quite the gallivanting show

by | Jul 3, 2013 | Opinion

Looking back on Disney’s new western revival The Lone Ranger, I’m still under the firm belief that the movie could have just as easily been called Trains, Manes and More Trains, as most of the proceedings either takes place upon a trusty steed or the booming steel of the railroad. In fact, the latest collaboration between megastar Johnny Depp and Pirates of the Caribbean 1-3/Rango director Gore Verbinski is a chugging locomotive of a movie – one that keeps up an effortlessly extravagant, businesslike pace. The latest update on the masked avenger is almost “Pirates goes West”, hitting the same tonal marks of the monstrous at-sea franchise. We get plenty of high-stakes actions sequences, vile villains, playful banter between supporting players and stellar acting from Mr. Depp. But, The Lone Ranger might just weave a better yarn than the three Pirates films combined. Story-wise, John Reid (the wide-eyed Armie Hammer), the goody two shoes district attorney, rides into town upon the budding railway system to visit his brother Dan and family when the train is ambushed by a wretched gang of outlaws looking to free their leader (William Fichtner’s slack-jawed smile Butch Cavendish). During the jaunt, John meets Tonto (Depp), a Native American who is in the same prison car as Butch. Tonto helps John fend off the bad guys, but makes haste as soon as the train derails in stunning fashion. Inspired by his love of justice, John joins up with his brother’s posse to track down Cavendish once and for all and bring him to justice. After a ruthless betrayal, John and company are murdered by the...

Campus Notes – June 20

by | Jun 20, 2013 | News Slider, Sports

Here are some newsworthy links making their way around campus this week. ACADEMICS The Andrews Institute’s Leadership Tennesee program has announced its first students. A variety of camps are being hosted over the summer at Lipscomb. ATHLETICS Baseball player Hunter Brothers was recently drafted in the MLB  Draft’s 24th round by the Colorado Rockies. Madi Talbert was recently named honorable mention All-America for her accomplishments. The women’s basketball team has added a new transfer student from the University of Florida to the program. Cheerleading tryouts will be held on August 20. Construction has begun for a new golf short-game facility in Brentwood for the men’s and women’s golf teams. Five have joined the men’s soccer team. The men’s and women’s track and field teams have announced their team awards for the season. Five members of the track and field team will be competing in the U.S.A. Junior Nationals over the weekend. Have a bit of information that you would like to share with the Lipscomb community? Email us at luminationnetwork@gmail.com. Photo of construction of new golf short-game facility courtesy of Lipscomb...

Lipscomb athletic teams post up passable APRs in recent report

by | Jun 17, 2013 | News Slider, Sports

Lipscomb athletics jumped the hurdle of the NCAA’s APRs last week, with each team having the necessary grades to carry on business as usual. The NCAA’s Academic Progress Rates are assessed each term and pinpoint low academic scores for all NCAA athletes under scholarship. Any team that reaches the point of scoring a 925 or under can incur scholarship loss. Scoring below a 900 can warrant a multitude of other penalties. Lipscomb athletics passed the reports, with no team scoring below a 940. For the second year in a row, women’s tennis led the school with a score of 1000 – the highest obtainable score. The program has had the same score of 1000 since the 2008-2009 report. Below is a chart showing the APRs of all Lipscomb teams, comparing them to last year’s reports. Visit the NCAA APR’s website for a complete history of Lipscomb’s APRs, as well as other NCAA team reports.  TEAM 2011-2012 APR 2010-2011 APR Baseball 940 945 Men’s Basketball 949 975 Men’s Cross Country 986 985 Men’s Golf 941 939 Men’s Soccer 953 970 Men’s Tennis 992 991 Men’s Indoor Track 967 980 Men’s Outdoor Track 978 980 Softball 984 971 Women’s Basketball 987 991 Women’s Cross Country 997 992 Women’s Golf 991 992 Women’s Soccer 970 964 Women’s Tennis 1000 1000 Women’s Indoor Track 992 990 Women’s Outdoor Track 992 990 Women’s Volleyball 989...