Collegiate Times

LISTEN

: KICK ASS: MUSIC FROM THE MOTION PICTURE

While Kick Ass doesn’t contain many memorable original scores, it does have a soundtrack that appeals to various tastes.

The film’s theme “Stand Up” by The Prodigy is a perfect fit for the film’s hero, a no-name kid turned vigilante who suddenly finds himself adored by millions.

Possibly the best track on the CD is Mika’s and RedOne’s collaborative track “Kick Ass.” The song begins strong as Mika seems to channel the vocals of Freddie Mercury at points and the lyrics reflect one of the messages of the film:
Individuals are capable of causing drastic positive change.

The Kick Ass soundtrack truly kicks ass and gets five bandages out of five.

READ:

"THE HUNGER GAMES" BY SUZANNE COLLINS

Part one of a trilogy, The Hunger Games feels like a mix between George Orwell’s famous “1984” and Koushun Takami’s cult classic “Battle Royale.” The story is set in a futuristic United States renamed “Panem” which has suffered a second civil war. The country is split into 12 (13 if you count the one that was obliterated) districts circling the capitol.

Each year, every district must send two children to compete in the Hunger Games, a gladiatorial battle to the death, as a way of the capitol saying, “Hey districts, remember that time we kicked your collective asses? Don’t do it again.”

The book is sold as a young adult novel, and the reading is far from difficult, about the same level as Harry Potter. Despite this, it is far from a children’s book. The subject matter can be mature at times and Collins successfully demonstrates true emotional distress as the main character, Katniss Everdeen, has to cope with the pressures of being expected to kill 23 other people in order to survive.

The action is well-paced, but there are a few dull moments, like the literally — and figuratively — forced romance segments. The end also suffers from feeling too much like a rushed segue into a sequel, most likely because it is.

The book’s shortcomings are few though.

“The Hunger Games” receives four out of five loaves of bread.

PLAY:

ALIEN SWARM

Alien Swarm is a relatively new third-person shooter for the PC published by Valve. It draws heavily on the often-replicated struggle of a crack team of Space Marines pitted against a seemingly unending hive of razor-clawed aliens.

The flavor draws strongly on the quintessential Space Marine film, “Aliens,” and innumerable books and short stories.

Alien Swarm’s strength lies in its ability to pay homage without feeling like a direct rip-off.

The game itself is a squad-based shooter. The player controls a Space Marine, specializing as either a sergeant, special weapons officer, medic or technician, from a top-down view. Gameplay relies heavily on teamwork as each player uses his or her special talents to navigate the labyrinthine colony.

One aspect of the game, drawn from Aliens, is the motion detector. When aliens are approching you will hear the tell-tale “ping” as they get closer, before you can actually see anything. This sets a wonderfully suspenseful mood.

One downside to the game, as any gamer can attest to, is the significant lack of teamwork found when playing with strangers. The game was definitely meant to play with friends online or on a LAN as opposed to public servers with random players.

Despite a few flaws, this game is actually a gem. Count in the fact that it is available absolutely free via Valve’s Steam platform (http://store.steampowered.com).

This game receives four spent bullet casings out of five.

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A version of this article appeared in the Aug 31 issue of the Collegiate Times.