GOVERNOR BATTLE ROYALE

Welcome to your deconstruction, Bill White: National press turns to Perry's foe

National media, meet Bill White.

Now that the clash of the Republican titans has finally run its course in the Texas primary, media outlets are beginning to figure out that there's still a good race shaping up for the Texas governor's mansion this fall.

As CNN notes, "Bald, diminutive and soft-spoken, White offers a stark contrast to the swaggering, movie-star-handsome governor. If Rick Perry is a modern-day conservative cowboy, White is a practical-minded accountant, eager to chat about education funding, balancing budgets and the Public Utility Commission of Texas."

CNN compiled White's list of accomplishments and strengths in the race — fiscally conservative credentials, a non-partisan ethos and a record contribution from the Democratic Governors Association. The network also notes that there's a consensus in Texas that believes White is the best Democratic candidate for governor since Ann Richards in 1994.

But the news outlet is far from convinced of White's victory, ending with a quote from SMU political scientist Cal Jillson: "White is going to lose because Texas is still a Republican state. This is not a good year for Democrats. In a different year he might have an outside chance, but I think he probably loses by five to 10 points."

The New York Times also looked at the race shaping up, describing White's campaign as "the gambit in what promises to be an uphill battle against an entrenched incumbent whose party has enjoyed a 10-point advantage in statewide races for more than a decade."

After quoting White admitting he is an underdog, the Times turns to a pair of political scientists parsing the path to victory for each candidate.

“White has got to make a case to fire Rick Perry, to show he’s somehow been negligent, incompetent, corrupt, etc.,” said Daron Shaw of the University of Texas, while David Carney, a political consultant who has worked on Perry’s message, told the Times that "the governor will emphasize Mr. White’s ties to Mr. Obama, whom he supported and advised, and to President Bill Clinton, under whom he served as deputy secretary of energy."

Looks like an interesting race – we can't wait 'til Stephen Colbert puts his two cents in.

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Movie Review

Spine-chilling new horror movie Undertone puts podcaster in jeopardy

Photo courtsy of A24

Nina Kiri in Undertone.

While the horror genre is still capable of producing some innovative filmmaking, most of the output tends to fall back on jump scares and other tropes to deliver their terror. So when a film like the new Undertone tries something different, it should be applauded for the effort, even if it’s not as successful in its execution.

Evy (Nina Kiri) is a podcaster who co-hosts a show called Undertone, which focuses on paranormal videos and sounds they find on the internet. Her co-host, Justin (Adam DiMarco), lives in London, so — for kind of contrived reasons — in order to make the time difference between them work, Evy records at around 3 am her time. Evy — who lives at home with her bedridden, dying mother — is the skeptic of the two, consistently debunking clips that Justin presents to her.

Her doubts are tested when Justin brings in a series of 10 audio clips that purport to be about a boyfriend recording his girlfriend as she talks in her sleep. The audio begins in a lighthearted manner and quickly turns creepy and then sinister as unexplained things start happening. Evy senses that what she’s hearing is bleeding into her own world, especially when inexplicable actions take place in her mother’s bedroom.

Written and directed by first-time feature filmmaker Ian Tuason, the film is effective early on when it introduces the story concept. Making great use of sound design, Tuason essentially puts the audience inside Evy’s head, where every little sound is heightened. Setting the podcast sessions in the middle of the night ups the anxiety level for both her and the audience.

However, as the film goes along it gets a little tedious watching Evy listen to the audio, even as Tuason attempts to keep the film dynamic by moving the camera around her. The premise of the story — progressively going through 10 clips — and Tuason’s framing of shots that focus as much on the background as they do on Evy seem to promise more interesting results than actually transpire.

What ultimately holds the film down more than anything is its lack of different viewpoints. The only other person who’s actually seen is Evy’s mother, who is unable to speak. Evy speaks to Justin, another friend, and a doctor over the course of the story, and while each broadens our understanding of Evy somewhat, none of them make her a truly three-dimensional person. Getting a little more information about her history might have helped the story work better.

Kiri does her level best to vary her acting in the various podcast scenes, and even when they start to get repetitive, she remains compelling and watchable. It’s difficult to judge the other actors based on audio alone, but knowing that DiMarco also starred in season 2 of The White Lotus helps to visualize him and his acting style.

Undertone does well in creating a spine-chilling mood, but it needed something beyond that to become a truly great horror movie. Tuason shows some promise as a filmmaker, especially in the way he uses the camera to create tension, but a more complete story will serve him better the next time around.

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Undertone is now playing in theaters,

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