El Cantante

Though they don't look much alike, slight actor-singer Marc Anthony was born to play robust salsa sensation Héctor Lavoe. In addition to similar ancestry and vocal skills, Anthony has been building a respectable cinematic resume with roles in Big Night and Martin Scorsese's Bringing out the Dead. The title of El Cantante comes from a number Rubén Blades wrote for The Singer. Lavoe would make it his signature song. In the film, Anthony's wife, producer Jennifer Lopez, plays Puchi, the Nuyorican beauty who won Lavoe's heart. She narrates their story from the perspective of 2002 (the real-life Puchi passed away shortly afterwards). Leon Ichaso (Piñero) contrasts Lavoe's rise from Puerto Rican street singer to New York superstar with his fall from innocent immigrant to heroin-addicted ladies man. By the mid-1980s, Lavoe's popularity hit its peak, and Ichaso spends the rest of the time ticking off the tragedies of his final years: the break with trombonist Willie Colón (John Ortiz), stay in a mental ward, etc. It's a dynamic portrait, and Anthony and Lopez work well together, but despite the urban setting and Latin-flavored soundtrack, El Cantante follows virtually the same trajectory as Ray and Walk the Line (Ichaso has also directed biopics of Jimi Hendrix and Muhammad Ali). His movie looks and sounds authentic, but Lavoe's story might've been better served as nonfiction. There's a sense that there was more to the man than what appears on screen. --Kathleen C. Fennessy
Customer Review: El cantante sings!
I loved this movie and I also love JLo and Marc Anthony! I think this movie was underrated. If you are truly interested in Hector Lavoe, you will love it. If you buy it just cause you want to see JLo and Marc, you probably won't like it. They are good in the movie but the story is what made it for me. Of course, it goes without saying, Marc Anthony's voice is supberb!
Customer Review: WONDERFUL....
I rented this film recently and was surprised at how good it was. The story depicts the stormy life and tragic end to the great salsa legend Hector Lavoe. This movie hits you in the heart from the start. It makes you care about the character and his music. I now own a cd of Hector Lavoe and I never knew I could like salsa. Who knew?? His music is amazing and the tragic events of his life makes you want to know the person behind the prose of his songs. My ears know good music when it hears it and this man was a icon. Hector Lavoe.......rest in peace! I'm not much of a fan of Jennifer Lopez but she played a good role. However, another actress (a more popular one) would have made this film more marketable to the non-Hispanic population ( mass audience).

Is copying Apple iPod downloads to your iPod illegal?

The simple answer is no.

The only thing that is illegal is taking copyrighted material that you haven't acquired legitimately - and, of course, distributing copyrighted material that you have acquired legitimately.

You are well within your rights to copy your own music collection onto your computer or your iPod, as long as you don't then copy those files onto your friends computer or iPod.

As for music on the internet there are numerous legal options, including online services that sell individual tracks to download and keep, others offer unlimited access to a music archive in return for either a monthly fee or a one off membership fee,

There are also plenty of Apple iPod downloads that are both legal and free, these include one-off promotions from the major labels, as well as songs from little known musicians or upcoming bands who are more interested in exposure and making a name for themselves than making a profit.

As we've already seen there is nothing the record industry fears more (for obvious reasons) than the uncontrolled distribution of its copyrighted material.

It is difficult (impossible?) to see how the record companies can stop people sharing files they have copied from their own CD's even if the manage to legally kill off the underground file sharing networks.

The major labels do however have a strategy for stopping people freely distributing tracks they have legally purchased.

Its called Digital Rights Management or DRM, it involves embedding special pieces of code into music files (or Apple iPod downloads or other formats for that matter) which digitally impose certain restrictions on what you can do with that file.

Peter Ward writes on a variety of download and digital recording issues. For more information on Apple iPod Downloads visit.... http://www.best-music-download-site.co.uk

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