The Family

Cast

• Robert De Niro as Fred Blake / Giovanni Manzoni
• Michelle Pfeiffer as Maggie Blake
• Tommy Lee Jones
• Dianna Agron as Bella Blake
• John D'Leo as Warren Blake
• Vincent Pastore as Fat Willy
• Joseph Perrino as Joey
• Paul Borghese as Albert
• Jimmy Palumbo as DiCicco
• Kresh Novakovic as Vincenze

Director

• Luc Besson

Screenplay

• Luc Besson
• Michael Caleo

Comedy, Crime, Drama, Thriller

Rated R

Life is tough in the Witness Protection Program. Life is pretty cushy, too, especially if you're the Manzoni family in Luc Besson's "The Family": you get to live in a quaint house in a tiny village in Normandy, you eat well, you have FBI guys stationed across the street 24/7, and you have a personal handler who makes sure that you and your loved ones are safe. The point of being in Normandy for the Manzonis is to somehow "pass" as regular Americans on holiday or sabbatical, and the Manzonis fail to manage this from the start, mainly because they are all raging maniacs. 

"The Family" is a pretty uneven film, lurching from comedy to violence to sentiment, but it's best when it sticks in the realm of flat-out farce. The pleasure comes in watching the actors (Michelle Pfeiffer, in particular) submitting wholeheartedly to ridiculous situations. The film has a mix of influences and genres, obviously, and Besson plays with these and references them openly, but the farcical elements rest uneasily beside the violence, leaving the unmistakeable feeling that this is a film slightly at war with itself. 

When dealing with the family's adjustment (or lack thereof) to small-town French life, it is on sure (and often hilarious) footing. Giovanni Manzoni (Robert De Niro) snitched on his Mafia friends back in the States, and because of that there is now a $20 million price on his head. In exchange for his testimony, he and his family (wife and two teenage kids, Belle and Warren) are placed in the Witness Protection Program, under the control of FBI agent Robert Stansfield (Tommy Lee Jones). Maggie Manzoni (Pfeiffer) is already sick of the life in hiding, and has a tiny habit of blowing stuff up when she gets upset. Of course placing a well-known Mob boss into a tiny village in France doesn't seem like the best strategy for the FBI, because the witness will stick out even more there, but you really can't ask those questions when you watch "The Family." The answers will not hold up under interrogation.

The film opens with the family (Robert De Niro, Michelle Pfeiffer, Dianna Agron, and John D’Leo) driving through the French countryside to yet another hideout since their cover was blown in the Riviera. The two kids loll bored in the back seat, Giovanni tries to tell everyone the new place will be fine, everything will be okay, the dog gets blamed for the bad smell in the car (when actually it is the stink of a dead corpse in the trunk, hidden there by Giovanni on his way out of Nice). This opening scene contains everything that is good and pleasurable about the film: watching Pfeiffer and De Niro act with one another, the weird juxtaposition of violence and everyday family matters, the family's anxiety at being in France when they'd rather be in Brooklyn. You are lulled into a false sense that you understand what is going on here—that the father, Giovanni Manzoni (Robert De Niro) is the "wise guy," and his family is just along for the ride. But the next couple of scenes explode that sense of safety (literally) as you realize that all of them, all four of them, are out of their minds.

Belle and Warren size up their new small-town school and promptly begin to wreak havoc among their peer group. In a matter of days, Warren has taken over 50% of the blackmarket cigarette business, as well as the prescription pill business, and when he is told by a teacher that his conduct has been poor, he says he wants a lawyer. On her first day, Belle accepts a ride home with four French guys who tell her they want to "practice their English," and when she realizes that maybe they want more from her, she beats one of the guys to a pulp with a tennis racket. Played by "Glee"'s Dianna Argon, Belle is a creepy character, gorgeous and innocent, but when she falls in love with her math tutor, you can't get the image of her smashing the tennis racket into another human being's face out of your mind. Meanwhile, Warren and Belle's parents are oblivious to what's happening in their children's lives. Giovanni thinks he might try his hand at a memoir, not a smart move for someone who is supposed to be in hiding. Maggie visits a local church, trying to re-connect to her faith.  Tommy Lee Jones shows up now and then to say it's hard to protect them if they insist on breaking the plumber's legs because he can't fix the pipes.

De Niro could play this role in his sleep, but he's fun to watch, especially in the scenes with Pfeiffer, and when his power is demeaned by his family's shenanigans. In one awesome sequence, the curator of a local film group calls up Giovanni and asks if he wouldn't come to their next meeting to have a nice debate on a great American film, Vincente Minnelli's "Some Came Running" (starring Frank Sinatra as an aspiring writer with a tormented past). Against the advice of Stansfield, Giovanni accepts. The head of the film society tells him they were sent "Goodfellas" by mistake, so maybe the visiting American would have something to say about that? Boy, does he ever. It's a giant wink to the audience, an inside joke, as we are treated to the bizarre vision of Robert De Niro as Giovanni Manzoni watching Robert De Niro as Jimmy in "Goodfellas."

Pfeiffer's performance is the reason to see the film, though. Calling back her show-stopping turn in "Married to the Mob," her Maggie is both supportive and bored out of her mind, yearning towards her old Catholic faith but unrepentant about blowing stuff up. She cooks at the stove, her hair in gigantic curlers. She kneels in church, praying to Jesus with earnest eyes. Pfeiffer has been very good in dramatic material, but she might be a comedienne at heart. There's one scene near the end of "The Family" where events are coming to a boil, buildings are exploding, and she crawls across the floor as quickly as she can clutching a gigantic kitchen knife. Her eyes are manic, wild, and yet also focused, like an assassin's. 

Luc Besson has built a career on stylish and thrilling action films, and "The Family" is a mess compared to such earlier efforts as "Le Femme Nikita" and "Léon: The Professional." But for what it is, it works, while reminding us and again to not take it too seriously.

Legend of Korra

The Legend of Korra Season Two Premiere Recap: Rebel Spirits/The Southern Lights

Korra, welcome to “college.”

Book One of The Legend of Korra was a lot like high school. Our teen hero owned her identity, formed strong bonds, learned what the worst type of people looked like, and pursued goals that required the hardest fights of her life. By the finale's closing credits, Korra had taken out Amon and restored balance to Republic City by finally entering the “Avatar State.” She graduated.

And like post-grad life, the actual discoveries and hardships had yet to come.

The first two episodes of Book 2: Spirits move like lightning, catapulting the story ahead six months and cluing us into the Avatar version of summer vacation. Bolin is still duking it out in the Pro-Bending arena, with a makeshift Fire Ferrets worthy of the Bad News Bears; Mako is a hotshot cop, patrolling the streets of Republic City on assignment from Lin Beifong; With her inventor father in jail, Asami is testing planes and formulating a plan to restore Future Industries to its former self; And then there's Korra, burnt out from her summer school airbending lessons with Tenzin. Airball racing with 7-year-olds is a lot more fun than studying. “The Avatar State is not to be used as a booster rocket!” Tenzin complains. Like many 17-year-olds, Korra is aching to leave home.

So is the show. While Book One took its time to soak in the evolved setting, as much an origin story for Korra as it was the Roaring '20s-inspired Republic City, Book Two whisks the ensemble away without looking back. It's hard to imagine the story circling back (so savor that name drop, Beifong fans). What aren't disappearing are the relationships. Korra and Mako are still an item, and “Rebel Spirits” plants the seeds for that romance to be tested. When complaining about Tenzin's overbearing ways, Mako can't help see eye-to-eye with the mentor. Bad move, bro. Korra stomps off, and while it's a minor quibble, her transitionary phase over this season will only add more pressure to the relationship.

Running with our extended metaphor, the airbender clan's vacation to the Southern Water Tribe is the exciting, terrifying college drop-off scenario. Korra's family is even around for the event; writers Michael Dante DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko introduce us to a slew of new characters in rapid fire succession. James Remar (aka Dexter's Dad) plays Tonraq, the teenage Avatar's Dad and patriarch of the tribe. Before he can get two words in, Tonraq's brother Chief Unalaq (Adrian LaTourelle, Officer Craft on Sons of Anarchy) arrives from the North. He's a traditionalist; while everyone in the South is partying into the night at the Glacier Spirits Festival, Unalaq bemoans the peoples' lack of spiritual connection. “This festival used to be a solemn time of fasting and meditation.” Remind me not to bring this guy to secular Christmas.

For Korra, Unalaq is that college professor who waxes intellectually at just the right moment in life. He cares about deep thoughts, not just the grind of learning. His connection to the Spirit World also calls Korra into action. Turns out, demon-like specters from the other plane of existence are intruding into this world and attacking people. If Korra is going to beat them, she has to ditch Tenzin and her father for Unalaq's Spirits 101. Tonraq urges her to stick with Tenzin, which may be the right decision (a testament to the animators, who can make a cartoon character silently weight options). What to do? “I support whatever decision you make.” Thanks a lot, Mako.

When a spirit attacks the Southern Water Tribe, Korra realizes how little she knows. The spindly beast rampages through the snow, every element Korra bends its way hitting it like raindrops. Compared to the martial arts precision of Korra's first fight in Book One, her encounter with the spirit lacks fluidity — as it should. It's a set piece where chaos and fear are more important than thrills. It frazzles Korra, forcing her to say goodbye to Tenzin for the only sensible option: Unalaq.

There isn't much time for comedy or auxiliary characters in the back-to-back episodes, even for folks like Bolin and Asami. Their subplot with Varrick, an eccentric businessman with a love for the moving pictures, keeps the vibe of the '20s era setting alive and injects a bit of levity into the serious, aggressive plotting. Whether the sidetracked scenes are an effort to feed material to Bolin voice actor P.J. Byrne is yet to be seen, but it's funny enough justify it. “He gave me this fancy snowsuit … if I get lost, I can survive in this thing for a month!” Same goes for Bolin's new “girlfriend” Eska, voiced by Aubrey Plaza and her signature deadpan. The ball is in Bolin's court to top "Why are you initiating physical contact with another woman?" as the line of the season.

Episode Two acts as a swift road trip to a greater conflict. Unalaq wants to train Korra in Spiritual meditation at the South Pole, where an “Everstorm” clouds a portal directly to the spirit world. If Korra can gain access to the portal, she can balance light and dark, and quell the angered beasts. Simple enough.

Along the way, Tonraq drops a bomb that only drives Korra further under Unalaq's wing. As a younger man, he was banished by the Northern Water Tribe. During an attack on their village, Tonraq and his army drove barbarians back to a sacred forest hideout, a land ripe with spiritual activity. Thirsty for blood, Tonraq swept the land anyway, destroying both man and nature. The spirits rightfully retaliated. It's all very Thor like.

Cutting through the murky mythology filling episode two are the many spirits Team Avatar encounter and dispel along the way.  DiMartino and Konietzko let their imaginations run wild here; its a Kaiju parade with beasts that mirror velociraptors, Stich from Lilo & Stich, and The Maxx. It's weird, it's wonderful, it's perilous for a freshman like Korra.

Korra manages to break through the ice, and the setup of Book Two, with ease. “The Southern Lights” caps with plenty of balls in the air: When Korra opens the spirit portal, she triggers a connection to an Avatar bust stored in the Sothern Air Temple. At the same time, Tenzin's daughter Jinora stumbles upon decrepit, wooden statue. Whatever effect breaking through to the spirit world will have — and if Ghostbusters has taught us anything about ghost-filled jets of light shooting into the sky, it could have consequences — Jinora and the Avatar lineage will tie to it.

Even more terrifying is Unalaq's bigger scheme. He wants to put the Southern Water Tribe back in touch with their spiritual side, but judging his fleet of Northern Water Tribe warships, he's OK doing it by force. The look in Korra's eyes is that what-did-I-sign-up for look. Another college staple.

Odds & Ends: 

* The opening newsreel mentions that Republic City elected their first President. Democracy for all! Political history buffs, go to town on that one.

* "Looks like you had some car trouble. Good thing the police are here." Mako, you've done CSI: Miami proud.

* Bumi and Kya, Tenzin's brother and sister, are great additions to the show, and one can only hope for more of their family dynamic. Tenzin did not have a great childhood, and we see that in the eyes of Katara, their mother.

* In other relatable emotions: Tonraq jabbing Mako for dating his daughter and the scared-as-hell look on his face was priceless. If their relationship isthrown a loop, Tonraq may be knocking at Mako's door (or giving him a pep talk, seeing as he doesn't have a father of his own).

* I could hear GIF-makers rejoicing at the appearance of dancing Otter Penguins.

* A nice little nod to Avatar: The Last Airbender at the Glacier Festival carnival. Aang water contest, stuffed Appa prizes.

* Both episodes embrace a radical style of camerawork, which must be painstaking for the guys drawing every frame. It's loose, like a handheld news camera. I don't know if it works in the technology-vacant world outside Republic City, but I appreciate the experiment.

* Eska and her twin brother Desna ice shoeing down a slippery slope is the new penguin sledding. Their complete disinterest in life makes it a thousand times better.

Insidious 2

‘Insidious: Chapter 2′ Review

Insidious: Chapter 2 picks up right where chapter 1 ended, with Renai Lambert (Rose Byrne) discovering the corpse of murdered medium Elise Rainier (Lin Shaye), with her husband Josh Lambert seemingly the culprit. After a police investigation fails to connect the fingerprints that strangled Elise to Josh, the Lamberts are set free to return to life as normal – only normality never comes, as more supernatural occurrences begin to plague Renai and her once-comatose son, Dalton (Ty Simpkins), with Josh oblivious to it all in his militant insistence that the family get back to normal.
Meanwhile, Elise’s former assistants Specs (Leigh Whannell) and Tucker (Angus Sampson) recruit a veteran medium named Carl (Steve Coulter) to help contact their former mentor and solve the case of who murdered her. However, as the team digs into Elise’s death, they quickly find connections to Josh Lambert and the entities haunting him, getting closer to a dark truth that spans time and space, life and death.




James Wan is, by now, an established name in the horror genre, and he’s enjoyed recent horror movie success thanks to his summer hit The Conjuring. However, Insidious was a much more divisive movie in terms of fan reception, and that stigma – combined with high expectations based on Wan’s other 2013 horror entry – are likely going to challenge Insidious: Chapter 2 in regards to viewer satisfaction. Harder still will be the adjustment as viewers realize that Wan has less interest and re-heating old Insidious ghost-story leftovers, and instead uses the sequel to truly expanded the mythos of his characters and world, ultimately creating something that is more akin to The Shining.
While Chapter 2 does include a few effectively creepy signature Wan scare sequences, the majority of the film is dedicated to laying out a two-handed narrative (once again co-written by Wan and Whannell). On the one hand we get a Shining-style psychological thriller centered on the Lambert household; on the other hand, a supernatural horror-mystery revolving around Elise’s team and their investigation into the history of the ghostly old woman who killed Elise.

Whether or not those two plot threads appease fan expectations, Wan and Whannell do an effective job of using the first film to create an intriguing and tense (if not scary) second chapter, which does what so many other “Chapter 2″ pieces fail to: expand upon a self-contained story in an intriguing and smart way, making creative and logical use of all the various elements of the first film while tweaking and evolving those ideas in new ways. Taken altogether, Insidious parts 1&2 form a complete unbroken story whose various threads weave together into a logical and cohesive whole – one that even offers a few twists, and juggles powder keg plot devices like time-travel with a clarity and focus that is impressive. Just seeing the whole saga come together is worth a theater ticket price – a rarity in horror movie storytelling.
Wan’s directorial imagination is as keen as ever – even when it’s not being used to terrify at rapid-fire pace. The changed setting (now located in Josh’s childhood home) is more ominous, the visual palette is more dismal and dreary – and as stated, there are still those set pieces and sequences throughout the film that will give you chills. It may be fewer chills than you want or expect from a horror film like this, but they’re memorable enough to make the overall experience worthwhile.

The cast are given new angles and arcs to play out in this second chapter. Without spoiling anything, Wan’s “muse” Patrick Wilson is given something much more dynamic than his usual straight-man role and does fairly well with it – even if he fails to reach that Nicholson “Jack Torrance” level of slow-burn mania. Byrne, by comparison, does a better Shelly Duvall, blending matriarchal concern with wide-eyed naiveté – though that sort of character feels a bit outdated in modern context.
Supporting characters like young Dalton (Simpkins) Josh’s mom Lorraine (Barbara Hershey), and ghost-hunters Specs (Whannell) and Tucker (Sampson) are given expanded roles and all manage to create more interesting and essential characters than we saw in the first film. Coulter quickly and concisely establishes Carl as a solid and likable exposition tool, and Lin Shaye (Something About Mary) is a welcome sight again, even in her small cameo role.

As stated, by the time the third act of the film rolls around – and Wan truly goes for broke with his Shining homage -  we’re left with a movie that has plenty of narrative meat and good tension – but not that many scares, per se. Then again, horror movie scares are always a subjective (and very divisive) thing, so maybe it’s for the best that Wan and Co. focus instead on providing us with a fun ride of intrigue and suspense, instead of trying emphasize the horror build-up/pay-off catharsis. Insidious: Chapter 2 has a lot of moving parts, and on the whole they are arranged into a proper and fitting closing arc to one of the more memorable horror movie tales of the last few years.
Is it the next Conjuring? No. But even while working at a slightly lower level, Wan’s prowess as a storyteller and director in this more interesting and well-plotted second chapter may ironically end up luring in those who weren’t even onboard with Insidious in the first place. Proof positive that there is benefit in not making your “Part 2″ a “Part 1 Redux.”

Mayweather vs Canelo

Floyd Mayweather vs. Canelo Alvarez to have weighty issues, big money

Photo credit: AP Photo John Locher | Boxers Floyd Mayweather, left, and Canelo Alvarez pose during a press conference in Las Vegas. The pair are scheduled to fight on Saturday for Mayweather's WBA Super World and Alvarez's WBC junior middleweight titles. (Sept. 11, 2013)

LAS VEGAS -- Listen to Floyd Mayweather Jr.'s people and Canelo Alvarez wanted to fight their man so badly he offered to drop a few pounds to get him to sign on the dotted line.

Listen to the Alvarez camp and Mayweather wanted the fight at an even lower weight that Alvarez would have to starve himself to make.

"The truth," promoter Richard Schaefer says, "lies somewhere in the middle."

Weight is always a big deal in fights, and it is center stage again in one of the biggest fights in recent years. Saturday night's megafight is officially for a version of the 154-pound title held by Alvarez, but will be fought at a catch weight of 152 pounds that will be harder for Alvarez to make than it is for Mayweather.

"They're the ones who said they would fight at a lower weight," said Leonard Ellerbe, Mayweather's manager. "We can't help it Alvarez has idiots for managers, but we're going to take every advantage they give us."

Alvarez is a full-fledged junior middleweight and has been for more than three years now. He's physically bigger at 5-foot-9 than Mayweather and has had to lose good amounts of weight in the final days in some of his recent fights just to get to the 154-pound class limit.

But when the chance came to move in to the upper stratosphere of fighters against Mayweather -- with at least a $5 million payday attached to it -- Alvarez had to give up a few pounds against a fighter more used to fighting at 147 pounds.

"They wanted me to go to 147," Alvarez said earlier this week when he said he was already down to 154 pounds. "I said that was physically impossible. Then they wanted 150 and then 151. I wanted to make the fight so I agreed to 152. Then they forced me to be quiet about it."

Alvarez was 152 pounds at the official weigh-in Friday, delighting a raucous crowd of about 12,000 who packed the MGM Arena to watch. Mayweather weighed in at 150½.

Getting an advantage is nothing new to Mayweather. He does it in the ring with his tremendous skills to adapt, and he does it outside the ring by playing with his opponent's mind. For Mayweather, making Alvarez think constantly in training about making 152 pounds may have been more important than the actual weight itself.

"There's a thousand different ways I can beat a guy," Mayweather said.

Oddsmakers in this gambling town believe Mayweather will find one of those ways when he takes on the undefeated Mexican star in what could be boxing's richest fight ever. He's a 2½-1 favorite against a bigger and presumably stronger fighter who will probably rehydrate to enter the ring 10 pounds heavier than Mayweather, though those are the shortest odds for a Mayweather fight in years.

The fight, which also features a much anticipated 140-pound title bout between Danny Garcia and Lucas Matthysse, will be televised on pay-per-view at a suggested cost of $74.95.

Mayweather will earn the biggest purse ever for a fighter, $41.5 million guaranteed with even more millions to come if the pay-per-view takes off. Early indications are that the fight will be one of the biggest in years, with celebrities who usually get free tickets even offering to pay for ringside seats at the MGM Grand hotel that first sold at $2,000 and now are being offered for as much as $29,000.

The live gate itself will be $20 million and the pay-per-view could bring in another $150 million in a fight featuring the reigning king of pay-per-view against the biggest sports hero in Mexico.

"He's put the sport on his back," Ellerbe said of Mayweather, whose earnings for the year will total at least $73 million. "Boxing is a niche sport, but the highest-paid athlete in the world is a boxer."

The fight will be missing Oscar De La Hoya, who co-promoters Alvarez and is his biggest cheerleader. De La Hoya admitted himself to rehab earlier in the week, but not before sharing some secrets with his protege on how to beat a fighter who defeated him in a narrow split decision in 2007.

Alvarez said De La Hoya told him to use the jab and use it constantly. He also stressed the mental part of fighting, telling his charge that he had to not allow anything to bother him in the ring or out.

"I've always said that to be the best you have to fight the best," said Alvarez, whose last fight against previously unbeaten Austin Trout drew 40,000 to the Alamodome in San Antonio. "That's why I'm here."

Alvarez is 42-0-1 in a pro career that began at age 15 in his home state of Jalisco in Mexico. He's a big puncher who has 30 knockouts and he's passed every test along the way in moving into big money fights in the last few years. But he's never fought anyone like Mayweather, and he's never fought on kind of big stage he will Saturday night.

For the elusive Mayweather it's just another night to shine, another big payday to fund his lavish lifestyle. He's got four more fights after Alvarez on a lucrative deal with Showtime, but he's now 36 and his days in the ring are numbered. There will almost surely be no fight with Manny Pacquiao, so the hard-punching Alvarez may be as good as an opponent as he will see the rest of his career.

"I've got a lot more experience than he has at this level and that's going to be a key," Mayweather said. "I feel like I'm the last of my breed. I earned it the hard way."

NASCAR

New NASCAR rules aim to end teamwork on track

Sanctioning body now prohibits drivers giving up or asking for position help during race

JOLIET, Ill. – In the midst of its biggest credibility crisis since Dale Earnhardt's death in 2001, NASCAR held a closed-door meeting with drivers and team executives on Saturday to outline rules changes it hopes will help better define what is and is not allowable during a race and restore the public's faith in the sport.

On the eve of NASCAR's playoff opener at Chicagoland Speedway, drivers woke up Saturday morning and still did not know what is legal and what is not in terms of helping another car during a race after the fallout from last week's controversial finish at Richmond International Raceway.

They may have a better idea now.

NASCAR officials, led by CEO Brian France and President Mike Helton, ordered the drivers to run all-out in hopes of getting a good finish.

"Run 100% all the time and you don't have to worry about it," driver Michael McDowell told USA TODAY Sports after the meeting. "That was the gist of it. They said, 'There are lots of things that happen during the race where you have to save fuel or save your stuff. We get that. We're not looking to hammer anybody. Just race 100%. Don't mess with the finish.' "

GORDON: Added to Chase field, worried for sport's integrity

But the finish was messed with one week ago, when the Chase for the Sprint Cup 12-driver field was supposed to be set in the season's 26th and final regular-season event.

A suspiciously-timed spin by Clint Bowyer with seven laps remaining set off a sequence of events that has crippled NASCAR's public image.

Bowyer and Michael Waltrip Racing teammate Brian Vickers were found to have given up spots under team orders so that another driver, Penske Racing's Joey Logano, would make the top 10 of the points standings. By doing so, Logano did not need to use one of two wild card entries for the Chase – and MWR driver Martin Truex Jr. got it instead.

CONTROVERSY: NASCAR expands Chase field, adds Gordon

NASCAR reviewed in-race radio chatter and video and determined the fix was in at MWR. NASCAR levied the largest penalty in the sport's history – it

docked all three MWR drivers 50 points, fined MWR $300,000, suspended team general manager Ty Norris indefinitely and removed Truex Jr. from the field, replacing him with Ryan Newman.

As the week went on, more questionable radio chatter emerged between Penske and Front Row Motorsports. NASCAR reacted Friday by giving Jeff Gordon – a victim of the chicanery – an unprecedented 13th spot in the Chase.

To prevent similar actions during the Chase, though, NASCAR decided to implement immediate changes to its rulebook with a Saturday afternoon technical bulletin to teams.

Among the changes:

--A new rule will require drivers to race "at 100% of their ability with the goal of achieving their best possible finishing position in an event." That means no more deal-making, giving up a position for a teammate or "artificially altering" the finish of a race. Any driver or team engaging in such behavior – which could include intentional cautions or pulling off the track to give an advantage to another competitor – is subject to penalty.

--Digital radios may no longer be used on the spotters' stand. Spotters have communicated on a private channel with the team and crew chief – outside of the driver and public's earshot – in addition to the analog radio any fan can hear on a personal scanner. That led to deals being orchestrated from high above the track; those can no longer be done in secret.

--Only one spotter per car can be present on the spotters' stand. This affects teams such as Penske Racing, whose team owner Roger Penske has been a frequent presence alongside the spotters. To help enforce the policy, NASCAR is installing a camera on every roof.

--NASCAR will make a change to its restart rules, which will be announced during Sunday's pre-race drivers meeting.

"I think we wanted it to be very clear, and we wanted to reinforce the cornerstone of NASCAR, which is giving your all," France said. "The extent that other factors got in the way of that, we want to eliminate those factors and deal with it going forward.

"This is what they (the drivers) want. They don't like team rules and they don't like some of the things that have gone on in the past."

GALLERY: Richmond's final laps in photos

Clint Bowyer (15) set off a chain reaction of controversy when he spun out late in Saturday night's Sprint Cup race at Richmond International Raceway. NASCAR found that Bowyer and Michael Waltrip Racing teammate Brian Vickers manipulated the outcome under team orders. Bowyer, Vickers and teammate Martin Truex Jr. were each docked 50 points, and Michael Waltrip Racing was fined a NASCAR-record $300,000.  Peter Casey, USA TODAY Sports

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During the 17-minute private meeting – media was kept 100 yards away from the door by security personnel – France was said to be very angry in telling the drivers how they had damaged NASCAR's credibility. He read samples from news coverage of the Richmond fallout.

"Circumstances happened that are unhelpful in the credibility category. There's no doubt about that," France said after Saturday's meeting.

Drivers were allowed to ask questions during the meeting – for example: is pushing a teammate to the win at Talladega Superspeedway, one of the Chase tracks, still legal? – and most left quickly afterward via golf cart without comment.

GLUCK: NASCAR's call may forever harm sport's integrity

Front Row Motorsports driver David Ragan said NASCAR would more clearly define the "dos and don'ts" going forward.

"They're going to pay attention to how races can be manipulated when maybe they didn't focus on that in years past," he told USA TODAY Sports. "I think we already knew (what not to do), but they're just going to watch it a little closer."

McDowell said he was pleased with the outcome of the meeting because the amount of variables that happen during a race make rules enforcement "a moving target."

"I wouldn't want to be on their side of the fence either," he said. "There are a lot of things that are going on and it's hard to make judgment calls by the seat of your pants right there. In racing, it's hard to define clear lines."

Crew chief Paul Wolfe, who guides the No. 2 Ford of reigning Cup champion Brad Keselowski, said: "I think everyone should have a pretty clear understanding of what that (line) is now.

"If you go out there and run 100% to your ability and run a normal race, then everything will be fine."

Seven-time NASCAR champion Richard Petty, who co-owns Richard Petty Motorsports, said NASCAR "didn't come with nothing new."

"They didn't change any rules or anything," he said. "They just said, 'Do what's right and everything will work out OK.' Everybody knows what's right. And sometimes, we don't do what's right."

Helton said Saturday marked "Day 1 of this phase of NASCAR" and said it was the responsibility of the garage to provide better regulation for the fans.

Added France: "My hope is we'll have greater clarity and we'll have that line as bright as possible because we're about delivering for our fans what they expect – and that's the best racing."

THE CHASE FIELD

1. Matt Kenseth, 2,015; 2. Jimmie Johnson, 2,012; 3. Kyle Busch, 2,012; 4. Kevin Harvick, 2,006; 5. Carl Edwards, 2,006; 6. Joey Logano, 2,003; 7. Greg Biffle, 2,003; 8. Clint Bowyer, 2,000; 9. Dale Earnhardt Jr., 2,000; 10. Kurt Busch, 2,000; 11. Kasey Kahne, 2,000; 12. Ryan Newman, 2,000; 13. Jeff Gordon, 2,000.