CliqueClack

Casper’s Halloween Special scares up fun all year

I know what you’re probably thinking out there in CliqueClack Land. Is this chick really reviewing Casper’s Halloween Special in May? Isn’t that an offense worse than wearing white after Labor Day or leaving the Christmas lights up on the roof all year-round? To the naysayers, I argue Halloween is a lifestyle. There are some of us who actually count down all year until the holiday. In case you were wondering, there are exactly 175 days left until Halloween 2014 (which is on a Friday this year – let the parties commence!).

The truth is I didn’t receive this DVD to review from the Warner Archive Collection until after Halloween was already over. But it’s no matter to me that Memorial Day is the next calendar holiday. I still found Casper’s special fun and I’m happy I watched it this week. Produced by Hanna-Barbera, Casper’s Halloween Special was a television special that aired on NBC on October 30, 1979. It is alternately known as Casper Saves Halloween and Casper the Friendly Ghost: He Ain’t Scary, He’s Our Brother. The Warner Archive Collection released the film on DVD last October, and as a special holiday bonus, the DVD also includes the 1972 special The Thanksgiving That Almost Wasn’t, also produced by Hanna-Barbera. Both animated specials are less than a half-hour in length.

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The software doesn’t need to dress properly, but the boss certainly should

Recently I had an interview.

I shaved and showered and groomed, put on a nice pair of tan trousers with a dark gray long-sleeved shirt and a just-this-side-of-interesting tie to pull the two together. I tucked and belted and tied and checked to make certain nothing seemed out-of-place and grabbed my suit coat. Then? It was out the door I went to the interview.

Now, I could have sloughed it. I could have opted for a completely decent pair of jeans and matched them up with a nice shirt and casual shoes, an ensemble that would have looked proper but not quite “dressed up” dressed up, if you follow me.

I could very well have gone in the opposite direction, too, since it wasn’t a formal interview. I mean … it was just a meet and greet with a recruiter-in-the-know — I could have done myself up on the better side of casual because, after all, it wasn’t the recruiter I was trying to impress. Right?

Wrong. Dressing properly was required. Necessary. Because the situation called for it. It was called for by the tried and true statement “You don’t get a second chance to make a first impression.” Proper attire conveys several things. It shows respect to the person you’re meeting, it puts forward an atmosphere of “business” at the introduction. It reflects you and your attitude, especially at an initial meeting. You’re not auditioning for class dunce after all. Impressions, remember?

Understand as well it works both ways. Take for instance the Microsoft Windows commercial currently being aired on television spots nationwide: Why the creators of the piece feel the need to spurn the no-brainer (one would think) first impression logic and common sense is beyond me. Continue reading 'The software doesn’t need to dress properly, but the boss certainly should' »

Peter and the Starcatcher is delightfully absurd

Most people these days, I imagine, are familiar with Peter Pan in some form. Peter first made an appearance in a section of The Little White Bird, a 1902 novel for adults written by J.M. Barrie. Peter then took to the stage in 1904 as the star of his own show, and the play was adapted into a novel which was published in 1911.

Peter Pan has lived on in countless stage, movie and television productions, most notably the stage/TV version starring Mary Martin and the classic Disney animated movie. The musical is still touring today with Cathy Rigby starring as “the boy who wouldn’t grow up.” But where did Peter Pan come from? How did he meet Captain Hook and Wendy Darling?

Those were the questions posed by writer Ridley Pearson’s daughter one morning, so he and Dave Barry came up with their version of Peter Pan’s origin story with the novel Peter and the Starcatchers (which went on to become a five-book series). The book proved to be popular enough for Disney to take an interest, but instead of going the CG animation route their theatrical division came on board and developed the story for the Broadway stage (and dropped the plural of the title along the way).

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Beyond the Wall: Do the changes really matter?

A week after Game of Thrones provided a look in the world of the White Walkers in a level of a detail that author George R. R. Martin’s series hasn’t yet provided. We have been exploring the myriad changes that producers David Benioff and DB Weiss have made to the story throughout the adaptation, but the scene with the White Walkers is the standout example that Season Four has seen the most changes.

But before we jump into that, our usual SPOILER WARNINGS. Beyond the Wall is a column written by those who’ve read the books for those who have read the books. So if you didn’t react to Petyr’s introduction of Alayne with, “wait, niece?” then this post isn’t for you. Continue reading 'Beyond the Wall: Do the changes really matter?' »

Damian Wayne is back in the ‘Son of Batman’ Blu-ray

I miss Damian Wayne. The biological son of Bruce Wayne, Damian started off as a cocky, elitist and blood thirsty kid raised by ninjas until coming to Gotham to take over the title of Robin alongside his father. Despite being what I can only really describe as “a little shit,” there’s something endearing about the kid. The more he worked with other members under his father’s symbol, the more he saw the positives to his father’s idea of justice. Arguably the best moments of Damian in the comics come from his partnership with Dick Grayson once Dick became Batman, but I also love the family-friendly comic Li’l Gotham. Unfortunately, that comic ended in December and Damian was killed off over a year ago in the current comic canon. Personally I don’t think it was handled very well (Robin deaths rarely are) and it’s telling that there are already rumors of him being brought back to life one way or the other in the next year. Until then, we have his origin in Son of Batman, the newest Warner Bros. Animation feature. Continue reading 'Damian Wayne is back in the ‘Son of Batman’ Blu-ray' »

Get your free pass to see UFOTOG at the Seattle Sci-Fi Film Festival

Director Douglas Trumbull’s new experimental sci-fi adventure UFOTOG will be screening at the Seattle Sci-Fi Film Festival Sunday, May 11 at 12:30 PM, 3:00 PM and 5:30 PM, and CliqueClack has complimentary passes good for any screening!

UFOTOG is a ten-minute technology demonstration of a 4K 3D movie shot at 120 frames per second. Directed by Academy Award winner Douglas Trumbull and produced at Trumbull Studios, this experimental sci-fi adventure demonstrates Trumbull’s new process called MAGI; a new cinematic language that invites the audience to experience a powerful sense of immersion and impact not possible using conventional 24FPS or 3D standards.

UFOTOG will premiere at Paul Allen’s iconic Seattle Cinerama Theater as the headlining event at the festival.

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Win passes to see Godzilla in Baltimore or DC

This offer is now closed. Winners will be notified by email. Stay connected to CliqueClack on Twitter, Facebook and Google+ for contest alerts, news and reviews.

CliqueClack has partnered with Warner Brothers Pictures to offer readers in the Baltimore and DC areas an opportunity to attend an advance screening of the eagerly anticipated Godzilla starring Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Ken Watanabe, Elizabeth Olsen, Juliette Binoche, Sally Hawkins, David Strathairn, and Bryan Cranston.

The world’s most revered monster is reborn as Warner Bros. Pictures and Legendary Pictures unleash the epic action adventure Godzilla. From visionary new director Gareth Edwards (Monsters) comes a powerful story of human courage and reconciliation in the face of titanic forces of nature, when the awe-inspiring Godzilla rises to restore balance as humanity stands defenseless.

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Win free passes to see Jon Favreau’s Chef in Boston

All passes have been claimed. Stay connected to CliqueClack on Twitter, Facebook and Google+ for contest alerts, news and reviews.

CliqueClack has partnered with Open Road Films to offer readers in the Boston area an opportunity to attend an advance screening of the new comedy Chef starring Jon Favreau, Sofia Vergara, John Leguizamo, Bobby Cannavale, Dustin Hoffman, Oliver Platt, Emjay Anthony, Scarlett Johansson and Robert Downey, Jr.

When Chef Carl Casper (Favreau) suddenly quits his job at a prominent Los Angeles restaurant after refusing to compromise his creative integrity for its controlling owner (Hoffman), he is left to figure out what’s next. Finding himself in Miami, he teams up with his ex-wife (Vergara), his friend (Leguizamo) and his son to launch a food truck. Taking to the road, Chef Carl goes back to his roots to reignite his passion for the kitchen — and zest for life and love.

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The Knights of Badassdom Blu-ray is a mixed bag for this troubled movie

Some nerds don’t get any respect. Specifically, I refer to the “LARPers,” or the Live Action Role-players, which in the echelons of nerdiness, are considered even by nerds to be embarrassingly nerdy. Once when I was at a nerdy convention that celebrated video games primarily, the LARPers were relegated to one distant room and every time they snuck out, everyone else wanted them to tone it down. That’s right, the people dressed as Steampunk Mario or with shirts about obscure YouTube video game players looked down on these LARPers.

But if we’re being honest, it seems like LARPing is really just sort of an extension of kids playing as warriors and wizards, now with referees and rules to emulate the pen and paper role playing games. It’s even used primarily as jokes in popular entertainment, as I recall from the decent comedy Role Models. But the very concept of LARPing does seem to lend itself to a fictionalized version, a way to combine the play-acting and magic actually being involved. Or it may be used for a horror comedy that really doesn’t quite work.

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The Veronica Mars DVD/BluRay shows just how much the cast and crew loved making the film

A long time ago, we all used to be friends with a little television show called Veronica Mars. The show – whose brilliance was never really fully appreciated – lasted three seasons before being unceremoniously cancelled (the show had taken a new direction from the network and was seeing improved ratings). Years passed; fans hoped for more, but rumors of a film remained just that. Then, as everyone who has connected to the internet in the last 14 months probably knows, Kickstarter happened.

For fans of the show, the Veronica Mars film was the fulfillment of a promise Rob Thomas and Kristen Bell made when they produced the “Season Four” trailer that was part of a pitch to avoid cancellation: More Mars. The Kickstarter campaign – more specifically the backers – were as much a part of the making of the film as the cast and crew, a fact that the special features on the Blu-Ray/DVD – released this week – focus a great deal of time on. Continue reading 'The Veronica Mars DVD/BluRay shows just how much the cast and crew loved making the film' »