CliqueClack

The relentlessness of GEICO

Here’s what I know: GEICO has been around for a long, long time.

Founded by Leo Goodwin in the 1930s, “The Government Employees Insurance Company” currently boasts some 13 million plus automobile insurance policies encompassing millions of policy holders in all 50 of the United States including the District Of Colombia. Simply stating the company is big is a gross understatement.

One of the reasons the company is so massive? It utilizes a direct-to-consumer sales model via telephone and internet communications. This effectively cuts out any agents and their commissions, instead funneling profits back into itself to fuel nationwide advertising campaigns. Said campaigns “employ” the Cockney-accented animated stylings of a particular Gold dust day gecko (one of many advertising gimmicks) as its showcase mascot.

Here’s what else I know: I do not like this mascot in the least.

It is a loathsome thing. It is hated, reviled and a source of great contempt to my person. I abhor the GEICO gecko with a passion.

However, that being said? I get it. I understand, somewhat, the attraction of the mascot. GEICO, gecko. “The GEICO gecko.” It makes sense in the grand scheme of things. Or … maybe it doesn’t make sense in and of itself but, as a marketing ploy, it’s pretty damned smart. Some (hokay … many) people think it’s cute, present company excepted. I’ve heard these same people dig not only its foreign accent but get off on the creature’s anthropomorphic actions and mannerisms. Continue reading 'The relentlessness of GEICO' »

Win passes to see Godzilla in Boston

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

CliqueClack has partnered with Warner Brothers Entertainment and Legendary to offer readers in the Boston area an opportunity to attend an advance screening of the new action thriller Godzilla starring stars Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Ken Watanabe, Elizabeth Olsen, Juliette Binoche, and Sally Hawkins, with David Strathairn and Bryan Cranston.

In Summer 2014, 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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Grab your girlfriends and learn a thing or two from The Other Woman

Women can be some of the most cunning, ruthless creatures in existence. I willingly admit that even though I am one. There are some who will lie, cheat, steal, belittle or sometimes commit even more unspeakable crimes to the sisterhood in order to land a man who is more often than not someone unworthy of such efforts. And that’s what they do to some of their best friends, let alone complete strangers! What I liked most about The Other Woman, the latest movie from Twentieth Century Fox, was the concept that three jilted women could put aside the awkwardness of their situation and their differences in order to teach the man who was cheating on all three of them a lesson or two.

Starring Cameron Diaz, Leslie Mann and Kate Upton as the three women, along with Nikolaj Coster-Waldau as the cheater, and Nicki Minaj, Don Johnson and Taylor Kinney in fitting supporting roles, The Other Woman was an enjoyable romp along the same grain as The First Wives Club. While I find Cameron Diaz annoying in many of her roles, she was likeable in this one. I think that’s partially because you felt some sympathy for her when she found out the new man of her dreams that she thought things were getting serious with was already married. That and she actually seems pretty well-put-together in this movie as a lawyer with an impeccable wardrobe and swanky apartment that would make many women green with envy.

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Win free passes to see Locke in Denver

All passes for both screenings have been claimed. Please connect with CliqueClack on Twitter, Facebook or Google+ to receive alerts on contests, news and reviews.

CliqueClack has partnered with A24 and IM Global to offer readers in the Denver area an opportunity to attend an advance screening of the new thriller Locke starring Tom Hardy as Ivan Locke, a man who has worked diligently to craft the life he has envisioned, dedicating himself to the job that he loves and the family he adores. On the eve of the biggest challenge of his career, Ivan receives a phone call that sets in motion a series of events that will unravel his family, job, and soul. All taking place over the course of one absolutely riveting car ride, Locke is an exploration of how one decision can lead to the complete collapse of a life.

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Beyond the Wall: Is loyalty a virtue in Westeros?

The third episode of Game of Thrones has generated a significant amount of controversy. The less than consensual sex between Jaime and Cersei Lannister caused the Internets to explode with righteous indignation Sunday night. Whether people were pissed about the change — or perceived change — from the books, or just unhappy to see a character supposedly in a redemptive arc completely switch course, critics — disproportionately more than fans — were not happy.

Before we get into that, however, our regular SPOILER WARNING. Beyond the Wall is a column intended for readers of the A Song of Ice and Fire novels. So, if you weren’t disappointed that Daairio wasn’t strong or Belwas-y this week, then this post is not for you.

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The Voice Live Shows return with solid performances and technical challenges

Update: Top 200 iTunes Chart Results at 12:30pm Eastern have been added to the bottom of this post.

The Voice Live Shows are easily the best round of the show … at least the best round not named “Blind Auditions.” While they’ve improved over the last couple of seasons, I hate the middle rounds; the show is drastically better when the decision-making changes from the coaches to the audience. The coaches far too often create match-ups that end with the wrong people going home.

That all changes in the Lives. Song choice matters more than match-up … hell, song choice matters more than just about anything. By now, the contestants have truly starting coming into their own, and the performances will begin to improve dramatically.

Bria Kelly: “Rolling in the Deep” (Adele) – Team Usher

Kelly is the only survivor of my group of favorites. I’ve been impressed by her talent – and she’s a hometown-ish contestant for me. “Rolling in the Deep” a “big” song, but there’s not much of an opportunity for an individual take on it that retains those “big” moments. Kelly did a pretty good job here; that long note towards the end is the kind of thing The Voice voters generally look for.

Adam and Shakira seemed to like it, but didn’t love the lower key; Blake sussed out that that decision was made for that beat at the end that kept going up and up (and up and up). Bria said she’d have died if she hadn’t started out that low. Continue reading 'The Voice Live Shows return with solid performances and technical challenges' »

Witches are real on WGN’s Salem

For a while now, vampires have been the go-to creatures on TV and in movies, from the classics Nosferatu and Dracula to the modern day versions in the Twilight saga and The Vampire Diaries. Vampires seem to be losing their (pun intended) bite, and werewolves are probably too costly a creature to build an entire TV series around (we’ll see if Syfy’s Canadian import Bitten gets picked up for a second season). So what better supernatural creatures to turn to than witches?

While there really hasn’t been a successful drama about witches on TV until American Horror Story: Coven, witches have fared a bit better in comedies like Bewitched and Sabrina, The Teenage Witch. Even the campy soap Passions had a witch as a main character, but prime time dramas have seen little success as shows like Eastwick and The Secret Circle barely made it through a single season (Lifetime’s Witches of East End seems to have bucked the trend and will be getting a second season). But TV executives keep trying to make witches the next big thing, and WGN (fondly remembered as Chicago’s Superstation) is launching its own slate of original programming with the new drama Salem.

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Lifetime’s hit film The Gabby Douglas Story arrives on DVD

Growing up, I distinctly remember the Lifetime network made-for-TV movies being appointment television for my mother. I can vividly recall her watching each film intently, glued to the screen — and God help anyone who’d dare interrupt her. It’s funny because I felt the exact same way as I viewed The Gabby Douglas Story, an inspirational biographical film brought to us by the Lifetime Network.

Originally debuting on Lifetime back in February, The Gabby Douglas Story is now on DVD, and I couldn’t be happier. As someone who writes about minorities in television and film and yearns for more, um, colorful fare on the airwaves, I believe this film is just what the doctor ordered. By now, we should all know just who Gabrielle Douglas is, but for those of you living under a rock, I’ll bring you up to speed free of charge. Douglas, a real girl wonder, turned heads in 2012 when at the age of 16 she became the first African-American gymnast in Olympic history to become the individual all-around champion. Additionally, Douglas also became the first American gymnast – period – to win gold medals in both the individual all-around and team competitions.

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Best of Raw, Newhart, and Son of Batman come to home video

It’s very slim pickins for this week’s TV on DVD releases. For the wrestling fans there’s the WWE’s Best of Raw After the Show, Whovians get another classic Doctor Who episode with “Web of Fear,” classic TV fans get another season of Newhart, and animation fans get more Spider-Man and Batman action! Check out these titles and more in our handy shopper’s guide, and support CliqueClack by making a purchase at Amazon through any link in the guide!

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Big Bad Wolves, Junction, and Sorcerer come to home video

Hollywood seems to be taking a break this week with recent theatrical films coming to home video, but there are still some titles of interest worth checking out. The Tarantino-endorsed revenge thriller Big Bad Wolves hopes to get a wider audience this week, as does the home-grown indie Junction which stars David Zayas (Oz, Dexter), Michael O’Keefe, Anthony Rapp, and my friend (shout out!) Bryan Deehring. Not a movie (but probably will be some day) but a filmed stage play, Tyler Perry’s Madea’s Neighbors from Hell makes its video debut. Catalog titles getting new life on Blu-ray include both versions of Get Carter, Conspiracy Theory, Exit Wounds, Hit the Deck, and The Pawnbroker, and the long-awaited high-def restoration of William Friedkin’s cult classic Sorcerer finally makes its way to Blu-ray. And if you’re looking for something a little different, you can pick up the Mr. Magoo Theatrical Collection box set! These titles and more will be available on April 22. You can see all of the week’s highlights on our shopper’s guide, and you can support CliqueClack by making a purchase through any link in the guide!

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