CliqueClack

Win passes to Grown Ups 2 in Baltimore, DC and Norfolk

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The all-star comedy cast from Grown Ups returns (with some exciting new additions) for more summertime laughs. Lenny (Adam Sandler) has relocated his family back to the small town where he and his friends grew up. This time around, the grown ups are the ones learning lessons from their kids on a day notoriously full of surprises: the last day of school.

CliqueClack has partnered with Columbia Pictures and Allied Integrated Marketing to offer readers in the Baltimore, DC and Norfolk areas a chance to win free passes to an advance screening of Grown Ups 2. All you have to do to win is leave a comment telling us which screening location you wish to attend. We have 25 Admit Two passes for each screening. Passes will be awarded on a first come, first served basis. As passes are limited, entries are limited to one request per person. Duplicate requests will be discarded. Screening locations are as follows:

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Warehouse 13, Unforgettable and more come to home video July 9

CBS’ cancelled then uncancelled — after another network showed some interest — Unforgettable (season two premieres July 28) gets a season one DVD release this week to get you all caught up before season two begins. The recent cancellation announcement for Syfy’s Warehouse 13 has left fans bewildered, so get caught up on season four before the final six episodes air next year. Also coming to home video July 9th, more Portlandia and Robot Chicken, Marvel Knights: Wolverine to tie in to the new movie and more seasons of classic shows Bonanza, Quincy, M.E. and Dynasty. To see all of this week’s releases, have a look at our shopper’s guide and click on a link to get more information or to make a purchase.

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New on DVD and Blu-ray: The Host, Spring Breakers, The Jerk

After a week of pretty much nothing on home video due to the holiday, the week of July 9th has some interesting new releases. The biggest title of the week is the film that everyone thought was going to be the next Twilight franchise … and failed to generate much in the way of box office or critical praise: Stephanie Meyer’s The Host. With the failure of another film based on a series of YA novels (Beautiful Creatures), it seems that Twilight was able to capture something that these other films have not. But was The Host unfairly maligned? Now is your chance to find out!

Also this week, Spring Breakers comes to home video (our own Jeremy Fogelman reviewed the film during its theatrical run), Colin Farrell in Dead Man Down, Tyler Perry’s Temptation, Tina Fey and Paul Rudd in Admission, and the well-regarded documentary The Gatekeepers. One title that got very little release in the US (if any) but has a spectacular trailer, The Tower looks like a new spin on the disaster movie classic The Towering Inferno. And making its long-awaited Blu-ray debut this week, Steve Martin’s The Jerk finally gets some high-def love from Universal (can we please have Dead Men Don’t Wear Plaid too?). In fact, Universal has a collection of films repackaged and categorized by decade, so if you’ve always wanted a particular film in your collection, now is your change to grab it! Have a look at our shopper’s guide to see all of the releases for July 9th, and click on a link to make a purchase or to get more information about a title.

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The Way, Way Back is a pleasant and sometimes moving summer story

Growing up is tough, as we’ve already learned this year from such films as The Kings of Summer, but just like that movie, there tends to be a focus on the sort of generic heterosexual middle class white boy that a lot of screenwriters and filmmakers once were — not exactly a coincidence there. As such, there’s a tendency to accept the experiences of that particular set of people as universally applicable, which is a dangerous trap. The true message of import of these artistic pieces is to tell something honest and meaningful about youth and life. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t. Sometimes they even all run together as the “Summer Movie of White Boy Learns Something.” But oddly enough, kids aren’t the ones who have tough times. Adults also have rough times, because life is hard. Is it any wonder that sometimes adults like to just let go and act like kids? Or what they think is “like a kid”? Adults don’t get kids, which at first seems weird because they used to be them. But life has a way of changing your perspective.

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Big Brother 15: Worst cast ever?

Big Brother started two weeks early this year as the fifteenth season premiered on CBS on June 26. The show normally debuts the week after July 4th, so the fans are getting some extra time to spend with their favorite hamsters this summer … but will this cast of characters even be worth the three days a week in primetime, 7 nights a week on Big Brother After Dark (now on TVGN, which unlike Showtime Too, has to mercilessly edit the audio feeds making entire conversations sometimes unintelligible), and 24/7 on the live feeds?

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Despicable Me 2 escapes the sequel blues

I’m always a little weary of sequels, especially sequels to kids’ movies. It’s way too easy for ideas to be rehashed because there’re no more stories to tell with the characters. But after catching the first Despicable Me movie on TV over Christmas, I was optimistic about its chances for a decent sequel. For a 4th of July kid release, you can do much worse.

The best thing I can say about the sequel is that they avoid rehashing completely. Steve Carrell’s Gru doesn’t turn evil again and he doesn’t lose his daughters’ trust when it comes to evil schemes. They took the relationships established in the first film and expanded on them. The movie actually starts with Gru being a loving, protective dad orchestrating the youngest girl’s birthday party. The whole scene is very sweet and actually quite funny and sets the tone of the whole movie. In fact, because the relationship between Gru and his girls is established quickly (along with the premise that he is an ex-villain), you can easily go into this movie without seeing the first one. Continue reading 'Despicable Me 2 escapes the sequel blues' »

The Lone Ranger rides again … and it’s fun!

“In the early days of the western United States, a masked man and an Indian rode the plains, searching for truth and justice. Return with us now to those thrilling days of yesteryear, when from out of the past come the thundering hoofbeats of the great horse Silver! The Lone Ranger rides again!”

And so began the radio adventures of The Lone Ranger. But how exactly did the masked man become a hero to young boys across the land? Disney’s new version of The Lone Ranger aims to tell that story, and it sticks fairly close to the origin set forth on the radio show from long ago.

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Win free passes for The Way, Way Back in Baltimore & DC July 2nd

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CliqueClack has partnered with Fox Searchlight and Allied Integrated Marketing to offer our readers in the Baltimore and DC areas free passes to see The Way, Way Back, starring Steve Carell, Toni Collette, Sam Rockwell, Anna Sophia Robb and Liam James. The Way, Way Back is the funny and poignant coming of age story of 14-year-old Duncan’s (Liam James) summer vacation with his mother, Pam (Toni Collette), her overbearing boyfriend, Trent (Steve Carell), and his daughter, Steph (Zoe Levin). Having a rough time fitting in, the introverted Duncan finds an unexpected friend in gregarious Owen (Sam Rockwell), manager of the Water Wizz water park. Through his funny, clandestine friendship with Owen, Duncan slowly opens up to and begins to finally find his place in the world — all during a summer he will never forget. The film was written and directed by Oscar winners (for The Descendants) Nat Faxon and Jim Rash (Dean Pelton on Community).

To claim your two free passes, just leave us a comment stating which city you would prefer passes for. The screenings are as follows:

• Tuesday, July 2, 7:30 PM, AMC Georgetown, Washington, DC
• Tuesday, July 2, 7:30 PM, AMC White Marsh, Baltimore, MD

Passes are limited and will be distributed first come, first served. This offer can end at any time. Please note that passes do not guarantee you a seat. Advance screenings are overbooked to ensure a full house, so please plan to arrive early. CliqueClack has no control over the number of passes distributed, or the seating at the theater.

From the Vaults: A Big Hand for the Little Lady

I’ve never been much for Westerns in general, but there have been a few that I do think are worth seeking out, the true classics like Stagecoach, The Searchers and Silverado. I never watched TV westerns like Gunsmoke or Bonanza, so that’s probably why I never gave a thought to tuning in to the local TV broadcast of A Big Hand for the Little Lady, which seemed to be on at least once a month. I vividly remember the local station advertising their Sunday afternoon airing of that film all through my childhood, but I never so much as caught a glimpse of it.

Thanks to modern DVD technology and the folks at the Warner Archive Collection, I now have in my hands a brand-spanking new copy of the film, and I have to say … I loved it! The plot is fairly simple: five of the richest men in the Laredo territory drop everything to attend an annual high stakes poker game, and I mean everything from a daughter’s wedding to leaving a man’s fate hang in the balance in a court of law. This game means everything to them and to the curious townspeople who gather in the saloon to await news of who is ahead as the hours pass by.

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2013 NBC drama previews: what the Magic Eight Ball says

Drama preview week at CliqueClack is finally coming to an end. Yesterday we added Fox and The CW to the list that already included our previews for ABC and CBS‘s new hour-longs. The week comes to an end with the new slate from NBC. Last year, the peacock did fairly well: three out of the five dramas that premiered (Chicago Fire, Hannibal and Revolution) all will see a second season. With this group, I wouldn’t be surprised if they see the same level of success.

The Blacklist is one of my favorite pilots of the season, breaking the mold of the traditional procedural. I think Crisis and Believe unique shows that might struggle to find an audience. Ironside will probably do well, even though there’s nothing special about it. The Night Shift, on the other hand, leaves me questioning the sanity of NBC’s development team.

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