CliqueClack

How Sweet It Is: Can a mob musical comedy work?

As a general rule (and I’ve said this several times before in previous reviews) I’m not an altruistic comedy film watcher. On occasion I will enjoy them, but the times are few and far between when I’ll plunk myself in front of a big or small screen to catch one.

But How Sweet It Is (via HSII co-writer and CliqueClack contributor Jay Black) piqued my curiosity. This was as good a time as any for a “once in a blue moon” venture into comedy, I figured. And with it being a musical to boot? Well, a little added bonus to wrap my head around.

When I read the premise of the film (“An alcoholic theater owner needs to put together a successful musical in order to pay off his mob debt, but problems arise when the wise guys want to cast their friends in the production”) I figured it could either go one of two ways: Pure cheese-fest or surprisingly workable. I wasn’t planning on getting a little bit of both. Throw in the sidelines of a father/daughter reconnection and some emotional interjection and there was more … well … just keep reading … Continue reading 'How Sweet It Is: Can a mob musical comedy work?' »

Gravity: How I would have made the trailer infinitely more dramatic

Have you seen the teaser trailer for Alfonso Cuarón’s Gravity, the science fiction thriller scheduled for release in October?

Good.

If you haven’t, take a gander at it above before you read the remainder of this post.

Here’s how it could have been done much better, more dramatically and with greater impact. Continue reading 'Gravity: How I would have made the trailer infinitely more dramatic' »

The Great Gatsby is a bright, showy dance of the calm before the storm

Much has been said about the American Dream, about how anyone can come from anywhere and become anything. And although there are certainly plenty of cases where the Dream has been fulfilled, there are always those that have not. Hopefulness and optimism is no guarantee of success, but it can certainly help. Many periods during the course of American history had cynics and philosophers decry society and proclaim the end of that Dream. Probably since about the start. Sometimes a sad story sells better than a happy story, especially if you have several giant dance parties.

Continue reading 'The Great Gatsby is a bright, showy dance of the calm before the storm' »

Be the first to see Star Trek Into Darkness in Baltimore, Norfolk or D.C.

ALL PASSES FOR THESE SCREENINGS HAVE BEEN CLAIMED. COMMENTS ARE CLOSED. CHECK BACK FOR FUTURE OFFERS.

CliqueClack has partnered with Paramount Pictures and Allied Integrated Marketing to offer our readers in the D.C. , Baltimore and Norfolk areas free passes to the advance screening of Star Trek Into Darkness, starring Chris Pine, Zachary Quinto and Benedict Cumberbatch.

Screenings will take place as follows:

• ALL PASSES FOR THE DC SCREENING HAVE BEEN CLAIMED
• ALL PASSES FOR THE BALTIMORE SCREENING HAVE BEEN CLAIMED
• ALL PASSES FOR THE NORFOLK SCREENING HAVE BEEN CLAIMED

Continue reading 'Be the first to see Star Trek Into Darkness in Baltimore, Norfolk or D.C.' »

My review of Chris Packham’s review of my movie, How Sweet It Is

So, first, a little context. I wrote a movie with my writing partner, Brian Herzlinger. It’s called How Sweet It Is and it’s out in select theaters this Friday.

Our first review came in from The Village Voice and even though it was less-than-favorable, I was still pretty excited. I mean, The Village Voice! Not only are they a venerated institution, they’re the same people who own backpage.com! That’s where I go to hire all my … ahem. Let’s move on.

Reading Chris Packham’s review of my movie was a letdown, though, and not because it was critical. Listen, I started doing stand-up in Northeast Philly, I wrote for TV Squad, and I’m married to an Italian woman: I can take criticism. The pain receptors in my soul were burnt out a long time ago.

Continue reading 'My review of Chris Packham’s review of my movie, How Sweet It Is' »

2013 summer TV premiere & return schedule

To subscribe to the below schedule in iCal, copy this link and paste into the “Subscribe…” menu item in iCal. You can also just click it to open iCal or even click to add to your iPhone calendar. The same link will work in a Google Calendar as well! Or see the calendar as a web page (also embedded at the bottom of this post). The calendar will update as new shows are added/changed.

* All times are in EDT PM, unless otherwise mentioned.
* New series premieres are in Bold Italics

SERIES PREMIERES/RETURNS

MAY

Monday, May 20

8:30 The Goodwin Games (FOX)

10:00 Motive (ABC)

Wednesday, May 22

8:00 MasterChef (FOX)

Thursday, May 23

8:00 Save Me (NBC)

9:00 Showville (AMC)

9:00 Toxic Office (FOX)

10:00 Rookie Blue (ABC)

Monday, May 27

8:00 The Bachelorette (ABC)

9:00 American Pickers (History)

9:00 The Glades (A&E)

10:00 Longmire (A&E)

Tuesday, May 28

8:00 Extreme Makeover: Weight Loss Edition (ABC)

10:00 Brooklyn DA (CBS)

Wednesday, May 29

8:00 The American Baking Competition (CBS)

8:00 Melissa & Joey (ABC Family)

8:30 Baby Daddy (ABC Family)

9:00 Dancing Fools (ABC Family)

10:00 Top Shot (History)

Friday, May 31

9:00 Primetime (ABC)

JUNE

Sunday, June 2

8:00 The Killing (AMC)

9:00 The Next Food Network Star (Food)

9:00 Princesses (Bravo)

12:00 The Venture Bros. (Adult Swim)

Monday, June 3

9:00 The Fosters (ABC Family)

10:00 Teen Wolf (MTV)

10:00 Mistresses (ABC)

Tuesday, June 4

9:00 America’s Got Talent (NBC)

9:00 Total Blackout (Syfy)

10:00 Exit (Syfy)

Wednesday, June 5

10:00 Chef Roblé & Co. (Bravo)

10:00 Paranormal Witness (Syfy)

Thursday, June 6

8:00 The Hero (TNT)

9:00 72 Hours (TNT)

9:00 Burn Notice (USA)

9:00 Interior Therapy with Jeff Lewis (Bravo)

10:00 Graceland (USA)

Friday, June 7

10:00 Continuum (Syfy)

Saturday, June 8

9:00 Sinbad (Syfy)

10:00 Being Human (BBCA)

10:00 Primeval (Syfy)

Sunday, June 9

9:00 Falling Skies (TNT)

Monday, June 10

8:00 Switched at Birth (ABC Family)

9:00 White Collar (USA)

10:00 King & Maxwell (TNT)

Tuesday, June 11

8:00 Pretty Little Liars (ABC Family)

9:00 Twisted (ABC Family)

10:00 Chopped (Food)

Wednesday, June 12

9:00 Ghost Hunters (Syfy)

9:00 Royal Pains (USA)

10:00 Necessary Roughness (USA)

Thursday, June 13

9:00 Intervention (A&E)

Friday, June 14

9:00 Magic City (Starz)

Saturday, June 15

10:00 Mistresses (ABC)

Sunday, June 16

9:00 True Blood (HBO)

9:00 Inspector Lewis (PBS)

Tuesday, June 18

10:00 Blood & Oil (Discovery)

Wednesday, June 19

9:00 Franklin & Bash (TNT)

10:00 Futurama (Comedy)

10:00 Hot in Cleveland (TV Land)

10:30 The Exes (TV Land)

11:00 Soul Man (TV Land)

Thursday, June 20

10:00 Wilfred (FX)

11:00 Gigolos (Showtime)

Sunday, June 23

9:00 Crossing Lines (NBC)

9:00 Drop Dead Diva (Lifetime)

9:00 Whodunnit? (ABC)

10:00 Devious Maids (Lifetime)

10:00 Copper (BBCA)

Monday, June 24

10:00 Under the Dome (CBS)

10:00 POV (PBS)

10:00 Under the Dome (CBS)

Tuesday, June 25

9:00 Rizzoli & Isles (TNT)

10:00 Perception (TNT)

10:00 Catfish (MTV)

Wednesday, June 26

9:00 Big Brother (CBS)

Sunday, June 30

9:00 Dexter (Showtime)

10:00 Ray Donovan (Showtime)

JULY

Monday, July 1

8:00 American Ninja Warrior (NBC)

Sunday, July 7

9:00 Endeavor (PBS)

Monday, July 8

9:00 Get Out Alive with Bear Grylls (NBC)

Wednesday, July 10

9:00 America’s Got Talent (NBC)

10:00 Camp (NBC)

Thursday, July 11

9:00 The Winner Is … (NBC)

10:00 Hollywood Game Night (NBC)

Sunday, July 14

10:00 The Newsroom (HBO)

Tuesday, July 16

8:00 Whose Line is it Anyway? (CW)

9:00 Covert Affairs (USA)

9:00 Joe Rogan Questions Everything (Syfy)

9:00 Perfect Score (CW)

10:00 Notorious Hauntings (Syfy)

10:00 Suits (USA)

Monday, July 22

11:00 Web Therapy (Showtime)

Wednesday, July 24

9:00 The Vineyard (ABC Family)

10:00 Haunted Highway (Syfy)

Sunday, July 28

9:00 Unforgettable (CBS)

Monday, July 29

9:00 Breaking Pointe (CW)

Wednesday, July 31

9:00 The Hunt (CW)

AUGUST

Saturday, August 3

9:00 Hell on Wheels (AMC)

Sunday, August 11

9:00 Breaking Bad (AMC)

10:00 Low Winter Sun (AMC)

11:00 Talking Bad (AMC)

Thursday, August 15

9:00 Owner’s Manual (AMC)

10:00 The Pitch (AMC)

Sunday, August 25

9:00 Silk (PBS)

Tuesday, August 27

9:00 Face Off (Syfy)

10:00 Cosworld (Syfy)

Saturday, August 31

8:00 Saturday Night College Football (ABC)

CliqueClack Giveaway: Frances Ha advance DC screening

All passes for this screening have been claimed. This offer is now closed.

Frances lives in New York, but she doesn’t really have an apartment. Frances is an apprentice for a dance company, but she’s not really a dancer. Frances has a best friend named Sophie, but they aren’t really speaking anymore. Frances throws herself headlong into her dreams, even as their possible reality dwindles. Frances wants so much more than she has but lives her life with unaccountable joy and lightness. Frances Ha is a modern comic fable that explores New York, friendship, class, ambition, failure, and redemption.

Continue reading 'CliqueClack Giveaway: Frances Ha advance DC screening' »

Green Day’s American Idiot rocks and rolls across the country

In 1940, Woody Guthrie released what is considered to be one of the first, if not the first, concept album, a collection of songs that has a narrative beginning, middle and end. In the years since, many artists from Frank Sinatra to Frank Zappa have recorded concept albums, and some concept albums have seen life beyond the audio recording on stage and screen. Pink Floyd The Wall became a movie. The Who’s Tommy went from album to movie to Broadway musical. Les Misérables actually started as a French concept album and became one of the most loved musicals in history. And in 2004, Green Day released their concept album (born when the tracks for the album that was in production had been stolen) American Idiot.

In September 2009, after eight months of preparation, the first staged version of American Idiot premiered at the Berkeley Rep to great acclaim, breaking box office records. The show opened at the St. James Theatre on Broadway on March 24, 2010 and won two Tony Awards for Best Scenic Design and Best Lighting Design but lost to Memphis in the Best Musical category. The cast recording also won a Grammy. The show ran on Broadway until April 24, 2011 and the first national tour commenced in December of 2011.

Continue reading 'Green Day’s American Idiot rocks and rolls across the country' »

Dinklage and Headey bring an interesting dynamic to Tyrion and Cersei Lannister

This week’s first airing of Game of Thrones was watched by a record 5.5 million viewers. The ratings have been been climbing all season, peaking in the episode where Dame Dianna Rigg uttered the immortal line, “He’s a sword swallower, through-and-through.” Readers of the novels have long known that the Queen of Thorns spoke her mind, but Rigg brings something special to the role.

The casting of Game of Thrones has truly been one of the most exceptional aspects of the show. While fans might not have cheered the announcement of every character, several were obviously dead on from the beginning. Peter Dinklage was one of those, but one of the things that I have been most pleased with is how well he and Lena Headey work together. The relationship between the two characters is different on the screen, a testament to both actors.

Before we get into that though, a quick reminder of the spoiler scope. Beyond the Wall is written for those who have already read the A Song of Ice and Fire novels that the series is based on. So, if you aren’t wondering why Willas Tyrell wasn’t in the mix as Sansa’s potential husband, skipping this column might be a good idea.

Continue reading 'Dinklage and Headey bring an interesting dynamic to Tyrion and Cersei Lannister' »

The Mentalist’s Red John suspect list narrows, and it had better pay off

Remember back when at least some of us thought Red John had finally been confronted and killed, at the end of season three? It was Bradley Whitford who played the supposed Red John then, and I know of at least one person who was upset that we were fooled into thinking the Red John saga was over. Me … I never bought it. The Mentalist flows very well on its own as a crime-of-the-week procedural, but the Red John aspect never stuck out to me as being a crime that would be solved and forgotten. In fact, many fans already know that creator Bruno Heller has said that Red John was a series-long story arc. Did the Bradley Whitford rip-off trick many fans into thinking Jane had gotten his man? Probably. This time, though, the punch better connect.

Though we were presented with seven suspects for Red John, I doubt any of them are a surprise. Previous to perhaps halfway through this past season, I would have put LaRoche on that list, but his changing relationship with Jane and the reveal of what was in the Tupperware box all but ruled him out. I’ll admit I’m happy to see two of my top suspects are on that list — Brett Partridge and Gale Bertram — (I love that actor didn’t even know he was a suspect until I pointed it out to him!) but I am STILL holding out that Patrick Jane is the prime suspect.**

Continue reading 'The Mentalist’s Red John suspect list narrows, and it had better pay off' »