CliqueClack

PSAs are different now

On occasion as a father, you see things where your kids are concerned that make you take pause.

Sometimes you’re delighted, sometimes you’re horrified. Your jaw drops, you’re giddy, you shake your head back and forth and sigh. (Parents do this a lot.) You don’t understand how such simple concepts can get lost on youth. Something flashes by you and you have no clue, no point of reference of what you just saw.

Often, however, all these things have a common denominator: They make you wonder.

Take public service announcements (PSAs) for example: They sure have changed since I was in school. In the days of yore, the likes of films such as Red Asphalt were supposed to “shock and awe” school-aged children:

Win passes to see Robocop in Baltimore

This offer is now closed. Please follow @CliqueClack on Twitter for giveaway alerts, news and reviews.

CliqueClack has partnered with Sony Pictures and Allied Integrated Marketing to offer readers in the Baltimore area an opportunity to attend an advance screening of the highly anticipated RoboCop, starring Joel Kinnaman, Gary Oldman, Michael Keaton, Abbie Cornish, Jackie Earle Haley, Michael K. Williams, Jennifer Ehle, Jay Baruchel, Marianne Jean-Baptiste and Samuel L. Jackson.

In RoboCop, the year is 2028 and multinational conglomerate OmniCorp is at the center of robot technology. Overseas, their drones have been used by the military for years, but have been forbidden for law enforcement in America. Now OmniCorp wants to bring their controversial technology to the home front, and they see a golden opportunity to do it. When Alex Murphy (Kinnaman) — a loving husband, father and good cop doing his best to stem the tide of crime and corruption in Detroit — is critically injured in the line of duty, OmniCorp sees their chance to build a part-man, part-robot police officer. OmniCorp envisions a RoboCop in every city and even more billions for their shareholders, but they never counted on one thing: there is still a man inside the machine.

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Nicholas Sparks: Limited Edition Collection isn’t so limited or special

The release for the Nicholas Sparks Limited Edition Collection calls Sparks “one of the world’s most renowned storytellers.” He certainly has found his niche as an author, inhabiting his chosen genre so completely. I like Sparks’ work more than most people decidedly not in his demo, but I’m biased. He hails from New Bern, North Carolina, and his choice to set all of his stories in that part of the world – A Walk to Remember was set in my dad’s hometown – has made him one of the area’s favorite sons.

This collection is a celebration of the seven film adaptations from his work. I have to admit I’ve not seen each of them, including arguably his most popular The Notebook. I’ve only read the aforementioned A Walk to Remember and one of his latest, Safe Haven, but consider both excellent reads (I still wonder what the former would look like if actually set in the 50’s like the novel was). Safe Haven is easily my favorite, however. I thought the Jo character added a different dynamic to the basic storytelling structure that permeates much of his work. Continue reading 'Nicholas Sparks: Limited Edition Collection isn’t so limited or special' »

There are better places to spend a day than At Middleton

At Middleton, the first feature from writer/director (and Baltimore native) Adam Rodgers, tells the story of two parents accompanying their children on a campus tour of their potential college. Edith (Vera Farmiga) is against her daughter Audrey (Taissa Farmiga, Vera’s real life sister!) attending Middleton because it just seems too small for her tastes. Yes, it’s all about Edith. George (Andy Garcia) is pushing his son Conrad (Spencer Lofranco) to attend Middleton because it really is a lovely, intimate college. During the tour, George and Edith butt heads, get separated from the group, spend time together exploring the campus and fall in love … remember, this all happens in the space of a couple of hours.

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The Half-Naked Truth is this: It isn’t even passably funny

Regardless of its billing as a comedy, The Half-Naked Truth is the farthest thing possible from a yuck-fest. But it does have its (ultra) rare moments … few and far between though they may be.

The story revolves around oily, fork-tongued pitchman Jimmy Bates (Lee Tracy) who decides to make tracks out of the carnival where he and his fiery hooch dancer Teresita (Lupe Velez) are employed. After an attempt at sensationalizing his girlfriend’s performance with a tricky “bonus” (the revelation that one of the local townsfolk is actually Teresita’s father), Bates’ jig is up when police casing the carnival stumble on his plan. He high-tails it to avoid arrest and takes Teresita and his friend Achilles (Eugene Pallette) along with him.

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There are few things worse than That Awkward Moment

Guys are douchebags … at least they are in Hollywood movies about relationships and the guys afraid to be in them. Take the new rom-com-dram That Awkward Moment. Please. (Ba dum bum.) In the film, we meet Jason (Zac Efron), Daniel (Miles Teller) and Mikey (Michael B. Jordan). Jason has a roster of women he goes through once they get to the “so where are we going from here” question, Daniel uses his female best friend as his wing man, and Mikey – the only one in a relationship – has just been blindsided by his wife’s infidelity and divorce papers.

All three guys are attractive (well, two of them are and one is just average) and have good jobs judging by their clothing and fabulous New York City apartments. But Jason and Daniel are jerks and Mikey is just needy and teetering on becoming a jerk as well, especially after the guys make a pact that none of them will fall in love and enter into a relationship, thus breaking up the friendship. Of course, they all do end up falling for someone, then lying to each other, and eventually hurting the women in the process (although Mikey has the opposite trajectory as he is used and hurt again by his ex). And, spoiler alert, by some miracle of absurd script contrivance, Jason and Daniel are forgiven and Mikey sets up a date with some woman who gave him her number MONTHS ago (apparently she’s been patiently sitting by the phone waiting for his call).

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Blast off on adventures as big as the cosmos itself with Space Stars

Picture a spacey animated backdrop with the following uttered by an eager-sounding narrator: A galaxy of heroes teamed together in an interstellar battle against evil. Blast off on adventures as big as the cosmos itself. Race poised on the edge of time with Space Ghost and his young friends. Streak through the universe with Space Ace, Astro and the Space Mutts as they spring into action. And somewhere deep in space, super danger threatens the Teen Force. Join the famed Herculoids in their new battles to preserve peace on the planet Quasar. Now get set for 60 laser-blasting minutes of action, adventure, fun on Space Stars.

Are you ready to blast off yet? I certainly was! Originally broadcast on NBC from 1981-1982, Space Stars was a Saturday morning cartoon featuring classic Hanna-Barbera-style animation and several characters who often crossed over into one another’s segments throughout the program. For the first time, the Warner Archive Collection has released the entire series on DVD in over 600 minutes of adventures destined to bring out “the inner kid who always wanted to go to space camp” in you.

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You are invited to attend the Vampire Academy in DC

All passes for this event have been claimed. Follow @CliqueClack on Twitter for contest alerts, news and reviews. There will be a happy hour event at Mate in Georgetown on February 6 from 6:00 PM – 7:00 PM. Prizes and passes to the screening will be awarded!

CliqueClack has partnered with The Weinstein Company and Allied Integrated Marketing to offer readers in the DC area an opportunity to attend a special advance screening of the new movie Vampire Academy. The film stars Sarah Hyland, Olga Kurylenko, Zoey Deutch, Lucy Fry, Danila Kozlovsky, Cameron Monaghan, Joely Richardson and Gabriel Byrne.

Based on author Richelle Mead’s worldwide bestselling series, Vampire Academy tells the legend of Rose Hathaway (Deutch) and Lissa Dragomir (Fry), two 17-year-old girls who attend a hidden boarding school for Moroi (mortal, peaceful Vampires) and Dhampirs (half-vampire/half-human guardians). Rose, a rebellious Guardian-in-training and her best friend, Lissa — a royal vampire Princess — have been on the run when they are captured and returned to St.Vladamirs Academy, the very place where they believe their lives may be in most jeopardy. Thrust back into the perils of Moroi Society and high school, Lissa struggles to reclaim her status while Rose trains with her mentor and love-interest, Dimitri (Kozlovsky), to guarantee her place as Lissa’s guardian. Rose will sacrifice everything to protect Lissa from those who intend to exploit her from within the Academy walls and the Strigoi (immortal, evil vampires) who hunt her kind from outside its sanctuary.

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Return to Downton Abbey on home video

New TV on DVD releases are slim this week, but anything would be overshadowed by the powerhouse that is Downton Abbey, the fourth season of which comes to home video this week. The final season of HBO’s acclaimed Treme also hits home video (as well as a complete series set), and Lifetime’s recent TV version of Bonnie and Clyde is also available. Classic TV releases include Agatha Christie tales and a “lost” Lucy-Desi special featuring Milton Berle. These titles and more are available January 28, and you can see all of the highlights in our shopper’s guide below. Click on any link to make a purchase or to get more information.

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Unearth free passes for The Monuments Men in Baltimore, DC or Virginia Beach

All passes have been claimed. Follow @CliqueClack on Twitter for contest alerts, news and reviews.

CliqueClack has partnered with Sony Pictures and Allied Integrated Marketing to offer readers in the Baltimore, DC and Virginia Beach areas an opportunity to attend an advance screening of the new film The Monuments Men starring George Clooney, Matt Damon, Bill Murray, John Goodman, Jean Dujardin, Bob Balaban, Hugh Bonneville and Cate Blanchett.

Based on the true story of the greatest treasure hunt in history, The Monuments Men is an action drama focusing on seven over-the-hill, out-of-shape museum directors, artists, architects, curators, and art historians who went to the front lines of WWII to rescue the world’s artistic masterpieces from Nazi thieves and return them to their rightful owners. With the art hidden behind enemy lines, how could these guys hope to succeed? But as the Monuments Men found themselves in a race against time to avoid the destruction of 1000 years of culture, they would risk their lives to protect and defend mankind’s greatest achievements.

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