We talk a lot about nostalgia and the feeling of uselessness that people can have, especially as they get older. But everyone who’s lived through childhood can get nostalgic about the past and want to relive past glories or victories, easily ignoring any hardships or difficulties back then. But sometimes it’s possible to be honest with ourselves and realize that the past is just that, something to get past and learn from, not something that can be actually relived. And that conflict between the desire to resolve never forgotten inequities and the honest realization that it is not truly possible to do so collides with the slick, exaggerated world of movies. In this case, boxing becomes the meta-metaphor of the struggle to physically force the issue before it all becomes a bit sad.

Grudge Match stars Sylvester Stallone (channeling Rocky, of course) as Henry ‘Razor’ Sharp and Robert De Niro (bringing in a bit of Raging Bull) as Billy ‘The Kid’ McDonnen. Two former boxers that each won a bout thirty years ago before Razor abruptly retired from the sport before a third match could decide the issue. They were forced to move on, Razor taking a ludicrously cliched blue collar factory job for decades and Billy running a bar. But a TV documentary sparks new interest in the mostly forgotten feud, and Dante Slate Jr. (Kevin Hart), son of their original promoter, sees dollar signs and a chance to make something of himself. So he decides to try to convince the two to have it out once and for all. If he can just keep the two from killing each other first. Naturally, it’s all because of some nonsense with Billy sleeping with Razor’s old girlfriend (Kim Basinger), which leads to Billy’s son (Jon Bernthal) trying to reconnect with his estranged father and Razor trying to convince his old, sickly trainer (Alan Arkin) to help train him one more time. And so on.

It all ends with a match where the two really seem to be hitting each other, or faking it pretty well, and an ending that’s not completely terrible, I guess. But what’s the draw here? Is there really a nostalgic thrill to seeing two older guys wail on each other? Sylvester Stallone hasn’t really improved on his acting, being just as wooden as ever, while other folks around him put actual effort into their lines. De Niro isn’t amazing here, but he’s not just phoning it in, which puts him much higher than Stallone. There’s nothing about the story or screenplay that’s that original or exciting, but it has some funny parts, usually helped by Alan Arkin (no surprise). I guess Kim Basinger is alright here, although I wasn’t blown away by such a simplistic character, and Jon Bernthal is better in the much, much better The Wolf of Wall Street, which opens today too. The truth is that the only really annoying character was Billy’s grandson, who is either a terrible child actor or just directed poorly, because it was like nails in my ears every time.

The movie is passable, not that dull (usually) and ultimately very forgettable. I kind of liked the actual boxing match itself, but the characters were nothing but air, vanishing on closer scrutiny. But I suppose nobody’s asking for depth from this movie, so perhaps it succeeds after all.

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CliqueClack has partnered with Warner Brothers Pictures and Allied Integrated Marketing to offer readers in the Baltimore and DC areas an opportunity to attend an advance screening of the new film Grudge Match, starring Sylvester Stallone, Robert DeNiro, Kevin Hart, Alan Arkin, Kim Basinger, and Jon Bernthal. Award-winning movie legends Oscar winner Robert De Niro and Oscar nominee Sylvester Stallone star as old boxing rivals who come out of retirement for one final match. De Niro and Stallone play Billy “The Kid” McDonnen and Henry “Razor” Sharp, two local Pittsburgh fighters whose fierce rivalry put them in the national spotlight. Each had scored a victory against the other during their heyday, but in 1983, on the eve of their decisive third match, Razor suddenly announced his retirement, refusing to explain why but effectively delivering a knock-out punch to both their careers. Thirty years later, boxing promoter Dante Slate Jr. (Hart), seeing big dollar signs, makes them an offer they can’t refuse: to re-enter the ring and settle the score once and for all. But they may not have to wait that long: on their first encounter in decades, their long-festering feud erupts into an unintentionally hilarious melee that instantly goes viral. The sudden social media frenzy transforms their local grudge match into a must-see HBO event. Now, if they can just survive the training, they may actually live to fight again.

The screenings will take place as follows. Please note the different dates for each location:

• Monday, December 16, 7:00 PM, Regal Gallery Place, 707 Seventh Street NW, Washington, DC
  
• Tuesday, December 17, 7:00 PM, Cinemark Egyptian, 7000 Arundel Mills Circle, Hanover, MD

We have a limited number of passes available for each location.

• Please comment below with your location of choice: BALTIMORE or DC. ONE comment per person/email address.
• Enter your full name for verification purposes in the spaces provided. If full name is not included, you will not be eligible.
• Enter your email address in the space provided — NOT in the comment section. Spell check your email. Many people win passes but never get them because of bad spelling!
• Tickets are first come, first served. Any duplicate comments, or those that appear to be duplicates, will be discarded at the discretion of the giveaway administrator.
• Excessive duplicate comments will result in total disqualification. Please keep this fair for everyone.

Please note that passes do not guarantee you seats at the screening. Seating is first come, first served. CliqueClack has no control over the total number of passes distributed for this screening, and is not responsible for seating at the theater. Please plan to arrive early.

Have a look at the trailer below, and then let us know where you’d like to see the movie. Grudge Match is rated PG-13 and opens on December 25th.

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=1bQSOBJCPQE