WII FIT U (E) ***1/2 Nintendo Wii U It’s the dawn of a new year, but it won’t be for long, so it’s important to make the most of those ambitious New Year’s resolutions before they inevitably fall by the wayside. And if one of those resolutions is to get
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December 27, 2013 by justin
in Sore Thumbs
December 26, 2013 by justin
in Film Review
Staring blank
“Her” 2 stars Rated R 120 minutes Comedy Starring: Joaquin Phoenix, Amy Adams, Scarlett Johansson Where Spike Jonze once soared using magical realism — albeit written by someone else — as his guide (see “Being John Malkovich”), he now flounders with a self-penned technology-driven story that shrivels before your eyes.
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December 26, 2013 by justin
in Belly Up To...
A scenic view inside and out at Cityscape Lounge
Very few people of today’s world show enough respect to measure up to the standards of their grandparents. Many young adults prematurely presume, for example, that they are at a first-name status with their superiors at work and their elders in life. And the most seasoned in the crowd are
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December 26, 2013 by justin
in Joe's Neighborhood
Skating like a Rooster
Skating is a terrifying activity wrapped in a bow-tied package of exhilaration. Certainly there is all that floating and gliding and whooshing-air-past-rosy-cheeks stuff — a giddy time to be sure. But if you look in the dark corner at the edge of your vision, off to the far right, you
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December 26, 2013 by justin
in Civic Skinny
The suddenly open Congressional seat. More woe for Tirrell. Tom Miller and gays.
Here’s an astounding fact: The last time there was a Congressional race in Polk County without an incumbent seeking re-election was in 1940. GOP Rep. Cassius Dowell, a Des Moines lawyer first elected to Congress in 1915, died on Feb. 4, 1940, and Republican Robert K. Goodwin — of the
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December 26, 2013 by justin
in Political Mercury
Can Hatch dish-towel Brand Branstad?
He’s Uncle Ben. The rice. Charmin. Ivory soap. The Folgers in Iowa’s cup. For about 20 years — with a clear-seas-ahead shot at 24 — Brand Branstad is the reliable reach on the Hawkeye State political shelf. Iowans don’t even put Gov. Terry Branstad on the shopping list. They instinctively
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December 26, 2013 by justin
in Food Dude
Food Dude’s top new restaurant of 2013
Central Iowa’s restaurant boom has fully recharged. The year should end up ranking with the best years ever for new restaurant openings, and 2014 is already looking like a big year: Jason Simon’s A2, George Formaro’s Malo and David Baruthio’s Blue Tomato all plan to be up and running in
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December 26, 2013 by justin
in The Sound
The End, a Beatles rock revival
Let’s face it, tribute bands can be kind of a joke. Most spend more time honing the aesthetic of their chosen band than on the actual sound. Tribute bands tend to be more about honoring a romanticized version of what the original band was: Get the clothing right, play in
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December 26, 2013 by justin
in Cover Story
a Steve King year
Iowa’s new 4th congressional district chose its representative a year ago, and here’s what it got: a blizzard of sound bites that sometimes provoked national condemnation, partial successes on conservative priorities, and what could be a crushing failure on one issue, ethanol, that matters deeply to the district’s economy. Say
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