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Love movies? 'Shout' it out loud

By Marc Saltzman
Gannett News Service

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If you guessed Shirley Maclaine said the above line in "Steel Magnolias," you're ready to play Parker Brothers' "Shout About Movies."
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Parker Brothers' "Shout About Movies" doesn't require a console, PC or a joystick.

Instead, you'll need a DVD player, television and a few friends to play.

This multiplayer trivia challenge pits two teams against each other to see which knows more about films from "Gandhi" to "Spaceballs." Each 45-minute game includes many types of questions, complemented by video clips, audio snippets and animated text.

For instance, you might be asked to identify the title of a movie after watching a video clip of a tornado, looking at a picture of actress Helen Hunt and reading the words "300 mph." If you guessed that "Twister" is the answer, you're ready to play.

As the game's name suggests, most categories require teams to shout out the correct answer -- and there's no penalty for guessing incorrectly. That's because some of the game questions encourage shouting. For example, the answers to some questions come together like pieces of a jigsaw puzzle.

If the answer is the film, "A League of Their Own," both teams might see a still image of a baseball diamond, then the players' uniforms, followed by photos or clips of the actors and actresses. The first team to blurt out the correct answer wins the round.

In some rounds, your team also uses the DVD remote to choose answers from a list.

The team with the most points at the end of the game wins. Similar to "Jeopardy!," the final round lets teams wager some or all of their winnings after seeing the category.

"Shout It Out" is full of trick questions. One multiple-choice question asks you to link factoids to a movie. While you might immediately think that "Saving Private Ryan" won an Academy Award for best picture, it was edged out by "Shakespeare in Love."

Incorrect or "bluff" facts also are thrown into the mix to make the questions more challenging. A factoid might say, "Donald Trump bought the rights to this film," when he never did, something the host explains at the end of the round.

The host also makes comments that reflect the status of the game, such as "we have a close one" when the score was 13-12, or "Sorry blue team, but one day you'll laugh about losing everything."

At $20, this diversion's price is right, but each disc only includes three games. Because the questions, video clips, still images and audio are the same each time you play, you can't play each game more than once. To keep you playing, Parker Brothers launched four different versions of "Shout About Movies," each with different questions and video content.

Another minor beef: If you press the wrong button on the DVD remote at the end of each round (something that's easy to do), you can't go back to select the correct answer.

Shortcomings aside, "Shout About Movies" is an affordable way to add some impromptu entertainment at casual get-togethers with friends or family.


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