Psssst!  Hey buddy!  Yeah, you!  Wanna make a quick $100?

Whatever comes out of that guy's mouth next, it's not likely to be legal.  It's also not as likely to be as easy as, "let's see a different movie."  But if we're talking about taking the family to an IMAX movie, then yes, you do stand to save big bucks at the Gateway 8 Federal Way.   Whatever you usually have to do to earn $50 to 100, we're guessing it's a little tougher than that.

Gateway 8 is about a half hour from Joint Base Lewis-McChord and has $2 movies, $1 hot dogs and the following family movies. ...

PROPS to Despicable Me 2.  Do you remember M. Night Shyamalan's The Sixth Sense, which was a different movie after you saw it the first time?  You can watch Despicable Me 2 like that: the first time as a romp for kiddies and the second time as a light romantic comedy for mom and dad.  Scene after scene delivers giggles for the kids and soulful warmth for the parents - often at exactly the same time.  Don't try this at home, Mr. Leno.

The daffy little Minions, the ones your 4-year-old can't get enough of?  This reviewer's wife collects the toys at burger joints.  In the first movie, the hero, Gru, had already repented from badd-ie to OK-ie.  Now, he logically progresses to World's Best Dad-die.  You can watch the two movies back-to-back as one logical story.  On DVD, some families will.

Like Steve Carell, Gru is likeable, original and witty, no matter what his character.  Gru's dialogue is practically a standup comedy act of its own.  The villain, El Macho (HEH!) is sinister, ridiculous, fresh ... and everything except threatening.  

Oh, did we miss an age demographic someplace? Yeah, so there is a smile-inducing little puppy love romance for Gru's 13-ish-age daughter. Despicable Me 2 makes popcorn movies look as easy as Saturday afternoon.

SLOPS to Turbo.  It's one thing for a crop-duster airplane to race against jets; although it's impossible, at least there is some sort of scale to it.  But a magic snail, racing against hi-tech stock cars?  How about Mickey Mouse entering a boxing tournament against the Karate Kid?

All of these cartoons recycle the same ideas, but this one doesn't even drive through the recycle plant.  The parallels to Cars are so blatant that it looks like a quickie rewrite. A cartoon is a cartoon, so if you insist, go see it with our blessing.  

PROPS to The Wizard of Oz. No, not the one with James Franco.  The Judy Garland original is on the big screen, and Warner Bros. got seeeer-ious about the remaster.

We ain't on a 9-inch screen any more, Toto.  We see the fabric on Dorothy's dress, the rust on the Tin Man's joints, the popping colors on the Munchkins' outfits, and this time we really are Off.to.See.the.Wizard.

So many elements of this movie have become iconic - the Wicked Witch, the ruby slippers, Dorothy's dress, the cowardice of the Lion, the yellow brick road, on and on and on.  These things are iconic because they pack such a wallop.  We lean back into the movie, let the Americana wash the Lady GaGa off us, and we come out restored.  The "clichés" come to life again, if only for 112 minutes. But what a life-affirming 112 minutes.

Also playing at Gateway 8: The Counselor (R); Carrie (R); Insidious: Chapter 2 (PG-13); Rush (R); Don Jon (R); Escape Plan (R) and We're the Millers (R)

GALAXY 8, 2501 S. Gateway Center Pl., Federal Way, $2, 253.945.8230