Deerfield Beach

4th of July Celebration

Wednesday, July 4, Noon to 9 p.m.

Main Beach Parking Lot

149 SE 21 Ave.

Deerfield Beach, FL 33441

Relax on the beach and join in the festivities as we celebrate the independence of our great nation. There will be music and vendors that will provide a variety of arts & crafts, local foods and ice cold beverages. Event is free to attend. There is a Complimentary Shuttle. Parking on the barrier island will be limited during the event. Complimentary parking is available from The Cove Shopping Center (1580 SE 3rd Ct.), Sullivan Park (1701 Riverview Rd.) & St. Ambrose Catholic Church (380 S. Federal Hwy). For more information on shuttles or event, visit www.deerfield-beach.com/1178/4th-of-July-Celebration.

Road & Facility Closure Information

• International Fishing Pier will be closed at 3 p.m. on July 2 and will reopen at 6 a.m. on July 5

• On July 4, at midnight, Ocean Way from Hillsboro Boulevard to SE 4 St., the Main Beach Parking Lot, the lot behind Ocean Rescue and the Pier Parking Lot will close reopening the morning of July 5

• SE 2 Street and SE 1 Street will close at A1A, July 4 at 6 a.m., reopening on the morning of July 5

• On July 4, from 6 – 11 p.m., the Hillsboro Boulevard Bridge and A1A, from Hillsboro Boulevard to SE 3 Street, and Ocean Way at NE 21 Avenue, will be closed to traffic

• The Hillsboro Boulevard Bridge will remain in the locked down position from 7 – 11 p.m.for pedestrian traffic

Boca Raton

Fabulous Fourth

Wednesday, July 4, 6:30 to 9:20 p.m.

Spanish River Athletics Facilities

1000 Spanish River Blvd.

Boca Raton, FL 33431

Enjoy your July 4th festively with fireworks at Countess de Hoernle Park. Spend your night viewing a fireworks display and partaking in various fun, food, music and activities.

4th of July Jam

Wednesday, July 4 to 5

The Loft at Congress

530 NW 77 St.

Boca Raton, FL 33487

If you want to party this Fourth of July, The Loft at Congress is the place to be. There will be DJs, dancing, drinks and fun (but only if you’re over 18). Dress to impress and grab some friends to help you dance the day away for a fun-filled Fourth.

Pompano Beach

4th of July Fireworks Extravaganza

Wednesday, July 4, 5 p.m.

Fishing Pier

222 N. Pompano Beach Blvd.

Pompano Beach, FL 33062

The Independence Day fun will begin with live music featuring Nostaljah, a Reggae band followed by L Tribe, an R&B band. At 9 p.m., sit back and relax as the colors light up the night sky with an array of fireworks that is sure to impress. The fireworks will be launched from a floating barge in the ocean near the end of the Pompano Beach Fishing Pier. Blankets and lawn chairs are welcome; however, personal fireworks, glass containers, alcohol and pets are prohibited. In case of inclement weather, a rain date for the fireworks show is Thursday, July 5. For more information, call 954-786-4111 or visit www.pompanobeachfl.gov.

Worth The Drive:

Ft. Lauderdale area

4th of July Spectacular

Wednesday, July 4, noon to 9:30 p.m.

Ft. Lauderdale Beach A1A & Las Olas Boulevard

521 N. Ft. Lauderdale Beach Blvd.

Ft. Lauderdale, FL 33304

Family Zone will be held from noon to 5 p.m. with DJ, music, bounce houses, water slides, face painting, and beach games & contests. From 4:30 to 5:30 p.m., Making Faces (Rock ‘n’ Roll) will be on stage, then the Walk of Fame Induction Ceremony will be at 5:45 p.m. and N2Nation (Motown) will go from 6:30 to 9 p.m. At 9 p.m. the fireworks show over Atlantic Ocean will be Simulcast with Music on 101.5 LITE FM. For event details, parking, and shuttle information visit www.fortlauderdale.gov/july4.

4th of July Parade

Wednesday July 4, 10 a.m.

El Mar Drive

Lauderdale-By-The-Sea, FL 33308

Join Lauderdale-By-the-Sea all day on the Fourth of July to celebrate our freedom and families. Parade will be from 10 to 11:30 a.m. For the parade, kids bring your treat bags & catch candy! There will be fire trucks, BSO vehicles, stilt walkers, Lady Liberty & Uncle Sam. Then Family Fun Day at El Prado Park (4500 El Mar Dr.) will be from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. with a giant water slide, DJ/music, clown, face painting, hot dogs, ice cream and lemonade. Then at 9 p.m., the fireworks will begin north of the park. For more information call LBTS Volunteer Fire Department at 954-640-4250.

Delray Beach

Delray Beach July 4th Celebration

Wednesday, July 4, starting at 8 a.m.

Atlantic Ave. & A1A

Delray Beach, FL 33483

The day starts with a Sand Castle Contest from 8 a.m. to noon located just east of the pavilion (if you want to sign up, do so on the beach before 8 a.m. with the HOW Foundation). At 5 p.m., there will be the Flag Raising Ceremony located at Gleason & Atlantic Ave. From 5:30 to 9 p.m., there is the main-stage entertainment. There will also be family activities from 5 to 9 p.m., including Putt’n Around Mini-Golf, craft activities & face painting & More! At 9 p.m., fireworks launch from a barge just east of the Marriott Hotel. For more information, call 561-278-0424 or e-mail simmelman@delraybeach.com.

By “Cinema” Dave

http://cinemadave.livejournal.com

It has been 34 years since director Steven Spielberg released his 6th motion picture, E.T. the Extraterrestrial, whose box office gross made him the King of Summer blockbusters. At the time, Harrison Ford was dating Melissa Mathison, who wrote the screenplay for E.T. When Mathison fell ill, Spielberg reviewed some of her screenplays and was impressed by her adaptation of Roald Dahl’s The BFG, which was published in 1982, the same year that E.T. the Extraterrestial was released. While best known for his dark children’s novels like James and the Giant Peach and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Dahl’s The BFG confronted an emotion he was unfamiliar with — sentimentality. The diverse collaboration between Dahl, Mathison and Spielberg has created a fine motion picture based on a book.

Sophie (Rudy Barnhill) is an orphan with insomnia. One night, she spots a giant (Mark Rylance) roaming the streets of London. Fearing reprisals from humans, the giant abducts Sophie and takes her to his hovel. Fearful at first, Sophie develops a kinship with the giant, who she names “BFG” — short for Big Friendly Giant.

Sophie learns that BFG is actually the runt of the giants and that he is frequently bullied by his brethren. When the mean giants get too aggressive, BFG plans to return Sophie to the orphanage. However, Sophie has another idea and it involves meeting the Queen of England.

Being Spielberg’s first Walt Disney movie, The BFG is pure family entertainment. There is fantastic cinematography that is spiritually enhanced by John Williams’ musical score. There are scary moments, but not scary enough to induce nightmares. There are subtle moments of humor, with a whizzpopping belly laugh that builds to absurd levels. The BFG is a good afternoon escape from the summer heat.

A sequel 20 years in the making, Independence Day:Resurgence opened last weekend with disappointing box office. While the sequel does provide the science fiction community their jollies, the film is not as good as the predecessor.

With reference to the fictional events of 1996, Jeff Goldblum and Madame President (Sela Ward) learn that the aliens are planning a counterattack. They recruit the children of the heroes from the first movie to fly into danger. Things go wrong when the aliens unleash a secret weapon. Cliches abound. One cliche involves sacrificial death. With a swelling musical score, this dramatic scene feels false; the sacrificial death proves meaningless.

The best part of this film features Goldblum and Judd Hirsch’s kvetching father. The bantering between the two feels real with much humor and humanity.

Happy 4th of July!

On Monday July 4th, Deerfield Beach celebrated Independence Day with a fantastic display set up by Zambelli Fireworks.  ObserverTV was granted exclusive access to the firing area that Zambelli Fireworks set up at the end of  the International Fishing Pier. Also, ObserverTV interviewed people and asked them what “independence” means to them.  See what people had to say by clicking on ObserverTV to view.