Clik here to view.
TV Review: Toni Collette Continues to Shine on ‘United States of Tara’
CHICAGO– I personally think the show is slightly inferior to its hour-partner “Nurse Jackie,” but Toni Collette does such spectacular work on “United States of Tara” that her performance alone demands...
View ArticleClik here to view.
DVD Review: Toni Collette, Diablo Cody Shine in ‘United States of Tara: The...
CHICAGO– It’s difficult to think of a role better suited for the chameleon-like abilities of Toni Collette than Tara Gregson, a devoted wife and mother struggling with dissociative identity disorder....
View ArticleClik here to view.
TV Review: ‘United States of Tara’ Offers Showcase For Toni Collette
CHICAGO– I’ve said for two seasons now that Showtime’s “United States of Tara” isn’t as good as it should be, partially because the writing and parts of the ensemble don’t live up to the Emmy-winning...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Blu-Ray Review: Ben Affleck Stars in Timely ‘The Company Men’
CHICAGO– John Wells has been one of the most important voices in television for the last two decades, shepherding “Third Watch,” “The West Wing,” “ER,” “Southland,” “Shameless,” and many more. It’s...
View ArticleClik here to view.
HollywoodChicago.com Hookup: 60 Pairs of Chicago Passes to Emily Blunt’s...
CHICAGO– In the latest HollywoodChicago.com Hookup: Film with our unique social giveaway technology, we have 60 admit-two movie passes up for grabs to the advance screening of the new comedy “Your...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Interview: ‘Your Sister’s Sister’ Director Lynn Shelton on Fast-Paced Production
CHICAGO– The characters in a Lynn Shelton movie live relatively content lives until an unexpected event ruptures their sense of self. A self-absorbed writer awakens to the fact that he’s been a...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Film Review: Great Trio Elevates Lynn Shelton’s ‘Your Sister’s Sister’
Rating: 3.5/5.0CHICAGO– Lynn Shelton’s “Your Sister’s Sister” is a character-driven piece about hidden feelings and complex relationships. Like her work on “Humpday,” Shelton has a keen ear for the way...
View ArticleClik here to view.
HollywoodChicago.com Hookup: 30 Pairs of Passes to ‘The Watch’ With Vince...
CHICAGO– In the latest HollywoodChicago.com Hookup: Film with our unique social giveaway technology, we have 30 admit-two movie passes up for grabs to the advance screening of the new sci-fi/comedy...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Film Review: Ben Stiller in ‘The Watch’ Needs a Better Mechanism
CHICAGO– Star studded, special effects ladened “comedies” featuring aliens should have been put to rest after last year’s “Paul.” But “The Watch” is here, and it features Ben Stiller, Vince Vaughn,...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Film Review: ‘The Odd Life of Timothy Green’ Misses Emotional Connection
CHICAGO– Peter Hedges’ “The Odd Life of Timothy Green” has a warm, gooey center that’s admirable in a family movie way but what’s around it can’t hold together as the lack of focus in the narrative and...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Blu-ray Review: ‘Your Sister’s Sister’ Sets High Bar for Indie Filmmaking
CHICAGO– Give Lynn Shelton a few days, a dozen crew members, a picturesque cabin and three terrific actors, and just look at what she’s capable of making. “Your Sister’s Sister” is clearly the work of...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Film Review: Beguiling Ensemble Nearly Salvages Frustrating ‘Nobody Walks’
CHICAGO– From the very beginning of her screen career, Olivia Thirlby has specialized in playing youthful seductresses intent on jump-starting their male partners’ sexual coming-of-age. She exuded...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Film Feature: The Best Supporting Performances of 2012
CHICAGO– A mother trying to protect her son from an assassin, a man who coordinates lap dances for a living, a woman whose dreams have died, a gambler betting on his son, and two people at the heart of...
View ArticleClik here to view.
HollywoodChicago.com Hookup: 40 Pairs of Passes to ‘Promised Land’ With Matt...
CHICAGO– In the latest HollywoodChicago.com Hookup: Film with our unique social giveaway technology, we have 40 pairs of movie passes up for grabs to the advance screening of “Promised Land” with Matt...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Blu-ray Review: Bizarre Misfire ‘The Odd Life of Timothy Green’ Falls Flat
CHICAGO– “The Odd Life of Timothy Green” is the sort of extravagantly wrong-headed misfire that perhaps only could’ve been made by talented people. The director is Peter Hedges, an accomplished...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Film Review: Gus Van Sant’s ‘Promised Land’ Breaks Promise to Audiences
CHICAGO– When a Gus Van Sant picture works well, it can be as rousing as “Milk” or as thrillingly experimental as “Elephant.” Few filmmakers have straddled the mainstream and independent realms with...
View ArticleClik here to view.
DVD Review: Sundance Hits with Different Results in ‘Hello I Must Be Going,’...
CHICAGO– As I learned on my inaugural trip to Sundance (check out all the coverage here) this year, there is common discussion as to how things will play outside of the thin mountain air of Park City....
View ArticleClik here to view.
HollywoodChicago.com Hookup: 100 Pairs of Passes to ‘Men, Women & Children’...
CHICAGO– In the latest HollywoodChicago.com Hookup: Film, we have 100 pairs of advance-screening movie passes up for grabs to the new dramedy“Men, Women & Children” from the “Juno” director...
View ArticleClik here to view.
HollywoodChicago.com Hookup: 50 Pairs of Passes to ‘Kill the Messenger’ With...
CHICAGO– In the latest HollywoodChicago.com Hookup: Film, we have 50 pairs of advance-screening movie passes up for grabs to the new dramatic thriller “Kill the Messenger” starring Jeremy Renner based...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Interview: Director Michael Cuesta on Issues in ‘Kill the Messenger’
CHICAGO– What happens when too much truth is exposed, and those who will feel the backlash from that exposure are too powerful? The new film “Kill the Messenger,” directed by Michael Cuesta, seeks an...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Film Review: Meet the Press in Illuminating ‘Kill the Messenger’
CHICAGO– When journalists were heroes and exposed those in power for their sins, movies were made like “All the President’s Men.” Gary Webb of the San Jose Mercury News was one of those journalist...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Blu-ray Review: Stale Screen Culture Drama ‘Men, Women & Children’
CHICAGO– In “Men, Women & Children,” director Jason Reitman not-so-audaciously reflects onto viewers their world of silent screens and awkward impersonal interactions. As many stories (“Don Jon,”...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Interview: ‘Digging for Fire’ Director Joe Swanberg at 2015 Chicago Critics...
CHICAGO– He is the master of loose and natural dialogue in his many micro-budget films. Director Joe Swanberg has worked his way up the movie ladder through perseverance and staying true to his vision,...
View ArticleClik here to view.
HollywoodChicago.com Hookup: 40 Pairs of Passes to ‘Poltergeist’ With Sam...
CHICAGO– In the latest HollywoodChicago.com Hookup: Film, we have 40 pairs of advance-screening movie passes up for grabs to the new horror“Poltergeist” starring Sam Rockwell and Rosemarie DeWitt from...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Film Review: ‘Poltergeist’ Remake Has a Soul of Its Own
CHICAGO– Whether it’s the 1982 original or the remake just released in theaters today to the wrath of numerous fans, the lesson of “Poltergeist” remains the same: Don’t do a half-assed job when...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Interview: Actor Jake Johnson on Evolving in ‘Digging for Fire’
CHICAGO– Actor Jake Johnson is expanding his presence in movies, and much of that has to do with his collaboration with director – and Chicago native – Joe Swanberg. Johnson and Swanberg have teamed up...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Film News: ‘La La Land’ is Opening Night Film of 52nd Chicago International...
CHICAGO– The 52nd Chicago International Film Festival kicks off on Thursday, October 13th, 2016, with the highly anticipated film, ‘La La Land.’ The modern day musical, directed by Damian Chazelle...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Slideshow: Red-Carpet Portraits from the 52nd Chicago International Film...
Previous | Image 1 of 18 | NextOPENING NIGHT: Rosemarie DeWitt of ‘La La Land.’CHICAGO– The glamor and the action always takes place on the Red Carpet, and the 52nd Chicago International Film Festival...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Interview: Damien Chazelle & Rosemarie DeWitt of ‘La La Land’
CHICAGO– Bringing the musical movie genre back requires a bit of nostalgia, a nod to modernity and always old fashioned star power. Writer/director Damien Chazelle (“Whiplash”) combined all three to...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Film Review: ‘La La Land’ Will Create Love for Musicals Again
CHICAGO– “La La Land” has the spirit of an old time “Singin’ In The Rain”-type Hollywood musical, but this is no throwback or revival. It brings that spirit into the modern age and gets it to live,...
View Article