CHICAGO – Knock me over with a feather kids, but I enjoyed “Transformers: The Last Knight.” Maybe it was in comparison to the others or maybe director Michael Bay has beaten me into submission, but this one had the right story elements and casting to make it work, with exceptions of course. It’s goofiness is its charm, and it was released on Blu-Ray/DVD on September 26th, 2017 (Digital HD already available).
IFC Films
Kristen Stewart is Hauntingly Captivating in ‘Personal Shopper’
Submitted by JonHC on March 23, 2017 - 2:20pm Rating: 3.0/5.0 |
CHICAGO – I’ve had a deep fascination with ghost stories since I was a kid. There is something both interesting and terrifying knowing that there are often unseen forces we could be encountering in our everyday life. Olivier Assayas creates an unexplainable phantasm thriller in “Personal Shopper” that remains completely captivating throughout even if you don’t understand what you just experienced.
Elisabeth Moss Reigns Supreme in ‘Queen of Earth’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on September 8, 2015 - 10:16am Rating: 4.5/5.0 |
CHICAGO – Elisabeth Moss is the ‘Actor of Her Generation.’ She is a true chameleon, and can anchor a lead role while still expressing a twitch of consequence. The subject is depression in “Queen of Earth,” and writer/director Alex Ross Perry is able to honestly portray it through Moss.
Circumstances of Life, Truth Exist in ‘Boyhood’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on July 18, 2014 - 5:01pm Rating: 4.5/5.0 |
CHICAGO – Life is made up of moments, as the philosophy of the new Richard Linklater film wants to convey. What formulates a person’s ideals and soul, born in a certain place and time? Over 12 years, the writer and director created a fictional family using the same actors in “Boyhood.”
Vacant, Sad Sexual Journey in ‘Young & Beautiful’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on May 20, 2014 - 12:08pm Rating: 3.5/5.0 |
CHICAGO – “Young & Beautiful” may have people rethinking the phrase, “oh, to be young and beautiful again.” Well, maybe the “young” part, since we seldom don’t hear lamentations of the loss of beauty. Here’s a film that reminds us that wisdom not only comes with age, but also with mistakes.
Philip Seymour Hoffman Lives Again in ‘God’s Pocket’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on May 20, 2014 - 11:34amRating: 3.0/5.0 |
CHICAGO – Watching Philip Seymour Hoffman perform, now that he has passed on, is a bittersweet reminder of his ability and power to embody his deeply felt characters. He does it again in one of his last roles, adding his special brand of acting to the messy story within the gritty noir drama, “God’s Pocket.”
Jeff Garlin Directs Inconsistent ‘Dealin’ with Idiots’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on July 12, 2013 - 5:22pmRating: 3.0/5.0 |
CHICAGO – Jeff Garlin has created a good “character” in TV and films – a gruff but affable schlemiel that ambles through life as if distracted. He amplifies that role in his latest comedy, “Dealin’ with Idiots,’ but the loose improvisation style has too many unfunny stretches and an unpleasant spirit.
America Waist Deep in Endless ‘Dirty Wars’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on June 14, 2013 - 1:04amRating: 3.5/5.0 |
CHICAGO – Jeremy Scahill is a relentless investigative reporter, a rare species in an age of increasing corporate control of the media. He goes to terror zones that others fear to tread, and has uncovered stories that comprise his new documentary, “Dirty Wars,” which uncovers dangerous U.S. foreign policy.
Greta Gerwig Lights Up the Life of ‘Frances Ha’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on May 24, 2013 - 9:43pmRating: 4.5/5.0 |
CHICAGO – Greta Gerwig is a gift to the type of film acting that dominates the screen. This beautiful, versatile actor gives poignant energy to her latest title character, “Frances Ha,” a collaboration with indie director Noah Baumbach (“Greenberg”).
Profiling Transforms ‘The Reluctant Fundamentalist’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on May 3, 2013 - 4:03pmRating: 3.5/5.0 |
CHICAGO – Given the recent media coverage of the Boston bombings, the issue of profiling – judging a individual as suspect based on religion or appearances – is an ongoing problem. Director Mira Nair explores profiling in the context of September 11th in “The Reluctant Fundamentalist.”
‘Beyond the Hills’ Entraps Audience in Claustrophobic Nightmare
Submitted by mattmovieman on March 14, 2013 - 3:47pmRating: 3.5/5.0 |
CHICAGO – There is an excellent 90-minute film hidden somewhere within the two-and-a-half-hour ordeal that is Cristian Mungiu’s “Beyond the Hills.” It’s far from a bad film, and offers many sequences of entrancing power, but simply doesn’t have enough material to justify its sprawling running time. Instead of probing deeper, the picture merely becomes repetitive.
