CHICAGO – Patrick McDonald of HollywoodChicago.com appears on “The Morning Mess” with Dan Baker on WBGR-FM (Monroe, Wisconsin) on March 21st, 2024, reviewing the new streaming series “Manhunt” – based on the bestseller by James L. Swanson – currently streaming on Apple TV+.
Naomi Watts
Film Review: Not Much to Build Upon in Vague ‘Dream House’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on September 30, 2011 - 3:35pmCHICAGO – Mixing three actors with great reputations – Daniel Craig, Rachel Weisz and Naomi Watts – with Jim Sheridan, a six time Oscar nominated director, would assume to yield some fruitful results. But with “Dream House,” the artifice is indistinct and ill-defined, ultimately much ado about nothing.
Blu-Ray Review: Naomi Watts, Sean Penn Carry ‘Fair Game’
Submitted by BrianTT on March 31, 2011 - 4:53pmCHICAGO – Two of the best living actors shine in Doug Liman’s “Fair Game,” the (mostly) true story of Joe and Valerie Plame Wilson, two people who became symbols of the abuse of power of the Bush administration just as public opinion was turning on the war in Iraq. If you don’t know the name Scooter Libby, “Fair Game” will be educational. If you do know everything about the Wilson case already, it may be a little dry and inconsistent but strong performances still make it worth a rental.
Blu-Ray Review: Woody Allen’s ‘You Will Meet a Tall Dark Stranger’
Submitted by mattmovieman on March 3, 2011 - 2:16pmCHICAGO – “My relationship with death remains the same. I’m strongly against it,” mused Woody Allen at the 2010 Cannes Film Festival, during the press conference for his latest London-set comedy. The quote was quintessential Allen, though it had a particular poignance in light of his disappointing yet diverting offering, “You Will Meet a Tall Dark Stranger.”
Blu-Ray Review: ‘Mother and Child’ Offers Riveting Showcase For Actors
Submitted by mattmovieman on December 22, 2010 - 8:42amCHICAGO – No director treasures silence more than Rodrigo García. He doesn’t want anything to get in the way of the audience’s connection with his characters and the extraordinary actors who play them. With the invaluable assistance of cinematographer Xavier Pérez Grobet and composer Ed Shearmur, García has made some of the most brilliant and probing character studies in recent memory.
Film News: Christopher Nolan to Cast Two Female Leads For ‘The Dark Knight Rises’
Submitted by HollywoodChicago.com on November 11, 2010 - 10:35pmCHICAGO – Six strong female contenders are up for two leading female roles in “The Dark Knight” follow-up film “The Dark Knight Rises,” according to Deadline New York on Thursday.
Film Review: Sean Penn, Naomi Watts Revive Valerie Plame in ‘Fair Game’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on November 5, 2010 - 10:33amCHICAGO – The key line in “Fair Game,” a distillation of Valerie Plame’s outing as a CIA operative in 2003, is intoned by character actor Bruce McGill, in a scene reminiscent of the “Mr. X” moment in the “JFK” movie. Pointing to the White House and the Bush Administration, he simply says, “there are the most powerful men in the history of the world.”
Annette Bening, Naomi Watts Lack the Connection in ‘Mother and Child’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on May 23, 2010 - 3:34pmCHICAGO – “Mother and Child,” with an all star cast of Annette Bening, Naomi Watts, Samuel L. Jackson, Jimmy Smits and Kerry Washington, is mindful of its subject matter, that rare and elusive connection between a mother and their offspring. However, the film has difficulties when the characters become inconsistent with their past backgrounds after that connection is introduced.
Interview: Director Rodrigo Garcia on His New Film ‘Mother and Child’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on May 19, 2010 - 5:32pmCHICAGO – “Mother and Child” is an intense exploration of the various stages of motherhood, through the performances of Annette Bening, Naomi Watts and Samuel L. Jackson. Leading the eclectic cast through their paces is director Rodrigo Garcia.
Blu-Ray Review: Don’t Be Fooled By Action Promise of ‘The International’
Submitted by BrianTT on June 17, 2009 - 8:00amCHICAGO – The cover for the Blu-Ray release of Tom Tykwer’s “The International,” starring Clive Owen and Naomi Watts, sells the film as an action-packed thriller for a new era. There’s Clive with a deadly snarl, a gash on his face, and a firing gun. Don’t buy it. “The International” features some lovely settings, but it’s ultimately too dull to deliver.
A Story So Scary They Told it Twice: What We Know About Upcoming Horror Remakes
Submitted by BrianTT on March 23, 2009 - 12:35pmCHICAGO – The total number of horrendous, stupid, useless horror movie remakes could fill a film festival from Hell, but this year we’ve already seen the massively successful “Friday the 13th” and the critically lauded surprises of “My Bloody Valentine 3D” and “Last House on the Left”.