Tom Hardy

Film Review: Animal Psychology Charges Rugged Thug Tale ‘The Drop’

The Drop

CHICAGO – For a film adapted from “Mystic River” and “Gone Baby Gone” author Dennis Lehane, there are no children in danger in “The Drop,” but there is a pit bull puppy named Rocco. The dog’s involvement in the story, an animal who gets as many closeups this side of a Charles Martin Smith film, invites the uncharacteristically blunt metaphor of how creatures fight for power, or even just the impression of power.

Film Review: Tom Hardy’s Mesmerizing ‘Locke’ Makes You Question Who You Are

CHICAGO – It’s impossible to simply play spectator through the forward-moving experimental indie “Locke” without analyzing your own past. And only a zombie could sit through this one-man film without questioning what choices you’d make in Tom Hardy’s shoes.

Film Review: Tom Hardy Drives for His Life in Minimalist Thriller ‘Locke’

CHICAGO – The de facto dazzle of isolated survival movies, regardless of their special effects, comes from pulling off their most impressive practical stunt: envisioning yet deconstructing high stakes drama with alternative spare plot resources, while featuring only a few on-screen characters, if even more than two. Though it entails Tom Hardy taking phone calls while safely driving at night on the highway (and if we’re talking straight arc, it’s only that), “Locke” is a movie that continues minimalism’s deconstruction of the large scope expectations audiences have for their thrill rides.

Interview: Director Steven Knight Clicks on ‘Locke’

CHICAGO – Driving all night has taken on a different reality, with the invention of the mobile phone. There is no sanctuary within the confines of the automobile, which is now a rolling office or coordination tank. Writer/director Steven Knight portrays this new reality in a fascinating and unique new film called “Locke.”

HollywoodChicago.com Hookup: 50 Pairs of Passes to ‘Locke’ With Tom Hardy

CHICAGO – In the latest HollywoodChicago.com Hookup: Film, we have 50 pairs of advance-screening movie passes up for grabs to the new experimental thrillerLocke” starring Tom Hardy (who played Bane in “The Dark Knight Rises”)!

Blu-ray Review: Great Gift Set Comes Early in ‘The Dark Knight Trilogy’

The Dark Knight Trilogy

CHICAGO – Believe it or not, it’s already time to start holiday shopping, which means it’s the time of year that studios release lavish gift sets for their most beloved films. No one is better at this holiday season product design than Warner Bros., who has released great Limited Edition sets for “Willy Wonka & The Chocolate Factor,” “Ben-Hur,” and the “Harry Potter” films in recent years. The first one this year is one of the best I’ve seen, a gorgeously packaged and beautifully accompanied collection for “The Dark Knight Trilogy,” including awesome physical collectibles and 90 minutes of new special features.

Blu-ray Review: Stellar Release For Epic ‘The Dark Knight Rises’

CHICAGO – While a new Oscar bait release hitting theaters every week at this time of year as we work our way through films like “Zero Dark Thirty,” “Django Unchained,” and “The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey,” it’s easy to forget that one of the films long-considered a likely Oscar player came out months ago.

Film Review: Tom Hardy Leads Great Cast in Disappointing ‘Lawless’

CHICAGO – John Hillcoat’s “Lawless,” based on Matt Bondurant’s “The Wettest County in the World,” is one of the most high profile disappointments of 2012, a film with an amazing cast that suffocates under the weight of an inconsistent script, a boring lead, and a complete lack of narrative drive.

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TV, DVD, BLU-RAY & THEATER REVIEWS

  • Manhunt

    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+.

  • Topdog/Underdog, Invictus Theatre

    CHICAGO – When two brothers confront the sins of each other and it expands into a psychology of an entire race, it’s at a stage play found in Chicago’s Invictus Theatre Company production of “Topdog/Underdog,” now at their new home at the Windy City Playhouse through March 31st, 2024. Click TD/UD for tickets/info.

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