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+.
HollywoodChicago.com Arts & Entertainment News
Blu-Ray Review: Stylish, Fascinating ‘The Good, The Bad, The Weird’
Submitted by BrianTT on August 16, 2010 - 12:55pmCHICAGO – Our film critic Matt Fagerholm may have felt that “The Good, The Bad, The Weird” valued style over substance to a fault (read his review) but this critic still holds it as one of the best films of the year; a joyful cavalcade of modern action and spaghetti western archetypes that’s unlike anything else released in 2010. Don’t miss this excellent movie now that it’s on Blu-ray.
Blu-Ray Review: Spend ‘Date Night’ With Tina Fey, Steve Carell
Submitted by BrianTT on August 16, 2010 - 11:26amCHICAGO – “Date Night” is one of the few word-of-mouth hits of 2010; a film that started off reasonably well at the box office but hung around the top ten for months after its release, turning it into an undeniable comedy success. The comedy starring Steve Carell and Tina Fey opened in second place but dropped so slowly that it almost made $100 million (a huge amount for a movie like this one and plus another $50 million internationally). The movie’s loyal fans will love the excellent Blu-ray release from 20th Century Fox.
DVD Review: First Season of NBC Medical Dramas ‘Mercy,’ ‘Trauma’
Submitted by BrianTT on August 16, 2010 - 10:37amCHICAGO – It must have been rough to be on the NBC drama team in the fall of 2010. The network brass made it crystal clear that they cared little about scripted drama when they handed over five nights a week to Jay Leno, but the producers of the network’s two new medical dramas “Mercy” and “Trauma” had to push forward with their programs despite the diminishing reputation of their home. Both series made it through the first year but neither graduated to a second season. See what you probably missed with “Mercy: The Complete Series” and “Trauma: Season 1.”
TV Review: Laura Linney Faces Down End-Stage Cancer in ‘The Big C’
Submitted by BrianTT on August 16, 2010 - 10:21amCHICAGO – What would you do if you just didn’t give a crap anymore? This question seems to be the theme of Showtime’s new series “The Big C,” starring Laura Linney, Oliver Platt, and recent Oscar nominee Gabourey Sidibe.
HollywoodChicago.com Hookup: 50 Chicago Passes to ‘Vampires Suck’ Parody
Submitted by HollywoodChicago.com on August 15, 2010 - 11:25pmCHICAGO – In our latest parody edition of HollywoodChicago.com Hookup: Film, we have 50 admit-two passes up for grabs to the advance Chicago screening of the new film “Vampires Suck”!
Film Review: Ambition, Ingenuity Win Fight of ‘Scott Pilgrim vs. the World’
Submitted by BrianTT on August 13, 2010 - 4:08pmCHICAGO – Working from the graphic novels by Brian Lee O’Malley, Edgar Wright and Michael Cera deliver one of the most unique films of the year in the comedy/romance/comedy/video-game/pop-art/action/musical “Scott Pilgrim vs. the World.” You won’t see anything like this again for a long time.
Film Review: Julia Roberts Learns How to ‘Eat Pray Love’
Submitted by BrianTT on August 13, 2010 - 3:32pm Rating: 3.5/5.0 |
CHICAGO – Despite its flaws, the often-beautiful “Eat Pray Love,” starring Julia Roberts, works because it refuses to talk down to its audience. This is the rare “chick flick” that treats its demographic with respect, never becoming the sentimental or manipulative dreck that so many other filmmakers would have delivered from Elizabeth Gilbert’s bestselling memoirs.
HollywoodChicago.com Hookup: 10 Chicago Passes to ‘The Expendables’ With Sylvester Stallone, Jet Li
Submitted by HollywoodChicago.com on August 13, 2010 - 2:29pmCHICAGO – In our latest action/adventure edition of HollywoodChicago.com Hookup: Film, we have 10 admit-two run-of-engagement movie passes up for grabs to the new film “The Expendables” with Sylvester Stallone, Jason Statham, Jet Li, Mickey Rourke and Dolph Lundgren!
Film Review: Kevin Kline, John C. Reilly Are Eccentric New Yorkers in ‘The Extra Man’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on August 13, 2010 - 8:15amCHICAGO – The beauty of watching creative character actors like Kevin Kline and John C. Reilly is that they seem to revel in the craft of embodying their roles. In “The Extra Man,” they both take a trippy and literate script and apply some additional magic that helps to flesh out a young man’s journey into the heart of Manhattan.
Film Review: Sylvester Stallone, Jason Statham Are Halfway in ‘The Expendables’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on August 13, 2010 - 7:08amCHICAGO – Seeing them all together was fun. Enduring some macho joshing, even in the form of stiff dialogue, was tolerable. But doing a bad, boring action movie with Sylvester Stallone trying to prop up his “legacy” was sadly too much to bear.
Interview: Anna Kendrick, Jason Schwartzman on ‘Scott Pilgrim vs. the World’
Submitted by BrianTT on August 12, 2010 - 8:15pmCHICAGO – Jason Schwartzman wears silk panties on-set and the fast-talking Anna Kendrick drops an f-bomb in the most delightful way. These are merely two of the highlights of one of the more unique and enjoyable celebrity interviews we’ve done in a long time.
HollywoodChicago.com Hookup: ‘Countdown to Zero’ Signed Poster, DVDs to ‘No End in Sight,’ ‘Food, Inc.,’ ‘Man on Wire’
Submitted by HollywoodChicago.com on August 12, 2010 - 11:03amCHICAGO – In this edition of the HollywoodChicago.com Hookup: DVD, one lucky winner will clean up with three DVDs from Magnolia Pictures for the movies “Man on Wire,” “Food, Inc.” and “No End in Sight” plus a full-size poster for “Countdown to Zero” signed by director Lucy Walker, producer Lawrence Bender and narrator Valerie Plame Wilson!
The 10 Best Non-Superhero Comic Book Adaptations
Submitted by BrianTT on August 12, 2010 - 8:57amCHICAGO – Comic books and graphic novels are certainly the closest artistic relatives to cinema, but are the mediums really meant to walk hand-in-hand? While Hollywood has certainly benefitted from the profitability of superhero franchises, securing vehicles for every caped demigod known to man, the popular taste of costumed devotees doesn’t always jive with that of the mainstream public.
