CHICAGO – Excelsior! Comic book legend Stan Lee’s famous exclamation puts a fine point on the third and final play of Mark Pracht’s FOUR COLOR TRILOGY, “The House of Ideas,” presented by and staged at City Lit Theater in Chicago’s Edgewater neighborhood. For tickets/details, click HOUSE OF IDEAS.
HollywoodChicago.com Arts & Entertainment News
Blu-Ray Review: ‘SG-U Stargate Universe: 1.0’ Offers Lots of Conflict, Little Adventure
Submitted by mattmovieman on February 19, 2010 - 3:05pmCHICAGO – Some franchises are best left undiscovered. “Stargate” originally began as a terrible 1994 film from B-movie maestro Roland Emmerich. It took a potentially interesting premise, and used it as an excuse for a lot of uninspired sci-fi warfare. The film, bad as it was, inexplicably spawned two long-running TV shows: “Stargate SG-1” and “Stargate: Atlantis.”
Take Trip to Riveting ‘Shutter Island’ With Leonardo DiCaprio
Submitted by BrianTT on February 19, 2010 - 2:54pmCHICAGO – “Shutter Island” is a riveting trip through a cinematic funhouse led by one of the best filmmakers of all time in Martin Scorsese, who fully employs the copious skills of his most talented collaborators including star Leonardo DiCaprio.
‘The Oscar Nominated Short Films 2010’ Are a Mixed Bag at Best
Submitted by BrianTT on February 19, 2010 - 1:35pmCHICAGO – In a year where commercial products and prefabricated award bids are being celebrated, it’s refreshing to see two Oscar categories uncorrupted by popular taste. While the short film nominees of 2010 are a mixed bag at best, they offer a splendid variety of fresh artistic visions from around the world. There isn’t a Pixar film in the bunch, though a certain beloved British comedy duo make a welcome return to the category they’ve won twice before.
Blu-Ray Review: ‘Contempt,’ ‘The Ladykillers,’ ‘Ran’
Submitted by BrianTT on February 19, 2010 - 1:01pmCHICAGO – I have to admit to a bit of trepidation every time a studio outside of the widely acknowledged masters tries their hand at catalog releases but the Lionsgate/StudioCanal Blu-ray releases of “Contempt,” “The Ladykillers,” and “Ran” are spectacular. Not only do the films look amazing in HD but they’ve been given copious special features. Don’t miss them.
Interview: Rose Byrne, Hugh Dancy For ‘Adam’ on Being ‘Mind Blind’ With Asperger’s
Submitted by HollywoodChicago.com on February 19, 2010 - 3:08amCHICAGO – People who have been diagnosed with Asperger’s syndrome, which is on the autistic spectrum, are sometimes described as being “mind blind”. In other words, they often don’t understand what people are thinking.
Blu-Ray Review: Tony Jaa’s ‘Ong Bak’ Films in HD
Submitted by BrianTT on February 18, 2010 - 2:49pmCHICAGO – Even casual fans of the martial arts genre would be blown away by the action of the legendary Tony Jaa in “Ong Bak 2: The Beginning”. The drama of the piece is a little disappointing, but the action is ridiculously consistent and entertaining. The sequel along with the original 2005 “Ong Bak: The Thai Warrior” are now available on Blu-ray.
Video Game Review: Dive Into Wildly Entertaining ‘Bioshock 2’
Submitted by BrianTT on February 18, 2010 - 1:50pmCHICAGO – It’s time to dive back into the world of Rapture, the setting of one of the most anticipated releases of 2010, “Bioshock 2,” the sequel to 2007’s game of the year. Wildly entertaining without being particularly groundbreaking, “Bioshock 2” could be considered a slight disappointment when compared to the first game, but then again so could most titles.
Blu-Ray Review: Every True Movie Fan Must Own ‘GoodFellas’
Submitted by BrianTT on February 18, 2010 - 1:46pmCHICAGO – Very, very few movies are as immensely rewatchable as Martin Scorsese’s masterful “GoodFellas,” now released on Blu-ray in a twentieth anniversary edition timed to coincide with the theatrical release of “Shutter Island” this Friday. One of the most influential films of the ’90s is one of those rare works that has lost absolutely none of its power.
DVD Round Up, Feb. 17, 2010: ‘Good Hair,’ ‘Blood Creek’
Submitted by BrianTT on February 17, 2010 - 11:10pmCHICAGO – HollywoodChicago.com’s regular Round-Up column returns this week with another collection of recently released DVDs that may have slid just a bit below your radar while you were busy buying Valentine’s Day cards and candy. We’re not necessarily recommending these titles, merely presenting their details for your awareness. You’re welcome.
Blu-Ray Review: ‘The Stepfather’ Remake Never Justifies Its Existence
Submitted by BrianTT on February 16, 2010 - 10:25pmCHICAGO – The original “The Stepfather” is such a product of its era that I have to admit that I went into the remake wondering what on Earth they could do to bring such an ’80s story into the ’00s. The answer turns out to be shockingly little. “The Stepfather” isn’t that bad. In fact, it’s better executed than I expected. It’s just a shadow of the original in that it never justifies its existence.
DVD Review: ‘Turner Classic Movies: Greatest Classic Films Collection’
Submitted by BrianTT on February 16, 2010 - 8:56pmCHICAGO – Turner Classic Movies continues their collection of some of their greatest films in four-movie sets, three of which were recently released and distributed by Warner Brothers Home Video under the label “Turner Classic Movies: Greatest Classic Films Collection” with sub-labels of “Romance,” “Marx Brothers,” and “Sci-Fi Classics”.
Blu-Ray Review: Classic B-Movie Horror of ‘The Toolbox Murders’
Submitted by BrianTT on February 16, 2010 - 7:47pmCHICAGO – If you’re like me, you forgot how totally weird the cult horror classic “The Toolbox Murders” actually is. Perhaps the dull, by-the-numbers Tobe Hooper remake (with the otherwise great Angela Bettis from “May”) warped our minds, but this is a trippy slasher film, a notable entry in the slasher genre now available in glorious B-movie High-Def for the first time.
Blu-Ray Review: ‘Law Abiding Citizen’ Guilty of Incessant Gimmickry
Submitted by mattmovieman on February 15, 2010 - 2:36pmCHICAGO – 2009 was a very bad year for Gerard Butler. He has the potential to be one of the most appealing actors in Hollywood, but like Hugh Jackman, he’s usually cast in roles that sap him of all his inherent charisma, such as the obnoxious misogynist in “The Ugly Truth” or the tormented prisoner in “Gamer.” Yet while both of those films were tortuously awful, “Law Abiding Citizen” at least has the germ of a good idea.
