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+.
Henry Cavill
‘Argylle’ is a Triple Threat … Uninspired, Idiotic and Boring
Submitted by PatrickMcD on February 2, 2024 - 10:30am Rating: 1.0/5.0 |
CHICAGO – “Argylle” is a nasty, smelly cinematic hairball coughed up on unsuspecting audiences. It’s a collection of half remembered clichés, atrocious writing, incoherent action, and terrible performances. A flaming dumpster fire of which only the great comic actor Catherine O’Hara emerges largely unscathed.
Tom Cruise Outruns Time in ‘Mission Impossible: Fallout'
Submitted by PatrickMcD on July 27, 2018 - 7:16am Rating: 4.0/5.0 |
CHICAGO – By any reasonable account, Tom Cruise should be entering into a phase in the “Mission Impossible” series not unlike the latter James Bond films of Roger Moore… appearing in closeups and letting the stuntmen do the rest. However, Cruise continues to outrun the ravages of time, and his stunts only seem to get crazier in the sixth film, “Mission Impossible: Fallout.”
Up Up & Away for ‘Justice League’ From DC Comics
Submitted by PatrickMcD on November 15, 2017 - 8:09amRating: 4.0/5.0 |
CHICAGO – In the America of truth, justice and comic book movies, the DC brand – featuring hero icons Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman – has lagged behind their rivals at Marvel Studios. “Justice League” fills that gap admirably, after the slam-bam summer of Wonder Woman.
‘The Man from U.N.C.L.E.’ Just a Big Screen Bore
Submitted by PatrickMcD on August 12, 2015 - 2:04pm Rating: 2.5/5.0 |
CHICAGO – Director Guy Ritchie’s big screen version of the 1960’s spy show “The Man From U.N.C.L.E.” is a colossal waste of time for all involved. The original show was never all that good to begin with, but this film is never able to clear that admittedly low bar, or even replicate any of the TV show’s small pleasures.
‘Man of Steel’ is Strong, But Not Completely Heroic
Submitted by PatrickMcD on June 14, 2013 - 4:28pm Rating: 3.5/5.0 |
CHICAGO – Place the Superman legend into the hands of director Zack Snyder (“Watchmen”) and storyteller/producer Christopher Nolan (“Dark Knight”), and old Supes is bound for a makeover in “Man of Steel.” When it works, it’s adds to a legend’s richness. When it doesn’t, it is less than hero.
‘Man of Steel’ Soars Visually But Lacks Humanity
Submitted by BrianTT on June 12, 2013 - 9:12pm Rating: 2.0/5.0 |
CHICAGO – From the CGI-heavy attack on Krypton that opens Zack Snyder’s “Man of Steel” to its soaring finale, I had the same reaction -– where’s the “Man half? Snyder’s attempt to reboot the Superman legacy with the loving assistance of David Goyer and Christopher Nolan of “The Dark Knight” fame gets the superhero part but misses the humanity at the core of this legendary character.
‘Immortals’ is Model of a Modern Major Epic
Submitted by PatrickMcD on November 11, 2011 - 7:27pmRating: 3.5/5.0 |
CHICAGO – The sword and sandals epic has been around since the costume department fashioned the first toga. A modern take on this tried-and-true story line is “Immortals,” using the latest computer generated imagery to create the gods of Mount Olympus, the mortals of ancient Greece and their severed heads in 3D.
