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CHICAGO – The Closing Night of the 2024 Cinema Femme Film Festival will be the short film showcase, based on letter writing themes, as the “Sincerely, Yours” block will start at 7:30pm, and “P.S.” will begin at 9:30pm. Both programs will be at Chicago’s historic Music Box Theatre. For more information and tickets, click SINCERELY or P.S.

Presented by Cinema Femme Magazine, the film festival emphasizes the importance of supporting emerging female and non-binary filmmakers, and connects those filmmakers to their Breaking Down Walls mentorship and retreat. The letter writing themes will include locally produced short films by Linh Tran (“Video Funeral”), Krista Kane (“Except”), Alison Torem (“Road Head”), Bridget Francis Harris (“Places of Worship”) and Lua Borges (“Madonna”).

Cinema Femme Short Film Festival
Photo credit: CinemaFemme.com

Festival Director Rebecca Martin Fagerholm is also the Managing Editor of Cinema Femme magazine. She founded the publication and began the film festival in 2018 because she wanted to create a platform for female and non-binary voices in the film community, and has hosted film screenings throughout Chicago and virtual panel discussions through the festival.

In a video clip, writer/director Linh Tran talks about “Video Funeral” …

Trailer, the Cinema Femme Short Film Festival …

Cinema Femme Magazine presents the 6th Cinema Femme Short Film Festival, with in-person shorts programs on May 1st, and one more virtual events on May 2nd, 2024. For all information about Cinema Femme, click here.

By PATRICK McDONALD
Editor and Film Writer
HollywoodChicago.com
pat@hollywoodchicago.com

© 2024 Patrick McDonald, HollywoodChicago.com

CHICAGO – Doc10, the annual Chicago documentary film festival, opens on May 2nd, 2024, with a new documentary about the famous avant garde rock band entitled “DEVO,” directed by Chris Smith. who will appear live, with the band participating via Zoom. Click DEVO for more information and tickets.

This spirited and irreverent portrait of the legendary new wave ban DEVO charts the unlikely rise of the musical innovators from Akron, Ohio. From Kent State radicals in the 1970s, galvanized by political unrest, to unlikely icons of the 1980s, featured in Honda Scooter commercials and mainstays of the early days of MTV … they are not men, they are DEVO. The film is directed by Chris Smith, known for his breakout debut “American Movie,” and goes beyond the typical bio-doc to channel the absurdity and edginess of the sonic provocateurs of DEVO, with the help of their own bizarre and hilarious archival materials. “Whip it, whip it good!”

’DEVO’ is the Opening Night Film for the 2024 Doc10
Photo credit: Doc10.org

The 2024 Doc10 festival will take place Thursday, May 2 through Sunday, May 5 at the Gene Siskel Film Center in Downtown Chicago and the Davis Theater in Chicago’s Lincoln Square neighborhood. For the complete list of documentaries and schedule, click 2024 DOC 10.

The 2024 DOC 10 Film Festival runs from May 2nd through May 5th, at the Davis Theater and Gene Siskel Film Center, Chicago. For the DOC 10 website, click here.

By PATRICK McDONALD
Editor and Film Critic/Writer
HollywoodChicago.com
pat@hollywoodchicago.com

© 2023 Patrick McDonald, HollywoodChicago.com

CHICAGO – The 2024 Chicago Critics Film Festival (CCFF) kicks off on Friday, May 3rd, with “Sing Sing” and continues through May 9th with an amazing cinema week featuring the best of the winter/spring bold face film fests, special guests, revivals and surprises! Click on 2024 CCFF for tickets and schedule.

The 11th CCFF
Photo credit: ChicagoCriticsFilmFestival.com

In “Sing Sing,” Divine G (Colman Domingo), who is imprisoned in New York State’s infamous Sing Sing prison, finds purpose by acting in a theatre group alongside other men who are incarcerated. The story uses actual incarceration actors alongside Domingo and the other professionals, and the guests for Opening Night includes director Greg Kwedar, and actors Clarence “Divine Eye’ Maclin, Paul Raci and Sean “Dino” Johnson.

CAPSULE REVIEW: The redemptive power of pretending to be something else is on display in this remarkable tale, filtered through the intense experiences of both society’s law breakers and rejected persons (including a majority people of color). Frustrations, revelations and a calming influence follow the troupe to their stage play, where all the men in this case are merely players, in a fascinating journey. (6:30pm).

The 11th edition of the Chicago Critics Film Festival is the the only such festival in the country curated by film critics, and highlights the 2024 films from the early year festivals like Sundance, SXSW and others. Opening Night will also feature “Cuckoo,” directed by Tilman Singer and “Sleep” by Jason Yu. The Closing Night film on May 9th will be “Ghostlight” by local legends Kelly O’Sullivan and Alex Thompson. More capsule film reviews of the Festival offerings will be published at HollywoodChicago.com at various times during the six day event.

The 11th Chicago Critics Film Festival runs from May 3rd through May 9th, 2024, at the Music Box Theatre, 3733 North Southport, Chicago. For the CCFF website, click here.

By PATRICK McDONALD
Editor and Film Critic/Writer
HollywoodChicago.com
pat@hollywoodchicago.com

© 2024 Patrick McDonald, HollywoodChicago.com

CHICAGO – The Midwest Film Festival (MFF) presents “Impact Shorts Night” on April 29th, 2024, and a big part of the new programming and direction for the longtime film networking fest is their new Operations Director NK Gutiérrez. For tickets and info, click IMPACT.

“Impact Shorts Night” is an evening of films that make a difference … powerful shorts that not only tell compelling stories but also tackle important societal issues. The line-up features “Teacher of Patience” by Carmen Vincent, “Queer” by Ariana Alejandra Vargas, Sure as the Wind by Mike Ambs and Greg Shewchuk, plus The Inside Singers by Daniel Kolen. The evening begins at 6:30pm with a Networking Reception, followed by a Community Spotlight (details below), the short film screenings (with filmmaker Q&As) and an After Party at the Emerald Loop Bar & Grill in Chicago’s Loop.

April 29th, 2024, at the Gene Siskel Film Center
Photo credit: MidwestFilm.com

In April’s Community Spotlight conversation, the MFF welcomes The Simple Good, an organization that equips youth to become positive change-makers through art and dialogue. Our networking reception will feature artworks created by these young individuals.

The MFF’s new Operations Manager is NK (Nicole Kristine) Gutiérrez. She is a classically trained dancer, vocalist, actor and filmmaker, most recently booking recurring roles in Showtime’s “The Chi,” NBC’s “Chicago Fire” and her 4th run of the hit show, “La Gringa,” at the 2022 Puerto Rican International Theater Festival in San Juan. Besides the MFF, she is the co-chair of the Black Harvest Film Festival and co-lead of the Film Club at Soho House Chicago.

In Podtalk interview by Patrick McDonald of HollywoodChicago.com, NK Gutiérrez on the Impact of “Impact Shorts Night” and more …

In a video clip, NK gives the pitch (“arf” says the pooch) …

The Midwest Film Festival has been a staple in Chicago’s film community for since 2004. At the beginning of 2020, the festival was reinvented with a a new outlook and name, facilitated by Executive Director Erica Duffy. It remains one of the most influential and provocative film festivals in the city.

The Midwest Film Festival Presents Impact Shorts Night, beginning at 6:30pm on Monday, April 29th, at the Gene Siskel Film Center, Chicago. For more info on The Midwest Film Festival, click here.

By PATRICK McDONALD
Editor and Film Critic/Writer
HollywoodChicago.com
pat@hollywoodchicago.com

© 2024 Patrick McDonald, HollywoodChicago.com

CHICAGO – The late playwright August Wilson left a gift to the world in the form of his “American Century Cycle,” a series of plays each individually set in a decade of the 20th Century, focusing on the black experience. Chicago’s Goodman Theatre presents Wilson’s “Joe Turner’s Come and Gone,” now through May 19th, 2024 (click here).

“Joe Turner’s Come and Gone” is set in the 1910s, only a couple generations past slavery, regarding a group of black folks at a boarding house, both living in and representing their era. The house is run by Seth and Bertha (Dexter Zollicoffer and TayLar), and contains semi permanent residents Bynum (Tim Rhoze) and guitar-playing Jeremy (Anthony Fleming III). One day, a stranger named Loomis (A.C. Smith) and his daughter Zonia (Kylah Jones) take a room. Their mission is a journey to find Loomis’s wife and the mother of Zonia, who has been missing for three years. This mission will consume everyone else in the boarding house.

Through May 19th at the Goodman Theatre
Photo credit: GoodmanTheatre.org

Patrick McDonald of HollywoodChicago.com audio review of “Joe Turner’s Come and Gone” …

The Goodman Theatre Production of “Joe Turner’s Come and Gone” is at the theater, 170 North Dearborn Avenue in Chicago through May 19th, 2024. Featuring Dexter Zollicoffer, TayLar, Tim Rhoze, Anthony Fleming III, A.C. Smith and Kylah Jones. Set Design/Lighting Design by Linda Buchanan/Jared Gooding. Written by August Wilson. Directed by Chuck Smith. For more information on the Goodman Theatre, click here.

By PATRICK McDONALD
Editor and Film Writer
HollywoodChicago.com
pat@hollywoodchicago.com

© 2024 Patrick McDonald, HollywoodChicago.com

CHICAGO – Patrick McDonald of HollywoodChicago.com appears on “The Morning Mess” with Ben Thompson on WBGR-FM (Monroe, Wisconsin) on April 25th, 2024, reviewing “The Feeling That the Time for Doing Something Has Passed,” In select theaters on April 26th. See local listings.

Joanna Arnow (also writer and director) is Ann, a nebbishy middle of the road type that lives in New York City and works for a bland we-don’t-know-what-they-do marketing company that is in the midst of a merger. Meanwhile, through dating apps, Ann indulges her kink as a submissive in her online hook ups, including her main man Allen (Scott Cohen), who in his “master” role is completely dismissive of her or her needs. As she cycles through other men she lands with Chris (Babak Tafti) who takes a romantic shine to her. Is the feeling that the time for doing something have passed, or is that feeling misjudged?

”The Feeling That the Time for Doing Something Has Passed” is in select theaters beginning April 26th. See local listings. Featuring Joanna Arnow, Scott Cohen, Babak Tafti, David Arnow and Michael Cyril Creighton. Written and directed by Joanna Arnow. Not Rated.

CLICK HERE for Patrick McDonald’s on-air review of “The Feeling That the Time for Doing Something Has Passed”

The Feeling That the Time for Doing Something Has Passed
Photo credit: Magnolia Pictures

CLICK HERE for Patrick McDonald’s on-air review of “The Feeling That the Time for Doing Something Has Passed”

CHICAGO – Patrick McDonald of HollywoodChicago.com appears on “The Morning Mess” with Ben Thompson on WBGR-FM (Monroe, Wisconsin) on April 25th, 2024, reviewing “Challengers,” a new tennis themed film involving mixed doubles, featuring Zendaya. In theaters on April 26th.

Zendaya is Tashi Duncan, a world ranked tennis player who suffers a career ending injury right before she was about to turn pro. In flashbacks, while competing at the junior-to-collegiate level she meets Patrick (Josh O’Connor) and Art (Mike Faist), two promising male tennis players … she creates young-tennis-players in love connection with both. Fast forward to the present, Tashi is married to Art, and has coached him to a wealthy professional level. When Art starts to fade in the Wimbleton-level circuit, Tashi suggests a club challenge, where old buddy/flame Patrick reappears .. and while facing off against Art, volleys again for Tashi’s loyalties.

”Challengers” is in theaters beginning April 28th. Featuring Zendaya, Mike Faist and Josh O’Connor. Written by Justin Kuritzkas. Directed by Luca Guadagnino. Rated “R”

CLICK HERE for Patrick McDonald’s on-air review of “Challengers”

Challengers
Photo credit: MGM

CLICK HERE for Patrick McDonald’s on-air review of “Challengers”

CHICAGO – Patrick McDonald of HollywoodChicago.com audio film review for the newly released “Indigo Girls: It’s Only Life After All,” the rise and evolution of the singer/songwriter duo Amy Ray and Emily Saliers, also know as The Indigo Girls. In select theaters and through digital download since April 10th.

Vera Drew (she/her) wrote, directed and stars as a transgender male-to-female eventually named Joker the Harlequin. She moves from Smallville to Gotham City to find her identity and get away from her oppressive mother (Lynn Downey), and wants to establish a comedy career. With another oddball nicknamed The Penguin (Nathan Faustyn), they open a comedy club, with a goal to get a shot on Gotham’s most popular comedy show UCB Live, produced by Lorne Michaels (voice of Maria Bramford). With the rogues gallery of lowlife villains in Gotham, plus the overhang of The Batman, they is no telling where Joker the Harlequin will fit in.

“The People’s Joker” is in select theater and (click) Chicago’s Music Box Theatre beginning April 26th. Featuring Vera Drew, Lynn Downey, Nathan Faustyn, Maria Bramford, Bob Odenkirk and Tim Heidecker. Written by Vera Drew and Bri LeRose. Directed by Vera Drew. Not Rated.

CLICK HERE for Patrick McDonald’s audio review of “The People’s Joker”

The People’s Joker
Photo credit: Altered Innocence

CLICK HERE for Patrick McDonald’s audio review of “The People’s Joker”

CHICAGO – Haroula Rose has made a mark on creative culture as a filmmaker, musician and performer, and the Cinema Femme Short Film Festival will acknowledge her on the April 25th Opening Night with a Special Tribute to Haroula, beginning at 7pm at Chicago’s Music Box Theatre. For more information, click ROSE.

Presented by Cinema Femme Magazine, the film festival emphasizes the importance of supporting emerging female and non-binary filmmakers, and connects those filmmakers to their Breaking Down Walls mentorship and retreat. This year’s festival features short film programs with a letter writing theme, a spotlight feature film “Smoke Sauna Sisterhood,” a screenwriting workshop and a panel on post-production. The panelists will be all female and non-binary people from notable post production Chicago companies …Optimus, Periscope Post & Audio, Noisefloor, and Anachrony Post. Virtual online events will also take place on April April 29th, 30th and May 2nd.

Haroula Rose Tribute at Cinema Femme Short Film Festival on April 25th
Photo credit: CinemaFemme.com

Haroula Rose began working as a writer and filmmaker after a Fulbright Fellowship, and was an Associate Producer on Ryan Cooler’s “Fruitvale Station.” She was writer/director on the TV Pilot “Lost & Found,’ which premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival, and has subsequently wrote and directed the feature films “Once Upon a River” and “All Happy Families.” Her latest short film, “Diana’s Electric Tongue” will screen at the Cinema Femme Fest. As musician, she released her third full album, “Catch a Light,” in 2022.

In Podtalk interview by Patrick McDonald of HollywoodChicago.com, Haroula Rose talks about her tribute honor at the Cinema Femme Festival and other topics …

In a video clip, Haroula talks about her creative goals …

Trailer, the Cinema Femme Short Film Festival …

For Haroula’s previous interviews with Patrick McDonald on HollywoodChicago.com, click LOST & FOUND, ONCE UPON A RIVER and ALL HAPPY FAMILIES.

Cinema Femme Magazine presents the 6th Cinema Femme Short Film Festival, with in-person events on April 25th, 28th and May 1st, and virtual events on April 29th, 30th and May 2nd, 2024. For all information about Cinema Femme, click here.

By PATRICK McDONALD
Editor and Film Critic/Writer
HollywoodChicago.com
pat@hollywoodchicago.com

© 2024 Patrick McDonald, HollywoodChicago.com

CHICAGO – The Dallas International Film Festival Opens on Thursday, April 25th and runs through May 2nd, 2024. On April 26th, director Quin Mathews will screen his documentary “City of Hate: Dallas and the Assassination 60 Years Later.” For more tickets and more information about the Dallas International Film Fest, click DIFF.

The doc “City of Hate” is not about Dallas now, but the reputation it had several years before and immediately after November 22nd, 1963, the day that President John F. Kennedy was assassinated during a motorcade parade through the city. It is directed by former Dallas TV journalist Quin Mathews, who as a 13-year-old was there to greet JFK at Love Field, as Air Force One touched down. By a stroke of luck, the president acknowledged Mathews in the enthusiastic throng, as he was perched eight feet away from the fateful open air limousine. “City of Hate” is part history, part reflection and Dallas-centric, a personal edition to the pantheon of 11/22/63 films.

Director Quin Mathews (inset) Will Appear on Behalf of His Documentary
Photo credit: DallasFilm.org

After a 22 year career in journalism, Quin Mathews left WFAA-TV in Dallas in the early 1990s to pursue a career in documentary filmmaking, reporting on subjects as varied as artists in China and solar power in Africa. With his radio program, “Art Matters,” he interviewed thousands of people in the arts over 25 years. It was Bart Weiss, a University of Texas film professor and festival director, who encouraged Mathews to rework his 50th Anniversary JFK doc from 2013 to the more personal reflections on the 60th.

In Podtalk interview by Patrick McDonald of HollywoodChicago.com, Quin Mathews talks about the background and circumstances surrounding “City of Hate: Dallas and the Assassination 60 Years Later” …

The 18th Dallas International Film Festival is a signature presentation of DIFF (Dallas Film Society, Inc.) and was established in 2006. It describes its festival as a global adventure that features premiere screenings, nightly red carpets, eye-opening documentaries, intriguing short films, filmmaker panels, award presentations, and a Festival Lounge where filmmakers, screenwriters, film industry leaders, celebrities, sponsors, and our audience can all come together to discuss film.

The Dallas International Film Festival takes place April 25th through May 2nd, 2024. “City of Hate: Dallas and the Assassination 60 Years Later” will screen April 26th. For more information and tickets, click here.

By PATRICK McDONALD
Editor and Film Critic/Writer
HollywoodChicago.com
pat@hollywoodchicago.com

© 2023 Patrick McDonald, HollywoodChicago.com

CHICAGO – Rebecca Martin Fagerholm has built the Cinema Femme Short Film Festival from online beginnings to primary in-person events, and the 6th festival will open at Chicago’s Music Box Theatre on April 25th, 2024, with a tribute to filmmaker Haroula Rose. For details and program information, click CINEMA FEMME.

Presented by Cinema Femme Magazine, the film festival emphasizes the importance of supporting emerging female and non-binary filmmakers, and connects those filmmakers to their Breaking Down Walls mentorship and retreat. This year’s festival features short film programs with a letter writing theme, a spotlight feature film “Smoke Sauna Sisterhood,” a screenwriting workshop and a panel on post-production. The panelists will be all female and non-binary people from notable post production Chicago companies … Optimus, Periscope Post & Audio, Noisefloor, and Anachrony Post. Virtual online events will also take place on April April 29th, 30th and May 2nd.

Cinema Femme Short Film Festival
Photo credit: CinemaFemme.com

Festival Director Rebecca Martin Fagerholm is also the Managing Editor of Cinema Femme magazine. She founded the publication and began the film festival in 2018 because she wanted to create a platform for female and non-binary voices in the film community, and has hosted film screenings throughout Chicago and virtual panel discussions through the festival.

In Podtalk interview by Patrick McDonald of HollywoodChicago.com, Cinema Femme Short Film Festival Director Rebecca Martin Fagerholm gives the details …

In a video clip, Rebecca talks about the Festival evolution …

Trailer, the Cinema Femme Short Film Festival …

Cinema Femme Magazine presents the 6th Cinema Femme Short Film Festival, with in-person events on April 25th, 28th and May 1st, and virtual events on April 29th, 30th and May 2nd, 2024. For all information about Cinema Femme, click here.

By PATRICK McDONALD
Editor and Film Critic/Writer
HollywoodChicago.com
pat@hollywoodchicago.com

© 2023 Patrick McDonald, HollywoodChicago.com

CHICAGO – The spotlight and excitement was at the Final Weekend of Season 18 for Chicago’s Asian Pop-Up Cinema (APUC). The buzz was for APUC Bright Star Awardee Carlos Chan. The respect was for Hong Kong legend Rebecca Pan, who received APUC’s Lifetime Achievement Award, all during Hong Kong Cinema Showcase.

The 2024 Season 18 Closing Night on April 20th included a Red Carpet event for the honored Hong Kong attendees, which included Carlos Chan and his director Benny Lau for “We Are Family.” Director Isabel Wong represented her documentary featuring Rebecca Pan, “Pai Niang Niang: The Last Osmanthus Blossom.” Director Mo Lai Yan Chi was there for her musical “Band Four” and director Kelvin Shum returned to Chicago to represent his horror epic “It Remains.”

Patrick McDonald of HollywoodChicago.com was there, and got the following Red Carpet Podtalk reactions from the attendees.

Bright Star Carlos Chan (in Green) Struts Down the Streets of Chicago
Photo credit: AsianPopUpCinema.org

APUC Bright Star Awardee Carlos Chan & Director Benny Lau of ‘We Are Family’

“We Are Family” is an emotional and very funny film about an agency in Hong Kong that rents out actors as family members, and is a very lucrative company for economic hustler Carlos, portrayed by Carlos Chan. The main new employee for the agency is a temperamental actor portrayed by broad HK comic actor Eddie Tsang. The film was co-written and directed by Benny Lau.

The following is is an interview through an interpreter with the 2024 APUC Bright Star Awardee Carlos Chan for “We Are Family” and his career so far, plus some questions for his director Benny Lau, with a bonus audio clip. The incredible and essential interpreter was APUC board member Carmen Suen.

HollywoodChicago.com: Carlos, What does it mean to you to get the APUC Bright Star Award from a far-off land called Chicago for a performance that has meaning and family hope?

Carlos Chan: I never thought I’d get an honor from, as you said, from the far-off land of Chicago, but I’m very grateful to the Asian Pop-Up Cinema committee for giving me this award. But what I am most grateful for is the opportunity to have an exchange with the audience, whether it’s the Chinese community or anybody that loves Hong Kong films from this great city.

HollywoodChicago.com: Your character portrays a guy who wants to make money, but has guilt for creating pretend families. Which scene did you feel was key to understanding the character of Carlos in the film?

Chan: The scene I felt was most reflective of the character is when he calls a Dad and pretends that he is the man’s dead son, to convince the Dad that the son is still alive. I struggled with that scene in character … on one hand I know we’re trying to make the Dad happy, but on the other I was lying to him. I felt discomfort in a human sense, the man was old and didn’t deserve the lie.

Carlos Chan and Director Benny Lau of ‘We Are Family’
Photo credit: AsianPopUpCinema.org

HollywoodChicago.com: What type of role do you want to experience in your future career, that you haven’t done before, just to prove that you could make it work?

Chan: First, as a long term goal, I do want to branch out into producing and directing. But for short term acting goals, I’ve started my career and remain in more light hearted, younger oriented roles. So I really want to do something more in a serious vein, towards deeper human emotions and how we all think about our world.

HollywoodChicago.com: Benny, you co-wrote and directed the story. What inspired the idea, and what did your co-writer Ashley Cheung add to the story?

Benny Lau: We noticed in the last ten years, and especially after the pandemic, that the Hong Kong concept of family is essentially falling apart … there is a rise in divorce rates, single parent homes and fundamental communication issues in partnerships, just a lot of problems. That’s when I thought I’d explore family as my next film.

As I began to write with Ashley and another collaborator, we found that there was actually a business in Japan where you could rent family members. That was the connecting idea … we would write about that business but put it in a Hong Kong context.

HollywoodChicago.com: Since this is your fifth film as director, what is the greatest lesson you have learned about the filmmaking business, and how does the lesson help you survive?

Lau: The greatest lesson I’ve received is from the heights that my journey has given me … I am working with some of the best and most experienced actors in Hong Kong. It certainly boosts my self confidence, working with them and getting amazing outcomes.

And I appreciate, despite the lofty status of those actors, that they are willing to work with me, and to help me understand that I can also work with them in a self-assured collaboration. Going forward, it has given me the self reliance to know I can tackle other serious topics that interest me, and tell those stories.

Benny Lau talks about working with Eddie Tsang …

Director Isabel Wong of “Pai Niang Niang: The Last Osmanthus Blossom”

Honoring Rebecca Pan: Filmmaker Isabel Wong with APUC Executive Director Sophia Wong Boccio
Photo credit: AsianPopUpCinema.org

The film is a remarkable documentary that Isabel Wong created on her way to a broader film about HK singing legend Rebecca Pan. In March of 1972, Ms. Pan’s self-financed musical “Pai Niang Niang” was the first one written in Mandarin, and it was performed 60 times at the Princess Theatre (in Hong Kong’s Tsim Sha Tsui district). This is a piece of HK art and cultural history, and also the most important milestone of Rebecca’s long career, also bringing together Eastern and Western theatrical styles for the first time.

In the audio clip, Director Wong talks about a key visual discovery, a videotape from the era showing key moments from the lost musical.

Go to PAGE TWO for more of the APUC Hong Kong Cinema Spotlight finale, with directors Mo Lai Yan Chi (“Band Four”) and Kelvin Shum (“It Remains”).

Director Mo Lai Yan Chi of “Band Four”

Director Mo Lai Yan Chi of ‘Band Four’
Photo credit: AsianPopUpCinema.org

“Band Four” is something unusual for a Hong Kong film, according to its director, a pop/rock musical. Bringing together a remarkable four generations of Hong Kong musicians, including the iconic HK superstar Teddy Robin. The premise is of a family band – including their nine-year-old drummer prodigy – trying to get it together in the midst of some difficult challenges. The highlight is a jam session between the 80-year-old electric guitarist Teddy and the youthful drummer.

In the Podtalk, director Mo Lai Yan Chi talks about her remarkable journey and the generations.

Director Kelvin Shum of “It Remains”

Director Kelvin Shum of ‘It Remains’
Photo credit: AsianPopUpCinema.org

Kelvin Shum makes his second appearance at the Asian Pop-Up Cinema, after presenting his film “Deliverance” in 2022. In a departure from that particular film, Shum brought “It Remains,” a story in the horror genre with the symbolic themes of the past and how it contributes to our fears.

Director Shum expands upon the elements of “It Remains” in the Podtalk, with a telling perspective on his story telling powers.

Season 18 of the Asian Pop-Up Cinema concludes (click link) on April 21st, 2024. For all information about the cultural juggernaut that is APUC, click here.

By PATRICK McDONALD
Editor and Film Critic/Writer
HollywoodChicago.com
pat@hollywoodchicago.com

© 2023 Patrick McDonald, HollywoodChicago.com

CHICAGO – “The Ministry Of Ungentlemanly Warfare” wants to be “Inglourious Basterds” in the worst way … but Henry Cavill is no Brad Pitt, and Guy Ritchie is no Quentin Tarantino. It’s a featherweight romp about British rogues killing Nazis that’s arch, witty, and completely forgettable. It goes down easy enough, but seems unlikely to inspire the love and devotion it so clearly craves.

The film has a toehold’s basis in fact, focusing on declassified details of a secret group of colorful agents embarking on black ops for Prime Minister Winston Churchhill during World War II. Henry Cavill stars as the dashing leader of the group who are there to kill Nazis and look good doing it. He’s a handsome and well educated military man (and spy) who doesn’t play by anyone’s rules but his own, yet is devoted to King and Country all the same.

“The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare” is in theaters April 19th. Featuring Henry Cavill, Alan Ritchson, Alex Pettyfier, Henry Golding, Hero Fiennes Tiffin, Babs Olusanmokun, Elza González and Rory Kinnear. Written by Guy Ritchie, Paul Tamasy, Eric Johnson and Arash Amel. Directed by Guy Ritchie. Rated “R”

Continue reading for Spike Walter’s full review of “The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare”

The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare
Photo credit: Lionsgate

Continue reading for Spike Walter’s full review of “The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare”

CHICAGO – The annual CineYouth Festival for 2024 is on tap beginning Friday, April 19th, presenting 66 short films across 10 programming blocks featuring everything from comedy to animated shorts to highlights from the Chicago region. Plus, CineYouth features two workshops focused on accessibility tools and good collaborative practices, live filmmaker Q&As, and more.

The whole event will be conveniently located in at Chicago’s FACETS multimedia cinema, in the DePaul University neighborhood. PLUS, all the tickets and all events are free and open to the public. For more info and schedule of events, click CINEYOUTH.

CineYouth Festival 2024
Photo credit: Cinema/Chicago

The presenter of the CineYouth Festival is Cinema/Chicago, a year-round non-profit cultural and educational organization dedicated to fostering better communication between people of diverse cultures through the art of film and the moving image, which will culminate in 2024 with the 60th Chicago International Film Festival (October 16th-27th).

The 2024 CineYouth Festival will take place in person on April 19th-21st, at FACETS cinema in Chicago, with additional virtual online streaming April 22nd-28th. For more information about Cinema/Chicago, click here.

By PATRICK McDONALD
Editor and Film Critic/Writer
HollywoodChicago.com
pat@hollywoodchicago.com

© 2024 Patrick McDonald, HollywoodChicago.com

CHICAGO – Patrick McDonald of HollywoodChicago.com appears on “The Morning Mess” with Scott Thompson on WBGR-FM (Monroe, Wisconsin) on April 10th, 2024, reviewing “Hard Miles,” a new sports-inspirational film set featuring veteran actor Matthew Modine. In select theaters on April 19th, see local listings.

Greg (Modine) is a beleaguered social worker at a Colorado juvenile correctional center with a passion for bicycle adventure rides and a revelatory idea for rehabilitation …rounding up an unlikely crew of incarcerated students to complete a transformative 762-mile cycling challenge from Denver to the Grand Canyon. To achieve their goal, the mentor and his teen pedal pushers will battle heat stroke, mountain inclines/speedy descents … and most of all each other to come together as a unified team.

”Hard Miles” is in select theaters beginning April 19th. See local listings. Featuring Matthew Modine, Sean Astin, Jackson Kelly, Leslie David Baker and Cynthia Kaye McWilliam. Written by R.J. Daniel Hanna and Christian Sanders. Directed by R.J. Daniel Hanna. Rated “PG-13”

CLICK HERE for Patrick McDonald’s on-air review of “Hard Miles”

Hard Miles
Photo credit: Blue Fox Entertainment

CLICK HERE for Patrick McDonald’s on-air review of “Hard Miles”

CHICAGO – The Season 18 Finale of Chicago’s Asian Pop-Up Cinema (APUC) is the Hong Kong Showcase from April 19th-21st, 2024, featuring a Lifetime Achievement Award for the legendary Rebecca Pan, HK filmmakers/actors and current Hong Kong cinema.

In March 1972, Rebecca Pan self-financed the production of the first ever Mandarin musical, “Pai Niang Niang,” and performed it 60 times at the Princess Theatre (in Hong Kong’s Tsim Sha Tsui district). This is a piece of HK art and cultural history, and an important milestone of Rebecca’s long career. This work used the Broadway musical model to adapt the famous myth “Legend of the White Snake,” and brought together Eastern and Western theatrical styles for the first time.

APUC Lifetime Achievement Award Recipient Rebecca Pan
Photo credit: AsianPopUpCinema.org

It’s all in the documentary “Pai Niang Niang: The Last Osmanthus Blossom” on April 20th at AMC NEWCITY at 5:30p (click for tickets), and will feature the 94-year-old Ms. Pan receiving her Award via a virtual video feed.

Also on tap for APUC’s Hong Kong Cinema Showcase, on Friday April 19th is (click title for tickets/info) the U.S. Premiere of ”It Remains”, featuring an appearance by director Kelvin Shum. On Saturday, April 20th, it’s the U.S. Premiere of ”Band Four”, with an appearance by director Lai Yan Chi. And finally, the official “Closing Night Film” of the 18th APUC will be ”We Are Family” with appearances by actor Carlos Chan (recipient of APUC’s Bright Star Award) and director Benny Lau. All of the Hong Kong Cinema Showcase will be at the conveniently located and easy-parking AMC NEWCITY.

APUC Bright Star Award Recipient Carlos Chan of ‘We Are Family’
Photo credit: AsianPopUpCinema.org

Sunday’s HK additional features include ”Elegies”, ”Time Still Turns the Pages” and ”ROB N ROLL”.

The Asian Pop-Up Cinema (APUC) an annual Asian Film Festival, and the brainchild of Sophia Wong Boccio, founder of Sophia’s Choice. The multi-pronged mission of APUC is cultivating an interest in and understanding of Asian cultures via a diverse offering of multi-country and regional films … connecting the Asian film industry with local Chicago film professionals, educators, and students … and promoting Chicago as a destination for international visitors.

The Finale of Season 18 of the Asian Pop-Up Cinema (APUC) presents the Hong Kong Cinema Showcase, April 19th-21st, 2024. For a complete overview of the Asian Pop-Up Cinema, click here.

By PATRICK McDONALD
Editor and Film Critic/Writer
HollywoodChicago.com
pat@hollywoodchicago.com

© 2024 Patrick McDonald, HollywoodChicago.com

CHICAGO – There was once a Chicago housing project called Cabrini Green, and its legacy was a damning testament to Chicago’s mismanagement of housing for the poor in general. It’s gone now, the victim of gentrification, but its memory lives on in “We Grown Now,” a new release from writer and director Minhal Baig.

The film is set in 1992, rightly called the beginning of the end for the massive high-rise Chicago Housing Authority complex. Malik and Eric (Blake Cameron James and Gian Knight Ramirez) are best friends and neighbors at Cabrini, idling between school and imaginative play. Malik’s mother Dolores (Jurnee Smolett) and his grandmother Anita (S. Epatha Merkerson) keep body and soul together for their family, along with Eric’s father Jason (Lil Rei Howery). When a fellow child 7-year-old resident Dantrell Davis is killed in a gang related shooting, Dolores takes steps to move out, which means Malik will have to leave Eric behind.

Writer/Director Minhal Baig (inset) of ‘We Grown Now’
Photo credit: Sony Pictures Classics/Patrick McDonald for HollywoodChicago.com

The film is a cinema tone poem dedicated to friendship and being a child in a time of unintentional sorrow. It’s meant to be history, but more emotional history than actual (although the Davis shooting was real). The boys are imaginative philosophers, with existential thoughts and an opening up of their creative souls … there is cinematic resonance in its beauty. The film shares its DNA with Chicagoan Lorraine Hansberry’s classic stage play “A Raisin in the Sun.” The symbolism it shares is the dream deferred in the separation of best friends, and an interruption in childhood for more “grown” lives. The film takes its rightful place as a meditation of a different Chicago with the late and lamented Cabrini Green … people did live and love there.

Writer/Director Minhal Baig grew up in Chicago’s Rogers Park neighborhood, nine miles north of Cabrini Green. Her debut film was “1 Night” (2016), followed in 2019 with “Hala,” somewhat of an autobiographical film. After some television work, including “Ramy” and “Bojack Horseman,” she premiered “We Grown Now” at the 2023 Toronto Film Festival and the film held the Opening Night slot at the 59th Chicago International Film Festival.

In Podtalk interview by Patrick McDonald of HollywoodChicago.com, writer/director Minhal Baig reflects on “We Grown Now” …

Trailer, “We Grown Now” …

”We Grown Now” is in select theaters on April 19th, see local listings. Featuring Lil Rei Howery, S. Epatha Merkerson, Jurnee Smollett, Gian Knight Ramirez and Blake Cameron James. Written and directed by Minhal Baig. Rated “PG”

By PATRICK McDONALD
Editor and Film Critic/Writer
HollywoodChicago.com
pat@hollywoodchicago.com

© 2024 Patrick McDonald, HollywoodChicago.com

CHICAGO – The journey of a thousand miles begins … in the case of “Hard Miles” starring Matthew Modine … with a single pedal. “Hard Miles” joins the pantheon of cycling movies, in this case with Modine portraying a social worker who teaches his life lessons through a bicycling journey with his youthful charges.

The based-on-truth story features Greg (Modine) as a beleaguered social worker at a Colorado juvenile correctional cente, with a passion for bicycle challenges and a revelatory idea for rehabilitation … rounding up an unlikely crew of incarcerated students to complete a transformative 762 mile ride from Denver to the Grand Canyon. To achieve their goal, this determined mentor and his disgruntled teenage squad will battle heat stroke, speed wobbles, mountainous inclines, and most of all each other to come together as a unified team.

Matthew Modine in Chicago, October of 2023
Photo credit: Joe Arce of Starstruck Foto for HollywoodChicago.com

Matthew Modine was born in California, and after high school made his film debut in “Baby, It’s You” (1983). In the next ten years the prolific actor made 18 films, including several classics, including “Birdy,” “Married to the Mob,” “Memphis Belle,” “Short Cuts” and his signature role as Private Joker in “Full Metal Jacket.” He has continued to make a cultural impact even recently, appearing in “Oppenheimer” this summer and of course as Dr. Martin Brenner in “Stranger Things.” And in the context of the new film, he is also a bicycling advocate.

Part of the production team is co-writer/director R.J. Daniel Hanna and co-writer/producer Christian Sander. Hanna received acclaim for his feature debut (also featuring Modine) “Miss Virginia” in 2019. He is currently working on his third feature film. Christian Sander has also produced “Dean Slater: Resident Advisor” (2013) and the TV series “Red Bull Bracket Reel.”

R.J. Daniel Hanna and Christian Sander (inset) of ‘Hard Miles’
Photo credit: Blue Fox Entertainment

In Part One of a Podtalk interview by Patrick McDonald of HollywoodChicago.com, Matthew Modine talks about “Hard Miles,” his connection to cycling and his career …

In Part Two, Director R.J. Daniel Hanna (with Producer Christian Sander) talks about the creation of “Hard Miles” …

Trailer, “Hard Miles” …

”Hard Miles” is in select theaters beginning April 19th. See local listings. Featuring Matthew Modine, Sean Astin, Jackson Kelly, Leslie David Baker and Cynthia Kaye McWilliam. Written by R.J. Daniel Hanna and Christian Sander. Directed by R.J. Daniel Hanna. Rated “PG-13”

By PATRICK McDONALD
Editor and Film Critic/Writer
HollywoodChicago.com
pat@hollywoodchicago.com

© 2024 Patrick McDonald, HollywoodChicago.com

CHICAGO – Monday, April 15th is the annual fundraising concert for Chicago’s Porchlight Music Theatre. As part of “Chicago Sings Broadway Pop II,” the company will confer its “Guy Adkins Award” to the award winning actor and musical director, Roberta Duchak. For more information and tickets, click PORCHLIGHT.

For more than ten years, Porchlight Music Theatre celebrates an individual who has made an exceptional and lasting contribution to the Chicago music theatre, with the prestigious Guy Adkins Award. Guy Adkins was an award-winning Chicago actor who passed away in 2010, with a number of roles at Chicago Shakespeare, The Goodman, Steppenwolf and more. The Award commemorates Adkin’s spirit and life, in addition to celebrating the many gifts he gave Chicago’s theater community and the world.

Chicago Sings Broadway Pop II
Photo credit: PorchlightMusicTheatre.org/Brett Beiner for Roberta Duchak

The Guy Adkins Awardee Roberta Duchak is an industry-recognized music director, Broadway actress and vocal coach/teacher, with bases in both Chicago and New York. Growing up in Darien, Illinois, she was captivated by the vibrant theater scene of Chicago, fostering a dream of performing on its illustrious stages. She performed in countless productions at esteemed venues such as Drury Lane Oakbrook, Marriott Lincolnshire, Goodman Theatre, Chicago Shakespeare Theatre and many others.

Her Broadway/Tour credits include playing “Mother” in RAGTIME (Broadway); “The Ghost of Christmas Past” in SCROOGE (opposite Richard Chamberlain in a U.S. tour), “Magnolia” and “Ellie” in Hal Prince’ SHOW BOAT (U.S. and Canadian tours) and “Rona Lisa Peretti” in THE 25TH ANNUAL PUTNAM COUNTY SPELLING BEE (Broadway Playhouse/U.S. Tour/Marriott Lincolnshire). Duchak is currently the North American music supervisor for SIX (Broadway, U,S, Tour, Toronto). She is also the vocal coach for THE NOTEBOOK (Broadway) and HELL’S KITCHEN (Public Theatre).

“Chicago Sings Broadway Pop II,” Porchlight Music Theatre’s annual fundraising concert, is Monday, April 15, at the House of Blues Chicago, 329 North Dearborn Street, and is co-directed by Porchlight’s Artistic Director Michael Weber and Producing Artistic Associate Frankie Leo Bennett, choreographed by Clayton Cross, as well as with David Fiorello as music director. This concert, with a new program of music, includes live performances by Chicago music theatre’s best loved artists, the presentation of the 2024 Guy Adkins Award for Excellence in the Advancement of Music Theatre in Chicago and more.

In a Podtalk interview by Patrick McDonald of HollywoodChicago.com, Guy Adkins Awardee Roberta Duchak talks about her life in musical theater …

In a video clip, Roberta Duchak talks about Guy Adkins himself …

Porchlight Music Theatre Presents “Chicago Sings Broadway Pop II” at the House of Blues Chicago on Monday, April 15th. For more information on the Porchlight Music Theatre, click here.

By PATRICK McDONALD
Editor and Film Critic/Writer
HollywoodChicago.com
pat@hollywoodchicago.com

© 2024 Patrick McDonald, HollywoodChicago.com

CHICAGO – Patrick McDonald of HollywoodChicago.com audio film review for the newly released “Indigo Girls: It’s Only Life After All,” the rise and evolution of the singer/songwriter duo Amy Ray and Emily Saliers, also know as The Indigo Girls. In select theaters and through digital download since April 10th.

Amy Ray and Emily Saliers first met as high schoolers in Decatur, Georgia, and came together in their love for guitar playing and music. They both ended up at Emory University in Atlanta, where the Indigo Girls were born in the 1980s. After releasing singles and the album STRANGE FIRE independently, they had major label success with the self titled INDIGO GIRLS, containing their masterpiece song, “Closer to Fine” (used to great effect in last year’s “Barbie” movie). From there they have released 13 studios albums and four live albums, and have become ardent activists for many causes. The doc is directed by Alexandria Bombach.

“Indigo Girls: It’s Only Life After All” is in select and through digital download since April 10th. Featuring the songs and memories of the Indigo Girls, Amy Ray and Emily Saliers. Directed by Alexandria Bombach. Not Rated.

CLICK HERE for Patrick McDonald’s audio review of “Indigo Girls: It’s Only Life After All”

Indigo Girls: It’s Only Life After All
Photo credit: Oscilloscope Laboratories

CLICK HERE for Patrick McDonald’s audio review of “Indigo Girls: It’s Only Life After All”