CHICAGO – In anticipation of the scariest week of the year, HollywoodChicago.com launches its 2024 Movie Gifts series, which will suggest DVDs and collections for holiday giving.
February 2017
Film Review: ‘Fifty Shades Darker’ is More Silly Than Sexy
Submitted by PatrickMcD on February 10, 2017 - 9:24amCHICAGO – While offering a veritable sex scene smorgasboard, “Fifty Shades Darker” fails to offer much in the way of anything that is actually sexy. As the mousy Anastasia Steele and the billionaire Mr. Grey, Dakota Johnson and Jamie Dornan are slightly more comfortable in their roles than they were the first time around.
‘Fifty Shades Darker’ is More Silly Than Sexy
Submitted by PatrickMcD on February 10, 2017 - 9:20am Rating: 2.0/5.0 |
CHICAGO – While offering a veritable sex scene smorgasboard, “Fifty Shades Darker” fails to offer much in the way of anything that is actually sexy. As the mousy Anastasia Steele and the billionaire Mr. Grey, Dakota Johnson and Jamie Dornan are slightly more comfortable in their roles than they were the first time around…but they continue to have all the sexual chemistry of a couple on a first date that isn’t going particularly well.
Interview: Michael Sanow of ‘The Asylum’ Showcase in Chicago Through Feb. 23, 2017
Submitted by PatrickMcD on February 9, 2017 - 11:08amCHICAGO – Put in a dash of crazy, add a dash of funny and you are defining “The Asylum,” a catch-all name for a couple of show events in Chicago, playing at The Apollo Theater Studio through February 23rd, 2017. Behind the scenes of these showcases is producer Michael Sanow, a Chicago theater veteran. For “The Asylum” information regarding the “Atypical Musical Comedy Show” (Tuesdays) and “Access Comedy” (Thursdays), click here.
Film Review: 2017 Best Doc Oscar Nominee ‘I Am Not Your Negro’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on February 6, 2017 - 4:18pmCHICAGO – The terms that have been used to describe African Americans over the years …black, afro-americans, negro and worse… has always been what others had named them, the others that wanted to marginalize, categorize and group individuals into images of words. The documentary “I Am Not Your Negro” seeks to upend these generalizations and in turn, those words.
2017 Best Doc Oscar Nominee ‘I Am Not Your Negro’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on February 6, 2017 - 4:15pm Rating: 4.5/5.0 |
CHICAGO – The terms that have been used to describe African Americans over the years …black, afro-americans, negro and worse… has always been what others had named them, the others that wanted to marginalize, categorize and group individuals into images of words. The documentary “I Am Not Your Negro” seeks to upend these generalizations and in turn, those words.
HollywoodChicago.com Hookup: 40 Pairs of Passes to ‘Fifty Shades Darker’ With Dakota Johnson
Submitted by HollywoodChicago.com on February 6, 2017 - 11:01am- Adam Fendelman
- Bella Heathcote
- Dakota Johnson
- E.L. James
- Eric Johnson
- Fifty Shades Darker
- Fifty Shades of Grey
- HollywoodChicago.com Content
- HollywoodChicago.com Hookup: Film
- James Foley
- Jamie Dornan
- Jennifer Ehle
- Kim Basinger
- Luke Grimes
- Marcia Gay Harden
- Max Martini
- Niall Leonard
- Rita Ora
- Tyler Hoechlin
- Universal Pictures
CHICAGO – In the latest HollywoodChicago.com Hookup: Film, we have 40 pairs of advance-screening movie passes up for grabs to the highly anticipated new film “Fifty Shades Darker” starring Dakota Johnson and Jamie Dornan!
Interview: Amy Pietz of ‘Halfway’ to Appear at Midwest Independent Film Festival on Feb. 7, 2017
Submitted by PatrickMcD on February 5, 2017 - 12:39pmCHICAGO – Amy Pietz is a Midwesterner made good in her primary role as a working actor. And what better performer to appear at the kick-off of the 2017 Midwest Independent Film Festival, as Pietz’s new film takes place in her native Wisconsin.
Interview: Scott Freiman on ‘Deconstructing the Beatles’ Sgt. Pepper Album’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on February 4, 2017 - 9:29amCHICAGO – Scott Freiman is an entrepreneur, producer, composer and musicologist, and turned his primary passion – painstakingly delving into the song production techniques of The Beatles – into a series of lectures called “Deconstructing The Beatles.” He has turned those lectures into films, and “Deconstructing The Beatles Sgt. Pepper Album” will screen in Chicago at area Landmark Cinemas on February 6th, 2017.
Film Review: It Hurts Trying to Laugh at ‘The Comedian’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on February 3, 2017 - 11:04amCHICAGO – Mention this possibility…Robert De Niro portrays an aging stand-up comic who once had a popular sitcom in the 1980s…and 99% of filmgoers are in. Add that he beds a woman 25 years his junior, does community service, roasts Cloris Leachman and becomes a reality show host, and suddenly 80% of that 99 are out. That’s just part of the over-extension and dread in “The Comedian.”
It Hurts Trying to Laugh at ‘The Comedian’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on February 3, 2017 - 10:54amRating: 2.0/5.0 |
CHICAGO – Mention this possibility…Robert De Niro portrays an aging stand-up comic who once had a popular sitcom in the 1980s…and 99% of filmgoers are in. Add that he beds a woman 25 years his junior, does community service, roasts Cloris Leachman and becomes a reality show host, and suddenly 80% of that 99 are out. That’s just part of the over-extension and dread in “The Comedian.”
Film Review: ‘The Space Between Us’ Falls Into a Black Hole & Dies
Submitted by PatrickMcD on February 2, 2017 - 9:21pmCHICAGO – You know you’re in trouble when the opening scene of a film inspires forehead slapping levels of incredulity. And that’s just the beginning of what I felt while watching “The Space Between Us,” another entry in the long line of would-be weepies about young lovers torn apart, usually by class or disease.
‘The Space Between Us’ Falls Into a Black Hole & Dies
Submitted by PatrickMcD on February 2, 2017 - 9:16pm Rating: 1.0/5.0 |
CHICAGO – You know you’re in trouble when the opening scene of a film inspires forehead slapping levels of incredulity. And that’s just the beginning of what I felt while watching “The Space Between Us,” another entry in the long line of would-be weepies about young lovers torn apart, usually by class or disease. The film desperately wants to be a millennial love story for a generation, and has plenty of faults but precious few stars in its tale of literal star-crossed lovers.
HollywoodChicago.com Hookup: 40 Pairs of Passes to Third ‘The Ring’ Horror Film ‘Rings’
Submitted by HollywoodChicago.com on February 1, 2017 - 10:02amCHICAGO – In the latest HollywoodChicago.com Hookup: Film, we have 40 pairs of advance-screening movie passes up for grabs to the new horror film “Rings”!
Film Review: The Book (Finally) Closes on ‘Resident Evil: The Final Chapter’
Submitted by JonHC on February 1, 2017 - 4:51amCHICAGO – Guilty pleasures are the order of the day, especially when we are facing daily signs of a real, impending apocalypse. End of the world by zombies remains one of the most popular cataclysmic cinematic events and “Resident Evil” is proof. “Resident Evil: The Final Chapter” proves that what should be dead can come back to life, but the real question is if it actually should.
The Book (Finally) Closes on ‘Resident Evil: The Final Chapter’
Submitted by JonHC on February 1, 2017 - 4:38am Rating: 2.5/5.0 |
CHICAGO – Guilty pleasures are the order of the day, especially when we are facing daily signs of a real, impending apocalypse. End of the world by zombies remains one of the most popular cataclysmic cinematic events and “Resident Evil” is proof. “Resident Evil: The Final Chapter” proves that what should be dead can come back to life, but the real question is if it actually should.
