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+.
Paramount Pictures
‘Labor Day’ Provides Meaning to Romantic Tension
Submitted by PatrickMcD on January 31, 2014 - 9:50am Rating: 4.0/5.0 |
CHICAGO – There is a real power when the right filmmaker connects with the right performers. What appears on the surface to be a slight and well-worn story, gains a decided psychological edge. “Labor Day” features Kate Winslet and Josh Brolin, and writer/director Jason Reitman.
Character Reboot ‘Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit’ Pales as Compared to Masterful Predecessors
Submitted by HollywoodChicago.com on January 18, 2014 - 7:26pm Rating: 2.5/5.0 |
CHICAGO – It’s been 12 years since we’ve seen Tom Clancy’s masterful, Jason Bourne-esque character Jack Ryan in 2002’s “The Sum of All Fears” (led by Ben Affleck), which itself was a character reboot. We first saw Jack in 1990’s “The Hunt For Red October” as Alec Baldwin and then twice in the body of Harrison Ford with 1992’s “Patriot Games” and 1994’s “Clear and Present Danger”.
High-Level Reboot for ‘Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on January 17, 2014 - 6:18amRating: 4.0/5.0 |
CHICAGO – Actor Chris Pine should use the term “Rebooter” as his middle name. After taking on the Captain Kirk role in the “Star Trek” series, he now is the latest to portray CIA super spy as “Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit,” a literate and pulse racing adventure directed by Kenneth Branagh.
‘World War Z’ Reminder of 1950s Apocalyptic Films
Submitted by PatrickMcD on June 21, 2013 - 4:00pm Rating: 3.5/5.0 |
CHICAGO – Earnest family man, check. Somber, ineffective bureaucrats, check. Monsters in nature created through mankind’s hubris, check. Unintentional laughs, check and checkmate. That describes every plot of a 1950s end-of-the-world movie treatment, and the latest Brad Pitt film, “World War Z.”
Visual Excess Dims ‘Star Trek Into Darkness’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on May 17, 2013 - 5:39pm Rating: 3.0/5.0 |
CHICAGO – The anticipation of experiencing the rebooted crew of the starship Enterprise now may overwhelm any creative team’s ability to deliver to that anticipation. “Star Trek Into Darkness” piles on the space war excess, while lessening the savory humanity and memorable characters.
‘Cirque du Soleil: World’s Away’ is Visually Arresting Infomercial
Submitted by PatrickMcD on December 21, 2012 - 5:09pmRating: 3.5/5.0 |
CHICAGO – Cirque du Soleil, which began with two street performers in Quebec in 1984, has grown into a multi-million dollar enterprise with shows on every continent and seven simultaneous extravaganzas in Las Vegas. The Vegas shows make up the storyline for “Cirque du Soleil: World’s Away.”
‘The Guilt Trip’ Never Reaches a Destination
Submitted by PatrickMcD on December 19, 2012 - 12:37pmRating: 2.5/5.0 |
CHICAGO – There has to be something wrong with a movie that by the end, the thought is ‘how did they get a parking spot in San Francisco?’ and ‘how much does that house cost?’ “The Guilt Trip,” with Seth Rogen and Barbra Streisand, is a dispirited exercise in wasted potential.
Banal Story, Unique Visuals Define ‘Rise of the Guardians’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on November 21, 2012 - 7:36pmRating: 3.0/5.0 |
CHICAGO – Okay, we get it. The current crop of animators can create amazing worlds, full of sensory-expanding images and visions of magical awe (and in 3D). But, if there is a dull story interacting with the eye candy, it can feel like a fancy cake that tastes like sawdust. Chris Pine, Alec Baldwin, Isla Fisher Jude Law and Hugh Jackman lend their voices to “Rise of the Guardians.”
Funny, Political ‘The Dictator’ with Sacha Baron Cohen
Submitted by PatrickMcD on May 15, 2012 - 7:43amRating: 3.5/5.0 |
CHICAGO – Ali G, Borat, Bruno and the Stationmaster Guy in “Hugo” is now “The Dictator.” Sacha Baron Cohen puts on another character mask and produces his usual style of cheap laughs with a surprising sense of political sharpness. Anna Faris and Ben Kingsley go along for the ride.
Emotionally Galvanizing ‘Titanic 3D’ Transcends Unnecessary Conversion
Submitted by mattmovieman on April 5, 2012 - 1:05pm Rating: 4.5/5.0 |
CHICAGO – It takes more than expensive effects, super-sized egos and exhaustive marketing campaigns to seduce the world. For all of its visual splendor, James Cameron’s “Avatar” has already evaporated from most moviegoers’ memories. Its derivative romance and preachy messages were stretched so thin that they failed to achieve any resonant impact.
