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.
HollywoodChicago.com Arts & Entertainment News
‘The Mark of Zorro’ Nails Swordsman, Markedly Complicates Cast, Botches Dialect
Submitted by HollywoodChicago.com on May 15, 2008 - 1:33am Rating: 2.5/5.0 |
CHICAGO – Sometimes less, of course, is more. Live theater often knows that better than anyone. That’s exactly the shrill reminder Chicago’s Lifeline Theatre needed in Katie McLean’s adaptation of the beloved Zorro book by Johnston McCulley.
Star-Crossed Lovers Create Road to Ruin in ‘Before the Rains’
Submitted by HollywoodChicago.com on May 13, 2008 - 10:37pmCHICAGO – By its very nature, colonialism is bad karma waiting to happen. You are a sovereign nation with weaponry and a desire for treasure. While you invade and take over a country with that treasure, it also comes with a society you don’t understand.
Interview: Chiwetel Ejiofor on American Samurai Journey ‘Redbelt’ From Mind of David Mamet
Submitted by HollywoodChicago.com on May 13, 2008 - 6:04pmCHICAGO – Chiwetel Ejiofor (pronounced choo-ih-tell edge-o-for) has been a stalwart film actor ever since his dramatic debut in Steven Spielberg’s “Amistad”. Since then, he has been a go-to character actor for directors as diverse as Spike Lee, Woody Allen and Stephen Frears.
Chicago’s ‘Shout! The Mod Musical’ an Infectiously Groovilicious, Estrogen-Only Stew
Submitted by HollywoodChicago.com on May 11, 2008 - 11:17pmCHICAGO – Meg Ryan, eat your heart out. Since “When Harry Met Sally,” the salacious Danielle Plisz as Green Girl in “Shout! The Mod Musical” takes Ryan’s infamous restaurant eruption to a whole new level on stage.
Interview: ‘Son of Rambow’ Director Garth Jennings Unleashes Power of Childhood Imagination
Submitted by HollywoodChicago.com on May 9, 2008 - 11:41amCHICAGO – A preacher delivering a sidewalk sermon followed by a boy’s inventive doodles and drawings are the opening images that launch “Son of Rambow”. This sets the tone for the unyielding power of childhood imagination that the filmmakers unleash upon moviegoers.
‘Speed Racer’ Condemns Franchise Dignity, Delivers Sensorial Explosion
Submitted by HollywoodChicago.com on May 9, 2008 - 1:45amCHICAGO – While Hollywood slapped “PG” on the hotly anticipated “Speed Racer” to line its pocketbooks with the widest hodgepodge of people (ahem: kids) everywhere, those same kids will leave the theater with that lollipop nearly sucked to the stick but then yanked away with confusion.
Interview: ‘Standard Operating Procedure’ Director Errol Morris Discusses Evil From Iraqi Prison
Submitted by HollywoodChicago.com on May 7, 2008 - 12:39amCHICAGO – Here is the legendary documentarian Errol Morris on the infamous 2003 photographs taken at the Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq, which are the subject of his new film entitled “Standard Operating Procedure”:
‘Iron Man’ Sits Indisputably in Club of Highest-Rated Superhero Movies Ever
Submitted by HollywoodChicago.com on May 2, 2008 - 11:53amCHICAGO – Move over, Superman. This lush, high-octane playboy never tasted so good.
Robert Downey Jr. fittingly opens “Iron Man” with a cocktail in hand and all the arrogance in the world. As the story goes, his conceit is indeed respected as Earth is his oyster both for the playing and for the taking. With the American marketing machine in full effect for 2008’s first summer blockbuster, the inaugural one lives up to the buildup.
Chicago’s Political Machine Runs Relatively Swimmingly in Strawdog Theatre’s ‘Old Town’
Submitted by HollywoodChicago.com on May 1, 2008 - 8:52amCHICAGO – As a testament to its set design, it wasn’t immediately clear if certain structures were naturally part of the Strawdog Theatre space or if they were fabricated specifically for the “Old Town” production.
Uwe Boll Pukes Out Another Opus of Insufferable Screen Time in ‘Postal’
Submitted by HollywoodChicago.com on April 30, 2008 - 1:08amCHICAGO – At the Chicago screening of “Postal” for critics, director Uwe Boll introduced his new film as a personal “The Kentucky Fried Movie” attacking the heart of America. Boll – a German national – has produced several “B”-grade movies in both Germany and the U.S. However, “Postal” is his first attempt at writing and directing within the American market.
Sobering Documentary ‘At the Death House Door’ to Premiere in Chicago From ‘Hoop Dreams’ Filmmakers
Submitted by HollywoodChicago.com on April 27, 2008 - 1:36amCHICAGO – The Texas “killer burger” is literally sold right across the street from a state-mandated death house that brings convicted felons to their legal demise.
Pie Maker, Loony Boy Steal Rightful Spotlight From Sweeney Todd in Chicago Musical
Submitted by HollywoodChicago.com on April 25, 2008 - 4:17pmCHICAGO – While Johnny Depp’s portrayal of the demon barber of Fleet Street in the 2007 film iteration sells you on his fiendish ways, actor and singer David Hess in the musical bobbles more in purgatory rather than living hysterically in hell.
Tepid Con Job Spoils Sexual Intrigue in ‘Deception’ With Ewan McGregor
Submitted by HollywoodChicago.com on April 25, 2008 - 12:01amCHICAGO – Despite its timid title, “Deception” has all the right ingredients for a decent tale of mystery: a strong premise, sound acting and the famous femme fatale. It even starts with a promising conviction: How does a background player in life deal with initiation into a secret society?
