CHICAGO – Patrick McDonald of HollywoodChicago.com audio review for the doc series “Charlie Hustle & the Matter of Pete Rose,” about the rise and bitter fall of the major league legend, the MLB’s all-time hits leader, only to be banned from the sport because of gambling. Streaming on MAX and on HBO since July 24th.!—break—>
HollywoodChicago.com Arts & Entertainment News
Film Review: Something’s Gotta Give With T.I., Matt Dillon in ‘Takers’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on August 27, 2010 - 7:48amCHICAGO – The ensemble cast is decent, the story fits the action/adventure essence of the heist film and one of the hottest music stars of the moment, Tip “T.I.” Harris, has a prominent role. Then why is the new film “Takers” such a seen-it-all-before exercise in action blandness?
Film Review: Vincent Cassel Gives Riveting Performance in ‘Mesrine: Killer Instinct’
Submitted by BrianTT on August 26, 2010 - 8:42pmCHICAGO – The film around its riveting central performance may be a little more flawed than the entire project’s international reputation would have you believe but Vincent Cassel alone makes a trip to “Mesrine: Killer Instinct” worth the time and emotional effort. Be warned that this is not a crime epic for the faint of heart and those who have difficulty with an anti-hero protagonist may be turned off but those attuned to this kind of storytelling will find a lot to like here.
Blu-Ray Review: Concert Releases From The Pixies, Black Label Society
Submitted by BrianTT on August 26, 2010 - 3:03pmCHICAGO – The great Eagle Rock Entertainment released a pair of concert Blu-rays this week that deserve your attention, especially for serious fans of either of the bands involved. Frank Black, Kim Deal and the rest of The Pixies rock in a pair of shows on “Pixies Live: Acoustic and Electric” and Zakk Wylde (don’t miss our exclusive portrait) proves his guitar-god prowess on “Black Label Society: The European Invasion Doom Troopin’”
Who Will Win the 2010 Emmys: ‘Mad Men,’ ‘Modern Family,’ ‘The Good Wife,’ ‘30 Rock,’ ‘Dexter’
Submitted by BrianTT on August 26, 2010 - 1:12pmCHICAGO – With the Emmys almost upon us on Sunday, Aug. 29, 2010, it’s the right time to take one last look at the nominees for the last television year and do what all awards watchers love to do best: predict who will win, who should win and lament the snubs.
HollywoodChicago.com Hookup: 25 Chicago Passes to War Documentary ‘The Tillman Story’
Submitted by HollywoodChicago.com on August 26, 2010 - 11:54amCHICAGO – In our latest war documentary edition of HollywoodChicago.com Hookup: Film, we have 25 admit-two passes up for grabs to the advance Chicago screening of the new film “The Tillman Story”!
Interview: Daniel Stamm Finds Devilish Inspiration in ‘The Last Exorcism’
Submitted by BrianTT on August 25, 2010 - 8:42pmCHICAGO – Daniel Stamm makes films that, to quote a character from his first drama, “Play with the boundaries of what is comfortable to document.” His first work was a dark character piece called “A Necessary Death” about a filmmaker’s efforts to film an actual suicide.
Movie News: 2010 Chicago International Film Festival Announces First 20 Films
Submitted by PatrickMcD on August 25, 2010 - 1:59pmCHICAGO – Cinema/Chicago is proud to announce the first 20 new films scheduled to appear at the 2010 Chicago International Film Festival, October 7th – 21st. The Chicago festival continues to combine the films of established directors/talent with promising newcomers. Expect some foreign and domestic film surprises.
Chicago Red Carpet: T.I. Channels His Acting Side in ‘Takers’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on August 25, 2010 - 7:22amCHICAGO – Tip “T.I.” Harris has conquered the charts and the music business as a performer, producer and entrepreneur. He was recently in Chicago at a red carpet premiere for his film “Takers,” on which he serves as executive producer and co-stars with Matt Dillon, Hayden Christensen and Zoe Salanda.
Blu-Ray Review: ‘The Last Song’ Fails to Hit Emotional Notes
Submitted by mattmovieman on August 25, 2010 - 7:18amCHICAGO – Nicholas Sparks is the Michael Bay of touchy-feely weepies. No matter how derivative or cynically calculating his stories prove to be, they never fail to rake in the dough. Several of his books have been turned into blockbusters, the best of which benefit greatly from the strength of their cast, as in “A Walk to Remember” and “The Notebook.”
HollywoodChicago.com Hookup: 3 DVDs of ‘One Tree Hill’ Season 7
Submitted by HollywoodChicago.com on August 24, 2010 - 4:31pmCHICAGO – In our latest edition of HollywoodChicago.com Hookup: DVD, we have three DVD sets up for grabs to the complete season seven of “One Tree Hill”!
Blu-Ray Review: Fantastic HD Release For Final Season of ‘Lost’
Submitted by BrianTT on August 24, 2010 - 11:32amCHICAGO – A Blu-ray review of the controversial final season of “Lost” is not the place to get into arguments over the quality of the actual finale, so I’ll get my opinion out of the way quickly and then we can discuss the Blu-ray release more than the ending specifically — the final season of “Lost” is arguably the best final season of any program ever and the last episode is the perfect bookend for a show too ambitious to be truly influential.
TV News: Demand a Sneak Screening of NBC’s ‘The Event’ Premiere in Your Hometown
Submitted by HollywoodChicago.com on August 24, 2010 - 10:19amCHICAGO – “The Event,” which is one of the fall’s most highly anticipated TV shows, last week was named HollywoodChicago.com’s most promising new TV show of fall 2010 beating nine other worthy rivals.
DVD Review: ‘Cougar Town’ With Courteney Cox Deserves Another Chance
Submitted by BrianTT on August 24, 2010 - 10:16amCHICAGO – If you’re like most people, you probably wrote off “Cougar Town” after hearing the overly simplified concept or watching the incredibly sporadic first few months of the ABC series. You should take another look. The Courteney Cox vehicle, now on DVD, changed gears so radically that there’s a special feature about the mid-season shift in tone on the DVD and I have a feeling this series could improve even more in season two, finding a rhythm that it could maintain for years to come.