CHICAGO – Excelsior! Comic book legend Stan Lee’s famous exclamation puts a fine point on the third and final play of Mark Pracht’s FOUR COLOR TRILOGY, “The House of Ideas,” presented by and staged at City Lit Theater in Chicago’s Edgewater neighborhood. For tickets/details, click HOUSE OF IDEAS.
HollywoodChicago.com Arts & Entertainment News
TV Review: Little Defense For Awful ‘The Defenders’ With Jim Belushi
Submitted by BrianTT on September 22, 2010 - 10:32amCHICAGO – Calling CBS’ “The Defenders” a drama might be a bit of a stretch. But it’s not funny enough to be a comedy either. Instead it falls into the limp valley in between choosing an occasional bit of manipulation to try and qualify as drama but also relying heavily on the comic timing of its stars, Jim Belushi and Jerry O’Connell, but failing as both.
TV Review: ‘Better With You’ Could Not Be Much Worse
Submitted by BrianTT on September 22, 2010 - 9:28amCHICAGO – The programming executive that thought “Better With You” would fit well between the reasonably-good “The Middle” and the spectacular “Modern Family” clearly has no idea how television comedy has changed in the last few years. To call “Better With You” — with its laugh track, cheesy music, and horrible punchlines — old-fashioned is an insult to nostalgic comedies. It’s just bad.
Interview: French Filmmaker Gaspar Noé Dares to ‘Enter the Void’
Submitted by BrianTT on September 22, 2010 - 8:42amCHICAGO – Few films have conveyed the sensation of an out-of-body experience quite like “Enter the Void,” the latest feature from French filmmaker Gaspar Noé, who continues to be one of the most controversial and innovative filmmakers in modern cinema.
TV Review: J.J. Abrams-Produced ‘Undercovers’ is Stylish, Familiar
Submitted by PatrickMcD on September 22, 2010 - 7:35amCHICAGO – The timing of “Undercovers” might be inopportune — the notion of CIA super spies adding to the deficit by overextending their expense accounts — yet the show itself is bright and exciting with beautiful actors and settings. But despite the presence of J.J. Abrams of “Lost,” it doesn’t break any new ground.
HollywoodChicago.com Hookup: Hurry! First-Come, First-Served Chicago Passes For ‘Buried’ With Ryan Reynolds
Submitted by HollywoodChicago.com on September 21, 2010 - 7:25pmCHICAGO – In our latest edition of HollywoodChicago.com Hookup: Film, we have a first-come, first-served amount of admit-two advance-screening passes up for grabs to the new film “Buried” with Ryan Reynolds!
Interview: Director Jonathan Parker Reveals Art Behind ‘(Untitled)’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on September 21, 2010 - 2:29pmCHICAGO – One of the great overlooked films of 2009 was the slyly titled “(Untitled).” Jonathan Parker, the writer/director of the film, fashions a sharp yet human tale about the world of art galleries and the next-big-thing. The (Untitled) DVD and Blu-Ray is being released on September 21st, 2010.
TV Review: FOX’s Award-Winning ‘Glee’ Returns Singing Same Song
Submitted by BrianTT on September 21, 2010 - 12:37pmCHICAGO – FOX hit “Glee” returns tonight, hoping to not only keep the rabidly-loyal fans it earned in its critically-acclaimed first season but even pick up a new ones curious about what this Emmy-winning show has to offer. Will “Glee” continue its pop culture rise, plateau as so many second-year shows do, or take a dive?
TV Review: Will Arnett, Keri Russell Star in Disappointing ‘Running Wilde’
Submitted by BrianTT on September 21, 2010 - 11:51amCHICAGO – I love Will Arnett, Keri Russell, David Cross, and Mitchell Hurwitz. And yet, I don’t love “Running Wilde.” If you need any proof that quality television takes something more intangible than just getting talented people together, look no further than this sporadically-entertaining FOX sitcom, a show with more-than-enough talent to get over the common growing pains of the first few episodes of a sitcom if the ratings are strong enough to give it time to do so but is undeniably disappointing at the start.
TV Review: Rich Ensemble Drives Heartfelt Humor of ‘Raising Hope’
Submitted by BrianTT on September 21, 2010 - 10:16amCHICAGO – Like the last show from its creator (“My Name is Earl”), the new FOX sitcom “Raising Hope” too-often feels like its underlining and pushing its jokes through the screen in desperation for a laugh but the cast of this new comedy entry is the best of the season and their talent alone should overcome the occasional bit of flop sweat.
TV Review: ABC’s ‘Detroit 1-8-7’ Goes For Grit, Finds Cliche
Submitted by BrianTT on September 21, 2010 - 9:39amCHICAGO – ABC’s “Detroit 1-8-7” attempts to do for Motown what “NYPD Blue” did for the Big Apple by detailing the personal and professional lives of a group of tough cops in a very tough city.
DVD Review: Subpar ‘Sparkle’ Barely Manages a Flicker
Submitted by mattmovieman on September 21, 2010 - 9:15amCHICAGO – There are few things more queasy than a feel good comedy that fails to make you feel good. Every film strives to master the art of manipulation, with wildly varying degrees of success. When a film makes consistent failed attempts to manipulate the emotions of its audience, it may result in viewers feeling increasingly nauseous until they’re about ready to hurl.
TV Review: ‘Mike & Molly’ Elevate Heart Above the Usual Sitcom
Submitted by PatrickMcD on September 20, 2010 - 4:26pmCHICAGO – The sitcom format that began with and was perfected by “I Love Lucy” (with its set-up/joke/laugh rhythm) remains unchanged since “Babaloo” was a catchphrase.
TV Review: NBC’s ‘Chase’ Might Not Be Worth Pursuing
Submitted by BrianTT on September 20, 2010 - 8:27amCHICAGO – NBC’s “Chase” is not a “good” show in the strictest sense of the word. It’s hokey, rife with stereotypes, and sets up unrealistic situations for its characters in order to facilitate dramatic, suspenseful chase scenes. To protect my honor and integrity as a TV critic, this must be gotten out of the way first: objectively, I can see that “Chase” is not a good show.
