Brendan Gleeson

CHICAGO – In our latest crime/mystery edition of HollywoodChicago.com Hookup: Film, we have 50 admit-two movie passes up for grabs to the advance screening of the highly anticipated new film “Safe House” starring Denzel Washington and Ryan Reynolds!

CHICAGO – Rarely has a film been more successfully driven by two great actors than John Michael McDonagh’s “The Guard.” The sheer incredible personalities of Brendan Gleeson and Don Cheadle give two of the most enjoyable performances of the year, bringing to life a clever, unapologetic script from their writer, who is also making a strong directorial debut. “The Guard” fell relatively flat at the box office but it’s the kind of quality comedy that will almost certainly find a big audience on the home market and was recently released on Blu-ray and DVD.

Rating: 4.0/5.0

CHICAGO – Brendan Gleeson pushes forward John Michael McDonagh’s strong “The Guard” through the sheer power of his incredible personality. The lovable-but-irascible actor delivers one of the most enjoyable performances of the year and he’s amply assisted by the great Don Cheadle and a clever, unapologetic script from his writer, making a strong directorial debut. There’s an awful comedy opening at the multiplex this weekend (“The Change-Up”). Seek out the vastly superior one if you’re in a major city.

CHICAGO – From a classic tradition of abrasive-but-lovable anti-heroes, the lead of writer/director John Michael McDonagh’s “The Guard,” Officer Boyle (Brendan Gleeson), is one of the most memorable leads of the year. Played with trademark wit by Gleeson, Boyle does drugs, sleeps with hookers, and simply doesn’t care what you think about him.

CHICAGO – It has all come to this. Well, almost this. It’s remarkable to think about how far the Harry Potter series has come since the film debut of the boy who lived. There have been incredible creative highs and only a few lows, mostly plateauing in the David Yates films (#5-7).

CHICAGO – When I was first introduced to the world of Blu-ray, I went through the mental rolodex of films that I knew I would one day want to see in HD. There are obvious choices like “Lord of the Rings” and “The Matrix,” but I actually remember thinking about the controversial final act of “A.I.: Artificial Intelligence” and how incredible it would look in 1080p. Years later, the film has finally been released on the format and while it may not live up to the high expectations, the movie alone makes this a worthwhile purchase.

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Daniel Radcliffe and Emma Watson

CHICAGO – This 40-image slideshow contains a selection of the official press images for the highly-anticipated “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 1,” starring Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint, Emma Watson, Helena Bonham Carter, Robbie Coltrane, Ralph Fiennes, Michael Gambon, Brendan Gleeson, Richard Griffiths, John Hurt, Rhys Ifans, Jason Isaacs, Bill Nighy, Alan Rickman, Fiona Shaw, Timothy Spall, Imelda Staunton, and David Thewlis. The film was directed by David Yates. It will be released on November 19th, 2010.

CHICAGO – Paul Greengrass suffered the first failure of his career with the disappointing “Green Zone,” a film that flopped with both critics and audiences early in 2010. As Kathyrn Bigelow was winning awards for her realistic examination of life behind enemy lines in the Middle East with “The Hurt Locker,” people dismissed Matt Damon’s long-delayed take on the failure of the war in Iraq.

CHICAGO – HBO’s “Into the Storm” is a different kind of WWII movie than audiences have recently become accustomed to seeing. This excellent drama is not about the people on the ground but about the powerful men that made the decisions that determined their fates.

CHICAGO – A special advance screening for the new Focus Features action film “In Bruges” is coming to Chicago on Jan. 25 along with a Q&A with director Martin McDonagh immediately following the screening. “In Bruges” stars Colin Farrell, Ralph Fiennes and Brendan Gleeson.