Brian Tallerico

CHICAGO – “Is it killing time or is he just killing time?” If you don’t groan at a line of dialogue that shockingly horrendous then we’ve got a Blu-Ray release for you. Marking a new low in a baffling series of career decisions for two of the best actors of all time, “Righteous Kill” is as much an unqualified disaster on Blu-Ray as it was when critics ridiculed it and audiences ignored it in theaters.

CHICAGO – Odette Yustman stars in David S. Goyer’s “The Unborn,” a poorly conceived and produced horror movie that could have just as easily been called “The Un-scary,” “The Uninspiring,” “The Unoriginal,” or “The Unexciting”. Whatever you do, just un-plan to see it this weekend.

CHICAGO – Stars Morris Chestnut and Taraji P. Henson do their best to make Bill Duke’s “Not Easily Broken” a genuine domestic drama instead of the cluttered melodrama that it easily could have been with two lesser actors in the lead roles.

Television Rating: 3.5/5.0

CHICAGO – Patrick Swayze shines in A&E’s down-and-dirty “The Beast,” a show about deep undercover agents that uses its Chicago setting as well as any show in recent memory. Chicago is regularly the setting for television and film productions, but rarely has it been as much a part of the overall fabric of the show as it is on “The Beast,” one of the more promising dramas of the new year.

CHICAGO – Joshua Michael Stern’s “Swing Vote” hit theaters at the peak of the Presidential campaign and it’s no coincidence that the Blu-Ray release lands in stores a week before President-Elect Obama takes office. With a great ensemble and old-fashioned sensibility, “Swing Vote” is a film that should work. Like a misguided campaign for office, it just doesn’t come together.

CHICAGO – The coming-of-age comedy “The Wackness” with Josh Peck, Ben Kingsley, Olivia Thirlby, Mary-Kate Olsen, Method Man, and Famke Janssen may feature a bouncing hip-hop soundtrack and be about joyful things like first love, but it’s an oddly inert, haze-filled film, as if the regular marijuana usage in the film cast a haze over the entire project.

Previous | Image 1 of 11 | Next

Derek Luke and Jamal Woolard.

CHICAGO – This 11-image slideshow contains official press images for Fox Searchlight’s “Notorious,” which stars Jamal Woolard, Derek Luke, Anthony Mackie, Antonique Smith, Naturi Naughton, and Angela Bassett, from writers Reggie Rock Bythewood and Cheo Hodari Coker and director George Tillman Jr.. The film opens on Jan. 16, 2009.

CHICAGO – Fans of the “Twilight” books and movies have been clamoring for news about whether or not Taylor Lautner would reprise his role in the sequel to the massively successful film, “New Moon”. Just a small announcement that didn’t feature Lautner in the cast list in this slideshow caused unrest in the “New Moon” community over the potential of re-casting the role. Good news, Taylor fans. He’s back.

CHICAGO – The world has changed significantly since Kiefer Sutherland and the rest of the team behind Fox’s “24” were forced to save it repeatedly over the first six seasons of one of the most popular shows of the last decade. Will “24” still be relevant with controversy over real-life torture dominating the headlines and a new regime getting ready to take office?

CHICAGO – The time has come for another round-up, a collection of DVD and Blu-Ray titles that may have missed the front page in the Best Buy circular but that might be worth your attention.