Bryan Cranston

CHICAGO – “Drive” will surely be one of the most remembered and beloved films of 2011, no matter what Academy members (who notoriously snubbed the film except for one lone tech nod) may think. And so it is disappointing that the Blu-ray edition from Film District and Sony is surprisingly light on special features. The film itself looks (and especially sounds) incredible and, considering it was my #2 for 2011, is well worth a pick-up, but you can presume that this is a placeholder for a Special/Ultimate/Collector’s Edition inevitably down the road.

CHICAGO – January 2012 is Steven Soderbergh month. The man’s newest film, “Haywire,” opens in theaters on January 20th (and we’ll have a review up shortly before it opens) while Criterion is upgrading his Oscar-winning “Traffic” to Blu-ray and re-releasing their DVD edition on the 17th of the month (you can, of course, also expect a review of that to run soon). The first wave of the Soderbergh trifecta is the Blu-ray and DVD release of “Contagion,” another expertly-made piece of filmmaking from a man who seems to know how to do nothing less.

CHICAGO – “Larry Crowne” is a would-be crowd-pleaser that’s filled to the brim with chipper laughter. It’s the sort of laughter often heard on morning news programs, where overpaid anchors giggle and quip while laughing all the way to the bank. Yet very little of “Crowne’”s onscreen gaiety transfers to the bored, mildly annoyed audiences paying to sit through the self-congratulatory drivel.

CHICAGO – After a few releases that felt like perhaps the DC Universe line of straight-to-video animated films were in decline, they recently released what is arguably their best installment and a work that deserves to sit on the shelf of any Batman fan — the often-brilliant “Batman: Year One.” So remarkably loyal to one of the most influential comic books of all time that it sometimes recreates it verbatim and including some of the best voice work in the entire DC Universe line, this is a great animated film and possibly the best Blu-ray gift you could buy for a comic fan this season.

CHICAGO – Nicholas Winding Refn’s “Drive” is an amazing thriller, a modern examination of heroism filtered through the fairy tale culture of the underbelly of the movie machine that is easily one of the most memorable and effective films of not just this year but the last several.

CHICAGO – Nicholas Winding Refn is a name you’re going to need to remember. The stellar director of “Bronson” and “Valhalla Rising” will go from cult icon to cinematic hero with the release of this weekend’s “Drive,” one of the best films of 2011. Starring Ryan Gosling, Carey Mulligan, Albert Brooks, Bryan Cranston, and Ron Perlman, “Drive” is a stunning modern fairy tale that is going to have a loyal, devoted audience.

CHICAGO – In our latest action/crime/drama edition of HollywoodChicago.com Hookup: Film, we have 40 admit-two movie passes up for grabs to the advance Chicago screening of the new film “Drive” starring Ryan Gosling, Carey Mulligan and Bryan Cranston!

CHICAGO – A few weeks ago saw the release of the R-rated “Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark,” a gore-free creature feature that was given the MPAA stamp of 17-plus due to “pervasive scariness.” This week sees the PG-13-rated “Contagion,” a film SO much more pervasively scary than the movie about goblins in a distant mansion because, well, it’s about the fact that the world is pervasively scary.

CHICAGO – In our latest special edition of HollywoodChicago.com Hookup: Film, we have 50 admit-two advance-screening movie passes plus three grand prize packs up for grabs to the highly anticipated new film “Contagion” with Matt Damon, Kate Winslet and Jude Law!

CHICAGO – AMC just announced that they have come to terms with creator Vince Gilligan to bring his smash hit and Emmy winner “Breaking Bad” back to the network for a 16-episode fifth season, which will also, as has been widely rumored, be the program’s last.