Joe Anderson

CHICAGO – Sam Rockwell does no wrong. He takes parts in movies major (“Iron Man 2”) and minor (“A Single Shot,” now available On Demand and opening theatrically in limited release this Friday, September 20, 2013) and makes decisions that other actors wouldn’t even consider. He is so completely, believably in the moment.

CHICAGO – I had some notable problems with ABC’s “The River,” saying in my review of the series premiere, “…while the show has effective moments of horror, they never quite build the way you want them to in a cohesive piece due to the creators feeling the need to get at least one major scare between every break.” Watching where the show went with the first season DVD, hitting stores this week, I stand by my criticisms (I have problems with every episode) but I kind of wish that the creators had been given time to iron out their kinks. The fact is that there simply isn’t enough programming on network TV that one could call daring and while I think “The River” was flawed it was undeniably unlike anything else in your DVR.

CHICAGO – In our latest action/adventure edition of HollywoodChicago.com Hookup: Blu-ray, we have 5 Blu-rays up for grabs for the highly anticipated home entertainment release of “The Grey” starring Liam Neeson!

CHICAGO – Two hours of ABC’s found footage horror drama tonight, “The River,” from Executive Producer Steven Spielberg, should at least do one thing for the show — weed out those not interested in following it long-term.

CHICAGO – Joe Carnahan’s “The Grey” might cause you to think that the multiplex in which you’re seeing it has started skimping on the heat. As wind whips snow in below-freezing temperatures, Carnahan deftly conveys what it’s like to be trapped in a natural nightmare.

CHICAGO – In our latest action/adventure edition of HollywoodChicago.com Hookup: Film, we have 40 admit-two movie passes up for grabs to the advance screening of the highly anticipated new film “The Grey” starring Liam Neeson!

CHICAGO – As someone who has often gone home with a straight-to-DVD action movie that I hadn’t heard of before entering the video store, I know how easy it is to get drawn into something that looks a little bit left-of-center. “Operation: Endgame” is undeniably unusual but that doesn’t mean it’s any good.

CHICAGO – Horror remakes almost always fall flat as too many filmmakers fail to recapture the magic of the original but there seems to be something about George A. Romero’s films that defies that rule. Take for example Breck Eisner’s take on “The Crazies,” a shockingly good genre entry that should find a loyal cult following on Blu-ray and DVD.

Rating: 3.5/5.0

CHICAGO – Horror remakes are almost never a good idea but there seems to be something about George A. Romero’s work that defies that expectation. Zack Snyder delivered with his version of “Dawn of the Dead” and now Breck Eisner has shocked genre fans with his effective take on the low budget classic “The Crazies”.

CHICAGO – It seems downright sad that “Amelia,” a movie that was so widely predicted to be a part of the 2009 awards season, would be released on Blu-ray and DVD on the same day as the Oscar announcements. On paper, “Amelia” seemed like Oscar bait through and through with important subject matter headlined by one of the few women to have more than one Oscar. On Blu-ray, it’s easy to see why this cinematic plane crashed and burned.