Malcolm McDowell

CHICAGO – Patrick McDonald of HollywoodChicago.com audio film review for the newly released “Moving On,” a dark comedy featuring Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin of “Grace and Frankie.’ Currently in theaters, since March 17th.

CHICAGO – Patrick McDonald of HollywoodChicago.com audio film review on “Father Stu,” featuring Mark Wahlberg traveling down an unusual life path, portraying a character journey from unsuccessful boxer and actor to the priesthood. In theaters on Wednesday, April 13th, just in time for redemption on Easter weekend.

CHICAGO – Immigration is a hot-button topic in our current landscape, and director Iyad Hajjaj has pushed that button with his latest film, “Dreams I Never Had.” The spin in the story is based on truth, where a teenage girl – trafficked illegally into America – is attached to a family to essentially become their domestic laborer. Chicagoan JoAnn Fakhouri was the co-producer on the project, and brought in some Chicago talent to contribute to the production. “Dreams I Never Had” is now available for download on Amazon Prime Video and other digital outlets.

CHICAGO – The generally-likable and amiable TNT law dramedy “Franklin & Bash” returns tonight in a slightly new iteration designed to build buzz by adding a bit of sizzle to the show. Heather Locklear joins the cast, the boys move to a beach house that allows for a lot of shirtless shots and bikini parties, and one of the guys may even have a gorgeous love interest.

CHICAGO – You may be rolling your eyes. Oh, look, another critic ripping on a bad horror movie. But you may not know that not only am I a horror movie fan in general but I particularly liked the first “Silent Hill” film, to the point that I’m quoted on the DVD case for the flick. I approached the critically reviled “Silent Hill: Revelation” thinking that I might again be in the minority but would be happy to be so. I am not.

CHICAGO – In our latest HollywoodChicago.com Hookup: Film, we have 15 pairs of guaranteed, anytime movie passes up for grabs for the new horror film “Silent Hill: Revelation 3D”!

CHICAGO – Wouldn’t you think that the release of the last Best Picture winner from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences would be an event? I know we’ve reached a point where public opinion and the Oscars are arguably further apart than ever before but wouldn’t think that Sony would treat their most-respected film critically with “Special Edition” degrees of Blu-ray features. The release of “The Artist” last week is a decent one but not what one would expect given the pedigree of the film.

CHICAGO – Fans of “Franklin & Bash” may have a reasonable bit of concern given the so-so ratings of the TNT program. We here at HC have defended the show a few times (in this interview and this review) and the recently-released DVD from Sony is another solid offering (although it’s obnoxious to not offer a 2011 program on Blu-ray) but poor Breckin Meyer & Mark-Paul Gosselaar aren’t quite delivering like several of the other cable hits of the season.

CHICAGO – TNT begins their summer 2012 assault tonight, a plan of attack that includes nine original series, including their first primetime reality show (“The Great Escape”), a spin-off of “The Closer” (“Major Crimes”), and a new series for Will McCormack (“Perception”).

CHICAGO – The popular and wacky lawyer/buddy series, “Franklin & Bash” begins its second season on Tuesday, June 5th, with the two leads – Beckin Meyer and Mark-Paul Gosselaar – reprising their roles as the title characters. This year, the duo are challenged by the responsibility of becoming partners in their law firm, but won’t lose their unique edge.