CHICAGO – Patrick McDonald of HollywoodChicago.com appears on “The Morning Mess” with Dan Baker on WBGR-FM (Monroe, Wisconsin) on March 21st, 2024, reviewing the new streaming series “Manhunt” – based on the bestseller by James L. Swanson – currently streaming on Apple TV+.
Martin Scorsese
Blu-Ray Review: 30th Anniversary Edition of Martin Scorsese’s Timeless ‘Raging Bull’
Submitted by BrianTT on January 18, 2011 - 6:00pmCHICAGO – After Robert De Niro’s “Pupkin”-esque acceptance speech on Sunday’s Golden Globe Awards, some of our younger readers may be curious about some of the films that got him to that awkward moment. His second Oscar came for what is undeniably one of the best performances of all time. De Niro would give at least a dozen great performances, some before and some after, but “Raging Bull,” recently released in a beautiful 30th Anniversary Edition Blu-ray, is the peak of one of the most notable acting careers in film history.
TV Review: Martin Scorsese’s Riveting ‘Boardwalk Empire’ With Steve Buscemi
Submitted by BrianTT on September 18, 2010 - 1:59pmCHICAGO – Is there any lingering doubt that we are in the golden age of television? If you need further proof of the remarkable breadth of the genre in 2010, look no further than HBO’s “Boardwalk Empire,” an amazing new dramatic series courtesy of one of cinema’s masters (Martin Scorsese) and one of television’s (“The Sopranos” veteran Terence Winter).
Blu-Ray Review: ‘Elvis on Tour’ Preserves Late Triumph For the King
Submitted by mattmovieman on August 18, 2010 - 3:16pmCHICAGO – Elvis may have left the building, but his work remains viscerally alive in this breezily enjoyable concert documentary. It was filmed during a 15-city tour in April of 1972, and captures the King of Rock at a triumphant peak late in his career, one year before his infamous “Aloha from Hawaii” concert (the first globally broadcast via satellite) and five years before his death.
Blu-Ray Review: Jaw-Dropping HD Transfer of Timeless ‘The Red Shoes’
Submitted by BrianTT on July 21, 2010 - 3:47pmCHICAGO – Can an old movie look too good on Blu-ray? This has been the subject of much debate, most notably in the over-removal of natural film grain by some production studios and the purists who think sometimes HD damages the original look of the film by coating it with too much polish. Watching the six-decades-old “The Red Shoes” from the incredibly influential Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger, I was reminded once again of this controversy by a video transfer that’s simply jaw-dropping in its crystal clear quality.
Blu-Ray Review: ‘Shutter Island’ Looks Amazing, But Deserved Better Release
Submitted by BrianTT on June 10, 2010 - 3:31pmCHICAGO – I firmly believe that the detractors of Martin Scorsese’s amazing “Shutter Island” will deny they ever criticized this masterful thriller when it was first released. History will be very kind to this dizzying trip through a cinematic funhouse led by arguably our best living filmmaker, but one would never guess it from Paramount’s purely average Blu-ray release.
Nothing is Real With Andy Garcia, Julianna Margulies on ‘City Island’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on April 2, 2010 - 2:57amCHICAGO – A blue collar worker father who has a secret Marlon Brando obsession (gasp!), a son with an improbable fetish and a daughter who quits college to…strip, this is a normal day-in-the-life in the new film “City Island.”
Take Trip to Riveting ‘Shutter Island’ With Leonardo DiCaprio
Submitted by BrianTT on February 19, 2010 - 2:54pmCHICAGO – “Shutter Island” is a riveting trip through a cinematic funhouse led by one of the best filmmakers of all time in Martin Scorsese, who fully employs the copious skills of his most talented collaborators including star Leonardo DiCaprio.
Slideshow: 10-Image Premiere of ‘Shutter Island’ in New York City With Leonardo DiCaprio
Submitted by HollywoodChicago.com on February 18, 2010 - 3:51pmCHICAGO – We have a 10-image slideshow of the New York City premiere for the highly anticipated film “Shutter Island” from Feb. 17, 2010. The film opens nationwide on Feb. 19, 2010.
Blu-Ray Review: Every True Movie Fan Must Own ‘GoodFellas’
Submitted by BrianTT on February 18, 2010 - 1:46pmCHICAGO – Very, very few movies are as immensely rewatchable as Martin Scorsese’s masterful “GoodFellas,” now released on Blu-ray in a twentieth anniversary edition timed to coincide with the theatrical release of “Shutter Island” this Friday. One of the most influential films of the ’90s is one of those rare works that has lost absolutely none of its power.
DVD Review: Fifth Season of HBO’s ‘Entourage’ Entertains, But Shows Age
Submitted by BrianTT on July 13, 2009 - 4:34pmCHICAGO – How does a show about the “next big thing” in Hollywood age? Do we really want to see the boys of “Entourage” grow up?