CHICAGO – Excelsior! Comic book legend Stan Lee’s famous exclamation puts a fine point on the third and final play of Mark Pracht’s FOUR COLOR TRILOGY, “The House of Ideas,” presented by and staged at City Lit Theater in Chicago’s Edgewater neighborhood. For tickets/details, click HOUSE OF IDEAS.
Paris
Film Review: Diane Lane Hits the Blacktop in ‘Paris Can Wait’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on May 19, 2017 - 3:42pmCHICAGO – The cache of “Paris Can Wait” is what immediately makes it attractive. It’s Diane Lane road tripping through France on the way to Paris, guided by the script and direction of Eleanor Coppola, in her narrative film debut (at age 80!). Along the way there is food, seduction, incredible sights and Alec Baldwin. That formula was destined to work.
Interview: Director Jack C. Newell on Digital Release of ‘Open Tables’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on November 30, 2016 - 4:08pmCHICAGO – Local filmmaking has always gotten a boost through director Jack C. Newell. His 2015 film “Open Tables,” shot in Chicago and Paris, will get it’s digital release on Tuesday, December 6th, 2016, on iTunes and Video-On-Demand. This coincides with his art project “The Wabash Lights,” and his continued production work.
Film Review: Passion of Young French Love Fuels ‘My Golden Days’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on March 26, 2016 - 2:38pmCHICAGO – Feel like a French film? Well, “My Golden Days” is just the ticket. Full of existential romance, too many cigarettes, casual carnality and pathological regret, the story should come with its own beret and baguette.
Theater Review: We’ll Always Have Paris in ‘The Merry Widow’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on November 17, 2015 - 8:26amCHICAGO – Standing up at the Lyric Opera house in Chicago is unusual before a show. But in this case, it was the night after a tragedy, and the operetta “The Merry Widow” – set in Paris, France, in 1905 – was about to unfold. The orchestra struck up La Marseillaise, a reminder that we’ll always have Paris.
Interview: Director Jack C. Newell Has ‘Open Tables’ at 51st Chicago International Film Festival
Submitted by PatrickMcD on October 20, 2015 - 9:42amCHICAGO – Jack C. Newell will ride his bike when he meets you for an interview in Chicago, naturally. The locally based director is a welcome original, with credits in both documentary and narrative films. His latest feature, “Open Tables,” will screen at the 51st Chicago International Film Festival on October 20th, 2015.
Interview: Actor Omar Sy Tackles Immigrant Issues in ‘Samba’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on July 28, 2015 - 5:39pmCHICAGO – The situation with in-country immigrants is not just an issue in the United States. The new French film “Samba” focuses on the ongoing status of immigrants in Paris, who often do menial jobs while surviving under the radar of immigration laws. French Actor Omar Sy portrays the title character with insight and humor.
Interview: Félix de Givry, Sven Hansen-Løve Take the Journey to ‘Eden’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on June 25, 2015 - 3:15pmCHICAGO – When it comes to how dance music evolved in the last thirty years, there was a ground zero that was launched right here in Chicago. House music, or Garage House, were inspired beats that were mixed from a DJ source in front of the dancers, creating a brand new club scene. The late DJ Frankie Knuckles was one of the pioneers, and his legacy eventually reached Paris, where it was discovered and re-invented in fresh and different forms. A new film called “Eden” explores that phenomenon, and it features Félix de Givry as a Paris DJ in the 1990s and 2000s, based on the life of the co-writer of the film, Sven Hansen-Løve.
Film Review: A Fashionable Man is Captured in ‘Yves Saint Laurent’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on September 1, 2014 - 9:23amCHICAGO – Fashion is art, and the canvas is provided by the wearer of that fashion. The designer biography depicted in “Yves Saint Laurent” is one of tortured genius, as Saint Laurent influenced and commodified the world of clothing and accessory creation for over 50 years.
Film Review: ‘Third Person’ an Intriguing Yet Foreseeable Labyrinth
Submitted by PatrickMcD on June 28, 2014 - 8:52amCHICAGO – Don’t you hate it when you figure out where a film is going long before it gets there? That could be a problem with “Third Person,” but writer/director Paul Haggis (“Crash”) also adds enough secrets to chew on and enough multiple pathways to explore. Enter at your own risk.
Interview: Writer/Director Paul Haggis Creates ‘Third Person’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on June 26, 2014 - 4:39pmCHICAGO – Not many Oscar winning screeenwriters change the course of their professional lives because of a dream (story below), but Paul Haggis is an exceptionally brilliant writer whose credits include “Crash” (2005) and “Million Dollar Baby” (2004) – which both won Best Picture – and his new film, “Third Person.”