Paula Patton

CHICAGO – The rapper and actor Common came back to his hometown of Chicago last week to participate in the red carpet premiere of his new film, “Just Wright,” co-starring Queen Latifah and Paula Patton (”Precious”).

CHICAGO – It’s a shame that a forgettable action flick forced Lee Daniels’s Oscar-winning drama to change its title from “Push” to “Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire.” It’s a terribly ungainly title, brimming with wordy self-importance. What if other films did the same thing? I shudder at the thought of, “An Education: Based on the Memoir by Lynn Barber” or “A Serious Man: Based on an Idea Concocted by Roderick Jaynes.”

CHICAGO – The final scene of Lee Daniels’ “Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire” ends with a dedication that the film is for “precious girls everywhere”.

CHICAGO – “Mirrors” is a so-so horror movie helped a bit by its interesting director’s visual flourishes and a better-than-average ensemble but ultimately shattered by an incoherent screenplay and dialogue that is more likely to produce laughter than shivers.

CHICAGO – Joshua Michael Stern’s “Swing Vote” hit theaters at the peak of the Presidential campaign and it’s no coincidence that the Blu-Ray release lands in stores a week before President-Elect Obama takes office. With a great ensemble and old-fashioned sensibility, “Swing Vote” is a film that should work. Like a misguided campaign for office, it just doesn’t come together.