Sofia Vergara

CHICAGO – I get it. The old fashioned buddy movie, except with the twist of the femme-flavor-of-the-moment Sofia Vergara and runty Reese Witherspoon. It practically writes itself. In fact, that might be the only legitimate excuse for the mess that is “Hot Pursuit” – it wrote itself.

CHICAGO – In the latest HollywoodChicago.com Hookup: Film, we have 50 pairs of advance-screening movie passes up for grabs to the new action/comedy “Hot Pursuit” starring Sofía Vergara and Reese Witherspoon!

CHICAGO – In our latest HollywoodChicago.com Hookup: Combo Pack giveaway, we have 10 free Blu-ray and DVD combo packs up for grabs for the home entertainment release of the new comedy “Chef” starring Jon Favreau and Robert Downey Jr.!

CHICAGO – By the time of his 2011 box office blitzkrieg otherwise known as “Cowboys & Aliens,” the product that indie director-turned-Hollywood habitue Jon Favreau had been hocking as a “popcorn salesman” had gone stale – to use a showbiz term from Nicholas Ray’s” In A Lonely Place”.

CHICAGO – How do you make a Woody Allen style film? You hire Woody Allen to act in it. Writer, director and lead actor John Turturro channels the soul of Allen’s films by creating a strange and romantic scenario with different types of relationships, including one with Woody himself in “Fading Gigolo.”

CHICAGO – “You’re a sick f**k, Fink” is the movie quote I was tempted to throw at John Turturro, the actor who played the title role as “Barton Fink,” and dozens of other memorable movie characters. Turturro is breaking out again as a writer/director, producing a new film co-starring Woody Allen, delicately entitled “Fading Gigolo.”

CHICAGO – In the latest HollywoodChicago.com Hookup: Combo Pack with our unique social giveaway technology, we have 10 free Blu-ray and DVD combo packs up for grabs for the highly anticipated home release of “Machete Kills” starring Danny Trejo from Robert Rodriguez!

CHICAGO – In the latest HollywoodChicago.com Hookup: Film with our unique social giveaway technology, we have 25 pairs of advance-screening movie passes up for grabs to the highly anticipated “Machete Kills” starring Danny Trejo with director Robert Rodriguez in person for a post-screening Q&A!

CHICAGO – Not only have I been a longtime fan of great children’s films like those produced by Disney and Studio Ghibli over the years but I’m now a parent and absolutely adore the feeling of passing along my favorite films like “Spirited Away,” “Dumbo,” “The Little Mermaid,” and “Toy Story” along to my little ones. My children will never see “Escape From Planet Earth.” As someone who not only sees nearly every animated film in his profession but has a new appreciation for them given my being a parent, I feel qualified to say this is one of the worst children’s films of the last decade. It’s aggressively annoying with awful character design and a screenplay that is clearly trying to teach children a lesson about boredom.

CHICAGO – In the days since this year’s Emmys, I’ve been probably asked this question more than any other — “Do you think Modern Family is the best comedy on TV?” The answer is an undeniable no. But I usually add the disclaimer that this doesn’t mean it’s not a good show. It may not have been the best choice for the 2011-12 season (that would be “Louie,” “Girls,” “Parks and Recreation,” “Veep,” or “Community”) but it also wasn’t the worst.