The White Ribbon

CHICAGO – From the moment young Lore (Saskia Rosendahl) rises from her bath to witness the long-awaited return of her father, thrusting herself in front of a window as the curtains become pasted to her still-moist back, Cate Shortland’s Holocaust-era drama is conspicuously awash in sensuality. The age of its titular heroine was changed from 12 (in Rachel Seiffert’s award-winning book, “The Dark Room”) to 14 in order for the filmmakers to explore her budding sexuality.

CHICAGO – Michael Haneke is one of our best living filmmakers, having already delivered at least one masterpiece in the amazing “Cache” and a few other notable works like “Funny Games,” “The Piano Teacher,” and “Code Unknown.” Those familiar with the quality of his filmography may be stunned to learn that “The White Ribbon” is arguably his best.

CHICAGO – The international reputation of director Michael Haneke (”Caché,” “Funny Games”) is due in no small part to his longtime collaboration with cinematographer Christian Berger, who photographed Haneke’s latest film, “The White Ribbon.”

CHICAGO – They came, we saw and in the end, who conquered? HollywoodChicago.com Senior Writer Patrick McDonald weighs in on the Top Ten of 2009. From the rich palette of choices, the challenge is always to winnow it down to ten.

CHICAGO – Kathryn Bigelow’s “The Hurt Locker” swept the Chicago Film Critics Association awards for 2009, winning in every single category in which it was nominated, taking home prizes for Best Picture, Best Director (Kathryn Bigelow), Best Original Screenplay (Mark Boal), Best Actor (Jeremy Renner), and Best Cinematography (Barry Ackroyd).