HollywoodChicago.com Arts & Entertainment News

TV Review: Promising Eighth Season of ‘24’ Starts With a Bang

CHICAGO – Jack Bauer (Kiefer Sutherland) returns tonight in the eighth season premiere of one of the most influential shows of the ’00s, the often-brilliant “24”. At its best, FOX’s “24” is visceral entertainment, an adrenalin-pumped hour often unmatched by its many copycats.

Blu-Ray Review: ‘Pandorum’ Puts Space Saga on Autopilot

Pandorum Blu-Ray

CHICAGO – Christian Alvart’s “Pandorum” is the kind of efficient time-waster that sucks you in, spits you out, and leaves you two hours older. There’s nothing that can be said in its favor, apart from the fact that its not offensively awful (like the producers’ “Resident Evil” franchise). But it is thoroughly mediocre, and for some viewers, mediocrity is offensive enough.

Interview: Cinematographer Christian Berger Unravels ‘The White Ribbon’

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.”

Decalogue: HollywoodChicago.com Evaluates Films From 2000 to 2009

Uma Thurman in "Kill Bill Vol. 1"

CHICAGO – In developing Top Ten film lists every year, the “critic” tends to move on and simply forget what they said in previous annual evaluations. Patrick McDonald of HollywoodChicago.com looks back, with less fear than expected.

DVD Review: Gut-Busting Laughs Are Found ‘In The Loop’

In The Loop Thumbnail

CHICAGO – The more you love the art of language, the more you’ll love Armando Iannucci’s “In The Loop.” Words have rarely sounded so alive or been arranged so hilariously. In a year when the WGA has honored formulaic scripts like “Avatar,” “Julie & Julia,” and “The Hangover,” Iannucci’s film is a refreshing reminder of just how much fun and exhilarating speech can be.

TV Review: Hilarious ‘Archer’ Continues Hot Streak for FX

CHICAGO – Perhaps the highest compliment I can pay FX’s new often-brilliant animated series “Archer” is that, even with several new shows on my plate to watch, I actually went back and viewed a few episodes more than once. Like a lot of great animation - the best of “The Simpsons,” “Family Guy,” “South Park,” “Venture Bros.” - “Archer” is immensely rewatchable. A future cult hit premieres tonight.

Video Game Review: ‘James Cameron’s Avatar: The Game’ Looks Amazing, Plays Average

Avatar: The Game

CHICAGO – A movie as gigantic as James Cameron’s “Avatar” is bound to have a video game tie-in to go with it and one would assume that such a detailed and complex fantasy world as that created in the film threatening to be the highest grossing of all time would make for a wonderful virtual playground. One would be mostly correct in that “James Cameron’s Avatar: The Game” is one of the most beautiful in recent months. The gameplay is another story.

DVD Review: ‘Lorna’s Silence’ Casts Quietly Hypnotic Spell

Lorna's Silence Thumbnail

CHICAGO – Silence speaks volumes in the cinema of Belgian brothers Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne. Their characters are often young people living on society’s fringes, who keep their thoughts internalized rather than discuss them out loud. There is no music, no narration, and none of the usual cinematic conventions employed to tell the audience what to think or how to feel.

TV News: ABC Picks Up ‘Cougar Town,’ ‘The Middle,’ ‘Modern Family’ For Sophomore Seasons

Modern Family

CHICAGO – Stephen McPherson, president, ABC Entertainment Group, announced early pick-ups of the network’s hit Wednesday night comedies “Cougar Town,” “The Middle” and “Modern Family” for the 2010-2011 Season yesterday during the Television Critics Association Winter Press Tour.

Exclusive Portrait: Chicago Native Harrison Ford of ‘Extraordinary Measures’ in Chicago

CHICAGO – Hollywood legend Harrison Ford of “Indiana Jones” fame posed for his hometown HollywoodChicago.com red-carpet portrait at the premiere of “Extraordinary Measures” on Jan. 12, 2009 at the AMC River East movie theater in Chicago.

Blu-Ray Review: ‘The Final Destination’ Succeeds in Making Death Boring

The Final Destination Blu-Ray

CHICAGO – In Michael Haneke’s “Funny Games,” a couple and their young son are subjected to a night of physical and psychological torture. Their captors are two smirking psychopaths who only aim to please their thrill-seeking audience. The funny thing about “Games” is that it spares viewers from enjoying any explicit violence, forcing them to feel the characters’ excruciating suffering instead.

Interview: Michael Cudlitz Redefines the TV Cop in Excellent ‘Southland’

CHICAGONBC’s loss is the TNT Network’s gain as the excellent police drama “Southland” re-emerges on basic cable with a premiere Tuesday, January 12th. Michael Cudlitz plays the conflicted veteran officer John Cooper in the show.

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TV, DVD, BLU-RAY & THEATER REVIEWS

  • Manhunt

    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+.

  • Topdog/Underdog, Invictus Theatre

    CHICAGO – When two brothers confront the sins of each other and it expands into a psychology of an entire race, it’s at a stage play found in Chicago’s Invictus Theatre Company production of “Topdog/Underdog,” now at their new home at the Windy City Playhouse through March 31st, 2024. Click TD/UD for tickets/info.

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