CHICAGO – There is no better time to take in a stage play that is based in U.S. history, depicting the battle between fact and religion. The old theater chestnut – first mounted in 1955 – is “Inherit the Wind,” now at the Goodman Theatre, completing it’s short run through October 20th. For tickets and more information, click INHERIT.
HollywoodChicago.com Movie Reviews
‘The Complete Metropolis’ a Must-See Movie Event
Submitted by BrianTT on June 3, 2010 - 12:05pm Rating: 5.0/5.0 |
CHICAGO – Not since the restoration of Orson Welles’s “Touch of Evil” has a butchered cinematic classic been brought to such startling new life as “The Complete Metropolis.” Though Fritz Lang’s 1927 masterpiece “Metropolis” may never be restored to its original cut, this latest theatrical re-release is as close as film preservationists have ever gotten to recreating the legendary science-fiction epic in its entirety.
‘City of Your Final Destination’ Isn’t Worth a Visit
Submitted by BrianTT on June 1, 2010 - 10:20am Rating: 1.5/5.0 |
CHICAGO – Although “City of Your Final Destination” is not the latest installment of the Rube Goldberg-inspired splatter series, it does seem to be populated with the walking dead. The only similarity shared between the “Final Destination” franchise and this picturesque drama is an overwhelming abundance of tedium, generated by a plot that often seems as stagnant as its listless characters.
‘Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time’ is Perfect Background Noise For Making Out
Submitted by HollywoodChicago.com on May 29, 2010 - 11:06am Rating: 2.0/5.0 |
CHICAGO – Historically, video game adaptations are recipes for disaster when translated into film. While “Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time” with Jake Gyllenhaal and Gemma Arterton has a blockbuster opportunity to buck the decades-old trend, we’re just subjected to more of the same soul-deadening time drain.
One Sequel Too Many For Sarah Jessica Parker, ‘Sex and the City 2’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on May 27, 2010 - 7:31am Rating: 2.5/5.0 |
CHICAGO – “Sex in the City 2” has very little sex and even less city. That is the least of its sins. This bloated, directionless semi-narrative take the familiar foursome – Sarah Jessica Parker, Kim Cattrall, Cynthia Nixon and Kristin Davis – into unfamiliar geographic territory, but with no dramatic arc there is simply nothing there.
Annette Bening, Naomi Watts Lack the Connection in ‘Mother and Child’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on May 23, 2010 - 3:28pm Rating: 3.0/5.0 |
CHICAGO – “Mother and Child,” with an all star cast of Annette Bening, Naomi Watts, Samuel L. Jackson, Jimmy Smits and Kerry Washington, is mindful of its subject matter, that rare and elusive connection between a mother and their offspring. However, the film has difficulties when the characters become inconsistent with their past backgrounds after that connection is introduced.
Lazy, Uninspired ‘Shrek Forever After’ With Mike Myers, Cameron Diaz
Submitted by BrianTT on May 21, 2010 - 1:52pm Rating: 1.0/5.0 |
CHICAGO – The laziest big budget film of the year, “Shrek Forever After” is the worst kind of family entertainment in that it relies solely on the goodwill engendered by the hit movies that came before to not only get audience members in seats this weekend but to sell them toys, video games, and tickets to amusement parks.
Love Story of ‘Kites’ Soars as a Marvel of Modern Moviemaking
Submitted by PatrickMcD on May 21, 2010 - 4:18am Rating: 4.5/5.0 |
CHICAGO – One of the most provocative and unusual films this year, or any year, is an amazing production from India entitled “Kites.” American director Brett Ratner (”Rush Hour”) was so taken by this film, that he agreed to edit the original (or remix) for the U.S. presentation. Both versions will be will be in the marketplace for a limited release.
Will Forte, Kristen Wiig Explode a Megaton Bomb in ‘MacGruber’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on May 21, 2010 - 3:57am Rating: 0.5/5.0 |
CHICAGO – In a parallel universe, perhaps a version of “MacGruber” exists that actually understands that comedy should be funny…oh what a beautiful world that would be. Here in this astral plane Will Forte, Kristen Wiig, Ryan Phillippe and Val Kilmer, plus the writers, director and craft services obviously conspired to create a movie bomb that no one could diffuse.
Queen Latifah, Common, Paula Patton Are Just Short of ‘Just Wright’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on May 16, 2010 - 2:18pmRating: 3.0/5.0 |
CHICAGO – Romantic comedies are a roving beast in the Movie Zone, one that can never be captured properly time after time, yet never dies either. Queen Latifah and the rapper Common put an interesting and necessary twist on the genre, but still cannot help but fall back on the recurring rom-com clichés that eventually undermines the new film “Just Wright.”
‘Casino Jack and the United States of Money’ Infuriates While it Entertains
Submitted by BrianTT on May 14, 2010 - 3:05pmRating: 4.5/5.0 |
CHICAGO – There’s a memorable moment in “Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room,” in which one of director Alex Gibney’s interview subjects compares an Enron press conference to the musical sequence in “Chicago,” where a slickly manipulative lawyer has all of the city’s reporters on marionette strings.
Vanessa Redgrave Shines in ‘Letters to Juliet,’ But Romantic Leads Bore
Submitted by BrianTT on May 14, 2010 - 2:46pmRating: 2.5/5.0 |
CHICAGO – I want to live in the alternate universe where Vanessa Redgrave’s Claire is the lead of “Letters to Juliet” and the two vapid dorks who trail her on a journey of lost love can learn a lesson or two but never take the spotlight. Sadly, such is not the case with this Amanda Seyfried and Christopher Egan vehicle, a romantic drama entirely stolen from its young stars by a timeless actress.
Russell Crowe, Cate Blanchett Forge an Epic Adventure in ‘Robin Hood’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on May 13, 2010 - 8:56pm Rating: 4.0/5.0 |
CHICAGO – “T’wang!” is the the sound of an archer’s arrow going right into the center of the summer movie kick-off season. Director Ridley Scott, Cate Blanchett, Max Von Sydow, William Hurt, Mark Strong, Oscar Isaac and Russell Crowe – in the title role of “Robin Hood” – offer a compelling story, plenty of action and an epic quality to the oft-told legend.
Haunting ‘Lourdes’ Revels in the Poetry of Ambiguity
Submitted by BrianTT on May 13, 2010 - 1:34pmRating: 5.0/5.0 |
CHICAGO – Most films about faith seem artistically limited by their spiritual subject matter. Some religiously devout filmmakers are so fixed in their beliefs that they lack the ability to perceive life with the complexity necessary to create resonant art. A perennial classic like Cecil B. DeMille’s “The Ten Commandments” may have magnificent scope and spectacle, but it has all the dramatic depth and nuance of a Bible card.
