CHICAGO – Excelsior! Comic book legend Stan Lee’s famous exclamation puts a fine point on the third and final play of Mark Pracht’s FOUR COLOR TRILOGY, “The House of Ideas,” presented by and staged at City Lit Theater in Chicago’s Edgewater neighborhood. For tickets/details, click HOUSE OF IDEAS.
HollywoodChicago.com Movie Reviews
Life Reveals Itself Through Courses in ‘The Dinner’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on May 7, 2017 - 9:25pm Rating: 4.5/5.0 |
CHICAGO – There is a peculiar and particular morality in the maneuverings of “The Dinner,” a multi-course meditation on how a tragic incident can split both opinion and family. Everything in the present situation has a below-the-surface past that festers like an unhealed wound, constantly causing pain.
Cut of Nostalgia in ‘Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on May 5, 2017 - 12:31pm Rating: 4.0/5.0 |
CHICAGO – When I first saw “Guardians of the Galaxy” I was unfamiliar with the comic book source. I enjoyed the film, but worried it might be just a little too nerdy and obscure to develop a following. Now with “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2,” the series has solidified itself as the class clowns of the Marvel Studios cinematic universe, and it’s been embraced for it.
Blissful Anarchy in ‘My Entire High School Sinking Into the Sea’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on May 5, 2017 - 10:33amRating: 4.5/5.0 |
CHICAGO – In animation, the real innovators who evolve the artform are the risk takers who stamp their own inspiration on those cartoon images. Director Dash Shaw is one of those breakthroughs, who creates a work of anarchistic art in “My Entire High School Sinking Into the Sea.”
Chef Emerges in ‘Jeremiah Tower: The Last Magnificent’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on April 28, 2017 - 9:54am Rating: 3.5/5.0 |
CHICAGO – The culture of food has never been more pervasive, from entire broadcast channels devoted to it, to new trends in eating being invented seemingly every day. Where did it all start? The new film ‘Jeremiah Tower: The Last Magnificent’ documents the chef that opened the door.
'Free Fire' Knows That Happiness is a Warm Gun
Submitted by PatrickMcD on April 26, 2017 - 2:21pmRating: 4.5/5.0 |
CHICAGO – In a film that had a sassy, arbitrary perspective on its own flipped-out story, “Free Fire” sought to out-Quentin Tarantino in freaky funny characters and ammo-splurging gun battles. Director Ben Wheatley (“High-Rise”) took an ensemble cast to rarified heights of insult comedy, revenge dynamics and bullets that hit the bone.
Love Attempts to Infiltrate Horror in 'The Promise'
Submitted by PatrickMcD on April 24, 2017 - 8:20amRating: 4.0/5.0 |
CHICAGO – So much of civilization’s story is lost in the mist of “winners write the history,” and even as recently as 100 years ago there are instances of world history that is not generally taught. “The Promise” is set during the World War I period, and has a love triangle in the midst of a little known genocide.
‘Their Finest’ is British Filmmaking at Its Finest
Submitted by PatrickMcD on April 14, 2017 - 4:09pmRating: 4.5/5.0 |
CHICAGO – In a combined BBC Films, Welsh Government and Pinewood (London) Pictures production, the British-based “Their Finest” pairs England’s history with authentic and passionate romance, to create a sly and funny riff on propaganda films and the British movie industry during the early days of World War II.
‘The Fate of the Furious’ is a Vehicle Running on Fumes
Submitted by PatrickMcD on April 13, 2017 - 4:17pm- Charlize Theron
- Chris Morgan
- Dwayne Johnson
- Elsa Pataky
- F. Gary Gray
- Helen Mirren
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- Jason Statham
- Kurt Russell
- Ludacris
- Luke Evans
- Michelle Rodriguez
- Movie Review
- Nathalie Emmanuel
- Scott Eastwood
- Spike Walters
- The Fate of the Furious
- Tyrese Gibson
- Universal Pictures
- Vin Diesel
 Rating: 2.5/5.0 |
CHICAGO – Bigger, Dumber, and Duller…that’s the name of the game this time in this ongoing franchise which is now so ludicrous it makes Bond films seem like the epitome of realism. While it’s true this is the first time Oscar winners and a “Fast and the Furious” film have ever been associated together, there’s a dearth of inspiration in this eighth go around, as this series is now operating almost completely on autopilot.
‘Smurfs: The Lost Village’ Should Have Remained Undiscovered
Submitted by JonHC on April 11, 2017 - 11:34am Rating: 1.5/5.0 |
CHICAGO – There are only a few times that I have left a film mentally shouting, “Won’t someone think of the children?” Not through some self-righteous religious fit, of course, but through a general concern for the animated films created for our young. “Smurfs: The Lost Village” is either made for a specific crowd in mind or made for a crowd without a mind.
Misguided Remake of ‘Going in Style’ is Just a Product
Submitted by PatrickMcD on April 7, 2017 - 7:37am Rating: 2.0/5.0 |
CHICAGO – In 1979, there was a beautifully understated film called “Going in Style,” taking on the issues of aging, loneliness and the forgotten senior citizens in society. Those issues have not altered in our modern society, but you wouldn’t be able to tell that with the 2017 remake of “Going in Style.”
‘T2 Trainspotting’ is a Nostalgic Trip That Stays on the Rails
Submitted by JonHC on April 6, 2017 - 2:38amRating: 3.5/5.0 |
CHICAGO – Sequels are the bane of film’s existence. They tend to end with unresolved plotlines in an attempt to promote the need for another film. Disappointing film franchises have been built this way, but Danny Boyle is the last person I would have expected this from. “T2 Trainspotting” is the sequel to “Trainspotting” that we never wanted but are surprisingly happy to have.
Jessica Chastain is Steadfast as ‘The Zookeeper’s Wife’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on April 4, 2017 - 4:29pm Rating: 3.0/5.0 |
CHICAGO – Jessica Chastain is a memorable and glamorous actress, who continues to challenge herself with in-depth and complex roles. “The Zookeeper’s Wife” is her latest, and her performance outweighs the formulaic based-on-truth story, set during the Holocaust.
Alec Baldwin Puts the Funny in ‘The Boss Baby’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on March 30, 2017 - 6:50pmRating: 4.0/5.0 |
CHICAGO – The young Alec Baldwin (think “Prelude to a Kiss”) never seemed as prevalent as the today’s Alec Baldwin. Taking his “30 Rock” persona to a different level, he voices the title character of ‘The Boss Baby,” the latest from Dreamworks Animation and director Tom McGrath.
