CHICAGO – The funny meter of Netflix went off the scale last week, as the animated series “Chicago Party Aunt” made its debut on September 17th. What began as a Twitter account by comic actor Chris Witaske (who also provides his voice talent) has morphed into the cartoon adventures of Aunt Diane Dumbowski, her nephew Daniel, and an array of familiar Chicago-isms and characters.
Elizabeth Olsen
No Flipping! On-Air Review of ‘WandaVision’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on January 15, 2021 - 6:05pm Rating: 4.0/5.0 |
CHICAGO – Patrick McDonald of HollywoodChicago.com appears on The Eddie Volkman Show on WSSR-FM (Star 96.7 Joliet, Illinois) on January 15th, 2021, reviewing the new series from Disney+ and Marvel Studios, “WandaVision,” kicking off Phase Four of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Aubrey Plaza Steers the Unsettling ‘Ingrid Goes West’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on August 23, 2017 - 6:04pm Rating: 3.5/5.0 |
CHICAGO – Aubrey Plaza (“Parks and Recreation”) is an actor who always seems to do something memorable in her performances. In “Ingrid Goes West,” she carries an entire movie on her quirky and sometimes disturbing character… that of a bipolar stalker who can’t find balance.
Story in ‘Wind River’ Gets Scattered in the Breeze
Submitted by PatrickMcD on August 12, 2017 - 9:36am Rating: 2.5/5.0 |
CHICAGO – Writer/Director Taylor Sheridan is a deep thinker regarding humanity in these United States. In the third film of his “American Frontier Trilogy” – after “Sicario” and “Hell or High Water” – he goes to the Wyoming Native American reservation, for a unwieldy story titled “Wind River.”
Marvel Studios Reaches New Heights in Satisfying ‘Captain America: Civil War’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on May 5, 2016 - 9:10pm- Anthony Mackie
- Captain America: Civil War
- Chadwick Boseman
- Chris Evans
- christopher marcus
- Daniel Bruhl
- Don Cheadle
- Elizabeth Olsen
- emily van camp
- HollywoodChicago.com Content
- Jeremy Renner
- Marvel Studios
- Movie Review
- Paul Bettany
- Paul Rudd
- robert downey jr
- scarlett johanssen
- Sebastian Stan
- Spike Walters
- stephen mcfeeley
- Tom Holland
- Walt Disney Pictures
- William Hurt
 Rating: 4.5/5.0 |
CHICAGO – “Captain America: Civil War” is more of an “Avengers” movie than it is a Captain America movie. But that’s okay because this is easily the best Avengers movie Marvel Studios has ever made, and it also might be the best movie the studio has ever made.
‘Avengers: Age of Ultron’ More Exhausting Than Exhilarating
Submitted by PatrickMcD on May 1, 2015 - 1:14am Rating: 3.0/5.0 |
CHICAGO – “The Avengers: Age Of Ultron” is another overstuffed, action packed CGI addled slugfest from the Marvel Cinematic Universe. but the effects are exhausting instead of exhilarating. What has set the Avengers apart is the great interplay between the characters – and when the movie stops to take a breath, those relationships shine through.
Rousing ‘Avengers: Age of Ultron’ Hits Modern Society’s Central Nervous System
Submitted by HollywoodChicago.com on April 30, 2015 - 11:14pm- Aaron Taylor-Johnson
- Adam Fendelman
- Anthony Mackie
- Avengers: Age of Ultron
- Chris Evans
- Chris Hemsworth
- Cobie Smulders
- Don Cheadle
- Elizabeth Olsen
- HollywoodChicago.com Content
- Jack Kirby
- James Spader
- Jeremy Renner
- Joss Whedon
- Mark Ruffalo
- Marvel Studios
- Movie Review
- Paul Bettany
- Robert Downey Jr.
- Samuel L. Jackson
- Scarlett Johansson
- Stan Lee
- The Avengers
- Walt Disney Studios
Rating: 4.0/5.0 |
CHICAGO – Look. We all know sequels usually suck. And blockbuster films often get panned for overprioritizing special effects at the expense of a well-written story and character development. Even when a story in a big-budget film is redeeming, it’s practically impossible not to shoot holes through it.
Mixed Bag of Marvel Tricks in ‘Avengers: Age of Ultron’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on April 30, 2015 - 8:10amRating: 3.0/5.0 |
CHICAGO – Whew. There is so much going on in “Avengers: Age of Ultron” that you practically need a program to keep up with the players. This mixed bag has overwrought comic book action, head shaking plot points, and the usual Marvel angst that includes some riveting scenes.
Hollywood’s ‘Godzilla’ Misses, Mocks Ishirô Honda’s Main Warning Message
Submitted by HollywoodChicago.com on May 17, 2014 - 2:08pmRating: 2.5/5.0 |
CHICAGO – Except for the clear purpose of cashing in on yet another “Godzilla” remake, everything is happening for no reason. Worst of all, what is ensuing misses and even mocks the reason why Ishirô Honda originated 1954’s “Godzilla” in the first place.
‘Godzilla’ Just Goes Where He Has Gone Before
Submitted by PatrickMcD on May 15, 2014 - 3:43pm Rating: 2.0/5.0 |
CHICAGO – I did not like “Godzilla.” That sentence alone might make my review interesting enough to attract some initial attention. But despite that, and despite the fact that I’m a sucker for pretty much giant anything if it stomps a city, I’m holding fast to this judgment.
Love is Impossible in Alluring Period Horror ‘In Secret’
Submitted by NickHC on February 23, 2014 - 5:37pmRating: 3.5/5.0 |
CHICAGO – If stories of Prince Charmings and the liberation from wicked stepmothers are fairy tales, than “In Secret” is the stuff of nightmares, where marriage is not just a prison sentence, but an unlucky life is as well. Based on the novel “Therese Raquin” by Emile Zola as published in 1867, this film’s element of ownership may be considered an artifact in 2014. But thankfully this adaptation earns its own pertinence, as a dark period thriller with real doses of hormonally fueled bad decisions.
