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.
Adam Fendelman
More Than a Popcorn Flick, ‘Jurassic World’ Makes a Climactic Comeback Worth Making
Submitted by HollywoodChicago.com on June 14, 2015 - 4:39pmRating: 4.0/5.0 |
CHICAGO – Blockbuster films are obsessed with bigger, louder and faster. They often think they need to spend more money to outdo what they’ve done before – especially when coming from a beloved original like “Jurassic Park”.
Terribly Scripted ‘San Andreas’ With Dwayne Johnson a Heartless Special Effects Spectacle
Submitted by HollywoodChicago.com on May 29, 2015 - 2:30pmRating: 2.5/5.0 |
CHICAGO – When the story is as weak as the film’s fault lines and the character development never develops, the problem with blowing $100 million mostly on special effects is all you’re left with is unintelligent disaster porn.
An Adrenaline Junkie’s Dream, ‘Mad Max: Fury Road’ a Badass Bass Haven
Submitted by HollywoodChicago.com on May 15, 2015 - 3:18pm- Abbey Lee
- Adam Fendelman
- Brendan McCarthy
- Charlize Theron
- Courtney Eaton
- George Miller
- HollywoodChicago.com Content
- Hugh Keays-Byrne
- Josh Helman
- Mad Max
- Mad Max: Fury Road
- Movie Review
- Nathan Jones
- Nicholas Hoult
- Nick Lathouris
- Riley Keough
- Rosie Huntington-Whiteley
- Tom Hardy
- Warner Bros. Pictures
- Zoe Kravitz
Rating: 4.5/5.0 |
CHICAGO – It’s “the greatest action movie ever made,” so says the television commercials (which means it’s true). And it’s buoyed by other quotables galore including “what a lovely day!,” “from mastermind George Miller,” “pulse pounding,” “heart wrenching” and “teeth grinding”. While these words are actually true, though, the film doesn’t need them to sell it.
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.
Relentlessly Action-Packed ‘Furious 7’ Actually Has a Story, Too
Submitted by HollywoodChicago.com on April 3, 2015 - 8:16am- Adam Fendelman
- Chris Morgan
- Djimon Hounsou
- Dwayne Johnson
- Elsa Pataky
- Furious 7
- Gal Gadot
- Gary Scott Thompson
- HollywoodChicago.com Content
- James Wan
- Jordana Brewster
- Kurt Russell
- Ludacris
- Luke Evans
- Michelle Rodriguez
- Movie Review
- Nathalie Emmanuel
- Paul Walker
- Tony Jaa
- Tyrese Gibson
- Universal Pictures
- Vin Diesel
Rating: 4.0/5.0 |
CHICAGO – I’ve never classified myself as a “Fast & Furious” franchise fan. Nor have I been a hater. I’ve fallen somewhere in between – willingly watching the popcorn flicks but then quickly going about my life as fast as the furious action ended. Until “Furious 7”…
Charming ‘The Second Best Exotic Marigold Hotel’ Bucks Botched Sequel Trend
Submitted by HollywoodChicago.com on March 9, 2015 - 9:05pmRating: 4.0/5.0 |
CHICAGO – Motivated by financial necessity, sequels often mitigate business risk and satisfy studio executives by riding on the coattails of a previous fan base with brand equity. But business aside, to moviegoers the follow-up product so often feels like it “wasn’t nearly as good as the first” or didn’t need to return at all.
Hidden Gem ‘The Last Five Years’ Launches Anna Kendrick as a Serious Singer
Submitted by HollywoodChicago.com on February 22, 2015 - 2:26pm- Adam Fendelman
- Anna Kendrick
- Betsy Wolfe
- Bettina Bresnan
- Cassandra Inman
- Charly Bivona
- HollywoodChicago.com Content
- Jason Robert Brown
- Jeremy Jordan
- Lauren Kennedy
- Lily LaGravenese
- Movie Review
- RADIUS-TWC
- Richard LaGravenese
- Robert Immerman
- Sherie Rene Scott
- Tamara Mintz
- The Last Five Years
- Theresa O'Neill
Rating: 4.0/5.0 |
CHICAGO – Perhaps you’ve heard Anna Kendrick dabble in that thing called “singing” with her cutesy “Cups” on the radio, her runaway princess role in “Into the Woods” or “Pitch Perfect”. But apparently it takes an under-the-radar indie film that adapts a commercially failed off-Broadway play for her to shine as a dramatic actress and especially carry the tune as a powerful, spine-chilling singer.
Beneath its Curious Surface, ‘Fifty Shades of Grey’ a Dangerous Menace to Society
Submitted by HollywoodChicago.com on February 14, 2015 - 4:01pm- Adam Fendelman
- Callum Keith Rennie
- Dakota Johnson
- Dana Brunetti
- Dylan Neal
- E.L. James
- Eloise Mumford
- Fifty Shades of Grey
- Focus Features
- HollywoodChicago.com Content
- Jamie Dornan
- Jennifer Ehle
- Kelly Marcel
- Luke Grimes
- Marcia Gay Harden
- Max Martini
- Michael De Luca
- Movie Review
- Rita Ora
- Sam Taylor-Johnson
- Universal Pictures
- Victor Rasuk
Rating: 2.0/5.0 |
CHICAGO – Strike one of far too many: “Fifty Shades of Grey” author Erika Leonard (better known as E.L. James) has never lived the BDSM lifestyle. And therefore, nor should she be writing about, romanticizing and profiteering on it. On a $40 million budget, the film earned $30.2 million on its opening Friday and is on track for a record-breaking international weekend grab of $158 million.
Following a Two-Year Delay, ‘Seventh Son’ Should Have Been Shelved
Submitted by HollywoodChicago.com on February 8, 2015 - 3:35pmRating: 2.0/5.0 |
CHICAGO – I can’t decide which is worse: the “fake deep talk” from Jeff Bridges in “Seventh Son” or the “angry whisper talk” from Eddie Redmayne in “Jupiter Ascending,” which also opened on Friday. Both speech impediments are ugly fish out of water, both films are getting punished by critics and both are underperforming at domestic box offices.
Jude Law Submarines a Passable But Unspectacular ‘Black Sea’
Submitted by HollywoodChicago.com on February 1, 2015 - 12:14amRating: 2.5/5.0 |
CHICAGO – I’m on board with Jude Law leading a film and neutral about submarine movies as a genre. My primary pre-screening interest in the quietly marketed thriller “Black Sea” was what Oscar-winning director Kevin Macdonald would do with this material following his hit with the hard-hitting drama “The Last King of Scotland”.