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+.
Patrick McDonald
‘Big Eyes’ Too Conventional to Generate Any Interest
Submitted by PatrickMcD on December 25, 2014 - 9:22amRating: 3.0/5.0 |
CHICAGO – What’s up with Tim Burton? His style is hardly present in the straightforward story of artists Margaret and Walter Keane, locked in a battle of creation over “Big Eyes” child paintings. There is nothing revelatory or even interesting in the process of their struggle of who-painted-what, maybe perhaps Burton – a collector of the art – wants to increase their value?
‘The Gambler’ is a Sure Bet for the Holiday Weekend
Submitted by PatrickMcD on December 25, 2014 - 8:52amRating: 4.5/5.0 |
CHICAGO – Gritty, funky and quote-worthy, this re-imagining of “The Gambler” – from a 1970s source film – is one of Mark Wahlberg’s best performances. His addicted-to-gaming soul has roots in other frustrations, and the actor is willing to communicate the whole range of emotions.
Uneven ‘Annie’ Makes Some Very Bad Decisions
Submitted by PatrickMcD on December 19, 2014 - 9:01amRating: 2.0/5.0 |
CHICAGO – The diabetes-inducing Broadway musical “Annie” does not deserve two film versions – including the newest release – especially since both are tortuous and somewhat dark. The “modern” version even eliminates most of the strength that “Annie” possessed on stage, its chipper songs.
Schizophrenic ‘Top Five’ is Evolution for Chris Rock
Submitted by PatrickMcD on December 12, 2014 - 4:59amRating: 3.0/5.0 |
CHICAGO – Chris Rock wants you to take him seriously, so he has made a comedy with inconsistent laughs, and a nod towards the weird fishbowl lives that today’s celebrities endure. It’s a rare film where the last part is stronger than the first few acts, a mishmash that is “Top Five.”
Human Emotions Transcend Wealth in ‘Foxcatcher’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on November 21, 2014 - 12:37pmRating: 3.5/5.0 |
CHICAGO – In the memorable film “Barton Fink,” the title character is asked to write a wrestling movie for Wallace Beery. If Fink had isolated himself long enough, he might have come up with “Foxcatcher,” demonstrating once again that a true story is much stranger than fiction.
Moving On in ‘The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 1’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on November 20, 2014 - 11:50pm- Donald Sutherland
- Elizabeth Banks
- HollywoodChicago.com Content
- Jeffrey Wright
- Jennifer Lawrence
- Josh Hutcherson
- Julianne Moore
- Katniss
- Liam Hemsworth
- Lionsgate
- Movie Review
- Patrick McDonald
- Peeta
- Philip Seymour Hoffman
- Stanley Tucci
- Suzanne Collins
- The Hunger Games: Mockingjay - Part 1
- Woody Harrelson
Rating: 3.5/5.0 |
CHICAGO – The über popular “The Hunger Games” series is back, splitting the final novel into two movie parts, Harry Potter style. Subtitled “Mockingjay - Part 1,” this is the beginning of the end of the story, setting up rather than knocking down.
‘Beyond the Lights’ Has a Respect for Storytelling
Submitted by PatrickMcD on November 14, 2014 - 7:10pmRating: 3.5/5.0 |
CHICAGO – Writer/Director Gina Prince-Bythewood, the creator of the cult favorite “Love & Basketball,” is back with another original story that she created, an intimate and romantic perspective on a singer on the path to nowhere, despite superstar-level fame. Gugu Mbatha-Raw stars as that singer in “Beyond the Lights.”
Elegy for a Southern Boy in ‘Glen Campbell: I’ll Be Me’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on November 8, 2014 - 12:20pmRating: 4.0/5.0 |
CHICAGO – Glen Campbell, the singer, actor and personality, is ingrained into a certain late 1960s/early ‘70s ethos. His sunny disposition and clean pop music rhetoric crossed over from country to the mainstream, and in that other era he could seriously call his television show “The Glen Campbell Goodtime Hour.” Today, he fights a losing battle against Alzheimer’s Disease in the emotional documentary, “Glen Campbell, I’ll Be Me.”
‘Laggies’ Lags Behind With Connect-the-Dots Story
Submitted by PatrickMcD on November 7, 2014 - 12:27pmRating: 2.5/5.0 |
CHICAGO – Apparently “Laggies” is a term which does mean one is “lagging behind” in the growing-up-to-be-an-adult requirement. The term is the title of a new comedy, which places the main character in a high concept situation, which only resides in the parallel universe of movieland.
‘Interstellar’ is Supposed to Mean Something, But What?
Submitted by PatrickMcD on November 6, 2014 - 2:33pm- 2001: A Space Odyssey
- Anne Hathaway
- Bill Irwin
- Casey Affleck
- Christopher Nolan
- David Gyasi
- Ellen Burstyn
- HollywoodChicago.com Content
- Interstellar
- Jessica Chastain
- John Lithgow
- Mackenzie Foy
- Matt Damon
- Matthew McConaughey
- Michael Caine
- Movie Review
- Paramount Pictures
- Patrick McDonald
- Stanley Kubrick
- Topher Grace
- Wes Bentley
Rating: 3.0/5.0 |
CHICAGO – It is most likely that movie goers were asking the same question of Stanley Kubrick’s “2001: A Space Odyssey” in 1968, but Christopher Nolan’s “Interstellar” belongs to its own category of what-is-the-meaning, because it tries to combine pseudo-science with psycho-babble, which clashes into meaninglessness. But the visuals are stunning, and there are moments of fulfillment, especially in a big screen IMAX format.