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+.
1960s
Film Review: ‘The Wife’ is Classic Drama & Relevant Social History
Submitted by PatrickMcD on August 24, 2018 - 12:58amCHICAGO – One of the more fascinating questions about civilization is ‘how much talent went unrealized because of time and place of birth?’ The patriarchy – which denied people of color and women for so long – often reduced fellow travelers into subservient roles. For example, there were women who were just known as “The Wife.”
Film Review: Awkward Human Nature Explored in ‘On Chesil Beach’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on May 25, 2018 - 12:50amCHICAGO – If you hook up with people for that inevitable physical connection, you’ve experienced the odd emotional wrestling match of the “first time” – whether it’s the first “first time” or any other new partner first time. “On Chesil Beach” focuses on a young British couple in 1962, as they first time their virginal wedding night.
Film Review: Ethereal ‘The Shape of Water’ Forms Cinema Magic
Submitted by PatrickMcD on December 13, 2017 - 2:48pmCHICAGO – This breathtaking morality and love story, set in a backward age, takes all of its major themes – passion, tolerance, symbolism and thrills – to the highest level. Writer/director Guillermo del Toro has created a masterwork that is part fairy tale, part adult desperation and all cinema magic.
Film Review: ‘Detroit’ is Stark, Blunt & Honest U.S. History
Submitted by PatrickMcD on July 28, 2017 - 10:37amCHICAGO – It has become clear to anyone who is making an observation about authority and “order” in America, that for certain people it comes with a severe price. “Detroit” explores an incident within the 1967 riots there, when white police officers raided a hotel and perpetuated crimes of their own.
Film Review: Familiar Spirits Gives New LIfe to ‘Ouija: Origin of Evil’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on October 25, 2016 - 9:26amCHICAGO – Like many of the creatures or villains it inspires, the horror genre has been slowly decaying for years now. In a time of reboots and tired sequels, 2016 has shown us glimpses of future promise by revisiting elements of the past. Flanagan continues this hot streak, one he helped create with “Hush” earlier this year, with the prequel “Ouija: Origin of Evil”.
Exclusive Portrait: A Bat Anniversary for Adam West & Burt Ward
Submitted by PatrickMcD on January 13, 2016 - 8:50amCHICAGO – In the 1960s, the entertainment world was summed up by the three “B’s” – Bond, Beatles and…Batman. On January 12th, 1966, the pop culture TV phenomenon called “Batman” – starring Adam West and Burt Ward as Batman and Robin – made its debut on ABC-TV. Happy 50th Anniversary to the Dynamic Duo.
Interview: Director Rob Reiner on Latest Film ‘And So it Goes’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on July 23, 2014 - 12:18pm- 1960s
- A Few Good Men
- Activism
- All in the Family
- And So it Goes
- Carroll O’Connor
- Clarius Entertainment
- Diane Keaton
- HollywoodChicago.com Content
- Interview
- Jean Stapleton
- Michael Douglas
- Misery
- Patrick McDonald
- Progressives
- Rob Reiner
- Stand by Me
- The American President
- The Princess Bride
- The Smothers Brothers
- This is Spinal Tap
CHICAGO – Rob Reiner has lived two distinct show business lives. He played a major role in one of the most famous television shows in history, “All in the Family,” and broke out afterward as a classic American film director, with hits such as “This is Spinal Tap” and “The Princess Bride.” His latest film is “And So it Goes.”
Theater Review: ‘Hair’ Still Shines at American Theater Company
Submitted by PatrickMcD on June 3, 2014 - 11:09amCHICAGO – At intermission, I remarked to a fellow theater patron that the musical “Hair,” presented by the American Theater Company (ATC) of Chicago, still has a solid impact. His logical reply, “it’s hard to mess this one up.” The ATC does the classic hippie musical proud, with a raucous rendition.
Interview: Filmmakers Charlie & Lucy Paul on ‘For No Good Reason’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on May 15, 2014 - 12:04pmCHICAGO – You may not know the name Ralph Steadman, but you most certainly have run into his cartoon art. The surrealist was a partner with Hunter S. Thompson, illustrating books like “Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas,” and is a subject of a new documentary entitled “For No Good Reason,” directed by Charlie Paul.
Film Review: ‘Cesar Chavez’ is Stiff History of a Heroic Man
Submitted by PatrickMcD on March 29, 2014 - 11:05amCHICAGO – How can one man bring down a ruthless industry? By building a union that never backs down, because he never backed down. ‘Cesar Chavez’ depicts the United Farm Workers union organizer in the 1960s who sought justice against virtual slave conditions for immigrant labor, assuring his place in history.