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+.
HollywoodChicago.com Arts & Entertainment News
On WGN Radio: HollywoodChicago.com’s Brian Tallerico on TV Network Schedules
Submitted by BrianTT on May 30, 2011 - 8:48pmCHICAGO – Brian Tallerico guests on Bill Moller’s show on WGN-Radio in Chicago on May 21, 2011 to discuss TV news including the announcements of all five of the network schedules with a focus on the shuffling at CBS, the aggressive new lineup at ABC, and the return of old TV stars like Sarah Michelle Gellar and Tim Allen.
Blu-Ray Review: Jason Statham, Ben Foster Keep ‘The Mechanic’ From Breaking Down
Submitted by BrianTT on May 30, 2011 - 8:42pmCHICAGO – We have seen dozens of movies about hit men caught in dangerous situations. There is something that fascinates us about men who take the assignment to kill someone and just pack up and wait for the next job. Inevitably, the movies tell us that these men will pay the price, whether it be a job gone horribly wrong or an attempt to leave a profession that doesn’t come with a pension plan. The latest entry in the subgenre is the Jason Statham vehicle “The Mechanic,” a film that works reasonably well as a rental but falls a bit flat with a disappointing final act.
Blu-Ray Review: Amazing Edition For Charlie Chaplin Classic ‘The Great Dictator’
Submitted by BrianTT on May 30, 2011 - 11:46amCHICAGO – Every time I’ve seen “The Great Dictator,” I’m amazed that it even exists. It is not only one of the great Charlie Chaplin’s most consistently funny films but it is a satirical masterpiece that is SO daring that it’s amazing it even got made. It is a piece of slapstick comedy about World War II and Adolf Hitler. Think about that for one minute. Now, it was made in 1940 (a year before our entry into the war), but it was still a risky move to make a piece this politically and socially conscious and try and sell it to an audience who had grown accustomed to watching Charlie Chaplin fall down.
Blu-Ray Review: ‘Anton Chekhov’s The Duel’ Does Justice to Source Material
Submitted by mattmovieman on May 27, 2011 - 3:36pmCHICAGO – I suspect there is a segment of the moviegoing population that will take one look at the title, “Anton Chekhov’s The Duel,” and flee in the other direction, most likely into “The Hangover Part II.” Chekhov is the sort of literary genius whose work is quoted by writers aiming to prove their own level of intellectualism. Yet his work is too good to be merely confined in art houses.
Film Review: Terrence Malick’s Captivating Meditation on ‘The Tree of Life’
Submitted by BrianTT on May 27, 2011 - 3:15pmCHICAGO – I’ve seen Terrence Malick’s “Tree of Life” twice now and I still struggle with how to put my reaction to it into words. The film almost defies typical critical discussion with its lack of narrative thrust and a structure that makes it far closer to a poem than a piece of prose. How do you even begin to talk about a piece that works with emotions instead of plot twists?
Film Review: Takashi Miike’s ‘13 Assassins’ Presents Ballet of Blood
Submitted by BrianTT on May 27, 2011 - 3:02pmCHICAGO – You will see a lot of movies this season that don’t deliver on their set-up. Whether it’s because they’re setting up the audience for another installment in a blockbuster franchise or just the fact that movies made by big studio committees often drop the ball, it’s simply a fact. Whatever one can say about Takashi Miike’s “13 Assassins,” opening this weekend at the Music Box Theatre in Chicago and currently available On Demand, it absolutely, undeniably delivers the goods. And those goods are soaked in blood.
HollywoodChicago.com Hookup: 10 Pairs of Chicago Passes to ‘X-Men: First Class’ Plus 5 Vintage T-Shirts
Submitted by HollywoodChicago.com on May 27, 2011 - 2:12pmCHICAGO – In our latest superhero edition of HollywoodChicago.com Hookup: Film, we have 10 admit-two advance-screening movie passes plus 5 vintage “X-Men” T-shirts up for grabs for the highly anticipated new film “X-Men: First Class”!
Film Review: Woody Allen’s Charming ‘Midnight in Paris’ Delights
Submitted by BrianTT on May 27, 2011 - 10:06amCHICAGO – Writer/director Woody Allen and the amazing cinematographer Darius Khondji (“Seven,” “The City of Lost Children”) very purposefully open their new film “Midnight in Paris” with a long series of static shots of the title city before even presenting a cast list. You see, Paris is a cast member in this film.
Film Review: ‘The Hangover Part II’ a Funny, Formulaic, Desperately Shocking Carbon Copy
Submitted by HollywoodChicago.com on May 26, 2011 - 11:40pmCHICAGO – Business and creative people go together as well as fine wine at a burger joint. Riding on the heels of the monumentally profitable “The Hangover,” the brass win out over the artists in “The Hangover Part II”.
Film Review: Inconsistent ‘Do Not Disturb’ Features Revolving Door of Quality
Submitted by BrianTT on May 26, 2011 - 4:40pm Rating: 3.0/5.0 |
CHICAGO – The beautiful Mali Elfman, daughter of the great composer Danny Elfman, has written and produced (and co-stars in) a unique piece of work called “Do Not Disturb,” a collection of interconnected short films that chronicles the bizarre happenings in a Los Angeles hotel room and is now available On Demand. What goes on behind closed doors? If the walls of even one room could talk, the stories they would tell would be great fodder for filmmaking. “Do Not Disturb” is too inconsistent to recommend completely but features a few interesting elements and bodes well for a promising filmmaker.
Blu-Ray Review: 25th Anniversary of Oliver Stone’s Devastating ‘Platoon’
Submitted by BrianTT on May 26, 2011 - 3:59pmCHICAGO – Oliver Stone’s “Platoon” is easily one of the most important films in my life. It came out in theaters when I was eleven and I saw it not long after that on VHS. My parents decided that, despite the intensity of the film, its subject matter was important enough that I could handle it even at a young age. I remember being simply blown away by the movie for numerous reasons.
On XLC Radio: HollywoodChicago.com’s Brian Tallerico to Discuss Fall Schedule Announcements
Submitted by BrianTT on May 26, 2011 - 1:37pmCHICAGO – Brian Tallerico guests on Jimmy & Jen on 102.3 XLC in Chicago on May 19, 2011 for an interview about current television news including the announcements of the Fall shows, the departure of Lisa Edelstein from “House,’ the news of Ashton Kutcher’s casting on “Two and a Half Men,” and much more.
Film Review: More or Less Same Formula in ‘Kung Fu Panda 2’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on May 26, 2011 - 8:25amCHICAGO – Good and evil, chase and fight. Those are the two basic formulas that dominate “Kung Fu Panda 2,” the sequel to the very popular first film. That redundancy is helped by the spirituality of an animated panda and some spectacular 3D rendering.
