Alice Eve

CHICAGO – J.J. Abrams’ “Star Trek Into Darkness” is like a really solid mid-season episode of a great TV series. Entertaining, for sure, but lacking the energy of a premiere or the stakes of a finale. It leaves fans wondering what’s next in the franchise, which will surely make Paramount happy, but doesn’t stand on its own like the truly great part twos (“The Dark Knight,” “The Empire Strikes Back”).

CHICAGO – “Men in Black III” is such a soulless venture, a film made by committee that doesn’t display the touch of anyone with any remaining actual interest in the characters. In the pipeline for years, the film has been fine-tuned to the point that all of its personality was buffed out in the process.

CHICAGO – In the latest HollywoodChicago.com Hookup: Film with our unique social giveaway technology, we have 25 admit-two movie passes up for grabs to the advance screening of the highly anticipated “Men in Black 3” with Will Smith!

CHICAGO – “The Raven” is such a snooze fest that it could have the disastrous effect of turning young viewers off from actually reading Edgar Allan Poe. Trust me, young readers – nothing by Poe is this generic, dull, boring, or plain stupid.

CHICAGO – Though Chicago’s John Cusack is perhaps best known for his beloved roles as a down-to-earth charmer in “Say Anything” and “High Fidelity,” he’s no stranger to exploring the troubling depths of darkness.

CHICAGO – In the latest HollywoodChicago.com Hookup: Film with our unique social giveaway technology, we have 35 admit-two movie passes up for grabs to the advance screening of the stylish thriller “The Raven” with John Cusack!

Rating: 2.0/5.0

CHICAGO – They have now officially run out of places in which to terrorize beautiful people on film with the release of the bizarre and unfulfilling “ATM,” a new thriller with three talented actors nonetheless caught in an ineffective film that stretches to meet its running time and then ends with a final act that destroys suspension of disbelief. There are brief glimpses here of the movie that could have worked but there’s a reason it’s only opening in limited release for now and playing On Demand through most of the rest of the country. It’s not a successful transaction.

CHICAGO – Proving that what Judd Apatow has brought to the comedy genre in the last decade is much harder than it looks, “She’s Out of My League” has an extremely likable cast but writers and a director who mistake gross-out humor for genuine laughs. It’s one of those disappointing comedies for people who can’t say the word ejaculation without laughing like Beavis.

CHICAGO – Jay Baruchel and Nate Torrence, two of the leads of the romantic comedy “She’s Out of My League” dropped by Chicago recently to talk about their new film that has been compared to both “The Hangover” and the work of Judd Apatow. Candid, charismatic, and very funny in person, Baruchel and Torrence are the kind of interview subjects that make this job easy.

CHICAGO – This HollywoodChicago.com Hookup is like none other. We have 25 admit-two passes to the advance screening of the new film “She’s Out of My League,” but we’re also throwing a red-carpet party with a 1.5-hour open bar for a viewing of “The Bachelor” wedding with former cast members!