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.
Andy Serkis
DVD Review: Flawed ‘Brighton Rock’ Adaptation Enhanced By Fine Ensemble
Submitted by mattmovieman on January 11, 2012 - 1:34pmCHICAGO – Graham Greene’s haunting 1938 crime novel doesn’t deserve to be uttered in the same breath as Stephenie Meyer’s tween phenomenon, “Twilight.” Yet in the hands of British filmmaker Rowan Joffe, Greene’s masterwork loses its theological intrigue and becomes a self-conscious melodrama fueled by two grim lovers who could be dead ringers for Bella Swan and Edward Cullen.
Blu-ray Review: Thrilling, Satisfying ‘Rise of the Planet of the Apes’
Submitted by BrianTT on December 29, 2011 - 12:17pmCHICAGO – Have a gift card burning a hole in your wallet? Want a new movie? There are few better options for new release Blu-rays than Fox’s stellar reboot, “Rise of the Planet of the Apes,” one of the most surprising critical and commercial smashes of 2011. The special features are extensive and impressive and the movie holds up remarkably on repeat viewing. Expertly directed by Rupart Wyatt, who perfectly choreographs amazing cinematography and effects work,and featuring a landmark mo-cap performance from Andy Serkis, this isn’t just a must-see, it’s a must-own.
Film News: First Trailer Released For Peter Jackson’s ‘The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey’
Submitted by TimBMartens on December 21, 2011 - 1:57amCHICAGO – The exciting trailers for next year’s blockbusters just keep coming. Only a few days after “The Dark Knight Rises” had its first full length trailer released, Peter Jackson’s long awaited prequel to the Lord of the Rings trilogy finally has a trailer.
Film Review: Spielberg’s Disappointing ‘The Adventures of Tintin’
Submitted by BrianTT on December 20, 2011 - 5:08pmCHICAGO – Being a huge Steven Spielberg fan and a pretty big aficionado of Peter Jackson (who produced) as well, I was pretty psyched to see what these two undeniable geniuses could do in the world of motion-capture animation with their collaboration on the adaptation of the hit Herge cartoon “The Adventures of Tintin.”
Film Feature: The Best Supporting Performances of 2011
Submitted by BrianTT on December 14, 2011 - 9:35amCHICAGO – Kicking off our annual series of year-end film features, we begin with the ensemble players, the supporting cast members who provided the necessary dramatic support to allow their leading men and women to shine.
HollywoodChicago.com Hookup: 40 Pairs of Passes, 3 Soundtracks to Spielberg’s ‘The Adventures of Tintin’
Submitted by HollywoodChicago.com on December 13, 2011 - 1:01amCHICAGO – In our latest blockbuster edition of HollywoodChicago.com Hookup: Film, we have 40 admit-two movie passes up for grabs to the advance Chicago screening of the highly anticipated new film “The Adventures of Tintin”!
Film News: Andy Serkis Joins ‘Rise of the Planet of the Apes’ Sequel
Submitted by TimBMartens on November 3, 2011 - 2:32pmCHICAGO – After becoming the surprise hit of the summer, a “Rise of the Planet of the Apes” star is getting a well-deserved pay check. You may assume I am talking about James Franco, Freida Pinto, John Lithgow, Tom Felton, or any of the other actors who portrayed people on screen. However, this pay raise goes to the apes.
Film Review: Unfunny ‘Burke and Hare’ Wastes Top-Notch Cast
Submitted by mattmovieman on September 9, 2011 - 7:34amCHICAGO – There are few sights more depressing than a game cast all dressed up with nowhere to go and no good jokes to share. “Burke and Hare” is the sort of comedy Mel Brooks was making in the ’90s. All the ingredients are on hand for a promising comedy, and yet something’s missing—namely, laughter. The timing is off, the punch-lines are obvious and the actors are bored beyond belief.
Film Review: ‘Brighton Rock’ Remake Fails to Justify its Existence
Submitted by BrianTT on August 26, 2011 - 4:00pmRating: 2.5/5.0 |
CHICAGO – Rowan Joffe’s long-gestating remake of “Brighton Rock” (the 1947 noir classic was based on the beloved book by Graham Greene) raises the question least-desired in one of these situations – why bother? Sure, the story is a nifty little tale of a rising criminal undone by his own avarice and the love of a girl and the cast assembled for the remake is an undeniably talented ensemble.
Film Review: Thrilling, Marvelous ‘Rise of the Planet of the Apes’
Submitted by BrianTT on August 5, 2011 - 10:31amCHICAGO – “Rise of the Planet of the Apes” is spectacular entertainment, a perfect capper to the blockbuster season that is arguably the most purely enjoyable film of the warmer months of 2011. Rupert Wyatt’s highly-anticipated prequel is an old-fashioned piece of sci-fi escapism made with some of the revolutionary new toys available to special effects artists.