Jonah Hill

CHICAGO – The cartoon hits keep coming as part of FOX TV’s Sunday night “Animation Domination.” The latest, premiering October 30th, is “Allen Gregory,” a series about a pretentious seven-year-old that is created and voiced through the character style of actor Jonah Hill.

CHICAGO – Using sports, especially baseball, as a metaphor for life can get dicey – sometimes the symbolic pieces don’t fit universally for everything. But “Moneyball, ” starring Brad Pitt, hits a grand slam with this old allegory, and educates regarding the true nature of modern large dollar sports.

CHICAGO – I’ve done hundreds of interviews and rarely felt more like I was talking to an actor at a career turning point than when I sat with Jonah Hill of “Moneyball” last week. Having spoken to him at his first career turning point for a “Superbad” interview, it was fascinating to see how he’s changed and matured.

CHICAGO – DreamWorks’ “Megamind” features a fantastic voice cast (one of the best of 2010) and will play very well to legions of rugrats over the next few years, but it’s a film that might leave their parents shrugging their shoulders in disappointment. With three of the best animated films ever made hitting theaters last year (“Toy Story 3,” “How to Train Your Dragon,” “The Illusionist”) along with quality alternatives (“Despicable Me,” “Tangled”), it’s likely that “Megamind” will appropriately get lost in the mix of history when people talk about this era of the medium.

CHICAGO – John C. Reilly and Jonah Hill (and Marisa Tomei and Catherine Keener) prove to be a perfect comedy duo in the nearly-great “Cyrus,” a delightfully left-of-center comedy that allows these two talented men to prove that they have some of the best comic timing in the business. “Cyrus” is a daring comedy about when someone new in your life crosses the line from “eccentric” to “dangerous.” Don’t miss it.

CHICAGO – Being a super-villain is apparently going out of style as “Megamind” follows relatively quickly on the heels of “Despicable Me” and both tell the story of a bad guy realizing that it’s more fun to be good. The title character of “Megamind” (Will Ferrell) is a nefarious super-powered fellow who has just barely lost every fight he’s had with the beloved Metroman (Brad Pitt). It seems appropriate that the film about them is also a marginal affair in which the good just barely outweighs the bad.

CHICAGO – Massive giveaway! In our latest edition of HollywoodChicago.com Hookup: Film, we have 25 admit-two advance-screening movie tickets up for grabs to the new film “Megamind” along with five Xbox 360, five Nintendo Wii and five Nintendo DS video games!

CHICAGO – “How to Train Your Dragon” is one of the best mainstream animated films of the last several years. After years of watching Pixar deservedly take home most of the critical acclaim in the medium, DreamWorks has produced a film that deserves mention in the same breath as the Pixar greats. With gorgeous visuals, strong voice work, and confident storytelling, “How to Train Your Dragon,” recently released on Blu-ray and DVD, works for all ages and will surely become one of the most highly-desired and purchased titles of the upcoming season.

CHICAGO – Like a lot of comedies, “Get Him to the Greek,” now available on Blu-ray and DVD, actually plays better at home than it did in theaters. It doesn’t hurt that the Universal Blu-ray is a beauty, a package with excellent, hilarious special features that enhance the film instead of serving as mere filler. It’s one of the best comedy BD releases of the season.

CHICAGO – In this edition of the HollywoodChicago.com Hookup: Film, we have 10 exclusive comic books up for grabs to the new film “Megamind” (in conjunction with Comic-Con) starring Brad Pitt, Will Ferrell, Tina Fey and Jonah Hill!