Ludivine Sagnier

CHICAGO – There is evil all over the world, as long as there are human beings whose lust for power overcomes any semblance of morality. Iraq seems to be ground zero for those consequences, broken from within and invaded from the outside. It is the surreal tale of Saddam Hussein’s oldest son Uday that’s outlined in “The Devil’s Double.”

CHICAGO – In our latest dramatic biography edition of HollywoodChicago.com Hookup: Film, we have 30 admit-two passes up for grabs to the advance Chicago screening of the new film “The Devil’s Double” starring Dominic Cooper as the man who was forced to become the double of Saddam Hussein’s sadistic son!

CHICAGO – Just as Steven Soderbergh’s “Che” and Olivier Assayas’ “Carlos” recounted the true tale of a controversial revolutionary over the span of at least two theatrically released pictures, Jean-François Richet’s 2008 double feature “Mesrine” stages the jaw-dropping amount of robberies and prison escapes committed by its titular French gangster. His resumé is impressive, but his life makes for rather redundant drama.

Rating: 3.5/5.0

CHICAGO – When we last left Jacques Mesrine in “Mesrine: Killer Instinct,” he was robbing banks, killing cops, and escaping from jail. In “Mesrine: Public Enemy #1,” Jacques Mesrine robs banks, kills cops, and escapes from jail. The second half of the “Mesrine” saga contains most of the same strengths and flaws as its predecessor and one has to wonder if the two films couldn’t have been merged into a stronger and more accomplished single project.