Michael Winterbottom

CHICAGO – There are few things more cinematically depressing than a funny comic trapped in an unfunny movie. Think Larry David in “Whatever Works.” Scene to scene, his eyes repeatedly indicate that there’s a funnier punchline residing in his mischievous skull than there is in the lifeless script. You know a picture’s in trouble when you find yourself yearning to watch the actor eat lunch rather than finish the godforsaken movie.

CHICAGO – At age 50, Michael Winterbottom is still one of the freshest talents on the block. His ability to reinvent himself is almost unparalleled at a time when many of the world’s most respected filmmakers go to the same well once too often. Granted, some of Winterbottom’s experiments pay off more than others, but when they succeed, they do so on a grand scale.

CHICAGO – With the over-hyped and underwhelming 2010 Oscar ceremony finally in our rearview mirrors, moviegoers are ready for something completely different. How about a rare and acclaimed foreign film screening for the first (and, perhaps, only) time in Chicago? Look no further than the Siskel Film Center’s annual European Union Film Festival.

CHICAGO – Michael Winterbottom’s “The Killer Inside Me” provoked such a strong response after its Sundance Film Festival premiere that the auteur behind “A Mighty Heart,” “9 Songs,” and “24 Hour Party People” was shunned by a crowd that typically embraces challenging films. What turned them? Check out Winterbottom’s daring film with Casey Affleck, Jessica Alba, Kate Hudson, and Simon Baker, now on Blu-ray and DVD.

Rating: 3.5/5.0

CHICAGO – Michael Winterbottom’s ’50s-era neo-noir “The Killer Inside Me” creeps up on you in the creepiest possible way. Just as I was ready to write it off, I ended up caving in to its charms, or lack thereof. This film often seems as utterly cuckoo as its central antihero, and that’s what makes it so darn mesmerizing. Sure, it’s sort of a mess, but boy is it engrossing, with a strong emphasis on the gross.

CHICAGO – Is Michael Winterbottom’s 2004 curiosity little more than art house porn? It certainly would seem that way to any consumer who happens to glimpse at the film’s Blu-Ray case, which boasts that the disc contains the “full uncut explicit version” of “9 Songs.” There’s also a disclaimer warning that the film “contains sexually explicit content.” In the words of “Family Guy”’s Quagmire, “Oh…right.”