CHICAGO – Patrick McDonald of HollywoodChicago.com appears on “The Morning Mess” with Dan Baker on WBGR-FM (Monroe, Wisconsin) on March 21st, 2024, reviewing the new streaming series “Manhunt” – based on the bestseller by James L. Swanson – currently streaming on Apple TV+.
John Goodman
Ben Affleck Reaches Career Peak with Tense, Masterful ‘Argo’
Submitted by BrianTT on October 12, 2012 - 9:57am Rating: 5.0/5.0 |
CHICAGO – Ben Affleck has reached the apex of his already impressive directorial career with the stunning “Argo,” a tight, tense machine of a film, a masterwork that delivers as comedy, action, drama, and more. Critics see movies all the time that we understand may produce a divided response. We get that many acclaimed films won’t make a dent with the populous.
Clint Eastwood Whiffs in ‘Trouble with the Curve’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on September 21, 2012 - 11:28am Rating: 2.5/5.0 |
CHICAGO – Clint Eastwood keeps going and going. His reputation as an actor is secure in a long career, and his power as a director is Oscar worthy. His ability to recognize a limp script? Not so much, if “Trouble with the Curve” is a gauge. Amy Adams and Justin Timberlake are along for the pitch.
All Intention, No Delivery in ‘Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on January 20, 2012 - 8:15am Rating: 2.0/5.0 |
CHICAGO – The September 11th tragedy is still percolating through the cinematic filter, and there is a well intentioned thread throughout the various interpretations. But the latest attempt, “Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close,” stretches this intention too far, despite a cast featuring Tom Hanks and Sandra Bullock.
‘The Artist’ is Magical Ode to Old Hollywood
Submitted by BrianTT on December 19, 2011 - 4:11pmRating: 5.0/5.0 |
CHICAGO – “The Artist” is the kind of film for which a critic feels an added responsibility. The fact is that I know that a large number of readers won’t go anywhere near a movie that is described as “a black & white ode to silent films.” Eek. Sounds like torture. And yet, I also know for a fact that a vast majority of those same readers would LOVE “The Artist.” This is a stellar piece of filmmaking, one of the best of the year. Jump on the bandwagon early for what will surely be one of the major players of the upcoming awards season.
‘The Big Uneasy’ Unleashes Maddening Flood of Vital Information
Submitted by mattmovieman on August 16, 2011 - 7:51am Rating: 3.0/5.0 |
CHICAGO – Some of the best documentaries are spawned directly from the raw outage of a filmmaker intent on sharing vital truths with the unenlightened public. Every frame is fraught with a sense of urgency that keeps viewers on the edge of their seat much like an engrossing popcorn thriller. Yet great passion alone does not make for great cinema.
Disney Magic is Hopping to New Orleans in ‘The Princess and the Frog’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on December 11, 2009 - 9:19am Rating: 4.5/5.0 |
CHICAGO – The feature animation film tradition, invented by and fostered by the Walt Disney Company for close to 70 years, gets another glorious rendition in their latest release, “The Princess and the Frog.”
Instead of Seeing ‘Death Sentence,’ I Would Have Welcomed a Death Sentence
Submitted by HollywoodChicago.com on August 31, 2007 - 8:41pm
CHICAGO – When an everyday man goes seeking family justice, action-thriller “Death Sentence” teaches us this valuable lesson: Don’t hire Kevin Bacon for a role you wrote for Charles Bronson.
