CHICAGO – Theatrical satires of the Star Wars Universe are like the number of TV series the universe has wrought … too many to figure out if anything is worthwhile. But “Trade Federation” (subtitled “Or Let’s Explore Globalization Through the Star Wars Prequels”), presented by Otherworld Theatre in Wrigleyville Chicago, gets it right on.
Peter Dinklage
Peter Dinklage Leads Perfectly Serviceable ‘Cyrano’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on February 25, 2022 - 10:28am Rating: 3.5/5.0 |
CHICAGO – This is no small feat, but “Cyrano” works as well as it does because it puts a couple of new spins on the material while keeping the essence of this tale … which is seemingly as old as time. For those not paying attention during high school literature classes, Cyrano De Bergerac is a gallant hearted hero and actor who is in love with the maiden Roxanne, who happens to be his best friend.
Get Stone Aged! On-Air Review of ‘The Croods: A New Age'
Submitted by PatrickMcD on November 26, 2020 - 10:28pm Rating: 4.0/5.0 |
CHICAGO – Patrick McDonald of HollywoodChicago.com appears on “The Morning Mess” with Scott Thompson on WBGR-FM (Monroe, Wisconsin) on November 26th, 2020, reviewing the new animated sequel “The Croods: A New Age,” featuring the voices of Nicolas Cage, Emma Stone and Peter Dinklage.
‘Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri’ Examines Our Violence
Submitted by JonHC on November 20, 2017 - 9:12pm Rating: 4.5/5.0 |
CHICAGO – Film is often an expression of our society, either as a depiction of how it really is or how it should be. Few films are as daring as Martin McDonagh’s “Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri,” which isn’t afraid to show us the state of our society and offer a realistic solution through a grim drama that is as humorous as it is devastating.
Melissa McCarthy Really Proves She is ‘The Boss’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on April 9, 2016 - 9:34am Rating: 3.0/5.0 |
CHICAGO – If anything, “The Boss” is a bigger testimony to Melissa McCarthy’s status as a comic superpower than her breakthrough role in “Bridesmaids.” That one had a veritable treasure trove of comedic talent, while McCarthy has considerably less to work with here.
Instead of Geeky Greatness, Adam Sandler Sucks the Soul Out of a Badly Miscast ‘Pixels’
Submitted by HollywoodChicago.com on July 23, 2015 - 11:15pm Rating: 2.0/5.0 |
CHICAGO – The epitome of an idea that far outweighs its execution, “Pixels” is a bittersweet blunder that had all of the elements to be geeky great but ends up being cheesy mediocre. I could literally feel its potential for 105 minutes, but the $88 million film ultimately fails to realize it.
‘X-Men: Days of Future Past’ Dares to Richly Invest in Story First, CGI Second
Submitted by HollywoodChicago.com on May 24, 2014 - 2:07pmRating: 4.0/5.0 |
CHICAGO – After a string of superhero movie disappointments in recent memory, last month “Captain America: The Winter Soldier” renewed our faith in Hollywood blockbusters once again. Just 7 weeks later, can “X-Men: Days of Future Fast” impress us again?
Complex, Wow-Inducing ‘X-Men: Days of Future Past’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on May 22, 2014 - 7:47pmRating: 3.5/5.0 |
CHICAGO – Although a post graduate degree in space/time continuum studies may be necessary for maximum enjoyment, “X-Men: Days of Future Past” still delivers a comic book wham-bam, and the series continues its exploration of recent history through the prism of a mutant universe.
‘Ice Age: Continental Drift’ Sucks Remaining Life From Franchise
Submitted by BrianTT on July 13, 2012 - 9:47am Rating: 1.0/5.0 |
CHICAGO – The families who get suckered into the truly horrendous “Ice Age: Continental Drift” should be angry. Not only does it fail when compared to the best animation of the year (“Madagascar 3: Europe’s Most Wanted,” “The Pirates! A Band of Misfits,” “The Secret World of Arrietty,” “Brave”) but it’s less entertaining than most children’s television.
‘Snow White and the Huntsman’ Dwarfed By Comatose Kristen Stewart, Melodramatic Charlize Theron
Submitted by HollywoodChicago.com on June 1, 2012 - 1:01am Rating: 2.5/5.0 |
CHICAGO – If you can stomach forgiving the film’s uneven acting, inconsistent pacing and a higgledy-piggledy script that feels like it’s still in draft mode, just zero in on the only newsworthy question about “Snow White and the Huntsman”: Who are those “dwarves”?
Kate Hudson Reveals Hell in ‘A Little Bit of Heaven’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on May 4, 2012 - 7:23amRating: 1.0/5.0 |
CHICAGO – Kate Hudson portrays a dying woman in “A Little Bit of Heaven,” and the film is so annoying that her extinguishment can’t come fast enough. The film insults both living and dying, and virtually everything in between, and brings along Lucy Punch, Kathy Bates, Gael Garciá Bernal, Peter Dinklage and Whoopi Goldberg for the funeral.
