CHICAGO – When two brothers confront the sins of each other and it expands into a psychology of an entire race, it’s at a stage play found in Chicago’s Invictus Theatre Company production of “Topdog/Underdog,” now at their new home at the Windy City Playhouse through March 31st, 2024. Click TD/UD for tickets/info.
2021
Film News: Reeling40, Chicago’s International LBGTQ+ Film Fest, Opens on Sept. 22, 2022
Submitted by PatrickMcD on September 20, 2022 - 2:46pmCHICAGO – The 40th edition of the REELING International LBGTQ+ Film Festival kicks off on Thursday (9-22-22) with the film “The Shiny Shrimp Strike Back,” at Chicago’s Music Box Theatre, followed by a legendary After Party. For info/tickets on both, click REELING40.
Tribeca2022: Best U.S. Narrative Film at Fest is ‘Good Girl Jane’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on June 17, 2022 - 1:10pmNEW YORK – The 21st Tribeca Film Festival announced their Jury Prizes for 2022 on June 16th. Best U.S. Narrative was rewarded to “Good Girl Jane,” an adolescent story of young love, written/directed by Sarah Elizabeth Mintz. Best International Narrative goes to “January” and Best Documentary is “The Cave of Adullam.”
Podtalk: In-Person ‘Best of the Midwest’ Awards on Feb. 1, 2022
Submitted by PatrickMcD on January 30, 2022 - 9:02pmCHICAGO – Let’s kick off the film year by getting together! Using the safest protocols for gatherings, the Midwest Film Festival presents the Best of Midwest Awards on February 1st, 2022, and it will be an in-person event for the first time in three years. To get tickets, click BEST OF THE MIDWEST.
Film News: Tickets Available for Virtual 2022 Sundance Film Festival, January 20-30
Submitted by PatrickMcD on January 17, 2022 - 10:44amCHICAGO – As was announced earlier in the month, the 2022 Sundance Film Festival morphed from a hybrid (online and in person) to a strictly virtual festival beginning January 20th through the 30th. For all information, including tickets and ticket packages, click SUNDANCE 2022.
Feature: Top 10 Celebrity Portraits of 2021, by Photographer Joe Arce
Submitted by PatrickMcD on January 11, 2022 - 9:37pm- 10
- 2021
- Anthony Michael Hall
- Best
- Betty White
- Charlie Gillespie
- Debbie Gibson
- Elvis Presley
- Entertainment News
- Feature
- Harry Shum Jr
- HollywoodChicago.com Content
- Joe Arce
- Katie Cassidy
- Kenneth Branagh
- Lana Parilla
- List
- Lyric Ross
- Patrick McDonald
- Photography
- Photos
- Pictures
- Portraits
- Priscilla Presley
- Rebecca Hall
- Stormy Daniels
- Ten
- Top 10 2021
CHICAGO – In a Covid-free world no doubt this list would be a TOP 20 or 25 … in non-pandemic times, I photographed approximately 150 celebrities per year. In 2020, there were only two, before the global pandemic basically put my career – like that of so many others – into a medically induced coma.
Film Feature: The 10 Best Films of 2021, By Patrick McDonald
Submitted by PatrickMcD on December 29, 2021 - 4:32pm- 10
- 10 Best Movies 2021
- 2021
- Annette
- Ascension
- CODA
- Dune
- Eddie Volkman
- Film News
- HollywoodChicago.com Content
- Last Night in Soho
- Licorice Pizza
- List
- Patrick McDonald
- Scott Thompson
- Ten
- Ten Best Films 2021
- The French Dispatch
- The Power of the Dog
- Top Ten 2021
- WBGR-FM
- West Side Story
- Wheel of Fortune and Fantasy
- WSSR-FM
CHICAGO – Are we there yet? Another pandemic year, 2021, somewhat affected the cinema world, but many films that had been delayed finally saw the light of screen, and one true blockbuster was had for the industry (kudos to Spidey). Around mid-year, the critics and public went back to the theaters, and this 10 BEST list is a hybrid of in-person and online viewings.!—break—>
Fest Preview: 2021 Chicago Film Critics Festival is Nov. 12-14
Submitted by PatrickMcD on November 12, 2021 - 12:09pmCHICAGO – After a postponement in 2020, the Chicago Film Critics Festival (CCFF) – the only U.S. film fest curated by film critics – will present a truncated weekend of films from the major festivals in 2021 and the upcoming Awards Season favorites. The fest kicks off Friday, November 12th at Chicago’s Music Box Theatre.
Podtalk: Rebecca Hall on Her Directorial Debut for ‘Passing’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on November 10, 2021 - 9:52am- 2021
- 57th
- Alexander Skarsgard
- Andre Holland
- Bill Camp
- Chicago International Film Festival
- Christine
- Exclusive
- HollywoodChicago.com Content
- Interview
- Joe Arce
- Passing
- Patrick McDonald
- Peter Hall
- Photo
- Rebecca Hall
- Royal Shakespeare Company
- Ruth Negga
- Tessa Thompson
- The Night House
- Vicky Christina Barcelona
CHICAGO – Rebecca Hall is not content being one of the best actors of her generation. She also has directed her first feature film, “Passing,” streaming on Netflix beginning November 10th, 2021. Set in the 1920s, the story is of two female friends who reconnect after many years, revealing secrets affecting both of them. !—break—>
Red Carpet: Exclusive Photo of Kenneth Branagh at 57th Chicago International Film Festival
Submitted by PatrickMcD on October 30, 2021 - 7:13am- 2021
- 57th
- Belfast
- Caitriona Balfe
- Chicago International Film Festival
- Clarán Hinds
- Day Five
- Death On the Nile
- Exclusive
- Focua Features
- Hamlet
- HollywoodChicago.com Content
- Jamie Dornan
- Joe Arce
- Jude Hill
- Judi Dench
- Kenneth Branagh
- Much Ado About Nothing
- Murder on the Orient’s Express
- October 21
- Patrick McDonald
- Photo
- Tenet
CHICAGO – Kenneth Branagh may be the ultimate hybrid. Hie reputation as an actor is beyond the pale … he is a performer that makes a film or stage play better. But beyond that, he has just directed his 23rd and most personal film. “Belfast” is an elegy to his hometown, but it is also a remembrance of when his life changed profoundly at the tender age of nine.
Podtalk: Director Jacob Gentry on ‘Broadcast Signal Intrusion’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on October 28, 2021 - 11:40amCHICAGO – In 1987, one of the oddest incidents in broadcast history took place in Chicago, when a local news sports segment and an episode of “Dr. Who” on PBS was interrupted by a bizarre video sequence featuring a man in a Max Headroom mask. This infamous event was the inspiration for the new film “Broadcast Signal Intrusion” – directed by Jacob Gentry – which was release to theaters and through Video-On-Demand on October 22nd, 2021, after playing at the 57th Chicago International Film Festival.