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+.
Ben Kingsley
Film Review: Animated ‘The Boxtrolls’ Has British Comic Tone
Submitted by PatrickMcD on September 26, 2014 - 10:06pmCHICAGO – Monty Python, Peter Cook & Dudley Moore, Peter Sellers, Mr. Bean, Alan Partridge – all are examples of British comedy, that off-kilter “are you in on the joke?” point of view. That comic tone has arrived in an animated film, within the stop motion world of “The Boxtrolls.”
Interview: Directors of ‘The Boxtrolls’ on Their Animated Life
Submitted by PatrickMcD on September 25, 2014 - 8:07pmCHICAGO – How do you interpret an odd British storybook called “Here Be Monsters!” into a mainstream animated film? By taking the main characters – called ‘The Boxtrolls’ – and putting them up front. Animation veterans and co-directors Graham Annable and Anthony Stacchi got the assignment, and deliver the goods.
HollywoodChicago.com Hookup: 25 Pairs of Passes to ‘Walking With the Enemy’ With Ben Kingsley
Submitted by HollywoodChicago.com on April 17, 2014 - 9:47pmCHICAGO – In the latest HollywoodChicago.com Hookup: Film, we have 25 pairs of advance-screening movie passes up for grabs to “Walking With the Enemy” with Ben Kingsley!
Film Review: Thought Illuminating, Mind Blowing ‘Under the Skin’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on April 11, 2014 - 10:10amCHICAGO – Imagine a stranger taking a journey around the landscape of their destiny, and that only begins to describe the audacity and power of director Jonathan Glazer’s “Under the Skin.” Scarlett Johansson creates a character of undeniable mystery and truth, a stranger in a strange land.
Interview: Director Jonathan Glazer Gets ‘Under the Skin’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on April 10, 2014 - 12:48pmCHICAGO – The buzz for the new film, “Under the Skin,” is tremendous, both for Scarlett Johansson’s performance and the amount of symbolic and real exposure for the actress. Director Jonathan Glazer (“Sexy Beast,” “Birth”) has fashioned a metaphoric gem based on a novel by Michel Faber, about an alien visitor.
Film Review: ‘Ender’s Game’ Loses Personality in Journey From Book to Film
Submitted by BrianTT on October 31, 2013 - 11:37amCHICAGO – Gavin Hood’s “Ender’s Game” may be the best example of a current problem with science fiction: From “Oblivion” to “After Earth” to most of “Star Trek Into Darkness” and now this adaptation of the Orson Scott Card book, modern science fiction has become so depressingly sterile as to drain the genre of most of its joy.
HollywoodChicago.com Hookup: 40 Pairs of IMAX Tix to ‘Ender’s Game’ with Harrison Ford, Asa Butterfield
Submitted by HollywoodChicago.com on October 27, 2013 - 8:59pmCHICAGO – In the latest HollywoodChicago.com Hookup: Film with our unique social giveaway technology, we have 40 pairs of advance-screening movie passes up for grabs to the highly anticipated new sci-fi “Ender’s Game” starring Harrison Ford and Asa Butterfield!
Film Review: ‘Iron Man 3’ Starts Summer with a Mechanized Bang
Submitted by BrianTT on May 2, 2013 - 9:45amCHICAGO – Critics and viewers fell in rapturous adoration of the legend of The Dark Knight when Christopher Nolan and his team took the risk of making character-driven superhero movies. To kick off the second phase of the Marvel Universe of films with this weekend’s “Iron Man 3,” Shane Black and the team behind this guaranteed blockbuster have done the same – presenting us with the most human Marvel flick since “Spider-Man 2.”
Blu-ray Review: Steven Spielberg’s Timeless ‘Schindler’s List’ Makes HD Debut
Submitted by BrianTT on March 20, 2013 - 2:49pmCHICAGO – It’s been 20 years since “Schindler’s List” became a critical and commercial phenomenon, winning Best Picture and Best Director for the first time in the legendary career of its beloved filmmaker, Steven Spielberg. Since then, it’s become something more divisive in certain critical communities, with many writers choosing to hold it up as an example of Spielberg’s weaknesses in terms of sentimentality and cinematic manipulation.
Interview: ‘50/50’ Director Jonathan Levine Appears at CineYouth Festival in Chicago
Submitted by PatrickMcD on May 31, 2012 - 12:23pmCHICAGO – Thursday, May 31st, marks the beginning of the CineYouth Festival, sponsored by the Chicago International Film Festival. And what better way to kick it off than with a Q&A featuring director Jonathan Levine, coming off of his 2011 hit film, “50/50.” The appearance will take place at the AMC River East 21 Theater in Chicago.