DC Universe

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Anna Diop on the Red Carpet for ‘Nanny.’

CHICAGO – The spotlight that is the 58th Chicago International Film Festival (CIFF) shines on the future big names in the movies, and this years festival was no exception.

CHICAGO – The film “Dune,” an adaptation of the classic Frank Herbert sci-fi novel, is just coming off its opening weekend. One of the principle roles, Piter De Vries from the House Harkonnen, is portrayed by David Dastmalchian. DD is having a stellar 2021, coming off his triumph as Polka-Dot Man in “The Suicide Squad.” He talked to HollywoodChicago.com via Zoom.

CHICAGO – The rise of David Dastmalchian is going into the stratosphere in 2021.

CHICAGO – One of the more fun, crazy and comic-book-like superhero films opening this week (August 6th) is “The Suicide Squad.” A band of imprisoned misfit rogues in the DC comics universe are sent on a suicide mission in South America, and if they accomplish the assignment they’ll be set free. David Dastmalchian portrays one of the rogues, the freakish Polka-Dot Man.

CHICAGO – David Dastmalchian is always looking up … both at his soaring career and how he can spread his particular brand of positive vibes. The actor will appear in two huge 2021 films, “The Suicide Squad” (Aug 6th)) and “Dune” (Oct 1st). And don’t forget his co-created comic “Count Crowley” and his appearance at Mid May Massacre, May 15-16, 2021.

CHICAGO – David Dasmalchian is a comic book culture hero, in a sense. The kind, expressive and enigmatic actor (“Ant-Man”) will lend his considerable credentials as a self-professed “comic book nerd” to the exciting Mainframe Comic Con (MCC), the entirely online comic book convention taking place on April 25th and 26th, 2020.

CHICAGO – Back in 2007, actor David Dastmalchian got the call that he has secured a role in “The Dark Knight,” as one of the Joker’s henchmen. He was living in Chicago at the time, and from then on his world broke open. Today, David is a vital part of the Marvel (“Ant-Man”) AND DC universes (“Suicide Squad”), and has created his own comic, “Count Crowley.”

CHICAGO – Is it possible that not all comic books are ones that can be adapted? Couldn’t some of them only really work on the page where the reader can fill in the grit and grime of a dark story like Frank Miller’s “The Dark Knight Returns” in ways that a literal reading in animated form just can’t do? You see what i’m getting at. I love the source material for “Batman: The Dark Knight Returns — Part 1” and there are enough interesting ideas that survived intact the journey from page to screen but the adaptation of Miller’s work doesn’t hold a candle to just reading the original.

CHICAGO – The DC Universe brand of straight-to-DVD PG-13 films have had a remarkable array of quality. Some are absolutely brilliant, must-see films (“Justice League: The New Frontier,” “Batman: Under the Red Hood”) while others are kind of a mess (“Wonder Woman.” “Green Lantern: Emerald Knights”). In other words, you never know what you’re going to get when you pop in a new entry in the hit franchise. The 13th film, “Justice League: Doom.” is not a lucky one.

CHICAGO – After a few releases that felt like perhaps the DC Universe line of straight-to-video animated films were in decline, they recently released what is arguably their best installment and a work that deserves to sit on the shelf of any Batman fan — the often-brilliant “Batman: Year One.” So remarkably loyal to one of the most influential comic books of all time that it sometimes recreates it verbatim and including some of the best voice work in the entire DC Universe line, this is a great animated film and possibly the best Blu-ray gift you could buy for a comic fan this season.