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+.
Emily Blunt
Interview: Rian Johnson Crafts a Sci-fi Masterpiece with ‘Looper’
Submitted by BrianTT on September 26, 2012 - 3:15pmCHICAGO – Rian Johnson’s “Looper” is going to blow your mind. The third film from the director of “Brick” and “The Brothers Bloom” (as well as episodes of “Terriers” and “Breaking Bad”) is a highwire act of time travel action and human drama.
Blu-ray Review: Jason Segel, Emily Blunt in Fun ‘The Five-Year Engagement’
Submitted by BrianTT on September 19, 2012 - 5:58pmCHICAGO – There’s a great movie buried in the bloated “The Five-Year Engagement,” a comedy that nearly feels like a rough cut at a ridiculous 125 minutes in its theatrical form or 132 minutes in its unrated version. The stars are incredibly charismatic and I like a lot of what Jason Segel & Nicholas Stoller are trying to do with their tale of how life sometimes gets in the way of love but the movie is just too long, making it merely good despite having greatness within.
Film Review: Stunning, Creative Vision of ‘Looper’
Submitted by BrianTT on September 6, 2012 - 9:44pmCHICAGO – It’s so refreshing to see a talented filmmaker that has been allowed to bring his unique vision to the screen without compromise. You know the feeling when you’re watching a product of a marketing focus group or producer interference and when you’re seeing something fresh, new, and personal.
Blu-ray Review: ‘Salmon Fishing in the Yemen’ Follows Feel-Good Formula
Submitted by mattmovieman on July 27, 2012 - 7:17amCHICAGO – “Salmon Fishing in the Yemen” is a romantic comedy so lightweight that it threatens to float off into the ether. It has perhaps the least gripping title since Ingmar Bergman’s “Sawdust and Tinsel,” which is strange since the rest of the production reeks of commercial calculation. Yet the film is based on Paul Torday’s book of the same name, so the studio must have considered the title marketable.
Film Review: Great Trio Elevates Lynn Shelton’s ‘Your Sister’s Sister’
Submitted by BrianTT on June 15, 2012 - 10:38amRating: 3.5/5.0 |
CHICAGO – Lynn Shelton’s “Your Sister’s Sister” is a character-driven piece about hidden feelings and complex relationships. Like her work on “Humpday,” Shelton has a keen ear for the way people alter their behavior as their dynamics with other people continue to shift, often in a sexual direction. When a close friend suddenly looks like something more, when a long-term relationship seems to be falling apart, when a sibling may have betrayed you – Shelton’s gift as a filmmaker is how she can traverse these emotional minefields while still staying true to her characters.
Interview: ‘Your Sister’s Sister’ Director Lynn Shelton on Fast-Paced Production
Submitted by mattmovieman on June 11, 2012 - 4:18amCHICAGO – The characters in a Lynn Shelton movie live relatively content lives until an unexpected event ruptures their sense of self. A self-absorbed writer awakens to the fact that he’s been a terrible friend in “My Effortless Brilliance.” Two heterosexual buddies test the boundaries of their relationship by attempting to film a porno together in “Humpday.”
Film Review: Darkly Comic Jason Segel in ‘The Five-Year Engagement’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on April 27, 2012 - 7:35amCHICAGO – There are some major laughs in “The Five-Year Engagement,” good old fashion you-can’t-breathe laughs. But is it also dark and serious at times, and makes some surprising contemporary statements regarding coupling. Jason Segel and Emily Blunt portray the engaged couple.
Film Review: Ewan McGregor, Emily Blunt Flounder in ‘Salmon Fishing in the Yemen’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on March 9, 2012 - 5:03pmCHICAGO – Often when novels with quirky titles get made into films, all that is left of the quirk is the name on the cover. That is exactly what has happened to “Salmon Fishing in the Yemen,” a tome authored by Paul Torday, and reduced to torpid blandness by director Lasse Hallstrøm.
Blu-Ray Review: Matt Damon, Emily Blunt in ‘The Adjustment Bureau’
Submitted by BrianTT on July 5, 2011 - 11:21amCHICAGO – “The Adjustment Bureau” was a surprising success in a season full of them (“Hanna,” “Source Code,” “Win Win,” more), earning strong reviews and breaking $100 million worldwide. That may not seem like a blockbuster for Matt Damon but when one considers that this is an existential, sci-fi, noir, romantic action movie, it doesn’t exactly scream obvious financial success. And it’s the kind of film that I suspect will grow in esteem over the years as its fans share it with their friends. A great Blu-ray release with excellent supplemental material doesn’t hurt.
Blu-Ray Review: ‘Gnomeo & Juliet’ Falls Flat as Busted Yard Display
Submitted by BrianTT on June 2, 2011 - 8:17pmCHICAGO – The animated adventure “Gnomeo & Juliet,” recently released on Blu-ray and DVD, features an A-list voice cast and some beloved hits by Sir Elton John, but just getting talent in the recording booth either musically or merely vocally does not a movie make and the script for this thing is so uninspired and accompanied by lackluster visuals that it’s just dull to anyone over ten.