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+.
Robert De Niro
Blu-Ray Review: Bradley Cooper in Stylish, Effective ‘Limitless’
Submitted by BrianTT on August 1, 2011 - 2:10pmCHICAGO – “Limitless” is a fun, clever riff on the timeless tale of a man who wanted the world but didn’t know the price. From Faust to Icarus to “The Lawnmower Man,” we’ve long been fascinated with the idea that not only is it possible to have it all but that those who do will pay greatly for the privilege. With the best work of Bradley Cooper’s career, stylish direction, and clever storytelling, “Limitless” is a great rental, now available on Blu-ray, DVD, iTunes, and wherever else you like to download new releases.
Blu-Ray Review: Horrendous ‘Little Fockers’ Could Be Used as Torture
Submitted by BrianTT on April 19, 2011 - 1:25pmCHICAGO – “Little Fockers” would have been high on my “Worst of 2010” list if I had written one or suffered through it in theaters. It’s an awful disaster of a movie, completely devoid of laughs and downright embarrassing for everyone involved, including some incredibly talented actors. There should be some sort of atonement or movie prison for forcing this junk on families at the holiday season. It’s like getting coal for Christmas. Actually, it’s worse than coal.
Blu-Ray Review: Stunning Release For Timeless ‘Taxi Driver’
Submitted by BrianTT on April 14, 2011 - 12:45pmCHICAGO – Few films have held up as well as Martin Scorsese’s “Taxi Driver,” one of the best films of its era that has recently been released in a stunning Blu-ray special edition, the best HD release of the year to date. With fantastic special features, a stunning transfer, and a film that offers something new every time you see it, “Taxi Driver” is the definition of a must-own.
HollywoodChicago.com Hookup: 10 ‘Little Fockers’ DVDs With Ben Stiller, Robert De Niro
Submitted by HollywoodChicago.com on April 1, 2011 - 5:25pmCHICAGO – In our latest comedy edition of HollywoodChicago.com Hookup: DVD, we have 10 DVDs up for grabs in advance of the home entertainment release of the highly anticipated new DVD “Little Fockers” with Ben Stiller and Robert De Niro!
Film Review: Bradley Cooper’s ‘Limitless’ Unlocks 100% of Hollywood’s Ridiculousness
Submitted by HollywoodChicago.com on March 18, 2011 - 5:31pmCHICAGO – If you’re not easily susceptible to vertigo and can survive the intro cut scene, “Limitless” proceeds to treat you to one part thrill ride and one part exercise in ridiculousness.
Blu-Ray Review: Great Cast Cannot Save Deeply Flawed ‘Stone’
Submitted by BrianTT on January 24, 2011 - 7:56pmCHICAGO – There was a time when the union of two actors as accomplished as Robert De Niro and Edward Norton would make movie news headlines. And, to be fair, John Curran’s “Stone” was chosen to open the Chicago Internation Film Festival in large part due to the pedigree of its stars. But viewers are smarter than they used to be. They know now that a movie’s success is not solely dependent on the talent of its leads. And while De Niro and Norton are two of our best actors (and they are amply supported by two great female turns as well), “Stone” just doesn’t work.
Blu-Ray Review: Classic ‘Once Upon a Time in America’ With Robert De Niro
Submitted by BrianTT on January 20, 2011 - 7:19pmCHICAGO – The entertainment machine often turns in an unusual way that allows for a wave of material featuring the same star in the same month. Just as Robert De Niro was preparing his odd speech for the Golden Globe Awards, two of his most beloved films were being released on Blu-ray in “Raging Bull” and “Once Upon a Time in America,” while one of his 2010 works in “Stone” was about to hit the market as well. January 2011 is De Niro month. Sadly, while the “Raging Bull” Blu-ray is a gorgeous must-own, “Once Upon a Time in America” is merely satisfactory. The film is still strong but the release is nothing special.
Blu-Ray Review: 30th Anniversary Edition of Martin Scorsese’s Timeless ‘Raging Bull’
Submitted by BrianTT on January 18, 2011 - 6:00pmCHICAGO – After Robert De Niro’s “Pupkin”-esque acceptance speech on Sunday’s Golden Globe Awards, some of our younger readers may be curious about some of the films that got him to that awkward moment. His second Oscar came for what is undeniably one of the best performances of all time. De Niro would give at least a dozen great performances, some before and some after, but “Raging Bull,” recently released in a beautiful 30th Anniversary Edition Blu-ray, is the peak of one of the most notable acting careers in film history.
Blu-Ray Review: Robert Rodriguez’s ‘Machete’ With Jessica Alba, Robert De Niro
Submitted by BrianTT on January 11, 2011 - 9:32pmCHICAGO – “Machete” may be one of the most wonderfully-conceived films of 2010. The idea that one of the fake trailers from “Grindhouse” could ever become a full-length film is a movie lover’s dream come true (and it’s so ironic that “Machete” grossed more domestically than the movie that spawned it). While I love the very existence of “Machete,” the movie itself is something of a disappointment, and it’s not helped by a mediocre Blu-ray that barely has any special features.
Film Review: Robert De Niro, Ben Stiller Seem Bored in ‘Little Fockers’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on December 22, 2010 - 11:35amCHICAGO – The Law of Diminishing Returns is alive and well in the “Meet the Parents” Franchise, as the third film in the series, “Little Fockers,” has a lazy, we-did-it-for-the-money veneer. They got the gang back together, Robert De Niro, Ben Stiller, Owen Wilson, Barbra Streisand and the rest, but with few exceptions they all seem bored with it all.