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+.
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Film Review: A Soul Laid Bare in ‘David Crosby: Remember My Name’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on July 31, 2019 - 10:27amCHICAGO – Getting into the mind of a creative person requires a delicate brush, or on the opposite end of that spectrum a new wing of a mental hospital. Submitted for your approval, one David Van Cortlandt Crosby, in the new documentary produced by Cameron Crowe, “David Crosby: Remember My Name.”
Podtalk: Tracy Edwards, Skipper & Subject of Documentary ‘Maiden’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on July 12, 2019 - 11:02amCHICAGO – In the pantheon of firsts, there are so many of them that fly under our radar. For every Rosa Parks, there are a number of women who take the challenge to make social change. In 1989, British-born Tracy Edwards became the first female skipper, guiding an all-female crew and sailboat in the prestigious Whitbread Around the World Race. Her story is told in “Maiden.”
Film Review: History & Culture Co-Exist in Exemplary ‘The White Crow’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on May 5, 2019 - 8:34pmCHICAGO – In any ear for pop culture, the name Rudolf Nureyev is well known. A Soviet Russian-born ballet virtuoso nicknamed “Lord of the Dance,” RN lived large until he died, of complications due to AIDS at age 54 in 1993. But before that, he was born into poverty, danced into fame, and historically defected to the West in 1961. “The White Crow,” a new film directed by Ralph Fiennes, tells his story.
Film Review: Historical Drama is Fortified by Technique in 'Sunset'
Submitted by PatrickMcD on April 1, 2019 - 12:19pmCHICAGO – History is made when you’re often busy making other plans. That is ardently illustrated in “Sunset,” a drama set early in the second decade of the 20th Century in the on-the-brink-of-revolution capital of Budapest, Hungary. A retail store is the town’s centerpiece, plus there is a mysterious woman associated with that store, until she isn’t.
Film Review: ‘The Wife’ is Classic Drama & Relevant Social History
Submitted by PatrickMcD on August 24, 2018 - 12:58amCHICAGO – One of the more fascinating questions about civilization is ‘how much talent went unrealized because of time and place of birth?’ The patriarchy – which denied people of color and women for so long – often reduced fellow travelers into subservient roles. For example, there were women who were just known as “The Wife.”
Podtalk: Director Marc Turtletaub Solves the ‘Puzzle’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on August 1, 2018 - 10:44amCHICAGO – When a notable indie film producer decides to direct, what does it feel like on that other side? For Marc Turtletaub, the connection was in his sophomore effort as director, “Puzzle.” The emotional drama features the impeccable Kelly Macdonald, as a stay-at-home Mom named Agnes who discovers a hidden talent.
Podtalk: Director Shana Feste & Actor Lewis MacDougall Establish Their ‘Boundaries’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on June 28, 2018 - 3:09pm- A Monster Calls
- Bobby Cannavale
- Boundaries
- Christopher Lloyd
- Christopher Plummer
- Country Strong
- Daughter
- Endless Love
- Father
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- Peter Fonda
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- Vera Farmiga
- Weed
CHICAGO – Combining an intimate, personal story with a superstar cast, writer/director Shana Feste realized a semi-autobiographical journey in her new film “Boundaries.” The cast includes Oscar winners Christopher Plummer and Vera Farmiga, as well as Lewis MacDougall (“A Monster Calls”), Kristen Schaal, Bobby Cannavale, Christopher Lloyd AND Peter Fonda in a road trip picture that reunites ne’er do well Dad Jack (Plummer) with his desperate-to-connect-with-him daughter Laura (Farmiga).
Film Review: Armie Hammer Sits for Geoffrey Rush in ‘Final Portrait’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on April 2, 2018 - 9:10amCHICAGO – Paris in the 1960s seems to be a place where anything was possible. “Final Portrait” is an indication of this, as Armie Hammer portrays a Mad Men style American critic (what!) in 1964, who sits for a portrait painting by eccentric artist Alberto Giacometti, portrayed with relish by Geoffrey Rush.
Film Review: Helen Mirren Takes Another Ride in ‘The Leisure Seeker’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on March 11, 2018 - 10:25amCHICAGO – Helen Mirren keeps establishing herself as an international treasure with each new role. She is the prime motivator in the new film “The Leisure Seeker,” about a retired couple taking one last spin in their RV, which takes its nickname from the title of the film. Along the way secrets are revealed and the devastation of dementia is exposed, but the story never gets too serious or heavy handed.
Film Review: Annette Bening Proves ‘Film Stars Don’t Die in Liverpool’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on January 12, 2018 - 12:31pm- Academy Award
- Annette Bening
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- Film Stars Don’t Die in Liverpool
- Frances Barber
- Gloria Grahame
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- It’s a Wonderful Life
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CHICAGO – GEORGE BAILEY: “Hey, you look good. That’s some dress you got on there.” VIOLET: “This old thing? I only wear it when I don’t care how I look.” That is how actress Gloria Grahame (as Violet Bick) was introduced in the classic “It’s a Wonderful Life”. Now she is portrayed by Annette Bening in “Film Stars Don’t Die In Liverpool”.