Sony

Video Game Review: Flawed Tactical Shooter ‘SOCOM 4: U.S. Navy Seals’

CHICAGO – Now that the PSN is back up, what are you going to do with it? You need a solid multi-player experience to try out the car that’s been in the shop for the last few weeks, right? I hoped that experience would lie within my review copy of “SOCOM 4: U.S. Navy Seals” but I’m sorry to say that this target misses just left.

Video Game Review: Racing Game ‘MotorStorm: Apocalypse’ Satisfies Your Need For Chaos

CHICAGO – What if you were running a drag race on the day the world ended? This is not your average set-up for a video game but “MotorStorm: Apocalypse” is not your average driving game. It’s not often that you look to your right as you drive across a breaking pier to see a tornado.

TV News: Chicago Auditions For Simon Cowell’s ‘The X Factor’ on April 27, 2011 With $5 Million Prize

CHICAGO – While Simon Cowell has outgrown “American Idol,” he’s got the itch again. Now the nation’s meanest music critic is scouring cities large and small to unearth the singer with “The X Factor”.

Blu-Ray Review: Gwyneth Paltrow’s ‘Country Strong’ Plays a Forgettable Melody

Country Strong

CHICAGO – Gwyneth Paltrow was EVERYWHERE promoting “Country Strong” and her return to the spotlight. She reached overexposure with appearances on “Glee,” The Grammys, and “Saturday Night Live,” and culminated it all with a performance of the film’s Oscar-nominated song on the Academy Awards. Lost in all of this was the actual movie. Was it any good? Now you can decide for yourself as it was recently released on Blu-ray and DVD.

Video Game Review: ‘PlayStation Move Heroes’ Only For Young Fans

CHICAGO – I love at least two-thirds of the central characters in the anticipated Sony adventure “PlayStation Move Heroes” having spent hours with the Ratchet & Clank and Jak & Daxter video games (I’m not as familiar with Sly Cooper, the final third of this all-star team). Perhaps it is because I’m a fan of the clever writing and complex platforming that usually accompanies these heroes that this feels like a lackluster offering, the kind of awkward title that only works for little ones and their friends.

DVD Review: Great James L. Brooks Misfires With ‘How Do You Know’

How Do You Know

CHICAGO – You won’t find a much bigger fan of James L. Brooks’ “Broadcast News,” one of my favorite romantic comedies of the ’80s, but there’s simply no denying that he’s lost his touch for character that once made him one of the best living writers. It may not be quite as big a disaster as “Spanglish,” but his newest romantic comedy “How Do You Know,” recently released on Blu-ray and DVD, is a mess, a blend of unbelievable characters, awkward pacing, and forgettable plotting that makes it one of the biggest disappointments of 2010.

Blu-Ray Review: Johnny Depp, Angelina Jolie Forgettable in ‘The Tourist’

The Tourist

CHICAGO – When “The Tourist,” recently released on Blu-ray and DVD, was released theatrically, it was dealt a pretty brutal blow by critics and most assumed it would be relatively forgotten before long, but the Hollywood Foreign Press Association gave the film its true place in history when they nominated it for three awards, including Best Picture, Actor, and Actress after a particularly suspicious amount of lobbying by Sony.

Video Game Review: ‘Major League Baseball 2K11’ Commits Too Many Errors to Compete

CHICAGO – I have defended the 2K Sports baseball games in the past, even personally preferring the “Major League Baseball 2K10” edition for gameplay during last year’s baseball season over Sony’s “MLB 10 The Show,” but this year my denial defenses have fallen to an incredibly faulty release, one full of glitches and generally annoying design decisions.

DVD Review: Dwayne Johnson Wastes Talent on Dull ‘Faster’

Faster, Dwayne Johnson

CHICAGO – After his underrated breakthrough from wrestling into acting, “The Rundown,” we all expected Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson to be the next macho action stars like the icons we grew up with — Sly, Ahnuld, Bruce Willis, and more. But the action market shifted to more average-looking heroes (like Nic Cage & Shia LaBeouf) and The Rock took a left turn into family fare like “The Tooth Fairy” and “Race to Witch Mountain.” “Faster” looked like a return to the genre in which he would have been a mega-star in 1988. Sadly, the result is a dull, boring affair that’s nowhere near as much fun as its title or premise might suggest.

Film Review: Loud, Annoying ‘Battle: Los Angeles’ Fails in Spectacular Ways

Battle Los Angeles
HollywoodChicago.com Oscarman rating: 1.0/5.0
Rating: 1.0/5.0

CHICAGO – It used to be an insult to say that a loud action movie reminded a critic of a video game. The fact is that most recent video games feature better storytelling and more entertainment value than the horrendous “Battle: Los Angeles,” an annoying movie with such inept direction that it’s not even fun on a visceral level. Even the explosions are boring.

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TV, DVD, BLU-RAY & THEATER REVIEWS

  • Manhunt

    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+.

  • Topdog/Underdog, Invictus Theatre

    CHICAGO – When two brothers confront the sins of each other and it expands into a psychology of an entire race, it’s at a stage play found in Chicago’s Invictus Theatre Company production of “Topdog/Underdog,” now at their new home at the Windy City Playhouse through March 31st, 2024. Click TD/UD for tickets/info.

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