CHICAGO – It began with a boy and his dream (nightmare?). John LaFlamboy, to be exact, as he took an idea he had in college and made it his life’s work. He owns and operates the HellsGate Haunted House in Lockport (Illinois), which was designed, built and put together by Haunted House experts expressly for the spookiest month of the year. For info on how to purchase tickets, click HellsGate.
Straw Dogs
Blu-ray Review: ‘Straw Dogs’ Remake Fails to Equal Power of Original Film
Submitted by mattmovieman on January 5, 2012 - 11:59amCHICAGO – The 2011 remake of Sam Peckinpah’s galvanizing 1971 classic is a film destined to appeal to no one. It’s not poorly made, and the writer/director Rod Lurie is gifted at crafting suspenseful morality tales (such as the under-appreciated “Nothing But the Truth”). But it’s difficult to understand why Lurie would bother putting his personal stamp on a picture that he considers repugnant.
Film News: ‘The Lion King 3D’ Strikes Out ‘Moneyball,’ Takes Box Office Again
Submitted by TimBMartens on September 25, 2011 - 11:46amCHICAGO – “The Lion King 3D” held its dominance in the box office this past weekend when it edged out “Moneyball” for the top prize. The re-release of the film, presented in three dimensions, has now gone back to back weeks at number one 17 years apart.
Film News: ‘The Lion King 3D’ Wins Box-Office Crown
Submitted by TimBMartens on September 18, 2011 - 11:57amCHICAGO – Somebody better get Doc Brown on the phone because I think we have gone back to 1994. For the first time in 17 years, “The Lion King” is the title that won the weekend box office. The new release, which, of course, must be in 3D, raked in enough dough to beat out last week’s winner “Contagion” as well as the new releases “Drive,” “Straw Dogs” and “I Don’t Know How She Does It”.
Blu-Ray Review: Controversial ‘Dressed to Kill,’ ‘Straw Dogs’
Submitted by BrianTT on September 14, 2011 - 2:21pmCHICAGO – At first glance, Brian De Palma’s “Dressed to Kill” and Sam Peckinpah’s “Straw Dogs” may seem to have little in common beyond a studio and a need to be on Blu-ray. It’s common for that to the be the ONLY link (such as when “Scary Movie 2” and “Trainspotting” hit the format next week…come back for coverage). But these two actually have more in common than just a company and a spiffy new transfer. They’re a pair of controversial thrillers from two of the most interesting directors of their era. And with the remake of “Straw Dogs” about to open on Friday, perhaps it’s time we revisit them.
HollywoodChicago.com Hookup: 35 Pairs of Chicago Passes to ‘Straw Dogs’ With James Marsden, Kate Bosworth
Submitted by HollywoodChicago.com on September 9, 2011 - 4:15pmCHICAGO – In our latest thriller edition of HollywoodChicago.com Hookup: Film, we have 35 admit-two passes up for grabs to the advance Chicago screening of the new film “Straw Dogs” starring James Marsden, Kate Bosworth, Alexander Skarsgård and James Woods!
DVD Review: ‘Deliver Us From Evil’ Offers Danish Take on ‘Straw Dogs’
Submitted by mattmovieman on July 8, 2011 - 9:27amCHICAGO – Ole Bornedal’s “Deliver Us From Evil” is a superb B-movie that occasionally threatens to become something more substantial. It has the misfortune of being saddled with one of the most overused titles of recent years, though I am certain no one will be confusing it with Amy Berg’s brutal yet vital 2006 documentary on sexual abuse in the Catholic Church. Bornedal’s film is brutally dark yet also darkly humorous.
