CHICAGO – The funny meter of Netflix went off the scale last week, as the animated series “Chicago Party Aunt” made its debut on September 17th. What began as a Twitter account by comic actor Chris Witaske (who also provides his voice talent) has morphed into the cartoon adventures of Aunt Diane Dumbowski, her nephew Daniel, and an array of familiar Chicago-isms and characters.
Bradley Cooper
Journey to Conclusion is the Thrill of ‘Avengers: Endgame’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on April 24, 2019 - 11:15am Rating: 4.5/5.0 |
CHICAGO – When it comes down to this, and the creators do it right, there is no more satisfying conclusion than “Avengers: Endgame.” Admirers of this magnificent Marvel (Studios) Universe story will get everything they want. It is the “Gone with the Wind” of superhero epic films.
Lady Gaga Characterizes the Title ‘A Star is Born’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on October 4, 2018 - 3:53pm Rating: 3.0/5.0 |
CHICAGO – Stefani Joanne Angelina Gemanotta, also known as Lady Gaga, is the only reason to see the latest iteration of ‘A Star is Born.’ The luminous stage presence that propelled her to music superstardom is present in her major film debut, taking the female lead reins from Judy Garland and Barbra Streisand.
Cut of Nostalgia in ‘Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on May 5, 2017 - 12:31pm Rating: 4.0/5.0 |
CHICAGO – When I first saw “Guardians of the Galaxy” I was unfamiliar with the comic book source. I enjoyed the film, but worried it might be just a little too nerdy and obscure to develop a following. Now with “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2,” the series has solidified itself as the class clowns of the Marvel Studios cinematic universe, and it’s been embraced for it.
‘War Dogs’ Fires Blanks in a Sorry Attempt at Satire
Submitted by PatrickMcD on August 19, 2016 - 6:39am Rating: 1.5/5.0 |
CHICAGO – “War Dogs” is an insufferable, self important, and heavy handed attempt at satire that can’t stop congratulating itself for all the big truths it’s blowing up, bro. “Old School” and “Hangover” director Todd Phillips fancies himself an auteur, but here it seems like he’s imitating David O Russell imitating Martin Scorsese.
Unusual, Passionate ‘Aloha’ is Deeply Resonant
Submitted by PatrickMcD on May 29, 2015 - 9:34amRating: 4.0/5.0 |
CHICAGO – Films with major movie stars that take real chances on story formula are rare. “Aloha” is one such example, and produces considerations that are way off the beaten path. Is it an allegory? An absurdity? An homage to 1960s paranoia? Only writer/director Cameron Crowe knows for sure.
Bradley Cooper’s ‘American Sniper’ is Entertaining, One-Sided American Propaganda
Submitted by HollywoodChicago.com on January 18, 2015 - 7:22pmRating: 3.0/5.0 |
CHICAGO – I understand why they did it. But that doesn’t make it right to do.
In order to earn sign-off from Chris Kyle’s family and the U.S. Navy – and to appease the patriotic American public – “American Sniper” needed to make the U.S. military’s most lethal sniper nicer than he actually was and generalize a people as people you should hate.
Lack of Full Disclosure Trips Up ‘American Sniper’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on January 15, 2015 - 11:27pm Rating: 2.5/5.0 |
CHICAGO – A straightforward story about the military marksman Chris Kyle is pretty much told in “American Sniper,” by director Clint Eastwood. But what is left out of the movie – Kyle’s right wing politics and a depiction of his fate – is more curious than what is actually presented.
‘Guardians of the Galaxy’ a Gleeful Space Romp
Submitted by PatrickMcD on August 3, 2014 - 6:57amRating: 4.0/5.0 |
CHICAGO – “Guardians Of The Galaxy” is a gleeful Star Wars knockoff dressed up in Marvel Comics clothing. It occupies the same universe as Marvel’s other properties, but its tone is decidedly sillier. It has a spirit more akin to the later joke heavy installments of the Star Trek franchise or low budget exploitation mogul Roger Corman’s “Battle Beyond The Stars” than the ponderous pontificating of “Thor.”
Great Performances Drive Entertaining ‘American Hustle’
Submitted by BrianTT on December 11, 2013 - 10:43am Rating: 4.5/5.0 |
As career con man Irving Rosenfeld (Christian Bale) introduces newly-undercover FBI agent Richie DiMaso (Bradley Cooper) to his world of criminal enterprise, he shows him a Rembrandt painting in a museum, revealing that it’s a fake. Millions of people have seen and admired it, not realizing that it’s not the original. Does it matter if they get the same artistic enjoyment out of it?
Worse Than a Real One, ‘The Hangover Part III’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on May 23, 2013 - 7:58am Rating: 2.0/5.0 |
CHICAGO – With a lazy, over-plotted story, and a cast that are desperately going through the motions, “The Hangover Part III” is the latest example of a contract obligation disguising itself as a movie. Writer/director Todd Phillips sluggishly pounds out another one, with simply no originality.
