Review: The Collective Makes a Great Case for a Bad Action Movie
As you may have gleaned from my star rating, The Collective is not a good film. But that doesn’t stop it from being fascinating in the ways it is bad. […]
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Review: Dreamin’ Wild Brings Music, and Dreams, of Days Gone By Back to the Surface
For reasons I’m very aware of, this one caught me off guard in the best possible way. When I was a much younger man (late teens-early 20s), I was in […]
Your Chicago Curated Weekend: 8/3 and Beyond
We’re off to a great start to a new month full of amazing events! As always there are plenty of festivals, movies, and more going on this weekend, so enjoy […]
Review: In Mutant Mayhem, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Get a New, Youthful Energy and Impressive Voice Cast
For years, I wasn’t even sure where the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles originated. I was aware of action figures, an animated series, and a few movies over the years, but […]
Review: Jeffrey Sweet Updates His Second City History—Now With That Elusive Viola Spolin Interview
Forty-five years ago, Jeffrey Sweet wrote a book—the story of Second City, which was then only about a decade old. But Chicago’s preeminent comedy theater had a much longer history, […]
Review: An Important Story, Lost in the Details, Jolliet and Marquette: A New History of the 1673 Expedition, by Mark Walczynski
The expedition of discovery Louis Jolliet, a merchant-explorer, and Jacques Marquette, a Jesuit priest, undertook with five other men in 1673, was a pivotal moment in the history of North […]
Review: MJ Lenderman Lights Up Lincoln Hall for His Pitchfork Aftershow
After what was surely a good ol’ sweaty time at Pitchfork Friday, MJ Lenderman and Co. headed over to Lincoln Hall with their friends in Styrofoam Winos for a sold-out […]
Interview: Filmmakers (and Twin Brothers) Danny and Michael Philippou Talk Horror Mythology and Messages, and What Film to Make Next
The Australian-born, twin-brother filmmakers Danny and Michael Philippou have spent the better part of the last decade making memorable and successful horror short films for YouTube under the collective banner […]
Review: Destroy Boys Serve Up Complete Destruction With Destroy Fest at the Metro
For a select few hundred people (it’s probably more than that), Destroy Fest 2023 at the Metro was the best place to weather the rain-soaked mugginess of last Saturday night. […]
Review: Actor Ron Perlman Takes Center Stage in The Baker, an Action Thriller That Leans on Its Cast
Ron Perlman is a national treasure, and few people know that better than filmmaker Guillermo del Toro, who has placed Perlman in nearly all of his films, including the Hellboy […]
Review: A Podcast Host Solves Mysteries and Gets More Than She Bargained For in Susie Searches
Actor-turned-first-time-filmmaker Sophie Kargman’s Susie Searches had its premiere almost a year ago at the Toronto Film Festival, and it seemed to disappear until recently. The title comes from the name […]
Review: The Beanie Bubble Charts a Toy Phenomenon and Its Founders’ Epic Rise and Fall
You can add Beanie Babies to the growing list of cultural phenomena of a particular era that are getting a film origin story. Or, in the case of The Beanie […]