Steve Prokopy is chief film critic for the Chicago-based arts outlet Third Coast Review. For nearly 20 years, he was the Chicago editor for Ain’t It Cool News, where he contributed film reviews and filmmaker/actor interviews under the name “Capone.” Currently, he’s a frequent contributor at /Film (SlashFilm.com) and Backstory Magazine. He is also the public relations director for Chicago's independently owned Music Box Theatre, and holds the position of Vice President for the Chicago Film Critics Association. In addition, he is a programmer for the Chicago Critics Film Festival, which has been one of the city's most anticipated festivals since 2013.
One of the more incendiary films to hit screens this year is Bitch—written and directed by lead actress Marianna Palka, the Scottish-born auteur who studied at New York City’s Atlantic […]
When people refer to particular actors as “a star of stage and screen,” they are usually referring to performers who have decades of experience moving back and forth between theater […]
The Grand Prix Winner of this year’s Cannes Film Festival is the aggressive and inspiring docudrama BPM (Beats Per Minute), from director and co-writer Robin Campillo (Eastern Boys, They Came […]
I’ll admit, stepping into a film titled Bitch—even one directed by a woman—was an experience I entered into with more than a little trepidation at this year’s Sundance Film Festival. […]
It’s a real shame that people won’t get a real chance to see festival-favorite Mudbound on the big screen in most places in America. It’s a deeply impactful work about […]
Sometimes you’re simply powerless to resist being emotionally manipulated by truly good film about compassion, populated by kind characters who want nothing more than to put a little kindness out […]
Every once in a while, we need a film that takes unfiltered, but finely focused rage and aims it directly at the heart of whatever it is that is scaring […]
Filmmaker Joe Lynch might be better known to many as an actor in the “Holliston” series (created by his filmmaking buddy and co-star Adam Green) than a director. I suspect […]
I remember a certain point in my life a couple of months ago, not long after seeing the big-screen debut of Wonder Woman, when I had the thought “How lucky […]
For both uber-film nerds and casual fans of director Alfred Hitchcock’s 1960 ground-breaking Psycho, the documentary 78/52 is a compact film studies program that examines the power of camerawork, editing, […]
(This review originally ran as part of my Chicago International Film Festival coverage.) One of the more disappointing, high-profile works of fall movie season is the latest from Richard Linklater […]
As weird as it is having this sequel released on the heels of Bad Moms Christmas, where both films feature their lead characters during the holiday season, the fact that they […]