Film Review: Dunkirk Feels Like a Genuine Attempt to Capture the Humanity of Battle
For all the talk of critics showing up to this movie or that one with “knives sharpened,” I think there are a handful of filmmakers for whom critics show up […]
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.
Film Review: Wish Upon Will Make You Want to Watch a Better Horror Movie
What the hell was that? First off, when you put “From the director of Annabelle,” I’m assuming that’s not meant to be some type of warning that this new film […]
Film Review: A Ghost Story Brings a Great Sense of Comfort
My favorite film from Sundance and probably my favorite of the year so far, director David (Pete’s Dragon) Lowery’s A Ghost Story, brings together the filmmaker’s Ain’t Them Bodies Saints […]
Film Review: 13 Minutes Tells the True Story of a Failed Attempt to Kill Hitler
Returning to the era of World War II Germany, Downfall director Oliver Hirschbiegel brings us the true story of a ordinary German citizen who did something few did; he fought […]
Film Review: 14th Century Nuns Take Charge of Their Sexuality in The Little Hours
As spirited and seemingly out of control as The Little Hours gets, it also commits itself to the period and the religious doctrine of the time, and it’s that authenticity […]
Film Review: Cate Blanchett is Fascinating in Manifesto
Probably the place that makes the most sense to watch this work is on a monitor hanging in an art museum—a place where many of the manifestos on art being […]
Watch a Great Documentary and Have an Excellent Meal at the Newly Renovated Davis Theater
I wanted to let you all know about an exciting new quarterly film series that caught my eye. The recent success of the DOC10 Film Festival has emboldened Chicago Media […]
Film Review: City of Ghosts Looks Unflinchingly at Journalism in the Midst of Terror
Likely to be one of the finest documentaries you’ll see all year (and one likely to show up a great deal during awards season), City of Ghosts is the story […]
Film Review: War for the Planet of the Apes Might Be the Boldest and Bleakest Apes Movie
One of the most interesting things to watch over the course of the three most recent Planet of the Apes films has been the shift in focus. Rise of the […]
Film Review: The Journey, Truth Buried in Artificiality
I learned something new while watching director Nick (Killing Bono) Hamm’s The Journey: there’s poetic license and then there’s “This story images that journey.” In other words, this isn’t what […]
Film Review: Errol Morris Masterfully Returns in The B-Side: Elsa Dorfman’s Portrait Photography
The latest work from master documentarian Errol Morris (The Thin Blue Line, The Fog of War) is meant to mark the end of an era of sorts. Specifically, it’s the […]
Film Review: The Sea Digs Deep to Show the Inner Workings of Grief
In the last couple of years, there have been a fair number of films that have impressively and respectfully dealt with the subjects of grief and loss—more specifically, they deal […]