Review: Melissa McCarthy Grants Wishes for Holiday Harmony in Genie
File this one under: Christmas movie I didn’t know was a Christmas movie until I was deep into it. If I’m reading the credits correctly, Genie is directed by Sam […]
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.
Review: Adam Sandler Continues a Trend of Surprisingly Heartwarming, Family-Business Films with Leo
Much like other recent Adam Sandler outings, such as his family comedy You Are So Not Invited to My Bat Mitzvah and his sports drama Hustle, his newest animated work, […]
Review: Ridley Scott and Joaquin Phoenix Bring Napoleon and His Battles to Screen, Without Much Regard for the Man
Napoleon Bonaparte has been featured in films for nearly 100 years (going back to Abel Gance’s 1927 Napoleon, which clocked in at about 5.5 hours), but I can’t remember a […]
Review: SNL Comedy Team Ventures into Feature Films, and a Treasure Hunt, in The Treasure of Foggy Mountain
From the depths of Saturday Night Live comes the three-man comedy team Please Don’t Destroy, consisting of Martin Herlihy, John Higgins, and Ben Marshall, all of whom star in and […]
Review: Adventurous Filmmaker Taika Waititi Misses the Mark in Uninspired Sports Underdog Story Next Goal Wins
Filmmaker Taika Waititi has taken some wild swings in his career, from his vampire-centric faux documentary What We Do in the Shadows and the charming Hunt for the Wilderpeople to […]
Review: Trolls Band Together Revisits Familiar Characters and Music, a Mild New Entry into the Franchise
I’ve always had a soft spot for the Trolls movies because of the music, and because Anna Kendrick and Justin Timberlake have such winning personalities to go along with their […]
Review: Eli Roth Channels the Best of ’80s and ’90s Horror Films for Bloody, Nostalgic Thanksgiving
Setting a Thanksgiving-themed slasher movie in Plymouth, Massachusetts, may be a bit obvious, but it certainly wouldn’t be the only element of director/co-writer Eli (Hostel, Cabin Fever) Roth’s Thanksgiving that […]
Review: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes Offers a Music-Heavy Hunger Games Prequel on an Epic Scale
By all accounts, the film adaptation of Suzanne Collins’ Hunger Games prequel novel The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes is a fairly faithful one, so if that’s all you care […]
Review: Nicolas Cage Stars as a Man Reckoning with Unexpected Fame in Dream Scenario
Exploring the worlds of dreams and nightmares, as well as providing an insightful glimpse into the phenomenon of fame for being famous, Norwegian-born writer/director Kristoffer Borgli (Sick of Myself) has […]
Review: A Unique Friendship and Immense Challenge Chronicled in David Holmes: The Boy Who Lived
Part coming-of-age story, part behind-the-scenes of the Harry Potter movies, and part inspirational tale about living with persistent adversity, David Holmes: The Boy Who Lived tells the story of a […]
Interview: Dream Scenario Filmmaker Kristoffer Borgli on Filming Dreams, Casting Nicolas Cage and That One Fart Joke
Norwegian-born writer/director Kristoffer Borgli is having a a hell of a year. Earlier in the year, his 2022 feature, Sick of Myself, finally made it stateside to great reviews, and […]
Review: Rob Reiner Sits Down with Friend and Comedian Albert Brooks in Defending My Life, a Spot-On Biographical Documentary
Directed by Rob Reiner (When Harry Met Sally, This is Spinal Tap, The Princess Bride), Albert Brooks: Defending My Life is quite simply the best kind of celebrity biographical documentary […]