Review: Manipulative Five Feet Apart Hits New Low for Teen Romances
I have to admit, I was genuinely shocked when I learned that this romantic-drama about a pair of teenagers, both with cystic fibrosis (CF), wasn’t based on a novel by […]
Review: Animated Wonder Park Lacks Both Director, Inspiration
For a film that attempts to celebrate creativity and the power of imagination, the animated film Wonder Park is about as uninspired as you can get. This is the sort […]
Siskel Film Center’s EUFF Week 2: Variety of Selections Include Documentaries, Musicals
Week two of Gene Siskel Film Center’s European Union Film Festival sees more documentaries make their way into the schedule of 60 films from 28 countries, as themes from immigration […]
Review: Despite Impressive Visuals, Ruben Brandt, Collector Misses the Mark
The widely acclaimed Spider-Man: Into the Spider-verse received praise for a lot of very valid reasons: inclusive representation, excellent writing, a stellar voice cast, and more. Most noteworthy, and likely one […]
Review: The Kid Feels Like a Familiar, Special Western
The tendency of most modern Westerns is to go about as dark as you can, but few in recent memory go quite as morose as The Kid, the sophomore effort from […]
Review: As An Endurance Test, Climax May Not Be Worth the Payoff
For a filmmaker who has made a career out of emphasizing fever-dream-like visuals, Gaspar Noé (Irreversible, Enter the Void, Love) may have topped himself with his latest, Climax. This film […]
Review: Captain Marvel Origin Story Hits New, Welcome Notes in the Marvel Universe
There’s a moment in the midst of Marvel Studio’s latest superhero spectacular Captain Marvel in which Brie Larson’s space warrior character Vers (her name at that point in the story; […]
22nd European Union Film Festival Presents 60 Films at Siskel Film Center
From March 8 through April 4, the Gene Siskel Film Center brings the creative diversity and excitement of Europe to Chicago, with the 22nd Annual Chicago European Union Film Festival. […]
What to Watch on the Small Screen: March 2019
March supposedly marks the beginning of spring. Since this is Chicago, however, that really means that the weather will just go from extremely cold to very cold. Here are some […]
Review: Icon Isabelle Huppert Deserves Better Than Greta
There’s a moment early in Greta, the latest from director Neil Jordan’s (The Crying Game, The End of the Affair, Interview with the Vampire), where the title character (played by one of […]
Review: Timely Immigration Drama Saint Judy is Worth Seeking Out
This timely and unexpectedly good-hearted biopic tells the story of Judy Wood (the always reliable Michelle Monaghan), an attorney who moved to California with her young son Alex (Gabriel Bateman), […]
Review: A Provocative, Prolific Photographer’s Life Is Focus of Mapplethorpe
Documentary filmmaker Ondi Timoner has long been one of my favorite observers of life, in that she doesn’t just point a camera at her subjects—like comedian/activist Russell Brand (Brand: A […]