Mark Twain once wrote that “Anger is an acid that can do more harm to the vessel in which it is stored than to anything on which it is poured”, which is true and a lesson the residents of the titular town of Ebbing, Missouri will come to realize. Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri isn’t like the […]
53rd Chicago International Film Festival Capsule Review – Mudbound (2017)
It is undeniably perplexing that a person, regardless of any race, gender, or sexual orientation, can willingly enlist and fight in a war only to come home treated like mud. There are a lot of intertwining stories going on in Mudbound (a film directed by Dee Rees and adapted from the novel by Hillary Jordan that is […]
53rd Chicago International Film Festival Review – Breathe (2017)
Breathe, 2017. Directed by Andy Serkis. Starring Andrew Garfield, Claire Foy, Tom Hollander, Ed Speleers, Diana Rigg, Dean-Charles Chapman, and Hugh Bonneville. SYNOPSIS: The inspiring true love story of Robin and Diana Cavendish, an adventurous couple who refuse to give up in the face of a devastating disease. Their heartwarming celebration of human possibility marks the […]
53rd Chicago International Film Festival Capsule Review – I, Tonya (2017)
Martin Scorsese’s The Wolf of Wall Street gave Margot Robbie a huge opportunity that she fearlessly seized, dressing up as Harley Quinn broke her into the mainstream as a Hollywood star, and now I, Tonya should net her a first-time Oscar nomination. Directed by Craig Gillespie (last year’s The Finest Hours), the biopic depicts the figure skating career of the infamous […]
53rd Chicago International Film Festival Capsule Review – Lady Bird (2017)
In the hands of many other writers, the titular, self-proclaimed Lady Bird – real name Christine McPherson played by renowned Irish actress Saoirse Ronan – would come across as whiny, entitled, and unlikable to the point where the entire film comes crumbling down. Fortunately, Greta Gerwig is unlike most writers, as her directorial debut is […]
53rd Chicago International Film Festival Capsule Review – The Divine Order (2017)
In The Divine Order, Switzerland’s early 1970s struggle for women rights is represented by two families at the center of the movement, mainly Nora (Marie Leuenberger) who seeks a more meaningful purpose in life, fancying the prospect of working as a secretary upon seeing an opening in a newspaper advertisement. According to her husband Hans Maximilian Simonischek), she […]
53rd Chicago International Film Festival Capsule Review – Last Flag Flying (2017)
“Those that have been following the acting career of Steve Carell are most likely aware that he has made attempts to shed his comedic image by taking on dramatic roles, particularly ones that also benefit from his natural timing for humor. However, in Last Flag Flying (the latest film from extremely talented writer and director Richard Linklater) […]
53rd Chicago International Film Festival Capsule Review – The Square (2017)
Practice what you preach, no matter the circumstances. It’s the main take away from Ruben Ostlund’s (Force Majeure) Palme d’Or winner The Square, but also the easiest for a mainstream audience to grasp. Laced with satirical comedy regarding political correctness, morality, viral social media infamy, absurd jokes so erratic only the director himself could explain their purpose (how about […]
51st Chicago International Film Festival Review – Embers (2015)
Embers, 2015. Directed by Claire Carre. Starring Jason Ritter, Iva Gocheva, Greta Fernandez, Tucker Smallwood, Karl Glusman, Roberto Cots, Dominique Swain, Matthew Goulish, and Silvan Friedman. SYNOPSIS: After a global neurological epidemic, those who remain search for meaning and connection in a world without memory. Embers poses a very terrifying apocalyptic scenario; what if a […]
51st Chicago International Film Festival Review – I Smile Back (2015)
I Smile Back, 2015. Directed by Adam Salky. Starring Sarah Silverman, Josh Charles, Skylar Gaertner, Shayne Coleman, and Thomas Sadoski. SYNOPSIS: Laney Brooks does bad things. Married with kids, she takes the drugs she wants, sleeps with the men she wants, disappears when she wants. Now, with the destruction of her family looming, and temptation […]
