Chicago Reader: Movies

The Bad Lieutenant Gone Wild

mail@chicagoreader.com (J.R. Jones) — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 04:00:00 -0600

Werner Herzog and Nicolas Cage whoop it up in New Orleans. by J.R. Jones Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans Directed by Werner Herzog | Written by William Finkelstein When I first read about Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans, it was described as a sequel to Bad Lieutenant, Abel Ferrara's 1992 cult favorite about a drug- and gambling-addicted police detective in New York City. When I next read about it, it was described as a remake. Now that I've seen it, I can report that it's neither. Directed by the irrepressible…]]> [ Subscribe to the comments on this story ]

A �Lost Boy� Finds His Calling

mail@chicagoreader.com (Ed M. Koziarski) — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 04:00:00 -0600

Brutally driven from Sudan as a child, Garang Mayuol is bringing clean water to the suffering villagers back home. A new documentary chronicles his journey. by Ed M. Koziarski Garang Mayuol was in the cow pasture with his father when the shooting started. He was five years old, living in Lang, a tiny rural community in southern Sudan. It was 1987, four years into the second Sudanese civil war. The Arab Muslim majority government in Khartoum was cracking down on the mostly black Christian and animist separatists in the south, and government-backed militias descended on Lang with devastating force. Mayuol and his father fled on foot. "My dad said,…]]> [ Subscribe to the comments on this story ]

Reeling: The Chicago Lesbian & Gay International Film Festival

mail@chicagoreader.com (Albert Williams) — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 04:00:00 -0600

Week Two: Selected reviews by Albert Williams Presented by Chicago Filmmakers, the 28th Reeling festival continues Thursday through Sunday, November 12 through 15, at Chicago Filmmakers, Columbia College Film Row Cinema, Landmark's Century Centre, and the Music Box. Unless otherwise noted, tickets for all screenings are $10, $8 for matinees (before 4 PM); passes are available for $45 (five shows), $80 (ten shows), $125 (all shows, excepting special admissions), and $175 (all shows and events). Tickets can be purchased online at reelingfilmfestival. org, in person at Chicago…]]> [ Subscribe to the comments on this story ]

Festival of New Spanish Cinema

mail@chicagoreader.com (J.R. Jones) — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 04:00:00 -0600

New narrative, documentary, animated, and experimental films from Spain, at Facets November 13-19 by J.R. Jones Presented by Facets Cinematheque, this festival of new narrative, documentary, animated, and experimental films from Spain runs Friday through Thursday, November 13 through 19, at Facets Cinematheque. Following are selected films screening; a full schedule is available at facets.org. For more information call 773-281-4114. Camino More like a rosary than a movie, this 2008 Spanish drama is loosely based on the story of Alexia Gonzalez-Barros, a teenage girl whose Catholic devotion and sunny acceptance of an excruciating cancer death in…]]> [ Subscribe to the comments on this story ]

Polish Film Festival in America

mail@chicagoreader.com (Cliff Doerksen) — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 04:00:00 -0600

Friday, November 6, through Sunday, November 22 by Cliff Doerksen Presented by the Society for Arts, the Polish Film Festival in America runs Friday, November 6, through Sunday, November 22, with screenings this week at Beverly Arts Center, Facets Cinematheque, Pickwick, River East 21, and Society for Arts. Unless otherwise noted, tickets are $13, $12 for students, and $9 for seniors; documentary screenings are $10 for all, and a festival pass, good for seven screenings, is $70. For more information, a complete schedule, and ticket purchases, call 773-486-9612 or go…]]> [ Subscribe to the comments on this story ]

Best of Chicago 2009

mail@chicagoreader.com (J.R. Jones) — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 04:00:00 -0600

The Reader's Choice: North by Northwest by J.R. Jones The Reader's Choice: North by Northwest It's hardly celebrated as a "Chicago film"—most people remember it for the crop-duster sequence, shot in northern Indiana, and the climax on Mount Rushmore. But nothing else shot in Chicago really approaches the classic status of Alfred Hitchcock's 1959 thriller, which includes scenes at the Ambassador East and Midway Airport. It's the big CTA bus blocking the lane, but behind it sits an impressive line of steamed motorists: Arthur Penn's Mickey One (1964), Haskell…]]> [ Subscribe to the comments on this story ]

Reeling: The Chicago Lesbian & Gay International Film Festival

mail@chicagoreader.com (Albert Williams) — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 04:00:00 -0600

Presented by Chicago Filmmakers, the 28th Reeling festival runs Thursday, November 5, through Sunday, November 15, at Chicago Filmmakers, Columbia College Film Row Cinema, Landmark�s Century Centre, and Music Box. by Albert Williams Presented by Chicago Filmmakers, the 28th Reeling festival runs Thursday, November 5, through Sunday, November 15, at Chicago Filmmakers, Columbia College Film Row Cinema, Landmark's Century Centre, and Music Box. Unless otherwise noted, tickets for all screenings are $10, $8 for matinees (before 4 PM), and passes are available for $45 (five shows), $80 (ten shows), $125 (all shows, excepting special admissions), and $175 (all shows and events). Tickets can be purchased online at reelingfilmfestival.org, in person at Chicago Filmmakers,…]]> [ Subscribe to the comments on this story ]

Chicago Festival of Israeli Cinema

mail@chicagoreader.com (J.R. Jones) — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 04:00:00 -0500

Kicking off this Thursday, the festival continues through November 8 at both 600 N. Michigan and the Wilmette. by J.R. Jones The festival opens Thursday, October 29, at 600 N. Michigan with a 7 PM gala screening of Shiva—The Seven Days. Israeli actress Ronit Elkabetz (The Band's Visit, The Girl on the Train) collaborated with her brother Shlomi to write and direct this 2008 drama, set in Israel during the 1991 gulf war, about a large Jewish Moroccan family sitting shiva after one of the children has died. Gala tickets, available only from the festival at 847-675-3378, festisraelcinema@aol.com, or the festival…]]> [ Subscribe to the comments on this story ]

The Actor�s Letter

mail@chicagoreader.com (J.R. Jones) — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 04:00:00 -0500

A reminiscence from film noir icon Robert Ryan, newly unearthed by his daughter, sheds light on his Chicago childhood�and his family's connection to a tragic chapter in the city's history. by J.R. Jones The full autobiographical letter that Robert Ryan wrote to his children can be found here; for more on Ryan's filmography and an appreciation of his work, see "The Essential Robert Ryan." On-screen, Robert Ryan was a man with secrets. Film noir fans remember him as the bigoted army sergeant concealing his murder of a Jewish man in Crossfire (1948), or the small-town projectionist eaten up by his love for another man's wife in Clash by Night (1952), or the seething…]]> [ Subscribe to the comments on this story ]

Chicago International Children's Film Festival

mail@chicagoreader.com (J.R. Jones) — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 04:00:00 -0500

Offering screenings suitable for preschoolers to grade-school kids, the festival wraps up November 1. by J.R. Jones The 26th Chicago International Children's Film Festival continues Saturday and Sunday, October 31 and November 1, at Facets Cinematheque (1517 W. Fullerton) and the Wilmette (1122 Central, Wilmette). Programs range from collections of short films suitable for preschoolers (including The Mouse That Soared) to features for grade-school kids. In addition to the screenings, the festival offers workshops on acting, animation, and sound design; advance registration is required at cicff.org (where you'll also find a complete schedule) or 773-281-9075, ext. 3011.…]]> [ Subscribe to the comments on this story ]

The Full Text of Ryan's Letter

mail@chicagoreader.com (Robert Ryan) — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 04:00:00 -0500

"It is a very odd fact that Chicagoans never boast about their city, yet they secretly seem to love it." by Robert Ryan For our cover story on Robert Ryan, see J.R. Jones's The Actor's Letter: A reminiscence from film noir icon Robert Ryan, newly unearthed by his daughter, sheds light on his Chicago childhood - and his family's connection to a tragic chapter in the city's history. For more on Ryan's filmography and an appreciation of his work, see "The Essential Robert Ryan." [Following is the complete text of Robert Ryan's letter. A few spelling and punctuation errors have been corrected, but…]]> [ Subscribe to the comments on this story ]

The Essential Robert Ryan

mail@chicagoreader.com (J.R. Jones) — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 04:00:00 -0500

Highlights from the star's impressive filmography by J.R. Jones For our cover story on Robert Ryan, see J.R. Jones's The Actor's Letter: A reminiscence from film noir icon Robert Ryan, newly unearthed by his daughter, sheds light on his Chicago childhood - and his family's connection to a tragic chapter in the city's history. Ryan's autobiographical letter is here. Robert Ryan was greatly respected by directors, which may explain how he managed to accumulate such an impressive filmography: Jean Renoir's The Woman on the Beach (1947), Jacques Tourneur's Berlin…]]> [ Subscribe to the comments on this story ]

Burning Fuse Film Festival

mail@chicagoreader.com (J.R. Jones) — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 04:00:00 -0500

Facets Cinematheque presents six documentaries ranging from a history of the Faubourg Treme neighborhood in New Orleans to a profile of a stripper and porn star turned religious mouthpiece. by J.R. Jones Presented by Facets Cinematheque (1517 W. Fullerton), these six documentaries, all made in 2008, "represent decidedly unexpected views of the world, each revealing an unseen corner of the planet with passion and humor." Reviewing Faubourg Treme: The Untold Story of Black New Orleans, Andrea Gronvall wrote, "With a magisterial sweep, this stirring video by New Orleans native Dawn Logsdon documents the prominence of African-Americans in the Big Easy from colonial times to the present. Treme—today the Sixth Ward—was integrated from…]]> [ Subscribe to the comments on this story ]

Chicago International Children's Film Festival

mail@chicagoreader.com (J.R. Jones) — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 04:00:00 -0500

The 26th installment gets rolling October 22, continuing with screenings every Saturday and Sunday through November 1. by J.R. Jones The 26th Chicago International Children's Film Festival kicks off Thursday, October 22, at 6 PM with a gala reception and screening at Northwestern University's Thorne Auditorium (375 E. Chicago); tickets are $60 for adults, $25 for children. It continues with screenings every Saturday and Sunday through November 1 at Facets Cinematheque (1517 W. Fullerton) and Bank of America Cinema (4901 W. Irving Park); tickets for these programs are $9, $6 for children. Most are collections of short films, like Nick…]]> [ Subscribe to the comments on this story ]

Kiarostami Returns

mail@chicagoreader.com (Jonathan Rosenbaum) — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 04:00:00 -0500

Jonathan Rosenbaum and Mehrnaz Saeed-Vafa discuss Abbas Kiarostami�s first film to screen in Chicago since 2002. by Jonathan Rosenbaum It's been six years since Mehrnaz Saeed-Vafa and I published Abbas Kiarostami (University of Illinois Press), about Iran's most famous and most controversial filmmaker. The book combined the perspectives of myself, an American film critic with a Jewish background, and Mehrnaz, an Iranian-American filmmaker and teacher with an Islamic background, on Kiarostami's films, which are neither narrative features nor documentaries but something in between. Where Is the Friend's House? (1986), Close-Up (1990), Life and Nothing More . . . (1992), Through the Olive…]]> [ Subscribe to the comments on this story ]

The Reader's Guide to the Chicago International Film Festival: Week Two

mail@chicagoreader.com (J.R. Jones) — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 04:00:00 -0500

New reviews of selected films screening this week by J.R. Jones The 45th Chicago International Film Festival continues through Thursday, October 22, at River East 21, 322 E. Illinois. Unless otherwise noted, tickets are $12 ($9 for students, seniors, or Cinema/Chicago members), and $5 for matinees Monday through Friday (before 5:05 PM). Passes are $110 (10 admissions) and $210 (20 admissions). Tickets can be purchased at Cinema/Chicago, 30 E. Adams, suite 800, Monday through Friday from 10 AM to 6 PM; at River East 21 from noon until the last screening…]]> [ Subscribe to the comments on this story ]

Music Box Massacre

mail@chicagoreader.com (J.R. Jones) — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 04:00:00 -0500

A 24-hour marathon of classic horror movies, vintage trailers, and personal appearances by J.R. Jones The mother of all Halloween parties, the annual Music Box Massacre (3733 N. Southport) is a 24-hour marathon of classic horror movies, vintage trailers, and personal appearances, with a collectibles market in the theater lobby. Among this year's guests are Stuart Gordon, who got his start in Chicago theater and went on to write and direct Re-Animator (1985), and Art Hindle, who appeared in Black Christmas (1974) and David Cronenberg's The Brood (1979). This year's lineup: the silent version of…]]> [ Subscribe to the comments on this story ]

The Making of a Chicago Outfit

mail@chicagoreader.com (Ed M. Koziarski) — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 04:00:00 -0500

How six recent Columbia College grads got Hollywood muscle to help them make their mob movie by Ed M. Koziarski Chris Charles says he warned his star up front: "But I don't think it really registered till his first day of shooting in downtown Chicago." Charles had cast Frank Vincent as the lead in Chicago Overcoat, an independent drama that will receive its world premiere Saturday, October 10, at the Chicago International Film Festival. Known almost exclusively for playing gangsters—including New York crime boss Phil Leotardo on The Sopranos and Billy Batts, who ends up in a trunk in Goodfellas—Vincent,…]]> [ Subscribe to the comments on this story ]

The Reader's Guide to the 45th Chicago International Film Festival: Week One

mail@chicagoreader.com (J.R. Jones) — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 04:00:00 -0500

Selected films making their Chicago premieres at the festival through Thursday, October 15 by J.R. Jones Something tells me the Brazilian movies are going to be a tough sell this year. But in the wake of Chicago's unsuccessful Olympic bid, it's worth noting that every year since since 1965 the Chicago International Film Festival has done what the 2016 committee only promised, welcoming people from around the world to compete and share their gifts. For its trouble, CIFF has always struggled with the second-city syndrome that swept through Daley Plaza last Friday. Unlike the big festivals…]]> [ Subscribe to the comments on this story ]

The Quiet Disaster

mail@chicagoreader.com (Ed M. Koziarski) — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 12:00:00 -0500

Tracy Ullman documented the Cedar Rapids floods - and the city's struggle to right itself long after most of the cameras had left. by Ed M. Koziarski Tracy Ullman got a call in June 2008 from her best friend's mother, who lives in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. "She said, 'It's raining horribly out here—you should come out and make a documentary,'" says Ullman, a Chicagoan and documentary film producer. Ullman was hesitant. "Documentaries are time-consuming and expensive," she says. "It seemed like a lot, without any basis for a budget." But Ullman's best friend, Audree Larson, a photographer who owns and operates a portrait studio in Cedar Rapids…]]> [ Subscribe to the comments on this story ]

A Supernatural Bitch

mail@chicagoreader.com (Noah Berlatsky) — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 04:00:00 -0500

How exactly is Diablo Cody's update of the rape-revenge shocker "feminist"? by Noah Berlatsky In Jennifer's Body, stuck-up high school hottie Jennifer (Megan Fox) is brutalized and wreaks hideous vengeance on men in general and the perpetrators in particular. This is a familiar arc, used in such rape-revenge films as Meir Zarchi's I Spit on Your Grave (1978) and Abel Ferrara's Ms. 45 (1981). Action, reaction, gallons of blood. It's not clever, but it has a crude inevitability. Writer Diablo Cody (Juno) and director Karyn Kusama (Girlfight) aren't satisfied with the formula. They want…]]> [ Subscribe to the comments on this story ]

Fall Arts Guide 2009 People to Watch: Laura Cohen and Joe Winston

mail@chicagoreader.com (Andrea Gronvall) — Thu, 17 Sep 2009 04:00:00 -0500

Two local filmmakers adapt Tom Frank's What's the Matter With Kansas? to the big screen. Opens September 18 at Gene Siskel Film Center. by Andrea Gronvall Sitting in his dining room in Lincoln Square with his son, Milo, on his knee, director Joe Winston only vaguely resembles the tousled host of This Week in Joe's Basement, the Chicago Cable Access show he created 20 years ago after graduating from Yale. Today Winston wears a T-shirt that reads, save your mind. kill your television. He doesn't own a TV set, despite being an Emmy-nominated editor who's worked on documentaries for PBS, A&E, Discovery, and HGTV. And with…]]> [ Subscribe to the comments on this story ]

Chicago United Film Festival

mail@chicagoreader.com (Kate Schmidt) — Thu, 17 Sep 2009 04:00:00 -0500

Franchised indie fest featuring 18 films, including documentaries on Chicago hip-hop, Chicago's Providence St. Mell high school, and Jaws by Kate Schmidt The first local run of this franchised independent fest ("Different films. Different cities. Same mission") features 18 films screening at the Music Box (3733 N. Southport), most Chicago or world premieres. Among the Chicago-centric fare: Geoff Harkness's I Am Hip Hop: The Chicago Hip Hop Documentary (2008), which draws on 130 interviews and more than 500 videotaped concerts and features performers including Yea Big, Kid Static, and Verbal Kent (Sun 9/20, 8:30 PM); and The Providence Effect, which profiles Chicago…]]> [ Subscribe to the comments on this story ]

A Terrorist's Tale

mail@chicagoreader.com (J.R. Jones) — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 04:00:00 -0500

A journalistic drama about the Baader-Meinhof gang reveals a journalist who went over the edge. by J.R. Jones Opening on the anniversary of the 9/11 attacks, The Baader Meinhof Complex (2008) is an explosive but scrupulously journalistic drama about the radical group that terrorized Germany for nearly 30 years. Bernd Eichinger, who wrote and produced the movie, based it on a 1985 book by Stefan Aust that chronicles the group's first and deadliest decade, from 1968 to 1977. And like Aust, he aimed to tell exactly what happened during those chaotic years, leaving any political judgments to the…]]> [ Subscribe to the comments on this story ]

Chicago Underground Film Festival

mail@chicagoreader.com (J.R. Jones) — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 04:00:00 -0500

Guide to select programs at the 16th Chicago Underground Film Festival by J.R. Jones The 16th Chicago Underground Film Festival runs Thursday, September 10, through Thursday, September 17, at the Gene Siskel Film Center, 164 N. State, 312-846-2800. Tickets are $10, $7 for students, and $5 for Film Center members. Following are selected programs; for a full schedule see siskelfilmcenter.org. American Radical: The Trials of Norman Finkelstein A harsh critic and prominent target of the Israel lobby, Norman G. Finkelstein became a local cause celebre in 2007 when he was denied tenure by DePaul…]]> [ Subscribe to the comments on this story ]