'Contagion': A chill that's catching
Director Steven Soderbergh knows how to keep calm in the face of a global pandemic.
Brothers, brawls and baggage in 'Warrior' -- 2 1/2 stars
The feverish mixed martial arts infomercial "Warrior" opens up so many cans of emotional whup-ass that after a while you think: Enough! It's...
What's so funny about porn? 'Bucky' has no idea
Bucky Larson has buck teeth. Bucky. Larson. Has. Buck. Teeth. BUCKY LARSON HAS BUCK TEETH. ucky-Bay arson-Lay as-hay uck-bay eeth-tay.
'Creature': What's scary? That Louisiana assisted in this thing
Absurdly plotted, ineptly scripted and haplessly acted, "Creature" is a new variation on the "Creature from the Black Lagoon" theme.
Raksin and Kolchak prompt fond memories
The correspondence of late, I'm humbled to say, has been awfully warm regarding the Talking Pictures column and its recent nostalgic streak....
Delicate 'Hedgehog' depicts a prickly character
Inspired by Muriel Barbery's novel, "The Hedgehog" ("Le Herisson") tells two intersecting stories — how pretty, 11-year-old Paloma...
'Circumstance': Secrets and lies in a hidden Iran
Set in Iran but shot in Lebanon, for obvious reasons, the coming-of-age drama "Circumstance" stars two photogenic and expressive marvels,...
'Life Itself': Ebert autobiography a charming remembrance
In his easygoing, candid and altogether charming autobiography, or, as he calls it, "Life Itself: A Memoir," Roger Ebert fails to mention...
In honor of 'Autumn Frost,' test your knowledge of the ridiculous movie code names
Try this: For the next week or so, if you spot the telltale signs of a movie being shot around the South Loop — clusters of...
'Children of Glory': Out of the water emerges a bit of Hungarian history
In "Children of Glory," the quelled 1956 Hungarian Revolution against Soviet-led communist rule — and subsequent Magyar Olympic...
'Apollo 18': Moon mission a qualified success
A thin but fairly diverting entry in the low-fi fakeumentary horror genre, "Apollo 18" explains what's really on the moon and why the U.S....
What movies will strike gold this fall?
Hope springs occasional in the movie business. As that business scrambles to anticipate (digitally or otherwise) what we watch, the way...
'Shark Night': Into the jaws of disappointment
Seven Tulane students plus two Bayou rednecks plus scores of sharks plus 3-D adds up to zero fun in "Shark Night 3D," the worst movie of the...
An 'Old-Fashioned Orgy' of quiet time during this 'comedy'
There's funny and then there's funny, and "A Good Old-Fashioned Orgy" is neither. I suspect "Contagion" will be funnier.
'Higher Ground': Seeker takes us on her journey
We envy the will and passion of others; we're only human. In the fine, searching, new independent film "Higher Ground," director and star...
Documentary takes a trip on 'Soul Train'
Some of the best moments in director J. Kevin Swain's documentary "Soul Train: The Hippest Trip in America" (2 p.m. Sunday at the Siskel...
'Rapt': A kidnapping, secrets revealed
Issues of criminality, responsibility and victimhood get a muscular workout in Lucas Belvaux's taut French thriller "Rapt," based on a...
What to watch for at local film festivals and area art houses
Pop culture is dominated by the multiplex, but Chicago's film festival and art house scenes offer the right kind of antidote, where...
A salute to our cinematic history, and its saviors
In this drastically evolving time, when digital cinema replaces actual, tangible strips of film before we can even assess the revolution's...
'Crime After Crime': A battered woman gets a decade of advocacy
In telling the story of Deborah Peagler, a battered woman who spent 26 years in prison, filmmaker Yoav Potash has not dug up an obscure case...
'Utopia': Tepid temper tantrum inspires lukewarm film
In "Seven Days in Utopia," a mild-mannered, young golfer has a mild meltdown in the middle of a tournament. That's followed by seven days of...
'Higher Ground' project wouldn't let Farmiga get away
Vera Farmiga calls it "a threshold film." For three years, the actress who received an Oscar nomination for "Up in the Air" was attached, as...
'Five Days': Cheesy filmmaking battles effectiveness
The public seems to be sick to death of war movies, especially when they're as much of a mixed bag as "5 Days of War," a hell-on-earth...
'The Debt': Good actors can't rescue meager plot
When Helen Mirren, Tom Wilkinson, Ciaran Hinds and this year's breakout actress, Jessica Chastain of "The Tree of Life" and "The Help," can'...
Angelina Jolie: No wedding, no pregnancy, just a new movie
Angelina Jolie clears up a few rumors in the latest issue of Vanity Fair.
Movies, TV celebrate 'The Chicago Way'
You've heard of the Uncanny Valley? You haven't? Let me explain: It's a theory that originated in the field of robotics. As the theory goes,...
'Cowboys' pits Craig and Ford's six-guns against ray-guns
Wait, cowboys and aliens? In the face of constant, competitive challenges the movie industry clings to a handful of truths, among...
First werewolves, now aliens in London
The low-budget British aliens-invade-the-'hood thriller "Attack the Block" reminded me of Rick's famous line in "Casablanca," his reply when...
Documentaries are the real deal for moviegoers
People ask "What should I see at the movies?" and lately the most reliable answers to that question have come from the documentary genre....
Rudd drawn to idealistic aspect of comedic role
Paul Rudd has been turning in one charismatic supporting role after another, as in "Knocked Up," "Anchorman" and "Clueless." In his new...
Anatomy of a great movie theme
August means many things, but for this lover of film music it means David Raksin. He arrived and departed in the month of August and, in...
'Our Idiot Brother' puts the fun in dysfunction
Floating through life on a personal high only partly provided by cannabis, the bearded, Crocs-sporting, semiprofessional farmer specializing...
'Don't Be Afraid of the Dark': Scariest? Maybe not
When fantasy filmmaker Guillermo del Toro says he considers the 1973 made-for-TV movie "Don't Be Afraid of the Dark" the scariest thing ever...
'Sholem Aleichem': Literary giant more than 'Fiddler's' creator
Sporting a pen name that doubled as a greeting ("hello how are you" or "peace be upon you") as well as a five-syllable taste of Jewish...
'Colombiana': Pretty name, skimpy costumes for a killer
The Olivier Megaton-directed "Colombiana" may not be the brainiest of action films, but one of the merits of producer Luc Besson's latest...
This trip to 'Brighton Rock' sends viewers back to '47 version
In mediocrity lies opportunity. The new film version of Graham Greene's 1938 novel "Brighton Rock" isn't very good, but if you haven't yet...
Summer blockbuster movies
Every summer, it seems, there's another one of those zillion-dollar, effects-laden, mega-size blockbuster/potential cash cows that opens...
'One Day's' director on the Hathaway difference
Here's the thing about casting Anne Hathaway as a snappish sad-sack and middle-class Englishwoman in the romantic comedy-drama "One Day."...
'Fright Night': Fangs for the laughs
Plenty gory, but graced by a jovial sense of humor and an enjoyably guts-centric use of 3-D, director Craig Gillespie's remake of the 1985...
'Spy Kids': Hold your nose and keep an eye on your watch
The scratch-and-sniff "Aroma-Scope" gimmick of "Spy Kids: All the Time in the World" didn't work. Maybe I just got a defective card, but all...
'Conan,' still blood-soaked, returns with a dash of PC
One hundred and 12 minutes of "Aaaaarrrrrrrrggggghhhh!" — the new 3-D edition of "Conan the Barbarian" was shot in Bulgaria, so really...
'Senna': Sad tale makes the heart race
At the heart of the gripping documentary "Senna" lies a rivalry born for the movies. Director Asif Kapadia's film plays like a narrative...
'One Day' of their lives
Like "Same Time, Next Year" with less guilt or "When Harry Met Sally ... " with a somewhat different ending, "One Day" pops in and out of...
New doc unearths story behind making of 'The Spook Who Sat By the Door'
"A difficult work to judge coherently," is how critic Vincent Canby characterized "The Spook Who Sat By the Door" in his 1973 review of...