Sam McCarthy, Contributing Writer
/ January 27, 2025
Leigh Whannell’s “Wolf Man” takes a daring swing in the reinvention of the classic creature feature, a similar swing he took with mad scientists in his 2020 Blumhouse reboot, “The Invisible Man.”...
Finn Morse, Theater Beat Writer
/ January 20, 2025
When looking for a great theater environment to discover a classic on the big screen, there’s few places better than the Gene Siskel Film Center.
Named after one of Chicago’s most respected film...
April Klein, Arts & Life Editor
/ December 19, 2024
With the current nostalgia cycle rearing its head back towards the end of the century, it’s only inevitable that someone would call back to the films of the late 90s.
Independent film distribution...
Alek Sacinski, Contributing Writer
/ December 3, 2024
Ridley Scott’s 29th film “Gladiator II” revolves around family intrigue, sprawling sets, and a muscular man with eyes set on a throne.
“Gladiator II” follows Lucius Verus (Paul Mescal), son...
Jake Panek, Arts & Life Beat Writer
/ September 23, 2024
Activate only once. Stabilize every day. Switch every seven days, without exception. The one and only thing not to forget: you are one. You can’t escape from yourself.
These are the instructions given...
KiKi Layne, a Cincinnati native and DePaul alumna, has spent years building her craft as an actor. After graduating from The Theater School in 2014, she would coast across Chicago’s performance scene,...
Much of modern comedy filmmaking is too concerned with being “funny.” Comedy filmmakers, talented as they can be, often default to aimless riffing in fear of losing a potential joke. In the process,...
There’s an emotional beat in David Leitch’s “The Fall Guy” in which Colt Seavers (Ryan Gosling) mourns the failure of a romantic relationship from his past. He sits in his car, unable to access...
A packed house at the Music Box Theater on April 26 waited in anticipation as a moderator tried to introduce the evening’s special guest: Vera Drew, the director/editor/star of “The People’s Joker.”...
“Civil War” is a beautifully grotesque war movie that reframes the political and violent implications of its storytelling toward journalists. In Alex Garland’s latest A24 blockbuster, he set out...
I’d like to pay tribute to the trailer editors out there. A good trailer serves as a mood piece that occupies a non-linear narrative; it has immense value as an exercise in form. While definitely not...
“The People’s Joker” is so incredibly bizarre that it almost overshadows its own brilliance. Using Batman villains as metaphors for queer identity, the unsuspecting coming-of-age film utilizes the...