Geoffrey Rush and Sophie Nélisse play a small-town, working-class German father and adopted daughter on the eve of World War II in The Book Thief, based on the popular best-selling novel by Markus Zusak and featuring lovely performances from the pair, and Emily Watson…
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It would be impossible to overstate the impact legendary filmmaker Dario Argento has had on the horror genre with landmark shockers including 1970’s The Bird with the Crystal Plumage, 1975’s Profundo Rosso (Deep Red) and 1978’s Suspiria, as well as a revered canon of…
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The 49th Chicago International Film Festival heads into its final week with a lineup that includes a number of high-profile Hollywood movies as well as some notable independent and international offerings. Winding through two weekends and 14 days, this year’s event saw 180 pictures…
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It’s certain that some will find Steve McQueen’s 12 Years a Slave, the incredible true story of a free African-American musician from New York kidnapped and sold into slavery in the south circa 1841, too unflinching in its depiction of barbarism. But know this…
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The 49th Annual Chicago International Film Festival is officially underway with a packed schedule filling houses at AMC’s River East 21 this weekend. Friday night’s highlight was a tribute to George Tillman, Jr., a Chicago native and Columbia College alum who found industry success…
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The 49th Chicago International Film Festival kicked off last night with a gala celebration at the Chicago Theatre, featuring Bill Kurtis hosting and Festival Founder and Artistic Director Michael Kutza and Chaz Ebert sharing stories about Roger Ebert’s commitment to the world of film,…
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Paul Greengrass’ tension epic Captain Philips is a slick and satisfying movie treatment of the 2009 hijacking of an American cargo ship off the coast of Africa, and the subsequent kidnapping of its titular commander at the hands of four, small-time Somali opportunists who…
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The 49th Chicago International Film Festival kicks off on Thursday, October 10th, with a an opening night gala to be held at the Chicago Theatre and with a special dedication to Roger Ebert. The event is scheduled to include a short video tribute to…
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Filmmaker Jim Mickle (Stake Land) wasn’t a fan of horror remakes, but something resonated in the 2010 Mexican cannibalism thriller Somos Lo Que Hay, the story of some gruesome family traditions and the ties (of blood) that bind. With co-writer Nick Damici, Mickle refashioned…
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We so often indulge in hyperbole about movies that when one comes along that truly merits such, simply saying it’s extraordinary doesn’t seem enough. But that’s the case with Alfonso Cuarón’s magnificent Gravity, a simple yet profound meditation on survival starring Sandra Bullock as…
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