As the film industry, like the rest of us, grapples with how to move forward in the midst of a global pandemic, studios that had plans to release new films to now-closed […]
Review: A Stark Statement on Humanity in Unexpectedly Dark Bacurau
Lisa Trifone
Review: In Swallow, A Brutal Addiction Channels Sympathies, Gets Weird
Believe it or not, there is a mini-genre of independent films that center around women eating…weird shit. As riveting as it is disturbing, 2016’s Raw centers on sisters at a veterinary school who […]
Review: Genre-bending Extra Ordinary Spooks, Jokes and Thoroughly Entertains
Heading to the movie theater might not be at the top of your list of Things To Do This Weekend, and it’s understandable if so. If, however, you’re more of the “measured-but-cautious” […]
Siskel’s CEUFF Week 2: European Films (Mostly) Worth Braving the Crowds For
With the ever-developing news around COVID-19, institutions like the Siskel Film Center are diligently implementing the recommendations and precautions necessary to keep their audiences safe while not compromising programming that’s been months […]
Review: For a Story of Grief and Healing, The Way Back Embraces Grit, Chaos and Foul Language
In a parallel universe, there’s a version of Gavin O’Connor’s The Way Back, the story of a grieving former high school basketball star tapped to coach the struggling team at his alma mater, […]
Siskel’s European Union Film Fest Week 1: Avoid Travel, Head to the Cinema for Adventure
The Chicago European Union Film Festival is the Siskel Film Center’s annual love letter to the cinema of nearly an entire continent, a month-long program that includes films from all 28 member […]
Review: A Harrowing Post-War Tale of Survival in Russian Drama Beanpole
Not yet 30 years old, filmmaker Kantemir Balagov directs Beanpole, a film that is perhaps the opposite of what his contemporaries are drawn to create. Instead of something of-the-moment, something about frivolous quarter-life-crises in […]
Review: An Austen Heroine for a New Generation in Pretty, Pastel Emma.
Nearly every scene in Emma., the latest adaptation of Jane Austen’s novel about a selfish young woman who sees the error of her meddling ways, looks as if it would be as at […]
Review: Exquisite Portrait of a Lady on Fire Explores Female Love and Agency in Poignant Period Piece
There’s a moment in Portrait of a Lady on Fire, filmmaker Céline Sciamma’s exquisite new film, when painter Marianne (Noémie Merlant) gives up on an early attempt to capture the likeness of her […]
Review: Corpus Christi Explores the Contradictions in Faith, Redemption and Life
Believe it or not, there were other films besides Parasite nominated for this year’s International Feature Film Academy Award; even though the Korean film stole the show (and the most Oscars that […]
Review: A Vibrant Exploration of Tradition, Identity and Love in And Then We Danced
Set in the world of Georgian folk dancing, with its sharp, deliberate choreography and percussion-driven rhythms, And Then We Danced is the story of Mareb (Levan Gelbakhiani), a promising young performer determined […]
Review: Lyric Opera Revisits a Timeless, Thrilling Classic in Madama Butterfly
The Lyric Opera of Chicago first presented Puccini’s Madama Butterfly in 1955 (it made its world premiere in 1904); the version on stage there now (through March 8) is a revival of a […]
