Film Review: There’s Something Hopeful and Endearing about The Ornithologist
One never quite knows what to expect from the great Portuguese writer-director João Pedro Rodrigues (The Last Time I Saw Macao, To Die Like A Man), but his latest, The […]
Steve Prokopy is chief film critic for the Chicago-based arts outlet Third Coast Review. For nearly 20 years, he was the Chicago editor for Ain’t It Cool News, where he contributed film reviews and filmmaker/actor interviews under the name “Capone.” Currently, he’s a frequent contributor at /Film (SlashFilm.com) and Backstory Magazine. He is also the public relations director for Chicago's independently owned Music Box Theatre, and holds the position of Vice President for the Chicago Film Critics Association. In addition, he is a programmer for the Chicago Critics Film Festival, which has been one of the city's most anticipated festivals since 2013.
Music Box 70mm Film Festival Preview
If you love movies and have lived in Chicago for the last few years, you’re likely familiar with the Music Box Theatre’s occasional 70mm Film Festival. If you recall, we […]
Film Review: Based in Chicago, The Big Sick is Equally Heartwarming and Heartbreaking
The first thing you notice about the romantic tragicomedy The Big Sick is how conventionally it begins. If you don’t know where it’s going—or figure it out from the title—the […]
Film Review: Despicable Me 3 is Disarmingly Electric
Some animation features only have to answer one question: Do they make you laugh? Another one might be: Do they entertain you? And for the most part, I seem to […]
Film Review: Sofia Coppola’s Latest, The Beguiled, Gazes Subtly at Desire
I’m not going to get into another discussion about how frustrating it is when a filmmaker remakes a well-regarded film, and then all people do after they watch it is […]
Film Review: Baby Driver, a Tennessee Williams Play on Four Wheels
With Baby Driver, the latest from writer-director Edgar Wright (Shaun of the Dead, Scott Pilgrim vs. the World), being set in Atlanta (a rare instance where an Atlanta-shot movie is […]
Film Review: A Troubled World War II Love Story, The Exception is a Misfire
This is a classic example of a host of talented people missing the mark because the resulting film places its emphasis on the least interesting characters. The Exception is the […]
Film Review: Sally Hawkins is Remarkable in Maudie
You’ve likely never seen a story before like the one told in director Aisling (The Daisy Chain) Walsh’s Maudie, even though this particular one springs forth from real life, which […]
Film Review: The Bad Batch is a Provocatively Terrifying Fever Dream
Writer-director Ana Lily Amirpour is one of the most provocative filmmakers working today, but you might not realize it because her films also happen to be works of art worthy […]
Film Review: Alia Shawkat Delivers a Truly Haunting Performance in Paint It Black
Making the transition from acting to directing is Amber Tamblyn, working from a book by Janet Fitch concerning Josie (Alia Shawkat), a young woman trying to cope with the sudden […]
Film Review: Whisky Galore! Doesn’t Have Much Going On
It didn’t surprise me in the slightest to find out that the Scottish film Whisky Galore! was, in fact, a remake of a 1949 Ealing Studios work (which in turn […]
Film Review – Transformers: The Last Knight Feels a Bit Off Balance
One of the last lines of dialogue uttered by a human in the fifth and allegedly “final” installment (which is nonsense, since this film sets up a new one just […]