PODCAST: Episode 11 of "The Cinephile Hissy Fit" Podcast

For our eleventh episode, our hosts dance around all kinds of points and obstacles to talk about La La Land from 2016. 25YL film critics, honored dads, and summer freedom school teachers Will Johnson and Don Shanahan come from completely different places when it comes to the optics and results of Damien Chazelle's award-winning movie. For this show, these two guys go heady and long on those divergences. Come for the shared challenge and tirade and stay for the mutual love and respect for the fun movies encapsulate. Enjoy our podcast!

Cinephile Hissy Fit, Podcast, 25YL, Media AppearanceDon ShanahanJune 4, 2021La La LandComment

MOVIE REVIEW: Beauty and the Beast

Bill Condon’s “Beauty and the Beast” stands firmly on its own merit. True to Disney’s recent trajectory, its goal is to “reimagine” a previous animated classic into the live-action medium for a new era and audience. Unlike the recent treatments of "Cinderella" and "Malificent," this "Beauty and the Beast" stays a full-blown musical. Imitation, emulation, and homage are all part of that process, but so is reappraisal and reinterpretation. Those later two actions are what drive this new fantasy film to soaring and successful heights.

2017, 4 STARS, MOVIE REVIEWDon ShanahanMarch 15, 2017AMC Navy Pier IMAX2017, 2017 Spring Movies, Beauty and the Beast, La Belle et la Bete, Christophe Gans, Bill Condon, Emma Watson, Dan Stevens, Ewan McGregor, Ian McKellan, Guga Mbatha-Raw, Emma Thompson, Luke Evans, Josh Gad, Kevin Kline, Oscar nominee, Best Picture, Disney classics, Disney, animated films, live-action, remakes, Reimagining, Jeanne-Marie Leprine de Beaumont, Hattie Morahan, Kevin Kline Moustache Principle, Audra McDonald, Sarah Underwood, Katie Spencer, Atonement, Sherlock Holmes, Jacqueline Durran, Tobia A. Schliessler, Peter Berg, IMAX, IMAX 3D, Stephen Chbosky, The Perks of Being a Wallflower, Evan Spiliotopoulos, Hercules, Tim Rice, Alan Menken, Howard Ashman, Evermore, Josh Groban, Lumiere, Cogsworth, Beast, Hugh Jackman, Controversy, La La Land, Screen Junkies, Honest Trailers, YouTube, Gaston, life lessons from film, life lessons, life lessons from films, life lessons from movies, Life lessons, movie review, film review, movie commentary, film commentary, review, Donald Shanahan, Don Shanahan, Every Movie Has a LessonComment

MEDIA APPEARANCE: Guest on the "Feelin' Film" post-Oscars podcast

One of the perks of becoming a regular blogging contributor on a podcast site is getting the occasional chance to appear on the actual podcast. Aaron White, one of the hosts of "Feelin' Film," connected time zones to bring myself and Popcorn Confessional critic Steve Clifton together for an extended post-Oscar wrap-up show. Listen to our reactions, rants, loves, and heartbreaks to both the 89th Academy Awards and the website's first annual "Feeler's Choice Awards."

2017, Media Appearance, Podcast, Social Media, SPECIALDon ShanahanFebruary 28, 20172017, 2017 Oscars, 2017 Oscar Predictions, Academy Award nominations, Academy Award, Academy Awards, Academy Award winner, Academy Award nominees, Academy Award nominee, 2017 Academy Awards, 89th Academy Awards, 89th Oscars, 90th Academy Awards, 90th Oscars, Oscar hopefuls, Oscar surprises, Oscar bait, Oscar Checklist, Oscar nominee, Oscar nominations, Oscar race, Oscar snubs, Oscar contenders, Oscar, Oscar Predictions, Oscars, #OscarsSoWhite, Oscar talks, Oscar winners, Awards bait, Awards, Awards Talk, Feeler Awards, Feelin' Film, Aaron White, Steve Clifton, Popcorn Confessional, Twitter, Feeler, fan-voting, Awards seasons, Awards Tracker, Award Prediction, Awards Predictions, SAG Award, BAFTA, Best Sound, Best Actor in a Supporting Role, Best Motion Picture, Best Film Editing, Best Actor, Best Actress in a Leading Role, Best Actress in a Supporting Role, Best Actor in a Leading Role, Best Actress, Best Animated Film, Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Animated Short Film, Best Animated Short, Best Animated Feature, La La Land, Moonlight, Manchester by the Sea, Best Art Direction, Best Production Design, Best Screenplay, Best Sound Editing, Best Supporting Actor, Best Supporting Actress, Best Musical Score, Best Makeup and Hairstyling, Best Live Action Short Film, Best Foreign Language Film, Best Costume Design, Best Motion Picture of the Year, Best Documentary Short Subject, Best Documentary Feature, Best Documentary, Best Director, Best Cinematography, Best Sound Mixing, Best Short Film, Best Live Action Short, Best Foreign Film, Donald Shanahan, Don Shanahan, Every Movie Has a LessonComment

COLUMN: The 10 Best Films of 2016

I’ll have you know that this is the latest this website has ever posted a “10 Best” list in its six-plus year history. I want to say that 2016 exhausted me, but it didn’t. “Every Movie Has a Lesson” published a personal-best 114 film reviews in 2016. Even after a record year, there is part of me that sits here and knows there was room for more. The to-do list of recommended films and overdue titles is never empty.

SPECIAL: Winners announced for the first annual CIFCC Awards!

The 28 film critics and voting members, including yours truly, of the Chicago Independent Film Critics Circle completed their final ballots in 25 categories for their first annual CIFCC Awards. The CIFCC hosted an invitation-only awards reception at Transistor Chicago on January 8, 2017.

2016, 2017, Independent Film, Social Media, SPECIALDon ShanahanJanuary 9, 2017Transistor ChicagoAwards, Awards Talk, CIFCC, CIFCC Awards, Chicago Independent Film Critics Circle, 2016 CIFCC Awards, Oscar hopefuls, Ava DuVernay, 13th, Jacqueline Stewart, Charles Musser, Pioneers of African-American Cinema, Yorgos Lanthimos, The Lobster, The Love Witch, Anna Biller, Atmo Horrox, Piper, Doctors Strange, Swiss Army Man, La La Land, Justin Hurwitz, Tom Cross, Madeline Fontaine, David Wasco, Linus Sandgren, Viola Davis, Mahershala Ali, Manchester by the Sea, Natalie Portman, Jackie, Casey Affleck, Barry Jenkins, Tarell Alvin McCraney, Kenneth Lonergan, Damien Chazelle, Southside with You, Richard Tanne, Kubo and the Two Strings, Travis Knight, Laika, The Fits, Anna Rose Holmer, O.J.: Made in America, The Handmaiden, Best Independent Film, Best Studio Film, Best Foreign Film, Best Documentary, Best Microbudget Film, Best Animated Film, Best Chicago Film, Best Director, Best Original Screenplay, Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Actor, Best Actress, Best Supporting Actress, Best Supporting Actor, Best Ensemble, Best Cinematography, Best Production Design, Best Costume Design, Best Editing, Best Original Score, Best Makeup, Best Visual Effects, Best Short Film, Best Undistributed Film, Trailblazer Award, Impact Award, Donald Shanahan, Don ShanahanComment

COLUMN: Who should win/will win the 2017 Golden Globes?

What you're watching on TV on Sunday night is a party thrown by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association hosted by Jimmy Fallon in an effort to be loved and share some love. It’s a popularity contest more than a true Oscar precursor. The winners do get a pretty positive rub and the marketers gain a few more "Winner of..." graphics to put in the newspapers next to their films and we get Brendan Fraser GIFs.

COLUMN: New Year's Resolutions for the Movie Industry in 2017

Plenty of regular everyday people make New Year's Resolutions, but I think bigger entities, namely movie makers and movie moguls, need to make them too. Annually, including this sixth edition, this is my absolute favorite editorial to write every year. I have fun taking the movie industry to task for things they need to change. I'm sarcastic, but I'm not the guy to take it to the false internet courage level of some Twitter troll. This will be as forward as I get all year.

2016, Column, Editorial, SPECIALDon ShanahanDecember 31, 2016New Year's Resolutions for the Movie Industry, New Year's Resolutions, Column, Editorial, 2016, 2017, New Year's Eve, Adam Sandler, Seth McFarlane, Michael Phillips, MTV, Donald Trump, Felicity Jones, Natalie Portman, Jessica Chastain, Jackie, Miss Sloane, Emma Stone, La La Land, #OscarsSoWhite, Moonlight, Fences, Hidden Figures, Mahershala Ali, Denzel Washington, Viola Davis, Naomie Harris, Octavia Spencer, Ava DuVernay, 13th, The Birth of a Nation, Southside with You, The Fits, Kicks, LGBT, Disney/Marvel, 20th Century Fox, Sony Pictures, Sony Entertainment, Captain America: Civil War, Spider-Man, Spider-Man: Homecoming, X-Men: Apocalypse, Deadpool, Doctor Strange, Batman V. Superman: Dawn of Justice, Suicide Squad, Geoff Johns, Denis Villeneuve, Dwayne Johnson, Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson, Prisoners, Enemy, Sicario, Arrival, Blade Runner 2049, Ridley Scott, Alien: Covenant, Jumanji, Baywatch, Kicking the Seat, Pixar, Pixar Punch, Sing, The Secret Life of Pets, The Angry Birds Movie, The Emoji Movie, Pete's Dragon, Mark Wahlberg, Deepwater Horizon, Patriots Day, Transformers: The Last Knight, Jason Statham, Saturday Night Live, Ghostbusters, Damien ChazelleComment

SPECIAL: First annual CIFCC Awards nominations

Capping off their inaugural year, the members of newly-formed Chicago Independent Film Critics Circle, of which I am a director and co-founder, have announced their nominees for their first annual CIFCC Awards. Their voting membership of 28 members strong completed ballots over the holidays with the goal of three final nominees in 25 categories. They will commence a final round of voting ending on January 1, 2017 and host an invitation-only awards banquet at Transistor Chicago on January 8, 2017.

2016, Best Films, Column, Independent Film, SPECIALDon ShanahanDecember 29, 2016Transistor Chicago2016, CIFCC, Chicago Independent Film Critics Circle, CIFCC Awards, Best Independent Film, Best Studio Film, Moonlight, La La Land, Jackie, The Handmaiden, Ava DuVernay, Barry Jenkins, Daniel Kwan, Daniel Scheinert, Yorgos Lanthimos, Jacqueline Stewart, Deborah Stratman, Best Actor, Best Supporting Actor, Best Supporting Actress, Best Actress, Best Cinematography, Best Short Film, Best Documentary, Best Animated Film, Best Undistributed Film, Best Visual Effects, Best Makeup, Best Original Score, Best Editing, Best Costume Design, Best Production Design, Best Ensemble, Best Original Screenplay, Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Director, Best Chicago Film, Best Microbudget Film, Best Foreign Language Film, Best Foreign Film, Chicago, Don Shanahan, Every Movie Has a Lesson, Donald ShanahanComment

EDITORIAL: Five films to watch before "La La Land"

With the glitzy Los Angeles setting of “La La Land,” many will point to the Old Hollywood musicals of Gene Kelly, especially “Singin’ in the Rain,” as a necessary practice rounds, but “La La Land” is an unequivocally modern-set film. A different range is possible. Furthermore, advising you to re-watch “Whiplash” for Chazelle’s kicks or revisit “Rebel Without a Cause” to touch base with the Griffith Observatory are too easy for practice. Dig deeper and try a few of these on for size as a “La La Land” primer.

MOVIE REVIEW: La La Land

In front of and behind the camera, you will find creative people that deftly understand and properly tap into the spirit and flavor of the classic genres and eras they are blending. Breathing jazzy life into a Hollywood musical set in the present day of Priuses and iPhones, Damien Chazelle’s follow-up to “Whiplash” is a modern cinematic masterpiece. It is the kind of film where you will remember where you were when you first saw it. You will not find a more jubilant, romanticized, or flat-out entertaining film this year.