Posts tagged Scott Smith

CAPSULE REVIEWS: The 53rd Chicago International Film Festival

The 53rd Chicago International FIlm Festival brings over 1,000 films of all genres and sizes to our fair city. There are premieres aplenty, between those making their world, North American, or Chicago debuts. Opening with a red carpet premiere of Marshall, peaking with the centerpiece of Greta Gerwig’s Lady Bird, and closing with the Oscar contender The Shape of Water from Guillermo del Toro, the 53rd CIFF fills the AMC River East 21 for two weeks. For the fourth year in a row, Every Movie Has a Lesson has been granted press credentials to cover the CIFF and here are my capsule reviews.

2017, CAPSULE REVIEW, Chicago Film Festival, Film Festival, Foreign Film, Independent Film, Social Media, SPECIALDon ShanahanOctober 24, 2017The 53rd Chicago International Film Festival2017, Chicago Independent Film Critics Circle, Chicago International Film Festival, 53rd Chicago International Film Festival, 53rd CIFF, CIFF, #CIFCCattheCIFF, Opening Night Gala, Opening Night Film, Special Presentations, U.S. Indies, City and State, World Cinema, Cinema of the Americas, Shorts, Marshall, Eman's Movie Reviews, Emmanuel Noisette, Chadwick Boseman, Sterling K. Brown, Jussie Smollett, Marina Squerciati, Reginald Hudlin, red carpet, red carpet coverage, MovieMob, Goodbye Christopher Robin, Simon Curtis, Blueprint, Daryl Wein, Jerod Haynes, Chasing the Blues, Scott Smith, Kevin Guilfoile, Liquid Truth, The Shape of Water, Lady Bird, Caroline Jabor, Daniel de Oliviera, Night Shift, Tunde Adebimpe, Gold Hugo, Gold Hugo AwardComment

MOVIE REVIEW: Chasing the Blues

Chasing the Blues is a dark comedy through and through. Director Scott Smith and his co-writer Kevin Guifoile crafted an engaging yarn of hijinks and hilarity. Their narrative might feel like something out of a Coen brothers rough draft, but this film sides with a far less gonzo approach that suits its shrewder stature. Like the musical genre at its core, patient storytelling is at the forefront. Could it use a stiffer punch or two? Maybe, but then it wouldn’t be the blue and not everything has to be shock cinema. Waiting for the payoff in this tidy 77-minute film is an easy and worthwhile short hike to climb.