Each chapter has their zany swerve at that magic 50-minute mark that throws viewers for a reflective loop while also grinding any earned momentum to a halt. The twists are so obscure, even by Lanthimos’ standards, that any salted suspension of disbelief strains credulity worth any investment in by the time the hammer falls for a mid-movie roll of credits and a hard transition. That kind of abruptness happens three times, sometimes right when a tangential storyline was hitting a grove, making the shifts to entire new settings and characters jarring and, worse, defeating.

2024, 2 STARS, MOVIE REVIEWDon ShanahanJune 13, 2024Kinds of Kindness, Emma Stone, Jesse Plemons, Hong Chao, Willem Dafoe, Margaret Qualley, Yorgos LanthimosComment

MOVIE REVIEW: Poor Things

For better or worse, Poor Things is a movie of unsavory urges and scratched itches that pull the viewer down a pernicious drain of unconscionable behavior. There is a dark comedy buried in the muck of Poor Things that curdles to the surface in the final third as our strong female becomes the master of her own fate, body, heart, and business. Stone sells it at every turn. Still, at many points, one will wonder whether all of the absurdity will amount to something exotic or vapid.

2023, Independent Film, MOVIE REVIEW, 4 STARSDon ShanahanDecember 16, 2023Poor Things, Emma Stone, Yorgos Lanthimos, A24, A24 Films, Mark Ruffalo, Willem DafoeComment

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

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

MOVIE REVIEW: The Lobster

With intentionally languid brushstrokes, "The Lobster," from Greek director Yorgos Lanthimos in his English language debut, creates a challenging moral setting that twists the realities and consequences of two human conundrums and fears: What happens when you are single and what happens when you die. His muse at the center is Colin Farrell in arguably the most understated performance of his career. With more talent and a high concept at play, "The Lobster" is missing the charm to tie it all together.

EVERY MOVIE HAS A LESSON

by Don Shanahan

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