Combine the oft-used expression "a picture is worth a thousand words" with the idiom "a fly on the wall," and you will have the contagious vigor that is "Elvis & Nixon." The most famous loose collar in the land meets the most-buttoned up Commander-in-Chief of this generation in a comedy of jovial possibilities. There is better-than-good chance that not a lick of "Elvis & Nixon" is true, but that doesn't ruin the fun of examining a documented moment of star-crossed brevity.
Read MoreIn "The Playground," ominous storytelling speaking of kingdoms, favor, covenant, cleansing, and benevolence using a "Jack and Jill" analogy spoken by a mostly unseen middle-aged man to a girl alone on a titular schoolyard comprises the auspicious start to a societal microcosm hanging in the balance. Director Edreace Purmul's intriguing new film and second feature dives towards such high-minded territory of dark omens. "The Playground" recently won Best Film honors from Film Consortium San Diego at their 2016 San Diego Film Awards.
Read More"Louder than Bombs" is the English language debut of Norwegian director Joachim Trier and his writing partner Eskil Vogt, best known for their 2006 Academy Award-nominated foreign language film "Reprise." Their newest work was a competitor for the Palme d'Or at the 2015 Cannes Film Festival, Norway's first since 1979. Possessing a compelling rotation of inner monologues, the heavily dramatic film observes a fractured family of men dealing with the overhanging aftermath of losing their iconic matriarch.
Read MoreBy employing all of the bells and whistles of today's digital effects and key frame animation, director Jon Favreau's live-action reimagining of Walt Disney's adaptation of Rudyard Kipling's "The Jungle Book" sets its own stage very quickly to put adventure and peril first and foremost. The groovy and memorable song-and-dance numbers from the original's 1967 soundtrack are forever revered as the leading component of the traditional animated classic's charm. Those episodes of music have been trimmed from six songs to about two-and-a-half. Ferocity steps ahead of frolic and you might ask yourself how you feel about that when you watch "The Jungle Book."
Read More2016 Phoenix Film Festival special presentation
With full disclosure, this very writer is an absolute sucker for a satisfying "coming-of-age" film. Their youthful themes keep us young and sway our sensibilities to reflect on our own lives, no matter our age. Admirable coming-of-age films are always welcome, but the exceptional ones deserve to get shouted from the mountaintops. James Sadwith's "Coming Through the Rye" recently won Best Film and Best Screenplay honors at the 2016 Phoenix Film Festival. This infatuating dramedy earns that special distinction of exceptionality and warrants all of the volume one can muster.
Read MoreAdorned with the weights of divorce, loss, and tested friendship, “The Invitation” wears those issues like a cloak to hide its real menacing intent and implications underneath. Karyn Kusama’s film holds a marvelous poker face that siphons your piqued curiosity and unraveling attention. “The Invitation” might be labeled as a horror film, but it far better fits the prodigious “mindfuck film” subgenre. Enjoy the steady increased heart rate and spinning cerebrum this film has to offer.
Read MoreAny savvy film fan should know that first-rate musical biography films are less about the music and more about the artist. The music becomes extroverted accompaniment to the introverted human elements behind the persona. Presenting a career-best performance from Ethan Hawke, "Born to Be Blue" earns its place as one of the best jazz movies to grace the screen. The film is an impressive creative step forward for Canadian director Robert Budreau in just his second feature-length effort.
Read MoreIn the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, the adjective form of "special" can be defined as "held in particular esteem" and "readily distinguishable from others in the same category." For a film to earn that distinction it has to do more than have the word in its title, as is the case with the Jeff Nichols film "Midnight Special." It has to possess exemplary qualities to revere that enable it to stand out from its peers. As one of the most striking, imposing, and spell-binding original science fiction films in recent memory, "special" is fitting trademark for "Midnight Special."
Read MoreThrough two parallel veins of his filmmaking career, director Richard Linklater freely operates between free-wheeling fun and poignant realism with scant middle ground. His movies are either a party or a deep character study. Kick back and turn off the introspection for "Everybody Wants Some!!" This is a shameless dudes' flick and Party Linklater of the highest order. Those of you with Y chromosomes are going to love every minute.
Read MoreDo we all remember the infamy of William Hung from 2004? You should. Take William Hung, turn back the clock 80 years, and, here's the kicker, give him a judging audience that won't tell him he's bad. If you can do that, you can step into the foreign film "Marguerite" from French director Xavier Giannoli playing now at the Landmark Theater locations in Lincoln Park and Highland Park. Divided into five chapters, "Marguerite" is an immersive character study into a would-be singer's obsession with talent.
Read MoreTo sneak preview a later life lesson in this review, you could trade the Greek demographic of the central Portokalos family in "My Big Fat Greek Wedding 2" with any other American immigrant nationality and get much of the same effect. Nearly all people are being both defined by and embarrassed by their family. Whether you're Greek or not, you will watch both original and the sequel and poke fun at the similarities and differences. Such is an easy draw, but that charm has limits in a been-there-done-that sequel.
Read MoreFilm critics El'Ahrai Stanek and John Robinson are two Chicago area podcasters that have been reviewing films and talking shop on their "Harvey and Bob Show" since 2006, longer than most of us have been blogging or writing. As a founding director of the new Chicago Independent Film Critics Circle (CIFCC), I was invited to come and take part in their weekly podcast. Between the 14-minute mark and the 47-minute mark, El'Ahrai and John interview us about how we started the CIFCC, our backgrounds, and our goals going forward.
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