MOVIE REVIEW: The Old Guard

Charlize would be the one to tell Queen to take their romantic sweetness and shove it with harshness. That tone and timbre works just fine for the Academy Award winner who has been cementing this attitudinal career niche for the better part of a decade. Based on Greg Rucka’s 2017 Image Comics graphic novel featuring the art of Leandro Fernandez, The Old Guard combines its own brew of created legends intersecting modern settings and compulsions. Like its lead, The Old Guard has a toughness completely devoid of anything trite. The narrative screws might not be the tightest, but its aim is deadly enough to draw you in.

2020, 3 STARS, ADVANCE MOVIE REVIEW, Home Media, MOVIE REVIEW, Streaming, Video on DemandDon ShanahanJuly 8, 2020Comment

MOVIE REVIEW: Greyhound

There’s something to be said for a film that can constantly exude tautness. Some films will have stress and pressure, but not convey those traits with true tension. An element or two will have general solidity, but not have legitimate, durable steadiness. Like every battened down hatch on a warship cutting through its rough seas, the thrilling course of the new Apple+ Tom Hanks vehicle Greyhound throbs with tightness. Stutter, stumble or hesitate and a punctuating torpedo detonates your lack of focus.

2020, 4 STARS, ADVANCE MOVIE REVIEW, Streaming, Video on Demand, MOVIE REVIEWDon ShanahanJuly 6, 2020Comment

COLUMN: Top 10 Fascinating Netflix Movies and Documentaries about Business and Entrepreneurship

Many educationists have come to find increasingly innovative methods to deploy teaching methodologies. It is essential to know that education is basically defined as the process of facilitating the acquisition of viable knowledge and information which professionals and students can deploy and implement in their real situations. This opens a whole new avenue where popular forms of entertainment, such as educational movies and films, can be used to deliver a way of experiential learning that can help people to learn valuable lessons.

2020, Column, Editorial, GUEST EDITORIAL, Home Media, LIST, SPECIAL, StreamingDon ShanahanJuly 2, 2020Comment

DOCUMENTARY REVIEW: No Small Matter

Documentaries often carry a sharp specificity by design. The backers and filmmakers have zeroed in on a pointed topic or singular issue they feel needs a spotlight or, even stronger, a public wake up call. Sometimes, they downright demand it. The challenge of an exemplary documentary is to convince next to its natural aim to inform. Their demands need worth, especially if the subject is too narrow to the point that it is inconsequential. That’s where the documentary No Small Matter lives up to its title. The demand matches the worth.

2020, 4 STARS, DOCUMENTARY REVIEW, Independent Film, MOVIE REVIEW, Video on Demand, StreamingDon ShanahanJune 30, 2020No Small MatterComment

EDITORIAL: Lessons on the New Future of Movie Theaters

With several regions of America starting to re-open (including my own state of Illinois and city of Chicago), it was time to get on the stump and arm the cannons. I put some of what follows into spoken word recently on an episode of Mike Crowley’s “You’’ll Probably Agree” podcast, but the issue has grown since then. Click into the multitude of links in the lessons for the deeper referenced stories. They are well worth their reads and your attention. The theme of this all can be summarized as cautiously optimistic.

2020, Column, Editorial, SPECIAL, Streaming, Video on DemandDon ShanahanJune 27, 2020Comment

MEDIA APPEARANCE: Guest on the "Kicking the Seat" podcast talking the politics of "Irresistible"

The VOD debut of Jon Stewart’s new comedy Irresistible starring Steve Carell and Rose Byrne set off an impromptu new release edition of Ian Simmons’s “Reelpolitik” series on his Kicking the Seat podcast. The two of us looked into all of the leg pulls and the rug pulls to find and enjoy all the ways Stewart pointed fingers at parties to blame and mirrors at those that need to see those mentalities. Ian and I found this one to be a hoot and we hope it finds the right open minds and welcome audiences. Enjoy our thorough podcast chat linked below!

INFOGRAPHIC QUIZ: Junkyard Quiz of Iconic Film and TV Cars

Enjoy this game from our friends at LeasingOptionsUK! Click and drag with your mouse around the junkyard and find car parts from iconic film and TV cars. Click on a car part to select it and submit your answers. Press the “End Quiz” button at any time to view your final score. Hit the RULES button to learn more or press PLAY to begin the game.

2020, Column, Infographic, Social Media, SPECIALDon ShanahanJune 25, 2020Comment

INFOGRAPHIC: 6 Classic Bond Car Chases: Where Was He Really Going?

In the early James Bond movies, a technique known as rear window projection, or “driving a desk” was used to show a scene in the background of a stationary car (normally in a studio) to make it appear as though the car is in the middle of a high-speed car chase. This was due to the fact there were many places that it was practically impossible to take a full film crew, such as Times Square or other busy urban areas, due to the costs and restrictions in place at the time.

2020, Column, Editorial, Home Media, Infographic, Social Media, SPECIALDon ShanahanJune 24, 2020Comment

INFOGRAPHIC: The Evolution of Autonomous Cars On-Screen

Self-driving cars are becoming a more realistic prospect with each passing year as companies from the traditional (Toyota, Audi and BMW) to the more disruptive (Tesla, Google and Uber) race to be the first to produce an intelligent vehicle that can get you from A to B without you needing to lift a finger. There's a financial incentive for this urgency to be number one. The global market for autonomous vehicles is projected to be valued at $615 billion by 2026. So, it's no surprise this tech has captured the imagination of Hollywood since the swinging sixties. On-screen automation has been portrayed through predictions of future technology, supernatural forces, or partnerships with people working on the real deal. This has meant there's been no shortage of iconic self-driving cars on-screen.

2020, Column, Editorial, Essay, GUEST EDITORIAL, Infographic, LIST, Social Media, SPECIALDon ShanahanJune 24, 2020Comment

GUEST COLUMN: 10 Rules to Follow While Attending Film Festivals

by Kathrin Garner

Film festivals are a wonderful opportunity to see what’s new in the movie industry, but also to connect with people and hang out. The COVID-19 pandemic has changed the plans of many film festivals. Some of them pushed their dates, others got canceled, some got postponed, and so on. But, sooner or later they’re going to happen and when that time comes you’ll want to get the most out of the movie festival experience. We’re going to help you out with 10 rules worth following.

2020, Column, Editorial, GUEST EDITORIAL, Film Festival, Social Media, SPECIALDon ShanahanJune 24, 2020Comment

MOVIE REVIEW: Irresistible

Jon Stewart’s new film Irresistible holds a broad and powerful mirror up to the lies and guises of America’s election economy. Right when you think an outspoken personality like the beloved former host of The Daily Show is going to shout from his now-taller cinematic pontiff a chosen side or favorite, he remarkably doesn’t. This is an even-handed farce of finger-pointing where both political sides have dirty hands and the media in the middle is wholly and equally complicit. Stewart unleashes this cringing astonishment in a surprising movie that pulls your leg and also very rug right out from underneath you.

2020, 3 STARS, ADVANCE MOVIE REVIEW, MOVIE REVIEW, Streaming, Video on DemandDon ShanahanJune 22, 2020Irresistible, Jon StewartComment

GUEST COLUMN: Five Best Movies for the First Date

by Sandra Manson

There is a well-known expression about how much depends on the first impression. Imagine this situation: you met a charming girl on the NaughtyDate website, and you find out that she is a pleasant and sweet companion. Now you need to invite her to a first date, but what is the best way to arrange a meeting? A great option would be a movie. This approach has important advantages - firstly, for about two hours, you practically do not have to talk. Of course, you will discuss the moments of the film, but this is an interesting topic for conversation. Moreover, after the end of the film, you will already have a reason to talk. Secondly, you can understand if your partner likes such a pastime. Thirdly, just enjoy a good movie and teach aesthetic pleasure.