MOVIE REVIEW: Churchill

Brian Cox one of the most underappreciated character actors in the business today. He has been an accomplished and terrifically versatile mainstay through all levels and genres of film for over thirty years since turning our heads as cinema’s first Hannibal Lecktor in Michael Mann’s Manhunter. Cox is a consummate performer, brimming with fervid screen presence. From Braveheart to Super Troopers, he is never the weak link to any picture. Churchill offers a rare lead performance from Cox and, like the chameleon he’s always been, he reminds us of his indomitable intensity.

2017, 3 STARS, Foreign Film, Independent Film, MOVIE REVIEW, Video on DemandDon ShanahanJune 4, 20172017, 2017 Summer Movies, Churchill, Jonathan Teplitzky, Alex von Tunzelmann, Brian Cox, John Slattery, Miranda Richardson, Gary Oldman, Darkest Hour, Joe Wright, Winston Churchill, Sir Winston Churchill, The Railway Man, Burning Man, British Bulldog, Operation Overlord, D-Day, World War II, World War II movies, Julian Wadham, James Purefoy, Bernard Montgomery, King George VI, Dwight D. Eisenhower, Eisenhower, Clementine Churchill, David Higgs, Lorne Balfe, Care Hall, prosthetics, Michael Mann, Manhunter, Hannibal Lecktor, Braveheart, Super Troppers, leaders, Prime Minister, movie review, film review, movie commentary, film commentary, historical drama, Biopics, war films, anti-war films, life lessons, life lessons from film, life lessons from movies, foreign film, independent films, independent film, Every Movie Has a Lesson, Don Shanahan, Donald ShanahanComment

MOVIE REVIEW: Love, Lies

“Love, Lies” plays upon the decaying dichotomy orbiting the two women as they vie for love and validation against dignity and betrayal. It’s impossible not to feel the emotions imbued into the punctuating moments of expression through song that fully embody the conflict and romantic encumbrances weighing on the characters. The music is the vital and resonating fiber that unites the period atmosphere with the stirring portrayals of talent.

2017, 4 STARS, ADVANCE MOVIE REVIEW, Film Festival, Foreign Film, Independent Film, MOVIE REVIEW, Social MediaDon ShanahanMay 4, 2017AMC River East 212017, 2016, 2017 Asian Pop-Up Cinema, Asian Pop-Up Cinema, Love Lies, Seoul, Gyeongseong, Jo Eun-soo, Lee Byung-hoo, Korea, South Korea, Park Sung-woong, Yoo Yeon-seok, Reply 1994, Cold Eyes, The Wailing, New World, Japan, Park Heung-sik, Foreign films, foreign films, foreign film, life lessons from foreign films, life lessons from film, life lessons from movies, life lessons, melodramas, movie melodramas, film review, movie review, film commentary, movie commentary, Donald Shanahan, Don Shanahan, Chicago premiere, Danielle Garnier, Garnier Public Relations, Sophia's Choice, Sophia's Choice Presents Comments

MOVIE REVIEW: My Egg Boy

The trappings of “My Egg Boy” are firmly entrenched in melodrama, yet kissed with delightful fancy. The strength is in the dynamic writing to weave practical magic with fertile imagination. The romantic and symbolistic peaks and valleys built by Tien-Yu Fu are endlessly relatable even when characterized. What begins as whimsy evolves quite affectingly to something rapturously heartfelt.

SHORT FILM REVIEW: The Debt

2017 Chicago Irish Film Festival: Short Program II

Kids not only say the darndest things, but do the darndest things too. “The Debt” is a highly charming short film illustrating a child’s view of courtship and love. The romantic ways of the world are foreign to the young, so they make up their own ideas. Engaging and well-acted by youth performers, this short film will charm you to pieces.

2017, 4 STARS, Chicago Film Festival, Film Festival, Foreign Film, Independent Film, MOVIE REVIEW, SHORT FILMSDon ShanahanMarch 19, 2017The Logan Theatre2017, 2017 Chicago Irish Film Festival, Chicago Irish Film Festival, film festival, Festival review, Festival coverage, The Debt, Susie Power, Lee O'Donaghue, Eabha Last, Helen Flanagan, Denis Clohessy, Short Film, short film commentary, short film review, short films, Short films, Ireland, Irish-themed films, Irish, Irish films, Irish American films, independent films, foreign film, foreign films, Foreign films, life lessons from film, life lessons, life lessons from movies, life lessons from short films, life lessons from foreign films, life lessons from films, film review, movie review, film commentary, movie commentary, Donald Shanahan, Don Shanahan, Every Movie Has a LessonComment

SHORT FILM REVIEW: More Than a Barbershop

2017 Chicago Irish Film Festival: Shorts Program II

In the world of poker, they say all you need is a chip and a chair to play and be a factor. For a musician, all you need is a time and a place. Your voice and instruments can do the rest. Not every concert needs to be in front of hundreds or thousands of adoring fans powered by a stadium’s worth of light and speakers. A singer and a microphone can fit just about anywhere. Well, how about a barbershop, and not the quartet variety?

SHORT FILM REVIEW: Blackbird

2017 Chicago Irish Film Festival: Shorts Program I

Diverting from the other short films in this program at the Chicago Irish Film Festival, “Blackbird” leans to the existential and experimental. The abstract feel and weighty themes are in place to knock one’s socks off. However, in an ironic fashion, this is a short film that feels too short.

MOVIE REVIEW: Lift

Six very different people are stuck in an elevator, or “lift” if you will, as it is called across the Atlantic in Dublin. One of the occupants just beat lumps into a security guard and the rest are stuck fearing for their safety. This isn’t the most ideal place to find comedy, yet “Lift” fires a few quips at the expense of this predicament.

SHORT FILM REVIEW: Incoming Call

2017 Chicago Irish Film Festival: Shorts Program

“Incoming Call” has a dynamite premise that would make for a fascinating nugget of science fiction. The possible latitude one could take with the idea of warning the past about the future is endless. This film keenly distills and scales that down to microcosm level of a single person and the matter of picking up the phone.

SHORT FILM REVIEW: The Apparel

2017 Chicago Irish Film Festival: Shorts Program

Director Peter Delaney and writer Daniel Mooney flesh out miniature character study with decent results. Andrew Bennett gives a very solid performance to construct numerous shades of character within Joe. He is a man that is losing touch with his comfort zone. We never fully know his issues and we shouldn’t have to.

SHORT FILM REVIEW: First Kiss

2017 Chicago Irish Film Festival: Shorts Program

As it plays out its thirteen minutes, “First Kiss” is hilarious and charming in its tidy simplicity. Written by Fitzpatrick himself and directed by Patrick O’Shea, the short film generates the right amplitude of sparks cooled by the right temperament of sweetness.

MOVIE REVIEW: Julieta

Renowned Spanish filmmaker Pedro Almodovar seizes our attention and lights the fires of intrigue with human simplicity in “Julieta,” his 20th feature film and Spain’s entry this year for the Best Foreign Language Film Academy Award. Concocting a brew of passion coupled with remorse across personal history young and old, Almodovar unspools the tangled threads of a guilt-ridden woman’s heart. Adapted from three Alice Munro short stories, “Julieta” is a strong return to the female-focused storyscapes that have made him a legend.

MOVIE REVIEW: Worlds Apart

Directed by Christoforos “Christopher” Papakaliatis, “Worlds Apart” presents three narratives and three different flavors of passion. Each surrounds a Greek native in a burgeoning romantic relationship with an immigrant from another land. Thematically, all that transpires in the film riffs on recurring imagery and commonality with the mythical story of Eros, the Greek god of love. Layering a topical worldview tinged with allegory every step of the way, “Worlds Apart” is a mature and beguiling romantic drama.

EVERY MOVIE HAS A LESSON

by Don Shanahan

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