After two “Sonic the Hedgehog” movies that involved Hollywood court ordering the blue blur to do the same mundane story as every popular property does by shipping him to Earth and spewing pop culture references as the basis of humor, it's come to the point that Sonic fans, young and old, might develop Sonicholm Syndrome. If you can't run faster than the mediocrity, accept it. Be that it may, one of the standout characters in “Sonic the Hedgehog 2” was Idris Elba's vocal take on the red warrior-obsessed barbarian Knuckles the Echidna. Having no knowledge of Earth's customs, lending to no pop c ..read more

For the past twenty-seven years the San Francisco Silent Film Festival has unearthed treasures from the silent film era and presented them with context and curation for audiences of the City by the Bay. Over the decades the festival has grown from presentation only to an organization that helps restore and preserve this fragile art. When I lived in San Francisco during grad school over a decade ago, I was lucky enough to attend many events hosted by SFSS, from their flagship festival back when it was hosted at the historic Castro Theatre to their epic presentation in 2012 of Abel Gance’s “Nap ..read more

In honor of Ebertfest's 25th anniversary this year, we have compiled excerpts from some of the most memorable screenings at our film festival over the years. Click on each bolded title and you will be directed to the full article. And if you have any special memories of Ebertfest between 1999 and 2023, please send them to us at ebertfest@yahoo.com. Thank you, and See You At The Movies! Chaz Ebert Ebertfest Flashback: Donald O’Connor on “Singin’ in the Rain” I didn’t learn any new steps until I went into movies. There was a picture called “Sing, You Sinners,” and the director wanted me t ..read more

For nearly a quarter century, the Chicago Palestine Film Festival has showcased film gems by or about Palestinians. One of the largest global populations of Palestinians lives in Chicago, concentrating in southwest suburban Bridgeview, also known as “Little Palestine.” After a narrow vote, Chicago became the largest American city calling for a ceasefire in Gaza. While violence peppers this century’s Middle East history, the current genocide in Gaza not only casts a dark cloud over all the viewings but also makes these films feel that more urgent. Palestinian films often explore four topi ..read more

Andy Kaufman doesn’t want you to watch his biopic. At the start of “Man on the Moon,” Kaufman (played by Jim Carrey) appears on screen, addressing us directly, using the squiggly voice he’d wield on stage and on “Taxi.” “I would like to thank you for coming to my movie,” he says before admitting, “I wish it was better, you know, but it is so stupid. It’s terrible. I do not even like it! All of the most important things in my life are changed around and mixed up for ‘dramatic purposes.’”  That opening was funny in 1999, but in 2024, it might be even better. Biopics have rarely been a crea ..read more

Minhal Baig’s “We Grown Now” is a film masterfully tied to the emotive potential of place. A period piece centered in Cabrini-Green in the early '90s, the film is as Chicago born and bred as the characters it loves throughout its runtime. Malik (Blake Cameron James) and Eric (Gian Knight Ramirez) are two young boys, best friends since birth as they say, living in Chicago’s infamous Cabrini-Green housing project. They live their lives in the quotidian but nostalgic ways many kids do: going to school, eating dinner with their families, and entertaining themselves in all the moments in between ..read more

Will there ever be a version of “Rebel Moon—Part 2: The Scargiver” that makes the movie and its franchise seem essential? Director and co-writer Zack Snyder has already tried to whip up his fanbase by teasing “R-rated” versions of the first two entries in his ongoing “Star Wars” ripoff cycle, a lifeless homage to that other IPed-to-death sci-fi series. The well-covered struggle to release the Snyder cut of “Justice League” notably improved what was only ever a passable super-programmer. It’s also established an unfortunate precedent for how “Rebel Moon” is now being advertised, as a victim of ..read more

Set in 1992 in the northernmost United States, where criminals run drugs and guns over the border with Canada, "Blood for Dust" is a hard, nasty crime thriller about hard, nasty men. Directed by Rod Blackhurst from a script by David Ebeltoft, it tells you what kind of movie it is from its gruesome opening image and continues in that mode for another hour and forty-five minutes. It's anchored to a lead performance by Scoot McNairy that ranks with the best of classic neo-noir.  McNairy plays a traveling defibrillator salesman named Cliff. He and his wife Amy (Nora Zehetner ..read more

“Dusk for a Hitman” is a husk of a great film. Director Raymond St-Jean has a sturdy central character—though the crime drama is based on the real life of Montreal fixer Donald Lavoie, much of it is fictional—made stronger through a deft ability to conjure a grim atmosphere around an actor capable of landing emotional grace notes in a threadbare story. Contract killings are carried out with cold efficiency and continual negotiations of loyalty, and these basic mechanics are enough to breezily pass the time. But the film’s incuriosity of the cutthroat world inhabited by Lavoie and his fracture ..read more

Say what you will about “Stress Positions,” the new indie comedy that marks the feature debut of writer-director-costar Theda Hammel: it's not overly consumed with coming across as likable to potential viewers. Not only does it take us back to the early days of COVID-19 (an era that many audiences may not feel particularly inclined to revisit, especially in the context of a comedy) but populates its narrative with some of the most spectacularly solipsistic and generally irritating characters imaginable. As approaches go, this is undeniably chancy, I suppose. Still, while some viewers may find ..read more