Woman a rousing tale of empowerment It was referred to as “The hardest test in all of sport.” Only five men had succeeded in accomplishing the feat and 12 others had perished in their attempts. To describe the conditions surrounding this challenge as “brutal” would be a vast understatement, the weather everchanging and the temperatures […]
Chuck Koplinski
Writing for Illinois Times since 1998, Chuck Koplinski is a member of the Critic's Choice Association, the Chicago Film Critics Association and a contributor to Rotten Tomatoes. He appears on WCIA-TV twice a week to review current releases and, no matter what anyone says, thinks Tom Cruise's version of The Mummy is a woefully underrated film.
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Johansson and Tatum shine in Fly Me to the Moon, Maxxxine and The Convert both go awry
Moon an unexpectedly delightful throwback Greg Berlanti’s Fly Me to the Moon uses the conspiracy theory about the faked moon landing as the background for, of all things, a romantic comedy. Seems a stretch but it actually works. Thanks to a script that weaves together factual information, more than a bit of conjecture and palpable […]
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Beverly Hills Cop sequel familiar but fun, The Moor a mess of a thriller
Familiar ground covered in fun Axel F I’m pretty sure we didn’t need another Beverly Hills Cop movie, but that being said, Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F is about as good as we should expect under the circumstances. Taking a page from the Top Gun: Maverick playbook, director Mark Molloy and the three (?) writers […]
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Horizon is a four-film passion project for Kevin Costner
Muddled start for Costner’s epic Horizon If nothing else, you have to admire the big swing Kevin Costner is taking with Horizon, a four-film passion project the actor/director has been contemplating for decades. Having personally invested up to $40 million into this endeavor, he’s taking no small steps in realizing his dream, the first and […]
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Daddio an impressive directorial debut, Family Affair a lighthearted look at May-December romance
Penn and Johnson take us for a ride in Daddio It’s been said that sometimes it’s easier to talk to a stranger than a friend. Writer/director Christy Hall takes that notion and runs with it in her impressive debut Daddio, an intriguing two-hander that’s essentially a prolonged confessional between a pair of troubled souls in […]
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Ghostlight one of the year’s best films, Thelma is feisty
Ghostlight a sincere beacon of hope Kelly O’Sullivan and Alex Thompson’s Ghostlight is prime fodder for nitpickers. It has its narrative flaws, and I would be the first to admit that key moments would likely never happen. And yet, I’m glad that I haven’t gotten so old and bitter that I take a hypercritical look […]
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Inside Out 2 an instant classic, The Watchers shows potential
Inside Out 2 an imaginative, witty and insightful classic What has made the Pixar films the gold standard of modern animation is their ability to not only dazzle us with their imaginative visuals and tickle our funny bones with their unique characters, but their ability to push us toward introspection. Inside Out 2 achieves this […]
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Glen Powell shines in Hitman, Hard Miles a familiar but positive journey, Summer Camp dull and predictable
Powell shines in clever Hitman Directed by Richard Linklater, Hitman is an inspired-by-fact dark comedy that gives Glen Powell the opportunity to show his range and make the case he’s worthy of the great expectations surrounding him. Employing a wry tone from the start, we see meek professor Gary Johnson (Powell) thrown into a dangerous […]
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Furiosa a solid action epic, Sight does a disservice to its subject
Miller’s Furiosa hums along in a different gear George Miller’s Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga is a solid action epic that, while it manages to deliver a twisted story and the kinetic aesthetic we’ve come to expect from him, falls short of the ground-breaking effort the filmmaker delivered with Mad Max: Fury Road. To be […]
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If an incomplete narrative, Turtles All the Way Down looks at teens’ mental health
Krasinski’s If an over-calculated misfire Scattered and confused, John Krasinski’s If is a misfire from start to finish, a film that promotes itself as a heart-warming fable yet comes off as overcalculated and obvious. Confusing and incomplete, the movie is nothing more than a collection of disjointed ideas that never coalesce into anything fully formed […]
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Planet of the Apes a daring film, but no originality for Mother of the Bride or Lazereth
Curious pacing mars Kingdom For a tentpole movie, Wes Ball’s Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes is a rather daring film that in some ways plays against “apectations” (sorry, couldn’t resist…). Deliberately paced, at times it seems as if the director is daring us to stay interested in this, the 10th film in the […]
