Jennifer Day

Even with Ralph Fiennes and Carey Mulligan front and center, little in the trailer of "The Dig" seemed particularly promising,? I gave it a go and it's good. Some of it's true, too: Along the east coast of Britain in 1939, with war clouds looming, self-taught Suffolk archeologist Basil Brown was hired by ailing widow Edith Pretty to discover if anything of value lay beneath the earth mounds on her property. There was indeed, and the remains and artifacts of a sixth-century Anglo-Saxon burial ship stunned the world. Fiennes is Basil; Mulligan is Edith; around the halfway point of director Simon Stone's film, the focus (for better or worse) shifts to others in the orbit of the excavation effort, particularly characters played by Lily James and Johnny Flynn. Based on the 2007 novel by John Preston, "The Dig" freely mixes fact and invention, overloading the crises a bit but generally succeeding. A fair amount of screenwriter Moira Buffini's dialogue plays out as Terrence Malick-styled voiceover, while the camera focuses on the stark beauty of the surroundings, and men and women actually doing the work. The results are trim, well-made and quite moving. So much for my prejudgments. (Netflix) — Michael Phillips

Watch this. Eat that: A dining rec that even Gordon Ramsay would love

January 15, 2021 at 1:56 p.m.

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From pizza to doughnuts, burritos to Spam musubi, here are our favorite takeout orders and restaurants in the Chicago area.

Takeout 100 — our guide to Chicago’s best restaurants for pickup and delivery right now

January 12, 2021 at 9:21 a.m.

Takeout, once an afterthought, something to grab on the way home from work, has become a lifeline to restaurants — and to us. With dining rooms closed since late October...

Watch this. Eat that: ‘Soul’ demands inspired comfort food

January 8, 2021 at 1:39 p.m.

Yes, we're all staying in, but that doesn't mean you can't make a night of it. Our critics offer the perfect takeout to pair with your next movie night. Watch...

Book of the moment: ‘Audience of One: Donald Trump, Television, and the Fracturing of America’

January 7, 2021 at 3:31 p.m.

Shelves upon shelves of books have been published about Donald Trump and his presidency. (For the full sweep, see Washington Post book critic Carlos Lozada's incisive bibliography, "What Were We...

People view the annual ZooLights display at the Lincoln Park Zoo on Monday, Dec. 7, 2020.

Chicago books and authors in 2020: Our list of 36 suggests it was anything but a slow year

December 16, 2020 at 9:00 a.m.

This might sound humbug-y for the holidays, but you know what I want for Christmas? At least a week where I am not reading a new book that was written...

12 December 2018, Lower Saxony, Hannover: A bookseller packs books as Christmas presents in a branch of the bookseller Hugendubel. Books still belong to the most popular Christmas presents of the Germans. (to dpa "Christmas business is sluggish for retailers" from 14.12.2018) Photo: Julian Stratenschulte/dpa (Photo by Julian Stratenschulte/picture alliance via Getty Images)

Gift guide: Shopping for book lovers? Chicago booksellers have you covered.

November 17, 2020 at 11:03 a.m.

Need ideas for the book lovers on your list? We asked Chicago's independent booksellers for their recommendations. Like many small businesses, local bookstores have struggled to stay solvent during the...

These Thanksgiving mashed potatoes are teeming with rich, creamy notes brought by heaps of butter, sour cream and cream cheese.

We won’t just miss our families this Thanksgiving, we’re going to miss the dishes they make. Here are a few of the recipes we’ll miss the most.

March 12, 2024 at 12:09 p.m.

It seems that every day for weeks, as coronavirus case numbers keep going up, the warnings have been mounting: Stay home. Don't gather in big groups. Don't travel. For many...

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