Michael Phillips

Now that she’s brought Aretha Franklin to the screen, ‘Respect’ star Jennifer Hudson has a next dream role: Oprah

August 9, 2021 at 7:00 a.m.

"Respect" opens in theaters Aug. 13. Now that "Dreamgirls" Oscar winner and Chicago native Jennifer Hudson has realized her 15-year dream of playing soul giant Aretha Franklin, who's next on...

The marquee of the Gene Siskel Film Center, 164 N. State St., in Chicago's Loop in 2002.

Reopening the Siskel Film Center ‘is a moving target.’ It opens Friday. Are Chicago audiences ready?

August 9, 2021 at 9:17 a.m.

On the Gene Siskel Film Center's website, there's a "Note on Public Health and Reopening," updated Aug. 4. On Friday, after a 16-month hiatus and with the delta variant complicating...

Zazie Beetz plays an unborn soul auditioning for a life on Earth in "Nine Days."

‘Nine Days’ review: What if you had to audition for your own life? Here’s the fascinating answer

August 5, 2021 at 10:44 a.m.

"Our Town," Thornton Wilder's gorgeous, rhapsodic bummer of a 1938 play, posed the big question: "Do any human beings ever realize life while they live it — every, every minute?"...

Adam Driver portrays a hostile standup comic in the movie musical "Annette."

‘Annette’ review: Adam Driver, Marion Cotillard and a puppet makes three in this darkly strange movie musical

August 4, 2021 at 1:42 p.m.

A film guaranteed to destroy all memories of the musical "The Prom," director Leos Carax's "Annette" proved a sensation at the 2021 Cannes Film Festival. This was for many reasons,...

Joel Kinnaman, John Cena, Margot Robbie, Peter Capaldi and Idris Elba take care of business in 'The Suicide Squad."

‘The Suicide Squad’ review: Now we can officially forget about the first ‘Suicide Squad’ movie

August 3, 2021 at 12:15 p.m.

Consider what has conspired against the populace since 2016. Cripes, so much. A president. A pandemic franchise with legs. A terrifying overload of homemade sourdough bread. Looking back, the first...

Northwestern grad is back in Chicago for an early preview of ‘Ma Belle, My Beauty,’ the movie about polyamory that won a Sundance award

August 3, 2021 at 10:17 p.m.

Here's filmmaker and 2016 Northwestern University graduate Marion Hill on the subject of polyamory, the theme around which her directorial feature debut spins its variations. "People often assume polyamory means...

All Stories

Now that she’s brought Aretha Franklin to the screen, ‘Respect’ star Jennifer Hudson has a next dream role: Oprah

Reopening the Siskel Film Center ‘is a moving target.’ It opens Friday. Are Chicago audiences ready?

‘Nine Days’ review: What if you had to audition for your own life? Here’s the fascinating answer

‘Annette’ review: Adam Driver, Marion Cotillard and a puppet makes three in this darkly strange movie musical

‘The Suicide Squad’ review: Now we can officially forget about the first ‘Suicide Squad’ movie

Northwestern grad is back in Chicago for an early preview of ‘Ma Belle, My Beauty,’ the movie about polyamory that won a Sundance award

How to play a Broadway cliche without being one, according to ‘Schmigadoon!’ scene-stealer Ariana DeBose

‘Jungle Cruise’ review: Dwayne Johnson and Emily Blunt head up ‘Pirates of the Caribbean’ without a paddle

‘Stillwater’ review: Matt Damon makes French connections as the American outsider in a frustrating drama

‘The Green Knight’ review: Dev Patel’s quest for glory is a Camelot fantasy unlike any other