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Aidan O'Malley | Thursday, April 2, 2020
As the coronavirus pandemic continues its solemn march across the country (there are now nearly 200,000 cases in the U.S., and that’s only those who’ve been tested), Americans everywhere are turning to the leading expert on infectious disease: a Matt Damon movie. “Contagion,” released in 2011, has taken on mythological proportions in the last few
Aidan O'Malley | Thursday, March 19, 2020
Legend has it that in 1994, as Pixar was putting the finishing touches on the one and only “Toy Story,” director John Lasseter and writers Pete Docter, Andrew Stanton and Joe Ranft gathered during a lunch break and asked a simple question: “What will we do next?” Their answer came in the form of napkins.
Aidan O'Malley | Wednesday, February 12, 2020
Margot Robbie had a busy weekend. On Sunday, the Aussie actress attended the 92nd Academy Awards. Robbie attended not only as a member of the “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood” cast but also as a nominee, having been recognized for her role in “Bombshell.” She lost to Laura Dern in “Marriage Story.” But the
Aidan O'Malley | Wednesday, February 5, 2020
Ranging from introspective documentaries to original narratives, the 12 student films chosen for the program were curated from production courses (both introductory and advanced) in the Department of Film, Television and Theatre. Final class projects became official competition pieces: to be selected from roughly 75 short films to screen for the public was an honor
Aidan O'Malley | Thursday, January 16, 2020
From the very first scene of “Marriage Story,” you can tell you’re in good hands. If you go to the movies a lot, you know what I mean: that nameless, soaring feeling you get when you realize you’re watching something special. But what makes “Marriage Story” particularly exciting isn’t just that this realization comes so
Aidan O'Malley | Thursday, December 5, 2019
Despite having aired its final episode nearly 20 years ago, there’s something about “Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood” and its titular, real-life protagonist that seems particularly relevant today. Just last year, Oscar-winning documentarian Morgan Neville explored Fred Rogers’ life and legacy in “Won’t You Be My Neighbor,” a poignant film that implored its audience to try a
Aidan O'Malley | Friday, November 15, 2019
Upon its release in 1980, Stanley Kubrick’s “The Shining” polarized critics. In fact, at the first-ever Golden Raspberry Awards, not only did Shelley Duvall compete for Worst Supporting Actress but so, too, did Kubrick for Worst Director. But, like the majority of Kubrick’s films, it was only a matter of time before “The Shining” became
Aidan O'Malley | Monday, November 4, 2019
Nestled in the AMC River East just a stone’s throw away from its eponymous waterway, the Chicago International Film Festival (Oct. 16-27) quietly came to life. In its 55th year of competition, CIFF is the longest-running film festival in the country, but you wouldn’t know it just from going. Despite its buzzworthy lineup and a
Aidan O'Malley | Tuesday, October 15, 2019
For all its technical wizardry and for every commercial that claims “you’ve never seen anything like it” — “Gemini Man” is a movie you have certainly seen before. Quite an obvious reason for that has to do with the film’s script, which sat rotting in development hell for 20 years — literally. First conceived by
Aidan O'Malley | Wednesday, September 25, 2019
The phrase “Ad Astra” is Latin for “to the stars.” The movie “Ad Astra” makes reference to this in its opening with a red, inky font that calls to mind the opening crawl of “Blade Runner;” the word “replicant” practically bleeds. It’s the first of many allusions director James Gray (“The Immigrant,” “The Lost City