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Movie Reviews

Miracle on the Golf Course

We all know Chicago is a sports town that has been home to legends on a variety of basketball courts, football and soccer fields, hockey rinks, and so forth. Add to that the putting green occupied by Windy City golfers, of whom there have been an increasing number in recent years. I am not a

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Movie Reviews

Desire Is the Catalyst: Gregg Araki on “I Want Your Sex”

With “I Want Your Sex,” Gregg Araki mounts a long-awaited return to filmmaking in the same surreal, provocative key that long ago cemented his status as a true icon of queer independent cinema.  At the center of his latest is a volatile BDSM relationship that develops between contemporary artist Erika Tracy (Olivia Wilde) and her

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Movie Reviews

Season Two of “Diarra from Detroit” is Nancy Drew for Grown-Ups

Sprinkled throughout the narrative of the sophomore season of “Diarra from Detroit” (relocated to Paramount+ after the shuttering of BET+ this year) are references to beloved stories in which a gang of friends comes together to solve a puzzle. “Scooby-Doo” gets a shoutout, so does “The Goonies.” But in the opinion of this writer, season

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Movie Reviews

Everything for Someone: San Diego Comic-Con 2026 Part 2

San Diego Comic-Con always has a few up-to-the-minute costumes (like someone dressed as Cyclospora lettuce), and a few looks especially popular among a wide range of people. This year, I saw Monkeys D. Luffy from “One Piece” in all shapes, sizes, and ages, easy to spot with the red vest, blue pants, and straw hat.

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Movie Reviews

What Could Have Been: Kaylee Hottle (2007-2026)

From Jean Harlow and James Dean through Simone Battle and Anton Yelchin, entertainment history is filled with instances of performers dying just as audiences had begun to appreciate how much they had achieved at a young age, and what incredible potential they had when they were taken. Just added to that awful roll call: Kaylee

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The Grownup Guide to a Cheap Omaha Day Trip

Free art, free music, unique movies and dancing. Omaha gives adults a full day and evening on less money than you’d think. Here is the plan, with prices where they matter. Start with free art Admission at Joslyn Art Museum is free every day, and so is the parking. The

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Movie Reviews

“Star Trek: Strange New Worlds” Keeps Boldly Swinging in Tone in Season 4

As a “Star Trek” fan, it’s hard not to feel the bittersweet sting of another set of Wilderness Years coming. With Paramount feeling the sweet sting of budget cuts and an impending merger with Warner Bros., it feels like the higher-ups at the Big Blue Mountain are closing up shop on the Final Frontier. Its

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Movie Reviews

It’s Just You and Me Now, Sport: On “Manhunter: The Final Cut”

When Michael Mann‘s “Manhunter,” an adaptation of Thomas Harris’ Red Dragon, was released in August 1986, it was not a success by any means—it received largely mediocre reviews that dismissed it as a case of style over substance and those reviews, combined with a title that meant little to potential viewers, a cast of largely

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Movie Reviews

Chicago, Home of Great Music and Newspapers 

There I was in the spotlight, alongside my daughter, Sonia, playing Blues harmonicas onstage in front of a lively crowd. Was this some sort of a surreal dream? It certainly felt like one in the moment. But this was, in fact, an actual event that occurred on a Friday morning earlier this month.  It all

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Movie Reviews

“Ride or Die”: Two Best Friends, Too Many Lies, and a Good Reason to Get a Fake Passport

“Ride or Die” arrives on Prime Video this week, and its title is accurate in multiple ways. Calling someone your “ride or die” means they’ve got your back no matter what: you need to bury a body, they’ve got the shovel; you need a getaway driver, they’ve already filled up the gas tank. Adding another

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