The 61st edition of the Chicago International Film Festival has boasted an unusually strong lineup of high-quality titles from around the world, including such significant works as “The Secret Agent,” “The Mastermind,” and “It Was Just an Accident.” However, if I had to pick just one favorite, I would have to go with “Silent Friend.”

Like so many contemporary R&B fans, I was gutted when it was reported that Michael Eugene Archer, better known as groundbreaking neo-soul artist D’Angelo, passed away on Tuesday at the too-damn-young age of 51, after a long, private battle with pancreatic cancer. The man was an elusive enigma, only dropping three studio albums–Brown Sugar (1995),

Who hasn’t at least once fantasized about switching lives with someone who, from a distance, seems to have a more comfortable, secure, happier existence? While Shakespeare and others created stories about characters pretending to be someone else, it was Mark Twain’s The Prince and the Pauper that popularized the idea of people in opposite circumstances trying out each

Season 3 of “The Diplomat,” Debora Cahn’s feast of political intrigue and personal drama, has landed on Netflix. If you thought the last two seasons were a headrush, you’re “read in” and ready. But before we jump into this cross-pollination of Sorkin-esque walk-and-talks and Rhimes-ian emotional bombshells, let’s get you caught up on the world-shaking

The FECK Awards spotlight the power of everyday heroes and bold visionaries who elevate humanity through action, proving that compassion and kindness aren’t just ideals, but powerful forces reshaping lives and communities Chicago (October 15, 2025) – Chaz Ebert—CEO of RogerEbert.com, humanitarian, film producer, and wife of the late Pulitzer Prize-winner Roger Ebert—today announced that

“Battlefield” has been around for over two decades. Still, even its most diehard fans would probably argue that it’s been a bit of a non-factor in the first-person shooter conversation for much of the second half of that timespan, after the disappointing “Battlefield V” in 2018 and “Battlefield 2042” in 2021, a game so broken

There’s something comforting about a well-done workplace comedy. It’s the relatability of people sanded down by capitalism, forced to go into cubicles or other office spaces like so many viewers do every Monday, which usually allows for a bit of perspective. Think your job sucks? At least you don’t work at the DMV. That’s the

Basic training in the United States Marine Corps is a lonely business. So lonely, in fact, that 18-year-old Cameron Cope (Miles Heizer, “13 Reasons Why”), the central protagonist of Netflix’s new series “Boots,” frequently has conversations with his hidden queer self. Though dressed alike, Cope’s concealed persona is blunt, witty, and encouraging, while the Cameron

When we look back at John Cusack’s expressive and bruised-heart romantic Rob Gordon in “High Fidelity” a quarter-century after the film’s release, there’s little doubt Rob was often a petulant and immature narcissist who filtered nearly every life experience only through what it meant to him. At times, it seemed like it would shock Rob

Collectors of physical media need to get their hands on Criterion’s box set of the year, a beautiful collection of the first ten films by writer/director Wes Anderson. Criterion has released Wes Anderson films before, but this is the first time they’ve assembled them into a box set, and they’ve marked the occasion with new