Olympians takes a satirical look at Greek gods as if they decided to live as immigrants in America under the current administration. The premise here is that Zeus (Mel Brooks), Aphrodite (Meghan Sunder), and Ares (Samuel Hunt) have immigrated to America. They are basically locked up in a beautiful house because they’re illegal immigrants. Suddenly, Aphrodite finds herself arrested and thrown in jail. The cops essentially treat her like a Mexican immigrant especially with the accents…
"Chicago Comedy 2019: Olympians"Search Results for: chicago comedy film festival
March is one of my favorite times of year because of March Madness but it also means heading down to Austin for the 2019 SXSW Film Festival. Last year was my first SXSW Film Festival and it was a whole lot of fun. The festival launched the likes of Blockers, TransMilitary, Summer ’03, Most Likely to Murder and Fast Color (opening in theaters this month!) to name a few. Films followed from Sundance to SXSW including…
"SXSW 2019: My Most-Anticipated Films"
With the 2019 Sundance Film Festival starting up on Thursday night, here are a few of the films that I am excited to see at the Park City film festival. Late Night I’ve had a love of comedy since as long as I can remember. I moved to Chicago for improv/sketch comedy before somehow becoming a film critic. Late Night is hands-down one of my most anticipated films since the lineup was first announced in…
"Sundance 2019: My Most Anticipated Films"
If there’s a list that I don’t like having to put together, it’s list of the worst films in 2018. I say this because cast and crews put hard work into their craft of making these motion pictures. Sometimes, the final result isn’t close to what we would like these films to be. There is one film that I gave a lot of thought to putting on my list. Ultimately, I chose not to do…
"The Worst Films of 2018"
Flammable Children, while released as Swinging Safari in its native Australia, takes us back to the 1970s for a nostalgic comedy. The nostalgia starts the moment that “Spirit in the Sky” starts to play during the opening credits. It’s from this point where writer-director Stephan Elliott wisely introduces us to the people in the neighborhood along the beach. We’re introduced through Jeff Marsh (Atticus Robb), who serves as the narrator. We soon meet the Halls, Jones,…
"Chicago Film Festival 2018: Flammable Children"
A coming-of-age dramedy set in Chicago, Olympia is headlined by a delightful performance from writer-actress McKenzie Chinn. Olympia Wells (McKenzie Chinn) is approaching the crossroads of her life with tough decisions to make. These decisions come as the Chicago artist is approaching her 30th birthday. Some of these decisions aren’t so much because of her but because of her relationships. Her boyfriend, Felix (Charles Gardner), is moving to California in a few weeks with his…
"Chicago Film Festival 2018: Olympia"
What Funny Cow does is manage to tackle the subject of being a woman in comedy by showing a focus on the behind-the-scenes drama. Funny Cow (Maxine Peake) is a woman who looks to break into the comedy scene during the 1970s. She would continue her rise into the next decade. The film is grounded through the performances in British comedy clubs. Whether this format works is up to the viewer but I surely struggled…
"Chicago Film Fest 2018: Funny Cow"
Wolkenbruch’s Wondrous Journey into the Arms of a Shiksa, now known as The Awakening of Motti Wolkenbruch, may play into some comedic tropes that we’ve seen before but the humor is delightful. This film has a classic Woody Allen vibe going for it–only this film features Yiddish, German, and Hebrew. While I don’t want to say that Judith Wolkenbruch (Inge Maux) is the stereotypical Jewish mother, she comes very close. She wants her son, Mordechai…
"Chicago Film Festival 2018: Wolkenbruch’s Wondrous Journey into the Arms of a Shiksa"
The Great Buster: A Celebration is a well-deserved cinematic tribute to Buster Keaton–one of the greatest silent comedy stars to have ever lived. Discussing the great silent comedy stars must include Buster Keaton, Charlie Chaplin, and Harold Lloyd. Interestingly, Keaton starred in College as a response to Lloyd’s The Freshman. Where Lloyd starred as a freshman who played football, Keaton would play every other sport. As for Chaplin, he directed Keaton in 1952’s Limelight. This…
"Chicago Film Festival 2018: The Great Buster"
Beautiful Boy is a wonderfully acted film showing that Timothée Chalomet’s Oscar-nominated performance from last year was not a fluke. As wonderfully acted as the Felix van Groeningen film may be, the story of father-and-son, David (Steve Carell) and Nic Sheff (Timothée Chalamet), is such a sad one. When we first meet David, he’s in some sort of office looking to learn more about crystal meth. This is because his son, Nick, is an alcoholic and…
"Beautiful Boy: A Wonderfully Acted Film"