As busy I get from time to time, I find that I can't see every movie under the sun, leaving my friends and colleagues to fill in the blanks for me. As poetically as I think I wax about movies on this website as a wannabe critic, there are other experts out there. Sometimes, it inspires me to see the movie too and get back to being my circle's go-to movie guy. Sometimes, they save me $9 and you 800+ words of blathering. In a new review series, I'm opening my site to friend submissions for guest movie reviews.

2020, GUEST CRITIC, Independent Film, MOVIE REVIEW, Social MediaDon ShanahanOctober 20, 2020Comment

MEDIA APPEARANCE: Quoted on Redfin Blog Talking Home Theaters

My website was approached recently by the home buying website Redfin and their blogging area through writer Mike Cahill. They were looking for contributors to offer some insights on home theater setups to be included in a collected piece. Funny thing is, I’m not fancy. I don’t own a single 4K device or even a big screen TV either. What I do have is a 1080p-enabled DLP projector and a big blank white wall. That setup makes a 120-inch picture that costs half as much as a super-nice TV half that screen size. Call me a home cinema MacGyver because I’ll take that kind of look and savings. I impart a little of that recommendation in Redfin.

2019, Chicago Film Festival, EVENT, Independent Film, Media Appearance, Social Media, SPECIALDon ShanahanOctober 11, 2020Quality ComixComment

GUEST CRITIC #39: Mudbound

by Lafronda Stumn

As busy I get from time to time, I find that I can't see every movie under the sun, leaving my friends and colleagues to fill in the blanks for me. As poetically as I think I wax about movies on this website as a wannabe critic, there are other experts out there. Sometimes, it inspires me to see the movie too and get back to being my circle's go-to movie guy. Sometimes, they save me $9 and you 800+ words of blathering. In a new review series, I'm opening my site to friend submissions for guest movie reviews.

2019, 2020, 3 STARS, GUEST CRITIC, Independent Film, MOVIE REVIEW, Social MediaDon ShanahanOctober 11, 2020Clemency Comment

GUEST CRITIC #38: Green Book

by Lafronda Stumn

As busy I get from time to time, I find that I can't see every movie under the sun, leaving my friends and colleagues to fill in the blanks for me. As poetically as I think I wax about movies on this website as a wannabe critic, there are other experts out there. Sometimes, it inspires me to see the movie too and get back to being my circle's go-to movie guy. Sometimes, they save me $9 and you 800+ words of blathering. In a new review series, I'm opening my site to friend submissions for guest movie reviews.

2019, 2020, 3 STARS, GUEST CRITIC, Independent Film, MOVIE REVIEW, Social MediaDon ShanahanOctober 11, 2020ClemencyComment

MOVIE REVIEW: A Rainy Day in New York

Appealing as it may be swinging from the affable to the morose, that mismatch is the glaring irregularity found in Allen’s new film A Rainy Day in New York debuting on Amazon Prime October 9th. The flow of uptown affluence and worldly whims spoken by the central figures of the film is perky and magnetizing. The words enchant to no end, yet are staggeringly uncharacteristic when you watch them coming from a cast of 20-somethings, even if they are played by talents like Timothée Chalamet, Elle Fanning, and Selena Gomez.

2020, 3 STARS, ADVANCE MOVIE REVIEW, Home Media, Independent Film, MOVIE REVIEW, StreamingDon ShanahanOctober 9, 2020Comment

MEDIA APPEARANCE: "Feelin' Film" FF+ 1999 Fantasy Movie Draft

Friend of the page Aaron White, co-host of the Feelin’ Film podcast and member of the Seattle Film Critics Society, has reignited his FF+ brand of smaller plate podcast episodes. His goal is to collect spoiler-free discussions of several current movies combined into one show. Rather than fly solo, he’s using his FF+ platform to invite other critics to share in the chat. For this episode, Aaron invited me with his usual co-host Patrick Hicks to fawn over Disney+’s Mulan. He sure didn’t have to twist my arm.

FESTIVAL COVERAGE: Drive-In features come to the 56th Chicago International Film Festival

The 2020 edition of the Chicago International Film Festival will bring several of their Gala and World Premiere presentations to socially distant audiences from the comfort of their automobiles. The Chi-Town Movies Drive-In location in the trendy Pilsen neighborhood hosts the Opening Night documentary Belushi, the Closing Night Nomadland, and six more films in-between. Tickets are available only through online advance sales. The full festival runs from October 14-25.

GUEST CRITIC #37: It Chapter Two

by Lafronda Stumn

As busy I get from time to time, I find that I can't see every movie under the sun, leaving my friends and colleagues to fill in the blanks for me. As poetically as I think I wax about movies on this website as a wannabe critic, there are other experts out there. Sometimes, it inspires me to see the movie too and get back to being my circle's go-to movie guy. Sometimes, they save me $9 and you 800+ words of blathering. In a new review series, I'm opening my site to friend submissions for guest movie reviews.

2019, 2020, 3 STARS, GUEST CRITIC, Independent Film, MOVIE REVIEW, Social MediaDon ShanahanOctober 3, 2020ClemencyComment

GUEST CRITIC #36: Just Mercy

by Lafronda Stumn

As busy I get from time to time, I find that I can't see every movie under the sun, leaving my friends and colleagues to fill in the blanks for me. As poetically as I think I wax about movies on this website as a wannabe critic, there are other experts out there. Sometimes, it inspires me to see the movie too and get back to being my circle's go-to movie guy. Sometimes, they save me $9 and you 800+ words of blathering. In a new review series, I'm opening my site to friend submissions for guest movie reviews.

2019, 2020, 3 STARS, GUEST CRITIC, Independent Film, MOVIE REVIEW, Social MediaDon ShanahanOctober 3, 2020ClemencyComment

GUEST CRITIC #35: Waking Ned Devine

by Juergen Strenger

As busy I get from time to time, I find that I can't see every movie under the sun, leaving my friends and colleagues to fill in the blanks for me. As poetically as I think I wax about movies on this website as a wannabe critic, there are other experts out there. Sometimes, it inspires me to see the movie too and get back to being my circle's go-to movie guy. Sometimes, they save me $9 and you 800+ words of blathering. In a new review series, I'm opening my site to friend submissions for guest movie reviews.

2019, 2020, 3 STARS, GUEST CRITIC, Independent Film, MOVIE REVIEW, Social MediaDon ShanahanOctober 3, 2020ClemencyComment

MOVIE REVIEW: The Glorias

Unfiltered regrets, debated wisdom, and long-held dreams replace the microphone soundbites and the picket signs. Those scenes carry genuinely serene and affecting moments of reflection. They may be shot to look whimsical, but they reach to gild exposed and admitted personal flaws within the central figure. Call this respectful hero worship and the most traditional or packaged film Taymor’s ever made if you must. However, what’s left (political pun intended) is well-earned pride.

GUEST CRITIC #34: Me Before You

by Adrian Johansen

As busy I get from time to time, I find that I can't see every movie under the sun, leaving my friends and colleagues to fill in the blanks for me. As poetically as I think I wax about movies on this website as a wannabe critic, there are other experts out there. Sometimes, it inspires me to see the movie too and get back to being my circle's go-to movie guy. Sometimes, they save me $9 and you 800+ words of blathering. In a new review series, I'm opening my site to friend submissions for guest movie reviews.