Author Archives: Dann Gire

Kathryn Bigelow’s tense, muscular Iraq war film, written by embedded journalist Mark Boal, is hardly fawning in its depiction of a U.S. soldier who uses the war as an excuse to abandon his family and avoid domestic life. It focuses on a military bomb disposal unit run by Sgt. James (an impressive Jeremy Renner), who […]

The After Hours Film Society presents Olivier Assayas’ bittersweet poem to growing up, growing old and making room for the next generation at 7:30 p.m. on Monday, July 12 at the Tivoli Theater in Downers Grove. Admission is $9. This film has not been rated. Running time is 102 minutes.

Nerdy Denis (Paul Rust) chats with the unattainable Beth (Hayden Panettiere) in “I Love You, Beth Cooper.” If there’s any doubt that Buffalo Grove High School graduate Larry Doyle wrote the screenplay for “I Love You, Beth Cooper,” consider the opening scene in which graduating nerd Denis Cooverman gets in trouble with a school administrator, […]

An egomaniacal fashionista (Sacha Baron Cohen) prepares to become an international superstar in the comedy “Bruno.” Soon after I had seen Sacha Baron Cohen’s new comedy “Brüno,” a studio publicist asked me what I thought of it, and the only words that came to me were: “It’s an eyeball-gouging, eardrum-splitting, conscience-searing, butt-busting, throat-grabbing, gaydar-exploding brain […]

When you think about it, a lot of places can tell filmmakers how to make movies: Columbia College. UCLA. USC. NYU. But how many of them can tell filmmakers ways to avoid bad reviews of their movies? I can. I offer 100 ways to warn filmmakers – beginners and veterans – on how they can […]

Larry Doyle For the record, Larry Doyle really wanted the high school in the new movie he scripted, “I Love You, Beth Cooper,” to be called Buffalo Grove High School. After all, Buffalo Grove High School was what he called the school in his award-winning 2007 book (of the same title). He named it after […]

I truly hated this despicable piece of French misogyny. A straight-laced middle-aged attorney (Fabrice Luchini) gets his conservative world rocked by a flirtatious TV weathergirl (Louise Bourgoin, channeling Britney Spears) who reduces him to a puddle of pheromones during an important trial. His Stoic bodyguard (Roschdy Zem, channeling Barack Obama), who has a history with […]

Lambs Farm in Libertyville (I-94 & Rte. 176) will feature a series of family films (including “Space Jam,” “Land Before Time,” “Babe and others) on Friday nights in July. The films will be shown “drive-in” style at Lambs Farm’s outdoor big screen (weather permitting). Admission is $4 per person and includes popcorn and drink (the […]

The Omnimax Theater at Chicago’s Museum of Science and Industry will premiere “Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince” in IMAX format with midnight screenings Wednesday, July 15 through Sunday, July 19. General admission is $15, plus regular admission to the museum. Go to msichicago.org or call (773) 684-1414 for details (including additional show times) and […]

Genevieve (director/writer Nia Vardalos) dates a handsome entrepreneur (John Corbett) in “I Hate Valentine’s Day.” Ever since her 2002 sleeper romance “My Big Fat Greek Wedding” struck box office gold, screenwriter/actress Nia Vardalos has practically made a side career out of squandering a personal fortune in good will and popularity. With the release of “I […]