“Blue Is the Warmest Color” Transcends Controversy, Achieves Greatness
If you prefer films that hold you at a comfortable distance from the action, never daring to impinge on your personal space, then the cinema of Abdellatif Kechiche may not […]
Tag Archives: Chicago International Film Festival
CIFF Exclusive: Three Must-See Docs
Quixotic odysseys have captivated audiences ever since the dawn of storytelling. We love to watch characters attempt the impossible, defying the odds in their pursuit of an unlikely triumph. At […]
CIFF Exclusive: Tenderness and Cruelty on Barren Landscapes
Elusive dreams of fortune evaporate like the morning dew in several of this year’s CIFF selections. Poverty and violence are commonplace themes on the festival circuit, yet it takes a […]
CIFF Exclusive: “12 Years a Slave”
American cinema has never shied away from depicting human atrocity through a historical prism, though the history is rarely that of its own country. Nearly 150 years after the abolition […]
CIFF Exclusive: In Praise of Long Takes
One of the most refreshing things about an international film festival is its utter disinterest in catering to America’s overly indulged demographics. Studios are so petrified to lose their audiences […]
Kill Bill: Top Ten Chapters
If Stuntman Mike had hallucinated while getting beaten to a pulp in the final moments of “Death Proof,” his gleefully nihilistic fantasy may not have looked all that different from […]
Chicago International Film Festival: 2013 Preview
The 49th Chicago International Film Festival, running from Thursday, October 10th through Thursday, October 24th, has the best line-up to hit the Windy City in ages. Indie Outlook will be […]
CIFF Exclusive: Leslie Zemeckis on “Bound by Flesh”
Six days before her husband’s new star-studded drama, “Flight,” closes the 48th Annual Chicago International Film Festival, Leslie Zemeckis will be attending a screening of her fascinating new documentary, “Bound […]
CIFF Exclusive: Brad Lichtenstein on “As Goes Janesville”
One of the year’s best documentaries is Brad Lichtenstein’s “As Goes Janesville,” a remarkably even-handed portrait of the financial crisis and its impact on working-class Americans. The closing of a […]
CIFF Exclusive: Kris Swanberg on “Empire Builder”
From youth film festivals to organic ice cream, Kris Swanberg has found many ways of making her mark in the Windy City. Yet it’s her film career that has garnered […]
Indie Outlook 