The Chicago Critics Film Festival, May 3rd through 9th

SING SING – Opening night film is inspiring. Director Greg Kwedar presents this heartfelt, serious, but also the humor of what happens with relationships of prisoners who get involved in the RTA theater program that gives them a purpose in prison.  In attendance were the director who started the program, Brent Buell and Paul Raci who plays Buell, plus RTA alums, Clarence “Divine Eye” Maclin,  Sean Dino Johnson also starring an unforgettable ensemble cast of formerly incarcerated actors who have major roles in this film which was shot at Sing Sing. Colman Domingo gives another stellar performance as  proDivine G (Colman Domingo), imprisoned at for a crime he didn’t commit, who finds acting in a theatre group alongside other men who are incarcerated in this story of resilience, humanity, and the transformative power of art. Director Greg Kwedar will do Q & A. Also in attendance, Actor/co-writer Clarence “Divine Eye” Maclin + stars Paul Raci and Sean “Dino” Johnson.  Watch for our Red Carpet interviews. 

DANDELION – Director Nicole Riegel’s film gets off to a slow  start, but gains momentum following  struggling Cincinnati singer-songwriter Dandelion (Kiki Lane – If Beale Street Could Talk) in a downward spiral who makes a last-ditch-effort for exposure with a gig at a motorcycle rally in South Dakota. That’s where she meets Casey (Thomas Doherty), a guitarist who walked away from his dream long ago. As Dandelion joins Casey’s nomadic group of struggling musicians, the kindred spirits make music together and strike up a whirlwind romance. Through heartbreak and perseverance, Dandelion finally finds a deeper understanding of her artistic journey, finally discovering  a voice of  her own. Watch for our in-person interview of Kiki Layne talking about finding her own voice as a singer, and collaborating with Aaron and Bryce Dessner writing songs for the film.

GHOSTLIGHT -Writer Kelly O’Sullivan working with co-director Alex Thompson have created a well-crafted and acted emotional drama that deals with loss and grief. But it is also tender and touching with humor as a family fights through tough moments dealing with a tragic loss.  The 3 main leads who play the Mother, Father and Daughter are, in actuality, a family. Dan (Keith Kupferer), plays a melancholic middle-aged construction worker having trouble grieving. His wife, Sharon (Tara Mallen) is a theater director just trying to keep her family together while dealing with Daisy (Katherine Mallen Kupferer), their talented but very troubled daughter, whose energy is off the charts. When Dan finds comfort and community in a misfit community theater company putting on a Shakespearean tragedy that mirrors his own, he’s forced to confront his buried grief and that of his family. Will it pull them together? Directors Kelly O’Sullivan and Alex Thompson in Attendance and cast members in attendance for  Q&A. Watch for our interviews.

BABES – Written by Ilana Glazer and Josh Rabinowitz and directed by Pamela AdlonDirector Pamela Adlon follows inseparable childhood best friends Eden (Ilana Glazer) and Dawn (Michelle Buteau), having grown up together in NYC, now firmly in different phases of adulthood, showing the trials and tribulations without holding back. Who says women can do comedy. Glazer and Buteau go for it in this film showing the gross, sad, but also funny experiences with all their bodies go through during pregnancies, from probing to pooping and labor pains. When carefree and single Eden decides to have a baby on her own after a one-night stand, their friendship becomes even more intense. It’s a story about female friendship. Watch our interview with Director Pamela Adlon who is open about the challenges of doing this, her first feature and female comedy. Watch for our interview and the Q & A with Adlon.

I SAW THE TV GLOW – Teenager Owen (Justice Smith)  is just trying to make it through life in the suburbs when his older classmate, Maddy (Brigette Lundy-Paine) introduces him to The Pink Opaque, a mysterious late-night TV show that is a cultish, sci-fi, semi-horror show with primitive characters and effects. But it leaves an impression with these two kids trying to find themselves. Director Jane Schoenbrun was going through transition at the time and wanted to show the struggle of teens for self-discovery and self-identity. In the pale glow of the television, Owen perceives a very different view of reality which he finally realizes after his Mom dies and Maddy goes missing following the final episode of TV Show.  Watch Jane Schoenburn Q & A soon.

THE LAST STOP IN YUMA COUNTY – Great cast in a crime drama that is very theatrical, but no less fun to experience. When the gas pumps run dry, a collection of characters end up in a desert outpost centered on the gas station diner. With the savvy waitress, Charlotte, having to keep it together with a knife salesman, nasty bank robbers, the motel operator, the imposing Native American and his pickup, an elderly couple, and the local police stranded waiting for the gas truck to show up. How much trouble could they get into? A lot. And the drama is interspersed with comedy and even turns to action. This one surprised us. Written and well directed by Francis Gallupi. So well cast starring Jocelin Donahue, Jim Cummings, Richard Blake, and Nicholas Logan, Michael Abbott. Don’t miss this one!