Christopher Nolan's second episode in the relaunch of the Batman franchise, The Dark Knight, takes a daring turn towards embracing a darker, bleaker vision of the masked vigilante and his increasingly odd rogues gallery of adversaries. Batman Begins did a good job of saving the Bruce Wayne/Batman character from the travesties that Joel Schumacher rained down upon our hero, excised the remaining camp from previous cinematic versions, and rebuilt Batman to more accurately reflect......

As everyone in Chicago should know by now (if only due to reading Chicagoist), the Batman Begins sequel, The Dark Knight, started filming here last week. In the course of preparation, crews turned the old Post Office on Harrison into a Gotham-ready edifice. Planners and conservationists have wondered what to do with the hulking 1920s relic ever since it was vacated in 1996, but we doubt any of them wanted to set it on fire.......

Chicago? Tall buildings. A lake. A river. Stadiums. Sports bars. 'L' tracks. All the elements, in the minds of producers, needed to make our city look like somewhere else. Earlier this week it was announced that the new TBS show "My Boys," which is set in not-really-Chicago, has been picked up for nine additional episodes. When we posted about it earlier, we opined that it's really not so successful with capturing the spirit of Chicago,......

With the exception of The 40 Year Old Virgin getting shut out of all major categories,* there were few surprises when the Oscar nominations were announced this morning. The full list is up at Oscar.com. Brokeback Mountain picked up eight nominations; Crash and Good Night and Good Luck snagged six; Capote and Munich picked up five, while Syriana and History of Violence garnered two each. In technical categories, Memoirs of a Geisha scored six nominations,......

The Tribune’s Julia Keller outs herself as a huge nerd this morning by throwing her two cents into a debate that has torn apart grade school playgrounds for decades: who’s better, Superman or Batman? In the piece, Keller speaks for all Superman fans who have had to put up and shut up in the face of all the hype over Batman Begins. She notes that fans of Superman are often mocked for their allegiance to......

As the city’s nighttime streets lend an air of authenticity to this weekend’s number one movie and Vince Vaughn's new flick shuts down a portion of Michigan Avenue for most of the day, the Sun-Times reminds us why The Blues Brothers is responsible for bringing moviemaking back to the city of Chicago. As we watched Batman Begins this weekend, we noticed three things: 1) It is possible for Chicago’s mass transit system to get worse......

While not quite approaching the fever pitch the final Star Wars film achieved, there’s still plenty of excitement over Batman Begins, opening tomorrow in Chicago (and everywhere else in the country) before its planet-spanning mega-release this weekend. Most event movies are critic-proof and this one is no exception. But early reviews have been good: the Tribune’s Michael Wilmington gives it three stars and it’s currently pulling down an 86 percent rating at Rottentomatoes.com. The......

Much of the ink spilled over Chicago’s renaissance as a filmmaking hotspot touts all the big Hollywood productions that have set up shop here like Batman Begins and the currently in production Stranger Than Fiction. But independent artists are the ones who are keeping the scene viable and giving local crews the chance to work and network. Several small fests showcase the work of guerilla filmmakers; recent gatherings include Fast Forward, the Really Short Film......

The oft-repeated anecdote about the Illinois film industry in the early 21st Century was that we were so unattractive to filmmakers that the musical Chicago was filmed in Toronto. Well apparently things have improved due to the spate of films lensing in the City of Big Shoulders because the Illinois Film Office is throwing a big ass party to celebrate…itself. According to a press relea…er, news story at ABC7chicago.com, the Illinois Film Office will host......

The new Batman movie, Batman Begins, directed by Christopher Nolan and starring Christian Bale, is going to be doing some shooting in Chicago. Tomorrow there is an open casting call for extras so it's your chance to be in the movie. Here's the dillio: Joan Philo is the extras casting director (she's also done High Fidelity, Chain Reaction and ER) and will be looking for "students and all ethnic groups" for one- and two-day......