If you're like us, you're already getting pumped up for the Oscars! Not. Jeez, let's get past New Year's first, O.K.? Oops. Too late. The Chicago Film Critics Association has already jumped the gun and handed out their awards. To the surprise of no one the big winner was No Country for Old Men, the new Coen brothers movie that both impressed and disturbed us when we saw it last month. It won four awards in all (Best Picture, Best Director, Best Adapted Screenplay, and Best Supporting Actor for Javier Bardem). We're very pleased that Bardem won; there wouldn't be much of a movie without his chilling character study, and he damned well better win the Oscar. more ›

As far as predictions go, it looks like we were pretty darn prescient. Sort of. The awards were indeed spread far and wide among many films. more ›

Perhaps it is the image of Jennifer Hudson walking down the red carpet at the Academy Awards, but we've been getting inundated with talk of the event. The barrage has had its affect though, we have some Oscar related events for you this weekend, well except for one that involves vintage beer drinking, but we all need a break some time. We are all about gluttony and package deals this weekend, enjoy! We would suggest... more ›

Now that the Super Bowl is finally over, we can at last turn our attention to things which are truly important ... like The Oscars. Really we wanted to talk to you about this last week, but a hunch told us that it just wouldn't register. The Oscars are now less than three weeks away. Speculation is flying fast and furious. Maureen Ryan at the Trib is whining about how Hollywood "seems to have gone... more ›

Oscar fever has got us doing cartwheels all over the Chicagoist offices, as well as placing more than a few friendly wagers over who will be taking home those expensive doorstops come February 25th. But that’s not the only thing going down in the film world at the moment. A little gathering in Park City, Utah called the Sundance Film Festival has been underway since last week. And lest you shrug your shoulders indifferently just... more ›

Women haven't exactly taken over Capitol Hill, but there are now more women in Congress than ever. And at the risk of stating the obvious, Hillary is basically the first-ever serious contender for the White House. But things in the film industry couldn't be more different. more ›

This week, the Chicago Film Critics announced its nominations for the best films and cinematic performances of the past year. Babel picked up nine nominations, while The Departed and The Queen followed with six. As usual, the CFCA made some unconventional choices: Maggie Gyllenhaal picked up a nod for her work in the largely ignored Sherrybaby, and an adapted screenplay nomination went to A Prairie Home Companion. The CFCA also fueled the comebacks of Ben... more ›

Chicagoist hasn’t posted much about the Oscars this year, and we think we’ve figured out why. more ›

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,... more ›

If you ever doubted how seriously everyone out in L.A. takes the Oscars, look no further than the Oscarbeat blog. more ›

There were a few surprises this morning when the Chicago Film Critics announced the winners of their annual awards. Past award slates from the CFC have been known for the occasional maverick choices and this year was no exception. Joan Allen, the pride of Rochelle, IL earned a Best Actress win for her performance in The Upside of Anger while Mickey Rourke was named Best Supporting Actor for Sin City, makeup be damned! Maria Bello’s... more ›

Last Tuesday, Chicagoist went down to the Landmark Century Theater to check out the 2005 awards for the Midwest Independent Film Festival. (See our earlier interview with the founders.) The evening kicked off with a social that included a rock band made up of cats, free drinks, and a drawing for screenwriting software. Around seven thirty, everyone piled into the theater to watch the ceremony. Half the awards show was spent announcing the winners... more ›

The Super Bowl of the movie industry begins in about four hours or so and we couldn’t be more inebria...er, excited. Did anyone else know Oscar producer Gil Cates had a blog? Does anyone else know who Gil Cates is? Or care? His most recent entry includes such nuggets as: Without giving away anything from his performance, I can tell you that Chris will be hilarious. “He better be or it’s my ass on the... more ›

Unlike the Grammys, people seem to really “care” about the Oscars. Tubthumping pub-dwellers insist both shows “only recognize crap and not real art” but with respect to the Oscars, it’s not entirely true. Not that it matters as the ratings for the Oscars rise and fall on the box office success of the nominated films. And even those who haven’t seen any of the best picture nominees have an interest in the Oscars—even if they’re... more ›

Several years ago, Chicagoist was reading an interview with a Big Famous Movie Critic who was asked why critics sometimes fall all over themselves to single out a particular film for near unanimous praise. BFMC replied that as critics, they are required to see almost every movie that’s released and most of them are crap. So when a film (or a filmmaker) comes along with an original, intelligent work that is also entertaining, he and... more ›