Journalist, Author & Syndicated Columnist
If you attended Perkins Bass Elementary School in Chicago, you may remember a substitute teacher named Mr. Lennix. That’s Harry Lennix to you. After appearing on “E.R.” and “The Practice” on television and in films such as “Clockers” and “Mo’ Money,” the former South Sider who now resides in Los Angeles has co-starring roles in the upcoming sequels to “The Matrix.”
Valentine’s Day is here and we’ve been there, done that–and may not have had a particularly good time at it, either. So how about settling on a sure thing: a delicious take-out dinner (including a nice dessert, of course) from your favorite restaurant and renting a good DVD or two. It doesn’t matter if you’re in love or out. Here are some selections to please every movie palate.
Is no relationship better than a bad one? Yup. The problem is, most of us don’t know we’re in a bad one until we’ve managed to break free.
Long before “La Cage Aux Folles,” “Tootsie” and the much-maligned “Bosom Buddies,” Tony Curtis and Jack Lemmon were making like women in “Some Like It Hot.” Curtis returns to the gender-bending format in the musical version of “Some Like It Hot,” which opened Tuesday night at the Rosemont Theatre. This time around, instead of playing one of the randy young men posing as a woman, he portrays a randy old man who falls in love with one of the women who really is a man.
If you want to get philosophical about “National Security,” you could ask yourself this: Would you be able to forgive and perhaps even befriend the man who wrongly accused you of a crime that got you sent to prison? No? How about if that man was Martin Lawrence? ‘Cause that’s what this action-comedy buddy pic is asking of the viewer.
There are a few stereotypes which neither sex seems to mind perpetuating. Men are deathly afraid of marriage. A bachelor party isn’t complete without strippers. It’s better to take chances than settle for a middle-class life. Each of these elements plays a component in the plot developments (such as they are) of the comedy “A Guy Thing,” but none of them are fleshed out in a manner that’s even vaguely interesting, much less plausible.
You know Jeremy Piven. Or at least you think you do. Chances are you attended Evanston Township High School with him, or were in acting classes with him at his parents’ Piven Theatre Workshop, or knew someone who knew someone who did.
The first film ever released on DVD was the Beatles’ “A Hard Day’s Night.” When it came out in the mid-1990s, it was an anomaly. Gadget geeks were attracted to the shiny new format that promised to replace bulky videocassettes, but the public wasn’t so sure. They remembered the fate of laser discs, Beta tapes and 8-track cartridges.
It’s not just toys, books, CD box sets and collector’s edition DVDs this holiday season; video games are also a good bet to show up under Christmas trees. While the sluggish economy has dampened many retailers’ spirits, the video game industry is actually celebrating. U.S. sales of game consoles, software and accessories increased by 25 percent from last year and will exceed the $6 billion mark before the year is out.
Craig Nicholls, the diminutive frontman of the Vines, set the stage for Q101’s annual Twisted 9 megaconcert Sunday at the Allstate Arena when he lost his footing and fell into the photo pit early in the Vines’ half-hour set. Crawling back onstage, Nicholls threw his guitar around enough to show that while he was p.o.’d and embarrassed, he wasn’t hurt.
Unlike most radio stations’ holiday extravaganzas, WTMX-FM (101.9) takes a less-is-more approach. Instead of glomming eight or 10 bands to play a marathon show in an enormodome, the station known as the Mix selects a couple mainstream acts to headline each year. The result rarely is cutting edge, but almost always a pleasant experience.
“Blast!” represents every band geek’s revenge. Though the show evolved from the routines of the Star of Indiana drums corps, make no mistake about it. This is no school production and there are no nerds in “Blast!,” which just opened at the Ford Center for the Performing Arts, Oriental Theatre.
It is nearing lunchtime on the set of “The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers”–which opens Wednesday–but there still are a few more shots to complete before they will be dismissed. A beam of light radiates above the actors, making them appear even more angelic than they will be on screen. With their flaxen, waist-length hair, these elves are the gorgeous supermodels of the movie. Even the horses know it.
Winter break is upon us and the kids already are complaining, “I’m bored.” After you’ve run the gamut of reading together, baking cookies and playing board games, how about treating them to a kid-friendly DVD or video? Need suggestions? Read on for some of our holiday-favorite picks.
Gina Oswald is a fictional character, but you’ll recognize her immediately when you see her cheesy schtick in the Noble Fool Theater’s revival of the holiday revue “Roasting Chestnuts: Oy! It’s Christmas.” She is the performer whose insincerity rings through with every verse. She is the entertainer who doesn’t realize her moment has long since passed. And to her whipped co-stars, she is the lipsticked tyrant who rules her brood with an iron fist.
Are you ready for some football? TV isn’t the only place you’ll find some good games, especially if you’re into interactive sports where there’s little chance you’ll get hurt (outside of a little carpal tunnel, perhaps). Here we try out the slew of new video games on the market, telling you which score touchdowns and which fumble near the goal line.
Tori Amos has one of those ethereal voices that can make even the mundane sound compelling. Whether she’s performing her breakthrough hit, “Silent All These Years,” or tackling Eminem’s misogynist ” ’97 Bonnie & Clyde” from the woman’s point of view, Amos conveys emotions that reach the listener’s soul.
There are plenty of unintentionally funny moments in “Extreme Ops.” When a terrorist mistakenly assumes the women are CIA operatives, he intimidates them with threats of death. Oh, and yes, he’d like to see the two women kiss each other. Accused of being a sick freak, he gleefully responds, “Sick freak … with a rifle.” Well, he’s got ya there.
The Goo Goo Dolls did the best they could Friday night at the Chicago Theatre. But they were playing to an audience that probably didn’t attend a lot of rock concerts. How else could you explain a bunch of grown men [and women-but let’s face it, most of them were guys] who would hurl fluorescent glow sticks at the stage and think the band would enjoy it.
Viggo Mortensen has 30 minutes left before he has to return to the set to reshoot a scene for “The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers,” which will be in theaters next month. Dressed in character as Aragorn, he is muddied, tired and looking forward to digging into the food he’s carrying on a tray. But first, he searches the make-shift cafeteria for his son Henry. As he walks past the cast and crew, bystanders aren’t sure whether to look away or bow to the oddly regal actor.