Doc 10 2025 – Antidote
Sometimes, when you watch a documentary, you can’t help but wonder, “How did this get made?” That’s one of the internal questions I had while watching “Antidote”, which follows three risk-taking whistleblowers and activists facing grave consequences for their courageous efforts to expose the murderous and repressive regime of Vladimir Putin. Emmy-winning British director James Jones gets immersive access to the lives of those fighting against an authoritarian system, offering great insight and a look at true heroism. The film premiered last June at the Tribeca Film Festival and has been picked up by Frontline for a May 6th release here in the States. But before that, you can catch it here in Chicago at the Doc 10 Film Festival. Read more…
Doc 10 2025 – Ghost Boy
American documentarian Rodney Ascher has made shorts and contributed to feature-length documentaries, but he’s perhaps best known for helming two documentaries that received almost cult status. 2012’s “Room 237” was about how Stanley Kubrick’s “The Shining” has been interpreted over the years, and 2015’s “The Nightmare,” about sleep paralysis, was scarier than any horror movie released that year. His latest is “Ghost Boy”, which will play in Chicago tomorrow night as part of the Doc 10 Film Festival, allowing viewers to interpret the world through the mind of someone without a voice, trapped in a paralyzed body. Read more…
Doc 10 2025 – Move Ya Body: The Birth of House
Doc 10, the annual all-documentary film festival, has returned to Chicago for its 10th year. That’s right, it’s finally 10 for 10! As always, the festival plucks the best documentaries from other festivals, such as Sundance, Tribeca, Hot Docs, DOC NYC, and other top-tier film festivals nationwide. For many local film enthusiasts, this will be the first chance to see these extraordinary films; some will even get an exclusive premiere here, and many often wind up receiving Oscar nominations. Read more…
SINNERS (2025) review
written by: Ryan Coogler
produced by: Zinzi Coogler, Sev Ohanian, and Ryan Coogler
directed by: Ryan Coogler
rated: R (for strong bloody violence, sexual content and language)
runtime: 137 min.
U.S. release date: April 18, 2025
Ryan Coogler has directed five movies so far, and each has been great, if not good. Four of them have starred Michael B. Jordan, all in lead roles save for one in a cameo, and were composed by Swedish composer Ludwig Göransson. They revitalized the “Rocky” franchise with 2015’s “Creed,” and they delivered one of the best MCU movies in 2019 with “Black Panther”, and their latest endeavor is “Sinners,” an impressive period genre film he also wrote and co-produced. It’s proof that these three artists should continue to work together as much as possible. Free of the confines of IP, Coogler takes an assured, unique approach to genre filmmaking by focusing on character details and music of the Mississippi Delta in the early 1930s, gradually building to some bloody and thrilling vampire action. “Sinners” is sweaty and sensual, paying homage to paranoid horror thrillers, with a spot-on sensational ensemble cast that benefits from Coogler’s confident vision and rhythm. Read more…
THE LEGEND OF OCHI (2025) review
written by: Isaiah Saxon
produced by: Richard Peete, Traci Carlson, Isaiah Saxon, and Jonathan Wang
directed by: Isaiah Saxon
rated: PG (for violent content, a bloody image, smoking, thematic elements, and some language)
runtime: 95 min.
U.S. release date: April 18, 2025
Perhaps what can be most appreciated about “The Legend of Ochi” is that it harkens back to when family-friendly fantasy movies were commonplace at the multiplex. This unique A24 feature brings to mind the Amblin Entertainment days of “E.T.”, a touch of Jim Henson magic (think “The Dark Crystal”), and the world-building of “The NeverEnding Story”, all of which were targeted, yet not limited to, young minds of the 80s. In his feature debut, American writer/director Isaiah Saxon has created a fantasy adventure that may wind up as timeless as those classics, with the quirk of Taika Waititi’s underrated “The Hunt for the Wilderpeople” and the spirit of Hayao Miyazaki. While those influences come to mind, Saxon has simultaneously rendered a charming and imaginative tale that feels all its own, incorporating puppetry and animatronics with rich matte paintings and subtle CGI. Read more…
THE UGLY STEPSISTER (2O25) review
written by: Emilie Blichfeldt
produced by: Maria Ekerhovd, Axel Helgeland, Christian Torpe, and Jesper Morthorst
directed by: Emilie Blichfeldt
rated: not rated
runtime: 102 min.
U.S. release date: April 18, 2025
When it comes to the classic story of Cinderella and her ugly stepsisters, the noteworthy adjective isn’t just a description of outward appearance; it also reflects what’s inside. For her directorial debut, “The Ugly Stepsister”, Norwegian writer/director Emilie Blichfeldt is flipping the switch, offering a wild alternate take that is wholly original. It’s a graphic feminist body horror fairy tale, not for the faint of heart, but it’s also a disturbing look at mental illness, manipulative pressure, and social status obsession. This shift in perspective is fascinating, asking viewers to look at an old story through a different lens, in a dark feature that boasts an impressive lead performance and is surrounded by superb production design and an infectious score. Read more…
THE PRESIDENT’S WIFE (2023) review
written by: Léa Domenach
produced by: Léa Domenach and Clémence Dargent
directed by: Léa Domenach
rated: not rated
runtime: 95 min.
U.S. release date: April 18, 2025
The French 2023 political comedy “Bernadette” is finally making its way to the States, retitled “The President’s Wife”. It stars French actress Catherine Deneuve as Bernadette Chirac, a French politician and the widow of former president Jacques Chirac. The tone is set early on, as text appears on the screen saying this is a story loosely based on the life of Bernadette Thérèse Marie Chirac, but “be beware, we warn you, it is, above all, a work of fiction.” Co-written and directed by Léa Domenach, making her feature-length debut here, “The President’s Wife” is an offbeat biopic, giving the subject of politics some lively energy. However, there’s a sense that there would be a more inspiring story here if the approach had been a bit more serious. Read more…
NEIL YOUNG: COASTAL (2024) review
produced by: Gary Ward
directed by: Daryl Hannah
rating: not rated
runtime: 102 min.
U.S. release date: April 17 (theatrical – one night only)
“It’s going to be the first time I play in front of anybody in almost four years,” folk-rock legend Neil Young says in the black-and-white trailer for the documentary “Neil Young: Coastal.” “I’m petrified.” While we spend a lot of time with the artist as he makes his way up and down the West Coast on a solo tour in 2023, we never learn why he feels that way. Directed by his wife, Daryl Hannah, the documentary’s goal is more about capturing Young rather than having him engage in any probing questions. You won’t learn much about the Canadian maverick musician here, and even if you’re a die-hard fan, you might be disappointed at the documentary’s lack of illumination. Read more…
I’M STILL HERE (2024) review
written by: Murilo Hauser and Heitor Lorega
produced by: Maria Carlota Bruno, Rodrigo Teixeira, and Martine de Clermont-Tonnerre
directed by: Walter Salles
rated: PG-13 (for thematic content, some strong language, drug use, smoking, and brief nudity)
runtime: 138 min.
U.S. release date: December 14, 2024
When we meet Eunice Paiva (Fernanda Torres) during the cold opening of Brazilian director Walter Salles’ latest film, “I’m Still Here,” she is swimming in the ocean. When the camera follows her coming up for air, we hear the sound of military transport helicopters flying over her head. Automatically, something seems off. What place and time is this film set in? It could be a dystopian future, but it’s actually in the past when Brazil was under a strict and often violent military dictatorship from 1964 to 1985. The audience is immediately hooked, drawn into an engrossing real-life tale, co-written by screenwriters Murillo Hauser and Heitor Lorega, that adapts the 2015 memoir Ainda Estou Aqui by Marcelo Rubens Paiva, Eunice’s son. “I’m Still Here” is free of Oscar moments and takes an unhurried approach that is often quietly devastating, albeit thoroughly immersive throughout its entire runtime. Read more…
THE FRIEND (2025) review
written by: Scott McGehee and David Siegel (screenplay) and Sigrid Nunez (novel)
produced by: Scott McGehee, David Siegel, Liza Chasin, and Mike Spreter
directed by: Scott McGehee and David Siegel
rated: R ( R for language including a sexual reference)
runtime: 120 min.
U.S. release date: April 4, 2025
“The Friend” is a movie that knows that dog-lovers want to know in advance if the dog dies. At least, I’d rather know upfront since I’ve been emotionally scarred by a handful of movies from the past, from “Old Yeller” to “Hatchi: A Dog’s Tale.” So, I’ll do you a service early on and let you know the dog in “The Friend” does not die. The dramedy, written and directed by Scott McGehee and David Siegel, is an adaptation of author Sigrid Nunez’s 2018 National Book Award winner of the same name, and it’s primarily a touching and sincere examination of companionship, free of cloying saccharine. The titular “friend” can refer to either a human or a canine since the story touches on both mammals’ mental and emotional health. Read more…
