- “Dutton Ranch” Keeps the Barn Doors Open for the “Yellowstone” Franchise (May 14, 2026)
The last we saw of Kelly Reilly’s Beth and Cole Hauser’s Rip in the series finale of “Yellowstone,” they had just settled into their new home, a ranch in the quiet outpost of Dillon, Montana. For one perfect, sun-dappled moment, it appeared as if Beth and Rip and their teenage ward Carter (Finn Little) might be able to shake off the ghosts and the pain of the past, and find something approaching tranquility.
Fat. Chance.
Cut to the premiere of the spinoff/sequel series “Dutton Ranch.” Before we even get to the obligatory title card sequence with beautifully atmospheric, neo-Western imagery set against the typically rousing theme from Taylor Sheridan Universe stalwarts Brian Tyler and Breton Vivian, Beth and Rip’s dreams of an idyllic life are shattered. I’ll not reveal the circumstances, other than to say that Beth sizes up the situation and says, “We start again,” and the next stop is Rio Paloma, in South Texas, with a new home for Beth, Rip, and Carter. They purchase a legacy property from a family and rename it Dutton Ranch.
Beth, Rip, and Carter quickly learn that while the tragic and blood-spattered events of Yellowstone are in the rearview mirror, they’ve somehow managed to take root in ANOTHER hotbed of conflict. This is a place where disputes are settled with fisticuffs and guns, where racism and class warfare often bubble to the surface, where revenge and subterfuge are the order of the day, and where the bond of family and friendship is strong. And oh yeah, a potential formidable enemy lives just down the road, and will stop at nothing if you get in their way. It’s as if everyone in this (fictional) town has been waiting their whole lives for the Dutton-Wheelers to show up just so they can ratchet up the conflicts.
(In classic “Yellowstone” franchise fashion, characters occasionally pause amidst the chaos to wax poetic, e.g., Beth saying of Texas, “Sky doesn’t stop here. It’s like you can see forever,” and Rip replying, “Well, baby, if you look hard enough, maybe you can.” Now let’s get back to the action!)
L-R: Cole Hauser as Rip Wheeler and Kelly Reilly as Beth Dutton in Dutton Ranch, episode 1, season 1, streaming on Paramount+, 2026. Photo Credit: Emerson Miller/Paramount+.
With Chad Feehan serving as creator and showrunner (yet reportedly exiting before the show’s premiere), “Dutton Ranch” exists within a smaller world than “Yellowstone”; I don’t think anybody in this series is going to run for governor. Still, like its predecessor, this is a satisfying mix of intrigue, action, and modern Western soap opera, set against the backdrop of the breathtaking yet unforgiving South Texas plains. Reilly and Hauser pick up where they left off and continue their run as one of the strongest, sexiest, most badass TV couples of the decade. They’re joined by an outstanding cast of series regulars, led by two treasured veteran stars in Annette Bening and Ed Harris.
The quality of the writing and the acting is such that it takes only one or two scenes to become familiar with a wide range of characters—some world-weary but warmhearted, some with evil intentions oozing from their pores, others a bit more…complicated. Each episode is like a well-marbled ribeye with plenty of meat on the bone; in fact, one memorable sequence actually revolves around a perfectly grilled steak, and Beth uses her wiles to make sure that particular steak gets put in front of the right man.
As the setbacks and conflicts pile up, Rip exclaims, “What the f— is going on around here?” Rip, we hear ya. “Dutton Ranch” plays like a game of high-stakes Whac-A-Mole for Rip and Beth, with a fresh challenge or obstacle popping up with nearly every sunrise.
Bening plays Beulah Jackson, a kind of Texas counterpart to the late John Dutton; Beulah is the matriarch of the largest and most powerful family ranch in the area, and she rules with an iron fist. (It takes a while to buy into Bening playing such a ruthless character, especially because she’s wearing glasses that make it look like her most dangerous activity is needlepointing after two glasses of Chablis. But we’re talking about a world-class actor. She brings it.)
Annette Bening as Beulah Jackson in Dutton Ranch, episode 2, season 1, streaming on Paramount+, 2026. Photo Credit: Lauren Smith/Paramount+.
Harris’ Everett McKinney—now there’s an All-American name—is a Vietnam veteran who is literally a veterinarian, and looks like he might become a kind of father figure to Beth. There’s a scene where Beulah and Everett sit on a porch and talk about things that were and things that never will be, and Bening and Harris are simply and quietly masterful together.
Other notables include J. R. Villarreal as Azul, a veteran ranch hand who quickly earns Rip’s trust; Jai Courtney and Juan Pablo Raba as Beulah’s sons, and they’re both big trouble in very different ways; and Natalie Alyn Lind as a local girl with a rebellious streak who casts an immediate spell on Carter, who is in WAY over his head.
“Dutton Ranch” hits the ground running and sets up a half-dozen storylines with long-term potential, while creating a whole new branch of the Yellowstone tree. Mostly, though, it’s the continuing story of Rip and Beth, with Hauser and Reilly shining in career-defining roles.
Premieres on May 15 with a two-episode debut, with new episodes releasing weekly on Fridays. Four episodes of the nine-episode season were made available for critics.
- Netflix Turns Up the “Heat” With Its Own “Power” in Hokey Crime Thriller “Nemesis” (May 14, 2026)
The first thing you need to know about “Nemesis,” the latest from “Power” creator Courtney A. Kemp and her partner Tani Marole, is that it is deeply silly. It features lines like a diamond thief saying to his boss, “Call me Sydney Sweeney, because these bitches are all-natural,” or the lead thief telling his crew, “My name may be Coltrane, but I do not play that improvisational shit when it comes to jobs.”
The second thing you need to know is that “Nemesis” is deeply—deeply—indebted to Michael Mann’s 1995 crime thriller “Heat.” That’s nothing new for crime stories, mind; “Crime 101” was practically a copy-and-paste, and that came out just a few months ago. But the spin here is that Kemp and Marole asked themselves, “What if we told another LA-set game of cat-and-mouse between a workaholic cop and an equally dogged criminal mastermind, but the protagonists were Black? And what if we told that story over eight melodramatic hours?”
That over-the-top-ness is central to “Nemesis”‘s DNA, and it’s liable to entertain and frustrate in equal measure. The beats and conventions of this kind of cops-and-robbers story are followed to a T, right down to both men losing themselves in the obsessions of their jobs. The cop in question is Detective Isaiah Stiles (“Abbott Elementary”‘s Matthew Law), your classic loose cannon who breaks the rules but gets the job done; he’s haunted, of course, by past failures, including guilt over the death of a trainee years ago at the hands of a gang of masked robbers he was pursuing. He’s convinced that the group is still operating, and is the same one that just pulled a big job at a high-stakes poker game.
Nemesis. Y’Lan Noel as Coltrane Wilder in episode 102 of Nemesis Cr. Saeed Adyani/Netflix © 2026
Thing is, he’s right; the mastermind behind that heist is Coltrane Wilder (“The First Purge” lead Y’Lan Noel), a pillar of the community who moonlights as a master thief with a four-man crew. Between still grieving his wife Ebony’s (Cleopatra Coleman) miscarriage, and one of his cohorts, Deon (Quincy Isaiah), constantly slipping up and getting in over his head (think Kilmer in, well, “Heat”), ‘Trane is looking for a way out. That means pulling a few “last big jobs,” and fast. That leaves less time for Stiles to sniff him out, especially since he clocks early on that ‘Trane is behind it all. He just doesn’t have the evidence, and a cohort of police superiors (half of whom—Domenick Lombardozzi, Michael Potts, Chris Bauer—are “The Wire” alumni) warn him ad nauseam about the consequences of his obsession to his career and the force.
For the most part, “Nemesis” plays all of these conventions out in derivative fashion, with a slightly soapier twist given the show’s bona fides (“Power” was similarly silly, though the dialogue is especially tin-eared here; “Diamonds are a girl’s best friend, but cash is for grown-ass women,” after all). Frustratingly, its shaggiest episodes also happen to be the ones directed by Mario Van Peebles, who has to fight through all the table-setting that must occur before the really wacky stuff can ensue. There are some fun flourishes in his hours: Coltrane struts into the poker game dressed almost exactly like Nino Brown in “New Jack City” (which Van Peebles also directed and starred in), and a later jewelry heist kicks off with the gang dressed in diamond-studded masks, which is cool. But the real fun stuff builds off the thankless work that Van Peebles’ episodes have to do.
As the series progresses, it gets easier to lean into its lunacy, especially as our heroes on both sides of the law have their personal lives increasingly intertwined with their business. Most refreshing is the way their wives get to play into the action, albeit in contrived ways; of course Ebony will wind up becoming close friends with Stiles’ wife, Candace (“A Black Lady Sketch Show”‘s Gabrielle Dennis), and slowly start to warp their friendship to get her husband off Coltrane’s trail. The twists and turns don’t end there: Of course Stiles’ estranged father, Amos (Moe Irvin), is a legendary LA gangbanger so bloodthirsty that his nickname is “Nightmare.” Of course Coltrane’s fixer for his heists is his girlboss sister-in-law, Charlie (Sophina Brown), who walks around in glamorous outfits with shoulder pads so sharp pigeons couldn’t land on them. The more mustard the creators put on this particular hot dog, the more you just have to embrace the taste.
Nemesis. (L to R) Ariana Guerra as Yvette Cruz, Domenick Lombardozzi as Dave Cerullo in episode 105 of Nemesis. Cr. Saeed Adyani/Netflix © 2026
It’s not all corniness, though, as the later episodes really show off the Century City-set location shooting with some admirably staged setpieces. Law and Noel may not get much opportunity to differentiate themselves from one another (Law, in particular, gets lost in the sauce with his devil-may-care cop, to the point where you don’t necessarily root for him), but they acquit themselves well with a gun. And don’t worry, we get the prerequisite machine-gun fight down a crowded highway with criminals in hockey masks, in case you forgot how indebted to “Heat” this thing is.
To enjoy “Nemesis” requires a hefty tolerance for cheese, and a yearning for the kinds of gritty, but elegant Black crime dramas we used to get in the 1990s: “Set It Off,” “New Jack City,” “Belly.” It would be folly to say that this measures up to those; much as I appreciate the extra room for this larger ensemble to grow, the hour-long runtimes mean that scenes and pacing drag out a bit too much, especially in the middle stretch. But when it pops off, it’s entertaining, and your patience will ultimately be rewarded. It’s closer to “Den of Thieves” than “Heat” for sheer ridiculousness, but if you’re tired of rewatching those, it’ll do in a pinch.
Full season screened for review. Currently streaming on Netflix.
- Cannes 2026 Video #2: A Look Back at Day One of the Fest (May 13, 2026)
The 2026 Cannes Film Festival starts Tuesday, May 12th, running through May 24th. The Ebert team returns this year with coverage of all of the major films in review and video form.
In the latest from Chaz Ebert’s series of remote video dispatches from Cannes, she breaks down the opening ceremonies and the opening-night film, “The Electric Kiss.” She also details the joyous screening of Guillermo del Toro’s “Pan’s Labyrinth,” with del Toro in attendance. We also check in with press conferences with Thierry Fremaux and questions about politics for this year’s Cannes jury.
Enjoy the video and a transcript below.
Day one kicked things off with a parade of international stars and fashion on the red carpet.
At the opening ceremony, hosted by French-Malian actress Eye Haidara, along with the formal introduction of this year’s jury, New Zealand director Peter Jackson was presented by Elijah Wood with an honorary Palme d’Or for his work on The Lord of the Rings films, among many others throughout his career.
Following the ceremony, the opening-night film “La Venus Electrique” played for audiences in Cannes and in theaters throughout France.
But generating more excitement among the cinephiles at the festival was a 20th anniversary screening earlier in the day of Guillermo del Toro’s “Pan’s Labyrinth” playing in the Cannes Classics section.
Del Toro was warmly introduced at the screening by his friend, Cannes director Thierry Frémaux, and gave a heartfelt and funny introduction of the film.
Guillermo del Toro: “Because one thing happens to me as a filmmaker, everybody who liked ‘Hellboy’ when they were 20, now they come to me, and they’re 40.
Everybody who liked “Pan’s Labyrinth” every year is in their 20s. For some reason, it connects with the strength of being young, when the world tells you you’re wrong, and you know you’re right. So I wanted to put it out in the world in a big way so that I can keep connecting with the souls that remain young. So I’m going to sit my gigantic but over there and we’re going to watch it together.”
Chaz: After the film played, del Toro, clearly touched by the response of the audience, spoke again to the assembled crowd.
GdT: “You know, this movie, I think, is for me like a little parable on a little lullaby, a little song. For the times one is down, cinema has saved my life a few times. And, I hope the movie connects with you in that way. I know it has through the decades.
And, this is what film does for us. And this is what art does for us. And fuck A.I.”
Chaz: Political statements and moviemaking are top of mind these days. At his own introductory press conference, Thierry Frémaux was asked about how the Cannes film festival prepares itself to deal with the political issues of the day.
Thierry Frémaux: “Politics is on the screen. That’s what we see in Cannes. So I owe my reputation to my function. I’m not going to put my function in the service of my political opinions, my personal opinions. I could talk about Bruce Springsteen, Olympique Lyonnais, but these are personal views. The Cannes Festival considers that political matters should be addressed through what the filmmakers say and do.
In other words, one has to look at the gesture of artists, view it as an artistic gesture, a question of cinema, and not lend it more meaning than that. One should not lend it more meaning than what will happen in the course of the two weeks here at the Cannes Festival. And then we’ll see.”
Chaz: Politics have always been a hot topic in Cannes. And that’s the subject of today’s Cannes Flashback, recalling the time I asked George Clooney about the upcoming Presidential election in 2016.
Chaz 2016: “Chaz Ebert from RogerEbert.com and the Chicago Sun-Times. Although this film is about past financial misdoings. Can you see this as a harbinger, a cautionary tale, or a harbinger of things to come under a potential President Donald Trump?
George Clooney 2016: “Well, let’s sort of start much simpler. There’s not going to be a President Donald Trump. That’s not going to happen. It’s not going to happen because we’re not going to be scared. Fear is not something we’re going to be; that’s what’s going to drive our country. We’re not going to be scared of Muslims or immigrants or, you know, women.
We’re not actually afraid of anything. So, you know, we’re not going to use fear. So that’s not going to be an issue. If you’re asking if it’s a harbinger, I think that, you know, and I think you would agree, and I think we all sort of see it. I think that’s sort of landed in a way.
Trump is actually a result of many things, including the fact that many news programs didn’t follow up and ask tough questions. That’s the truth. It was, you know, it’s really easy because your numbers go up. All these cable news numbers, this 24-hour news, doesn’t mean you get more news. It just means you get the same news – more.
So the more and more and more you hear. You know, these guys, your ratings go up because they can show an empty podium saying Donald Trump is about to speak, you know, as opposed to taking those 30 seconds and saying, well, let’s talk about refugees, which is the biggest crisis that’s going on in the world right now.
Chaz: And the questions about politics were at the forefront of this year’s jury press conference also….
Park Chan-wook:
I don’t think politics and the arts should be divided. I think it’s a strange concept to think that they’re in conflict with each other.
Paul Laverty:
And isn’t that fascinating to see somebody like Susan Sarandon, Javier Bardem, and Mark Ruffalo blacklisted because of their views and opposing the murder of women and children in Gaza. Shame on Hollywood people who do that. And so, my respect and total solidarity with them.
Demi Moore:
I think part of art is about expression. So if we start censoring ourselves, I think we shut down the very core of our creativity, which is where we can discover truths and answers.
Chaz: On an inspiring note, Jury President Park Chan-wook and Oscar-nominated actress Ruth Negga talked about what it meant to them to get the call to join the jury in Cannes.
Park Chan-wook: I told my wife about the news. I first said maybe I shouldn’t go because, having been a juror here before, I know how stressful the job of being a president is. So I had to spend five minutes really thinking about whether I was ready for this task. But reflecting on my memories of Cannes, where I have screened my films and have been fortunate to win awards, I realized it was time for me to give back and serve the film festival.
Ruth Negga: “My heart skipped a beat, to be honest, and it actually felt like poetry because I was first at Cannes ten years ago. We brought Jeff Nichols “Loving” here, and the warmth, the generosity, the support, the joy that we all felt. I mean, it was unforgettable. I mean, it’s embedded in my memory. And so it’s so special to be invited back here to be on the jury.”
Chaz: That’s all for now, but join us each day for our regular reports, reviews, and reactions at RogerEbert.com/festivals. We’ll keep you on top of everything going on each day at the Cannes Film Festival.
Until next time, au revoir!
- Prime Video’s “Off Campus” is Big on Romance, Music, and Spice (May 13, 2026)
As a self-professed Romance girlie, I’ve frequently written about the difference between a romantic film/show and a romance novel. That difference isn’t semantics. It comes down to the storytelling, the characterizations, and the thing that Romance readers love most: the tropes. “Bridgerton” was the first to recognize this fact. We haven’t seen that dedication to Romance novel-styled storytelling repeated. Until now.
Enter Prime Video’s “Off Campus”, based on the novels by Elle Kennedy. Here, we join the fictional Boston-set university, Briar U, for an intimate look at the love lives and friendships of its hockey team.
Networks and studios are excited about the viewership prospects of hockey/sports romance after the success of “Heated Rivalry.” Why not? Part of launching a hit series is knowing when to catch a wave. However, while both shows are swoony hockey love stories, the two differ in style. The former is a romantic drama, darker in tone and driven by hidden passions. “Off Campus” is playful, at times exuberant, with the trope-y rom-com readers and audiences also crave. The genre is contemporary and new adult—the college-aged or new to the workforce—and although you’ll get some of the same hijinks as in YA, it skews older and does it well.
Logan (Antonio Cipriano), Garrett (Belmont Cameli), Dean (Stephen Thomas Kalyn), and Tucker (Jalen Thomas Brooks) in OFF CAMPUS
Photo: Liane Hentscher/ Prime
© AMAZON CONTENT SERVICES LLC
The first couple in the lineup ignites when quiet songwriter Hannah (Ella Bright) and all-star hockey player Garrett (Belmont Cameli) meet in the locker room showers at Briar University. She sees everything he has to offer—at least on the outside—but it isn’t until they make a mutually beneficial deal that they truly see each other. He pretends to be her boyfriend to make another guy jealous, while she tutors him in philosophy. Classic. It’s a set-up we’ve seen before.
What sets this first season of “Off Campus” apart is how tangible Bright and Cameli make Hannah and Garrett feel. Every shade of emotion is explored; they are vulnerable, quippy, hopeful, and honest in a way that makes you forget their characters are on screen.
The rest of the cast delivers, too. “Off Campus” is boosted by lively, engaging dialogue between characters who are growing toward better versions of themselves. It’s easy to imagine future seasons with John Logan (Antonio Cipriano), Allie (Mika Abdalla), or Dean (Stephen Kalyn), but this is the season of ‘Gannah,’ and the pair is charming in the extreme. If this were a chemistry class, they’d ace it with extra credit. They’re playful, considerate, and have beloved nicknames—he calls her Wellsy because her last name is Wells. So cute.
Beyond their winning portrayals, the heroine and hero are dealing with childhood traumas. As a result, their character arcs are partially defined by their efforts to define themselves without the context of their parents or the people who hurt them badly in the past.
Another factor that makes “Off Campus” work is that Louisa Levy, the series creator, and co-showrunner Gina Fattore understand that romance on TV is common, but true Romance novel formats are hard to find. The story beats and progression of falling in love are different between the two. The series envisions the episodes like chapters, closing out on cliffhangers or with hooks that pull you into the next episode.
Justin (Josh Heuston) in OFF CAMPUS
Photo: Liane Hentscher/ Prime
© AMAZON CONTENT SERVICES LLC
The classic tropes: jock boy paired with nerdy girl, jock needs a tutor, one bed, opposites attract, and the Queen Mother of tropes: fake dating, all sparkle throughout the season. And it’s spicy too. Spice refers to how explicit the sex is, and this show is saucy. There’s lots of sex, but it never objectifies. There’s also nudity, and some of it is full frontal. Just thought I should let you know if you’re a pearl clutcher.
Music as a healing force is part of the connection between Hannah and Garrett, especially classic rock. Early on, I thought of the Fox series “Glee” and was rewarded with a reference. “Off Campus” doesn’t just have a soundtrack; many of the plot beats hinge on music—from classical to rock to pop—and all the sub-genres in between. To accentuate the storytelling, Prime Video bought out the record store with big needle drops and musical guest appearances, including one that fans will be howling for.
“Off Campus” is a swoon-worthy, hot, and heated rom-com-drama that gives its story space to fully bloom just like its characters. It’s a highly enjoyable romance from front to back that’ll leave you wishing, hoping, and anticipating which couple you’ll spend the sophomore season with. Until then, this series will get plenty of replays.
- Notes from the Red Carpet of the 2026 Chicago Critics Film Festival (May 13, 2026)
In its thirteenth year, the Chicago Critics Film Festival returned with one of its strongest line-ups to date, featuring multiple sold-out shows and an exciting line-up of in-person guests.
As Managing Editor, Brian Tallerico shared, “As headlines screech about the divide between critics and moviegoers, CCFF serves as a counterargument, bringing together people who write about movies, those who make them, and those who love them.” That dovetails with what Roger would say about movies being machines that generate empathy, acting as intermediaries between people who seem so different from each other and striving to show that they may be more connected than they think.
This question about critics versus creatives versus consumers was on my mind as I hit the red carpet on behalf of RogerEbert.com to speak with the talent in attendance. The festival was thrilled to bring Olivia Wilde, who directed and starred in “The Invite,” which screened on 35mm and served as the opening night film.
“When A Witness Recants” was the festival’s Centerpiece screening and brought director Dawn Porter to the Music Box. (Porter’s film also won the Documentary Audience Award.) The festival was thrilled to give hometown welcomes to three films that celebrated Midwestern creativity.
Directors Edd Benda and Stephen Holstad, as well as star Judy Greer, were in attendance for the Chicago premiere of “Chili Finger,” where many local cast and crew were present. The same can be said for the Chicago-shot and set film “Loafers,” which saw writer-director Zach Schnitzer and producer Nate Simon pack out the Music Box with the entire cast.
If I had a nickel for every time the closing-night film of the festival was acquired by a studio right before it screened, I’d have two nickels, which is not a lot, but it’s serendipitous that it happened twice. Following in the footsteps of last year’s “A Little Prayer,” Chicago-based director Joe Swanberg and producer and star Cory Michael Smith concluded proceedings with “The Sun Never Sets,” fresh off its acquisition from IFC.
Other guests included Anna Baumgarten, Carlos Lerma, Curtis Matzke, Nicholas J. Santore, Carter Amelia Davis Jet & Antonio L. Rodriguez, and Stephen Tronicek, who spoke about their respective short films.
Additional films of the line-up to note were Walter Thompson-Hernández’s “If I Go Will They Miss Me,” which won the Narrative Feature Audience Award, and Jet and Antonio L. Rodriguez’s “Glory/Us” won the Short Audience Award.
Below are excerpts from these creatives as they discuss Chicago memories, the role of criticism, and offer Easter eggs about filming their projects.
The following interview quotes have been edited and condensed for clarity.
Opening with “The Invite” and closing with “The Sun Never Sets” was fortuitous in more ways than one. Swanberg directed “Drinking Buddies,” in which Wilde co-starred, released in 2013. It was touching to witness the two of them reunite more than ten years later on the festival’s first day.
Speaking to RogerEbert.com, Wilde reflected on her joyful time filming the project in Chicago, sharing that she “had a great time going to all the breweries where we shot the film,” and also highlighted that she lived in Wicker Park while filming. That experience of spending a Summer filming, discussing, and doing life with dear collaborators has influenced her thoughts on criticism.
“The origin of film criticism started with filmmakers and Cahiers du Cinéma,” she shared. “Those people were such film lovers that they were making films, watching each other’s films, and writing about film. I love that aspect of film criticism: people who love films so much that they want to talk about them and they want to bring other people into the fold.” In addition to name-dropping Roger Ebert himself, Wilde also took time to mention Pauline Kael, finding people like them to be “So bold in their opinions, being their own rather than just following the crowd … in some ways it’s a dying art.”
Speaking to the project she brought to the festival, Wilde stressed that she hopes it reminds people it’s never too late for retransformation. Looking at the central couple, Joe (played by Seth Rogen) and Angela (played by her), she shared:
“The movie is about choices and helping ensure they’re authentic to you. If you make life choices out of obligation, you will end up unhappy and resentful. In my life, I’ve been really lucky to make choices based on what I dreamed of doing, and I try to remember to keep doing that because it’s easy to slide into a ‘This is who I should be, this is what I should be doing’ mentality. When you’re young, you have a bold sense of courage and ambition that you lose as you get older. This film is really saying, ‘Have you gotten to the point in your life when you realize you’re not living your own life and you’re actually allowed to change?’”
The hope for change, even if it seems distant or impossible, is a key theme that undergirds Dawn Porter’s “When A Witness Recants,” which focuses on the wrongful imprisonment of three innocent teenagers who were convicted of the murder of a 14-year old boy at a Baltimore middle school.
Festival programmer Erik Childress shared that the team programmed the project not just for its expert filmmaking but for its powerful message that though justice can be delayed, it won’t be forever denied. It’s a project deserving of being highlighted in the line-up, and for Porter, she hopes the project can put her in dialogue with her fellow creatives who have been getting at this issue from different vantage points.”
“You cannot tell too many stories about wrongful incarceration,” she shared. “I think we’re living in really difficult times, and it can be easy to think that justice is impossible. The people who have been doing civil rights work and legal reform have been doing it for decades. I hope this film is added to the film timeline. I think about the work of Steve James, Heidi Ewing, Rachel Brady, Liz Garbus, and Gita Gandbhir. The hope is that there’s always going to be a new group of young people, activists, or people who aren’t aware of what’s happening, and hopefully our films can bring those people over to be interested and active.”
She also hopes the project can serve as a source of encouragement for those experiencing injustice in the current criminal justice system. “I think we’ve got to work to make sure people aren’t convicted falsely in the first place, but short of that, it’s somebody’s life on the other end of the line, we have to show that the fight is worth it. How much time is too much to keep fighting for somebody?”
She also expressed gratitude for the work of critics, citing them as people who help shed light on all facets of a film production. “True criticism is valuable because it places your film within a canon. The film criticism that I’ve read–especially coming out of Sundance this year–was so sophisticated, and writers were doing a good job of seeing themes and understanding that there’s so much that goes into what we do.
“I appreciate how, when the critics acknowledge the score, the edit, the pacing … I mean, there are so many sleepless nights worrying about so many small things that I personally really appreciate it when someone notices that we’re not just putting up a camera and hoping for the best, that there’s so much thought that goes into what we do. Film critics help us. They’re megaphones for the audiences.”
This charitable disposition towards critics and their work was co-signed by the cast and crew of “Chili Finger,” even if the widening gap between creatives and critics was also facetiously acknowledged. Co-director and writer Stephen Helstad stated that although, as the maker of the film, he’s had to separate himself from the critique and “make the movie that we want to make and think that will resonate with the audience,” the rest is out of the filmmakers’ hands.
“Critics fill an interesting gap in giving shape to the life of a film once it’s been unleashed upon the public,” Helstad explained. “They are instrumental and can serve as a filter for wider audiences; people may not hear about our film. So in that sense, critics, I hope you really like ‘Chili Finger.”
Co-director Edd Benda echoed similar sentiments expressed by Porter, sharing, “What’s cool is when people care. What’s fun is that we made this film for audiences, and is there a greater gift than somebody who really sits there and thinks about it in the way critics do.” He jokingly caveats, “I’m saying this all in my early interaction with critics … ask me again in a decade.”
During the filming of “Chili Finger,” star Judy Greer stayed in Roger Ebert’s childhood home. “The production rented me this Airbnb. They gave me a couple of options, and I obviously had to stay in Roger’s home. There’s a plaque on the sidewalk in the front of the house that demarcates this as his home and a fair amount of paraphernalia in the house that was kind of fun and not crazy … there was good juju,” she summarized.
“Loafers,” a Chicago-set production that focuses on two best friends dealing with post-grad haze, was made “with friends, no money, and because we love movies,” according to writer-director Zach Schnitzer, and he was grateful for the ways the festival has helped put more visibility on the project and helped him think about the film in ways he hadn’t previously considered.
“This festival has put more eyes on this film, and as a result, the writing that has come out of it has put the project in conversations with films I love. That’s something I’m incredibly grateful for. The company that they have listed amongst is a group of people that I’m very grateful to be listed amongst, not side-by-side comparisons or anything, but I’m very grateful that the inspirational mentions of people like Richard Linklater or the Duplass Brothers are like, ‘We can see that you like their movies.’ And that is an honor to me because I do. I really love those movies.
“The intention of making this movie was much simpler. We made this film because we liked movies and we wanted to make one. We wanted to tell this sort of personal story, and everything that’s happened afterward has been just a gift and something unexpected.”
Sharing more about criticism, as a young filmmaker, he expressed a gratitude for the vital way in which criticism is a part of the ecosystem of art making “There’s a million purposes for art, but I think one of the purposes that art serves is to create discussions that can cause positive change in the world, and I think that criticism is a vital element of that and a very necessary piece to that sort of response and growth that art can offer society.”
He also cited gratitude for the training critics undergo and how their familiarity with film validates a project in a way other types of writing may not. “It means something very different to get a four-star review from a critic than it does to get a four-star review from an average moviegoer,” he shared.
Speaking about “The Sun Never Sets,” director Joe Swanberg (who has a cameo in “Loafers”) shared that, having grown up in the era of Siskel and Ebert and having written film criticism himself, he knew from an early age that critics were a big part of filmmaking. “Certainly, with my early movies, I was positive or negative, thrilled just to get any reviews of my movies. Even negative … just watch ‘em, baby?”
Producer and actor Cory Michael Smith jokingly co-signed, sharing, “Well, in terms of the economy, critics are essential because they help keep therapists for actors employed.” He then shared that he has appreciated growing alongside critics as both actor and critic develop their craft. “What’s nice is that when you find a few critics who you typically agree with, and you appreciate their point of view, and you can sort of follow them through their career in a way that they follow you. So there’s some respect. Occasionally, I will read a review where I’m like, ‘Yeah, they nailed all the weaknesses of the movie. That’s exactly what I think is wrong with it, too. I guess we didn’t get away with it.’”
Smith also divulged how working on “The Sun Never Sets” came at a pivotal point in his life in that it was sandwiched between two other projects—“Mountainhead” and Jeremy Saulnier’s upcoming horror action thriller film “October”—that could not be more different, but that ultimately complemented his experience.
“Every project, for better or worse, kind of informs the next one. I believe there’s no character bleed, but sometimes there is. It was really nice to go from playing the richest man in the world in “Mountainhead” to playing a broke dope with a bad credit score in “The Sun Never Sets.” That really set me up for “October.”
“We all collaborated to plan out your year,” Swanberg joked in response.
“There’s actually kind of more of a through line,” Smith quipped back. “This past year, I was spoiled by real gentlemen … incisive, thoughtful, big-hearted gentlemen.”
“The Sun Never Sets” is a homecoming in more ways than one, in that it reunites Swanberg with DP Eon Mora, who was an assistant to the DP for “Drinking Buddies.” “It’s been seven or eight years since then. So I think both of us have gone and done a lot of other things, and so it’s nice to return to it and to feel like the flow was still there,” Mora shared.
He spoke about filming in Alaska, where the film is set, and said he hopes to return there. “What was interesting was the time of year that we’re shooting in; it was late spring. I think our last day of shooting was the Solstice, so the longest day of the year. It’s these long days where we had to think, ‘How is this movie going to exist where the days never end, and the sun never goes away?’ We had to consider that as the film’s context and think through it from a lighting perspective. It was fun to think through how living in a place like that would affect the characters and their dispositions.”
Speaking about his cameo in “Loafers” and what makes him excited about supporting up-and-coming filmmakers, especially in Chicago, Swanberg shared, “I live in this city. I love this city. I believe in it having a strong and vibrant film community. I love acting, so I’m really always happy to show up in that role and support,” he jokes.
“There’s nothing better than a group of people just out of film school who have all that enthusiasm, youthful energy. I’m happy to place myself around happy, enthusiastic young people, even if I can just vampirically suck a little bit of their energy.”
The 2026 Chicago Critics Film Festival was held May 1–7, at the Music Box Theatre in Chicago. All photography credited to Kate Scott.
