Zachary Lee

Two Become One: Dave Franco, Alison Brie, and Michael Shanks on "Together" | Interviews | Roger Ebert An interview with the director, stars and producers of Together.

"There’s something about being in front of the camera where we want to just give everything we can to make it look as realistic as possible."

@zacharylee.bsky.social interviews Alison Brie, Dave Franco, and Michael Shanks about their body horror film, TOGETHER: www.rogerebert.com/interviews/t...

Oh, Hi! movie review & film summary (2025) | Roger Ebert “Oh, Hi!” is full of laugh-out-loud moments, but it thrives in the ways it embodies quiet, shattering devastation.

"It’s a deeply human experience to long for someone who’s unavailable and to treasure a love that’s true but can’t last. OH, HI! ruminates on this to somber yet entertaining effect,” @zacharylee.bsky.social writes: www.rogerebert.com/reviews/oh-h...

Unicorns movie review & film summary (2025) | Roger Ebert “Unicorns” is about the gift of a connection that healthily destabilizes your perceptions about yourself and the world.

"UNICORNS reminds that the ability to transform and cross borders, whether physical, mental, or spiritual, is always proximate, oppressive systems, antiquated thinking, and insecurity be damned."

@zacharylee.bsky.social reviews: www.rogerebert.com/reviews/unic...

Our Minds Have Been Colonized: Ari Aster on "Eddington" | Interviews | Roger Ebert The director speaks to our doomscrolling post-2020 moment and the ways he ties music to violence.

"I think any film that’s trying to achieve any sort of modern realism has to contend with our division and how those voids are only getting wider."

EDDINGTON director Ari Aster talks to @zacharylee.bsky.social about doomscrolling & landing on that Katy Perry song: www.rogerebert.com/interviews/a...

Interruptus is on!! Come hang out and watch The Player with Josh, and also @dodgyboffin.com, @zacharylee.bsky.social and me!

Friendship Is Insane: Eva Victor on "Sorry, Baby" | Interviews | Roger Ebert An interview with the writer-director of A24's latest dramedy.

"Creating this film was a journey of understanding how to shoot in a way that allows me to make the film I want to make."

@zacharylee.bsky.social talks to writer-director Eva Victor about the messy process of making her @a24movies.bsky.social hit SORRY, BABY:
www.rogerebert.com/interviews/e...

Best Wishes to All movie review (2025) | Roger Ebert “Best Wishes to All” is the type of unsettling, high-concept horror film that knows exactly what it wants to be and executes it with unforgiving verve.

BEST WISHES TO ALL is "a modern parable for our capitalistic society, where our only hope for achieving contentment is to exploit before we’re exploited."

@zacharylee.bsky.social reviews @shudder.com's latest thriller: www.rogerebert.com/reviews/best...

The Red Carpets of the 2025 Chicago Critics Film Festival | Festivals & Awards | Roger Ebert Excerpts from interviews taken at the red carpet of Chicago's esteemed critics-led film festival.

Earlier this month, @chicagocritics.bsky.social welcomed a host of actors and filmmakers to hit the red carpet at @musicboxtheatre.bsky.social for their twelfth annual festival; @zacharylee.bsky.social was there with them to ask them questions. Read his dispatch: www.rogerebert.com/festivals/th...

Cannes 2025: Slauson Rec, Dandelion's Odyssey, Lucky Lu | Festivals & Awards | Roger Ebert On three films that sketch out worlds that are too close for comfort.

In his first dispatch from @cannesfilmfestival.bsky.social, @zacharylee.bsky.social highlights Shia LaBeouf doc SLAUSON REC, Momoko Seto's animated epic DANDELION'S ODYSSEY, and the Chang Chen-starring LUCKY LU.

www.rogerebert.com/festivals/ca...

Highlights from the 2025 MUBI Fest Chicago | Festivals & Awards | Roger Ebert On the second edition of the streaming service's traveling film fest, and its stop in Chicago.

"The fun was deducing how its live concert and seven programmed films explored different facets of being adrift, from being “lost in the sauce” to being “lost in the machine."

@zacharylee.bsky.social recaps this year's #MubiFest Chicago

Meet the Critic: Alejandro Riera — Chicago Critics Film Festival In today’s feature, meet Alejandro Riera, a Chicago-based film critic and publicist who has worked with the Chicago International Film Festival, the Chicago Latino Film Festival and the Gene Siskel Fi...

A familiar face offers some long answers to some easy questions as he toots his own horn with some Boricua flair. Thanks to @isaacfeldberg.bsky.social and Nathaniel Lee for the opportunity! @chicagocritics.bsky.social starts this Friday at the holiest of hollies, the @musicboxtheatre.bsky.social.

Wonder Is Everything: Willem Dafoe on "The Legend of Ochi" | Interviews | Roger Ebert The actor discusses the importance of wonder in his creative process for A24's latest.

"As for poetry, especially with something like THE LEGEND OF OCHI, it’s about inviting yourself into that wonder you mentioned and moving away from a particular kind of practicality."

@zacharylee.bsky.social speaks with Willem Dafoe:

That's What Disruption Does For Me: Gareth Evans on "Havoc" | Interviews | Roger Ebert The action director takes us blow-by-blow through his latest melee for Netflix.

"I always try to find something that I can personally relate to and then exaggerate it, making it more operatic and larger in theme, within the film itself."

@zacharylee.bsky.social speaks with HAVOC director Gareth Evans

Wonder Is Everything: Willem Dafoe on "The Legend of Ochi" | Interviews | Roger Ebert The actor discusses the importance of wonder in his creative process for A24's latest.

“When you say ‘wonder,’ I’m thinking abt challenging & inviting people into a different way of seeing.”

For @ebertvoices.bsky.social, I had a quick chat w/ Willem Dafoe abt THE LEGEND OF OCHI, the limits of empathy, & the role of wonder in his creative process: www.rogerebert.com/interviews/w...

Defined In Isolation: Ryan Coogler on "Sinners" | Interviews | Roger Ebert An interview with the director about the soulful undertones of his genre-defying period thriller.

"There’s also this metaphor for artistic sacrifice, for how an oppressive system can dehumanize people and how people experiencing that dehumanization can rage against it through art."

@zacharylee.bsky.social speaks with filmmaker Ryan Coolger about SINNERS

Queens of Drama movie review & film summary (2025) | Roger Ebert A dizzying, life-affirming anthem about how it’s never too late to find your way home in the arms of your lover, even if you may have lost your way.

QUEENS OF DRAMA is "a dizzying, life-affirming anthem about how it’s never too late to find your way home in the arms of your lover, even if you may have lost your way."

Read @zacharylee.bsky.social's review:

Watchlist This! our April 2025 picks of the best new bubbling-under films • Journal • A Letterboxd Magazine Our picks of under-the-radar gems from this month’s new releases. This edition includes a cross-culture love affair, a decade-spanning queer musical, a genre-blending Brooklyn tapestry and more.

For @letterboxd.social , I wrote abt A NORMAL FAMILY, out in select US theaters on April 25. Dir. Hur Jin-ho imbues an acute cultural specificity around the film’s themes of family loyalty and hierarchy. Chilling, thought-provoking delusions abound: letterboxd.com/journal/watc...

Ji-Young Yoo is a fighter and a lover in 'Freaky Tales' The actress chats about how her dance background helped her during fight scenes, and the joy of showcasing Korean culture on-screen.

Fascism & hatred should not be things we’re afraid to disavow.”

Ji-young Yoo is booked & busy this month w/ FREAKY TALES & UNTIL DAWN. Spoke w/ her for Joy Sauce about how fighting is like dancing, Asians in punk, & Ryan Coogler’s influence on her Oakland accent: joysauce.com/ji-young-yoo...

Emerging Critics Scholarship — Chicago Film Critics Association The Chicago Film Critics Association & Rotten Tomatoes Emerging Critics Scholarship supports up-and-coming voices in film and media criticism in the Chicagoland area. The scholarships will be awarded ...

This is an incredible opportunity that has amplified critics in the past few years to prominent roles, including membership in the CFCA. You should apply. And tell your friends. chicagofilmcritics.org/grant

Finding a Way Home: André Holland Never Rests | Interviews | Roger Ebert An interview with the star of The Actor, The Dutchman, Exhibiting Forgiveness, and Love Brooklyn - and that's just recently.

"There’s something about trust that’s essential to making art."

@zacharylee.bsky.social speaks with André Holland about THE ACTOR, DUTCHMAN, and his creative life goals

SXSW Film Festival 2025: 42nd Street, The Spies Among Us, Make It Look Real | Festivals & Awards | Roger Ebert On three buzzed docs from this year's fest.

In this #SXSW dispatch @zacharylee.bsky.social writes about 42ND STREET, THE SPIES AMONG US, and MAKE IT LOOK REAL

SXSW Film Festival 2025: Forge, Slanted, The True Beauty of Being Bitten by a Tick | Festivals & Awards | Roger Ebert On three interesting AAPI films from this year's Austin event.

In his latest dispatch from #SXSW @zacharylee.bsky.social writes about FORGE, SLANTED, and THE TRUE BEAUTY OF BEING BITTEN

Movies for the Freaks: Mark Anthony Green on "Opus" | Interviews | Roger Ebert An interview with the director of A24's new thriller about his time at GQ and balancing genre thrills with heady themes.

"I make movies for the freaks and the movie nerds and the people that want to go for a cinematic experience and be challenged."

@zacharylee.bsky.social speaks with OPUS writer-director Mark Anthony Green

Ash movie review & film summary (2025) | Roger Ebert Sometimes it’s just fun to watch someone know and deliver exactly what they want to give you, and do so with flying colors—bisexual lighting and all.

ASH "may not reinvent the sci-fi horror genre, but Flying Lotus knows when to subvert tropes and when to lean into them."

Read @zacharylee.bsky.social's #SXSW review:

🚨 Calling all aspiring film critics in the Chicagoland area! 🚨

Applications for the Chicago Critics Association & @rottentomatoes.com Emerging Critics Program are now open!

Details and how to apply here: chicagofilmcritics.org/grant

Deadline to apply is April 10, 2025!

Chicago's Own Filmspotting Podcast Celebrates 20 Years With Inaugural Festival | Interviews | Roger Ebert The acclaimed podcast kicks off three days of films from throughout the show's storied history.

“As it was with so many things on the show, the genesis was an email from a listener.”

@zacharylee.bsky.social speaks to Adam Kempenaar, Sam van Hallgren, and @larsenonfilm.bsky.social about Filmspotting Fest, a three-day in-person film festival celebrating twenty years of the iconic podcast.

Scott Derrickson Dives Deep into "The Gorge" | Interviews | Roger Ebert An interview with the director of "The Gorge," now on Apple TV+.

"I think that THE GORGE is a drive-in movie. It’s zany and outrageous. . . I think it’s really fun. I do think the film has its soul, purpose, and themes, and I hope also that it’s just a good time."

@zacharylee.bsky.social speaks with filmmaker @scottderrickson.bsky.social

Rounding is relevant, collaborative, and monstrous - Chicago Reader Rounding, local director Alex Thompson’s hospital horror film, screens at the Music Box Theatre from February 14–20.

From the director of GHOSTLIGHT, the new thriller ROUNDING opens this weekend at the Music Box!

chicagoreader.com/film-tv/movi... via @zacharylee.bsky.social & @chicagoreader.com

Worming Around the Artifices: Matthew Rankin on “Universal Language” Set in a parallel universe in Winnipeg where the languages are Farsi and French, director Matthew Rankin’s Universal Language is a comedy that mines humor from its absurdist scenarios and garners earn...

“Cinema has never been an adequate simulacrum. We’ve always been worming around the artifices.”

Haven’t been moved or laughed as much than when speaking with dir. Matthew Rankin abt his absurdist gem UNIVERSAL LANGUAGE for @thespool.bsky.social, out Feb. 14th: thespool.net/interviews/m...

Thompson & actors Namir Smallwood & Bradley Grant Smith will be present for a Q&A on Saturday at 7 PM at @musicboxtheatre.bsky.social following the screening there! Get tickets now: t.co/v3AN4OI9SX