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Chicago – The 2013 Chicago International Film Festival may be heading into its final stretch but it’s far from over, as new films from Errol Morris, Joel & Ethan Coen, Jason Reitman, and many more are scheduled to make their Chicago premiere.

A few of the biggies this year weren’t screened in time for press but we have seen some of the smaller, notable films, and you should go out of your way to see a few of ‘em. Pick your favorites, as chosen by Brian Tallerico, Patrick McDonald, and Nick Allen.

A Pact

Photo credit: Ciff

“A Pact”

Friday, 10/18, 8:15pm

Sunday, 10/20, 8:30pm

Monday, 10/21, 1pm

A boyish promise between two high school age young men concerning the ownership of a mutual female friend leads to creeper antics years later in this little thriller, spearheaded by an unsettling performance from Sylvester Groth (Inglourious Basterds). This is diet Hitchcock, including a slim 83 min.

Last year, when he was at the 48th annual Chicago International Film Festival for the showing of his film Mr. Sophistication, I spoke with Harry Lennix, and he told that post–production had just been completed on his film project, H4, directed by Paul Quinn, and he was very excited and proud of the film.A “re-imaging”: of Shakespeare’s Henry IV Part 1 and Part II, set in modern day Los Angeles, the film is described as “the first Shakespeare adaptation to deal with contemporary African-American issues.” It tells the story of Henry’s unreliable son Hal's coming of age, as events compel him to increase power and responsibility, when he becomes the face of a new...

Since today seems to be the day for celebrity driven Kickstarter campaigns, here's another one that may be of interest. It's for Harry Lennix's intruging H4 film project which he's currently rushing to complete in time for its premiere at the International Shakespeare Conference in Stratford-Upon-Avon U.K., on August 9th Starring Lennix in the lead role, with Keith David and Angus MacFadyen among others, the film is a comtemporary take on Shakespeare's Henry IV Parts 1 and 2, set in Los Angeles , The film, which was exec produced by Lennix and Giovanni Zelko, and directed by Paul Quinn and Dwain Perry, with a screenplay adaptation by Ayanna Thomspon,...

On the film festival circuit in September is Conor McPherson’s new movie “The Eclipse,” starring Ciaran Hinds and Aidan Quinn, which opened the 2009 Los Angeles Irish Film Festival. The supernatural flick also opened the Tribeca Film Festival and is expected to be released in the U.S. later this year. The Quinn family, as a whole, is raising its Hollywood profile behind the camera as well. Acclaimed cinematographer Declan Quinn (Aidan’s brother, whose most recent movie was “The Private Lives of Pippa Lee,” starring Robin Wright) will soon be serving as cinematographer on a film called “Good Ol’ Boy,” to be directed by his other brother, Paul Quinn. Talk about all in the family! Declan Quinn is also serving as cinematographer on a documentary about Bob Marley, directed by Jonathan Demme, as well Jim Sheridan’s aforementioned project “Black Mass.” Declan Quinn is not the only busy Irish-American cinematographer.

After the “Slumdog Millionaire” phenomenon, Hollywood-Bollywood crossover and India-centered feature films have inundated the cinema scene. Joe Wright (Atonement) is directing Cate Blanchett starrer “Indian Summer” (2011) about last days of British rule in India, while Ang Lee (Brokeback Mountain) is working on film adaptation of Yann Martel’s fantasy “Life of Pi” (2011) about a boy Pi Patel from Pondicherry (India) who survives 227 days after shipwreck. Paul Quinn (Never Get Outta the Boat) is directing “Good Ol' Boy” (2010) starring Sarita Choudhury about the struggles and c...