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Chicago – When in the presence of a powerful acting force like Michael Shannon, the depth of performance is emotional and passionately essential. He co-leads with Travis A. Knight in Red Orchid Theatre’s World Premiere of Levi Holloway’s “Turret,” just extended to June 22nd at the Chopin Theatre. For tickets and info, click Turret.

The story, written and directed by Levi Holloway, is set in a dystopian future, as two men are holed in an underground bunker, after an unnamed event has poisoned the air outside the protective room. Green (Michael Shannon) is a military officer, and Rabbit (Travis A. Knight) is an enlisted grunt who share the bunker space. The place is outfitted with electricity generation, data processing and supplies, which interests an outsider named Birdy (Lawrence Grimm). Can humanity survive in such conditions?

Red Orchid’s ’Turret’ at the Chopin Theatre Extended through June 22nd

Photo credit: RedOrchidTheatre.

Chicago – One of Chicago’s icon theater actors … Michael Shannon … is performing again in town, in the company that he co-founded. Red Orchid Theatre presents Michael Shannon and Travis A. Knight in the World Premiere of “Turret” by Levi Holloway, now at the Chopin Theatre through June 9, 2024. For tickets and info, click Turret.

Two men (Shannon and Knight) survive in a facility deep underground somewhere in the wild woods of the Pacific Northwest, hiding away from something terrible from the outside. Ensnared in a relentless loop of endless tomorrows, they discover the wolf isn’t at the door, it’s already inside, waiting in the creeping darkness all around them. “Turret” is an excavation of masculinity, love, loss and isolation, and a claustrophobic carnival of carnage, carrier pigeons, cribbage, whiskey, music, mischief and mayhem.

Red Orchid’s ’Turret’ at the Chopin Theatre through June 9th

Photo credit: RedOrchidTheatre.org

Michael Shannon was born in Kentucky,...

An ensemble of gifted actors effectively play against type in Michael Shannon’s quietly powerful directing debut, none more so than Judy Greer, outwardly numbed by sorrow but raw inside as a mother whose son shot and killed three high school classmates. While the subject matter inevitably invites comparison with Mass, that well-received 2021 chamber piece — also a first feature by an actor, Fran Kranz — kept its focus tight on two sets of parents on either side of a similar tragedy. Eric Larue casts a wider gaze, taking in the broader community and the religious leaders fumbling or manipulating the conversation about healing.

Shannon’s deep roots in Chicago theater are evident in his choice of material and his success at assembling a first-rate cast — uncommonly strong across the board for a modestly scaled indie like this.

The script was adapted by Brett Neveu from his play of the same name,...

During the last two years, isolation and its many horrors have haunted everyone. Naturally, genre filmmakers are best equipped to see the creative potential in pandemic fears — and its limitations. In her latest feature, prolific horror auteur Jennifer Reeder makes mighty use of both, crafting an inventive ghost story for the video call era. Arriving at a dramatically zany conclusion, “Night’s End” follows the unraveling of an aimless divorcé through his misguided attempts at establishing a YouTube presence. Taking place entirely within the confines of his dreary bachelor pad, Though the film falters under the confines of a small budget and Covid-safe crews, thanks to Reeder’s ingenuity and love of classic horror, she strong arms it over the finish line to an enjoyably wacky finale.

Affable everyman Geno Walker provides a neutral canvas as Ken Barber, a single dad whose drinking led to the dissolution of his marriage. The...

Do you ever just want the night to end, but the night’s end seems to never come? This is the epitome of Jennifer Reeder’s apt Night’s End. The Knives and Skin director, with writer Brett Neveu, craft a film about one man’s horrific night. But what is, at first, a frightening, introspective, and isolated ghost story, takes an unfortunate nose dive. The audience is suddenly content and relieved at the night’s end, more so than even the protagonist.

A horror film needs to nail the atmosphere, and Reeder nails that spookiness immediately as she directs Christopher Rejano’s camera to move slowly towards a door. Like a spirit floating just above the ground and lingering outside in the hopes of being let in. It creaks as it opens into a dimly lit, newly occupied apartment. The unemployed divorced father who lives there, Ken (Geno Walker), is found counting down from 10. Then,...

About halfway through director Jennifer Reeder and writer Brett Neveu’s Night’s End, a character explains to Ken Barber (Geno Walker) that the ghost haunting his apartment may in fact be haunted herself. Colin Albertson (Lawrence Grimm), the occult author whose book inspired Ken to create a “spirit jar” in hopes of exorcising his unwanted guest, details research into the ghost’s identity which would point to her own mother becoming a demonic presence desperate to torture her child’s trapped soul in a “ghost loop.” While that’s a whole lot of over-the-top nonsense on its surface, the act itself proves a metaphorical interpretation of Ken’s own destructive cycle. His divorced father moved cities for a fresh start only to find himself suffering from a reclusive lifestyle of fear and regret.

It’s the first time I felt something being said beyond simple light tricks. And I creeped...

Stars: Geno Walker, Kate Arrington, Felonius Munk, Michael Shannon, Daniel Kyri, Theo Germaine, Morgan S. Reesh, Lawrence Grimm | Written by Brett Neveu | Directed by Jennifer Reeder

Jennifer Reeder, director of the highly-regarded Knives + Skin, is back behind the camera for Night’s End, a film that feels very apt given the past few years – featuring a character who spends his time online, working from home (aren’t we all?). With the film’s plot playing out in a series of Zoom-like calls, given the lead characters apparent agoraphobia.

The film tells the story of Ken Barber, an anxious shut-in, who moves into a new apartment. He spends his time making self-help YouTube videos and experimenting in amateur taxidermy. However, Ken’s life is turned upside down by the apparent haunting of his new home. Eventually he contacts Colin Albertson, a paranormal author, to perform an exorcism which quickly takes a horrific turn…...

"It's really happening. None of it is fake." Shudder has unveiled the official trailer for an indie horror film titled Night's End, the latest from director Jennifer Reeder. It's playing on Shudder at the end of March. An anxious shut-in moves into a haunted apartment, hiring a stranger to perform an exorcism which quickly takes a horrific turn. Pretty vague description. This seems to be another pandemic thriller, focusing on one man alone in his apartment while everyone else connects with him digitally. A realistic take on Zoom horror with "what if this was really happening to him?" The film stars Geno Walker, with Michael Shannon, Kate Arrington, Daniel Kyri, Theo Germaine, Lawrence Grimm, Morgan S. Reesh, and also Felonious Munk. This looks quite creepy! Some nice horror vibes. Here's the official US trailer (+ poster) for Jennifer Reeder's Night's End, direct from YouTube: In Night's End, an anxious shut-in...

"Peter Williams, an American priest working in Mexico, is considered a saint by many local parishioners. However, due to a botched exorcism, he carries a dark secret that's eating him alive until he gets an opportunity to face his own demon one final time."

Starring: Joseph Marcell, María Gabriela de Faría, Will Beinbrink, Hector Kotsifakis, Irán Castillo

Written By: Santiago Fernández Calvete, Alejandro Hidalgo

Directed By: Alejandro Hidalgo

In Theaters, On Demand and Digital March 11, 2022

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Night’S End: "Shudder, AMC Networks’ premium streaming service for horror, thriller and the supernatural announced today the release for Jennifer Reeder’s upcoming film Night’s End starring Geno Walker, Kate Arrington, Felonious Munk and Michael Shannon. A Shudder Original Film, Night’s End is set for release in North America, Australia, New Zealand, the United Kingdom and Ireland on Thursday, March 31.

“Jennifer Reeder is an exciting and bold filmmaker who was an...

Five finalists from a record 39 entries have been selected for the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences' 2004 Honorary Foreign Film Student Award. The winning student filmmaker will be brought to Los Angeles in June. The finalists are Denmark's Laurits Munich-Petersen (Between Us), Germany's Sikander Goldau (Fragile), Russia's Julia Kolesnik (Let's Go for a Walk), Russia's Artem Antonov (Metropolitan Express) and Switzerland's Lawrence Grimm (Pas de Deux).