Siskel & Ebert at 50: LONE STAR (1996)
Selected by Filmspotting co-founder and co-host Adam Kempenaar, in attendance for a live podcast episode recording with Michael Phillips after the film.
LONE STAR (1996, dir. John Sayles, 135min. DCP)
Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert changed the way we watched movies forever. Their show and their style encouraged engagement and discussion about the films we watched, they used their influence to champion films of all sizes and genres, and their magnetic, approachable personalities put Chicago on the map forever as a city for film lovers. In honor of the 50th Anniversary of their groundbreaking show, DCASE and the Chicago Film Office present a FREE weekly screening series in November celebrating and revisiting some of their favorite films from their time together. Each film was hand-selected by a colleague or contemporary of Gene & Roger’s, with a focus on the “hidden gems” that they held in just as high regard as the more canonized classics of the era.
Lone Star begins with the discovery of a skeleton in a Texas border town, sparking an investigation that unearths buried histories of racial tension and family secrets. John Sayles weaves a complex, novelistic mystery anchored by Chris Cooper and Elizabeth Peña’s career-best performance. Widely considered one of Sayles’ finest works, the film landed on both Siskel and Ebert’s top 10 lists of 1996.
