Review: ‘Hangover’ trilogy ends on a dark note

★★★

“Daring” isn’t a word you’d use very much to describe 2011’s “The Hangover Part II,” the disappointingly lazy, beat-for-beat rehash of the wild and wildly successful original “Hangover” from 2009.

Yet, here we are with “The Hangover Part III,” which runs a different sort …

Hot Picks: Award show, BACinema screens ‘Quartet’

Here is a look at top events you won’t want to miss. Suggestions include the Celebration of Chicago Artists Award Show in University Park and the BACinema screening of “Quartet” in Chicago.

Crowd Pleasers for May 24, 2013

Here is a look at some crowd pleasers. Events include the Smiley Tillmond Band in Back to the Delta: A Blues Showcase at the Beverly Arts Center in Chicago.

McGraw pumped for Two Lanes of Freedom Tour

NASHVILLE, TENN. — It’s no coincidence that Tim McGraw’s latest album opens and closes with highway songs.

“There’s a sense of acceleration on this record, a sense of freedom,” the country singer said of “Two Lanes of Freedom.”

“I feel energized, like I’m at the …

Microsoft reveals Xbox One, next-generation gaming

Microsoft thinks it has the one. The company revealed the Xbox One, its next-generation entertainment console Tuesday. The console was demonstrated using voice control to switch among watching live TV, listening to music and browsing the Internet, as well as simultaneously running apps.

Sabadosa: Some good books to escape in this summer

The way this year is zipping by, summer will be here before we know it. If you are lucky enough to have the summer off from a job, are planning a vacation getaway or simply have your sights set on kicking back often during the …

Donley’s Wild West Town a return to yesteryear

Go West, young Chicagoans. Go West.

Direct your parents to load up the family car and head on Interstate 90 past Barrington, past Elgin and through Hampshire. Go west to Union, Ill., the small-town (population: 579) home of Donley’s Wild West Town, a museum and …

Crowd Pleasers for May 17, 2013

Here is a look at some crowd pleasers. Events include Gaelic Park Players hosting the 20th annual Acting Irish International Theatre Festival in Oak Forest, Grande Prairie Singers' concert in Park Forest, and Suburban Youth Symphony Orchestra’s concert in Orland Park.

‘Star Trek Into Darkness’ turns out to be quite the Enterprise

RICHARD ROEPER: Director J.J. Abrams is a true talent, and he’s also a pop-culture savant who has great respect for the legacy of this franchise as well as a keen understanding of the mega-importance of box-office figures. There’s no better choice to make the best, the purest AND the most accessible big-budget “Star Trek” movie possible. Yet with all the futuristic splendor and the fine performances, “Into Darkness” only occasionally soars, mostly settling for being a solid but unspectacular effort that sets the stage for the next chapter(s).

New on DVD for May 17, 2013

Here is a look at what’s new on DVD this week. Many of these titles were released on May 14.

Star power — Adler tech revolutionizes sky show

As a pulsing nebula races toward the watchful audience, a hand shoots up to touch it. More hands follow suit, straining skywards. For the kids taking in the Adler’s newest show, “Cosmic Wonder,” outer space is just out of reach.

It’s an illusion created by …

Midlothian school kids catch some rays at new Shedd exhibit

One touch, and 8-year-old Sandy Brindl was sold.

“I’m definitely coming back here and I’m going to tell everyone I know about these animals,” she said, clasping her hands. “They are the most gentle animals in the sea.”

She was referring to the graceful cownose …

First Midwest Bank Amphitheatre’s 2013 concert season

The 2013 summer concert season is a live music fan’s dream.

A ton of great gigs are on the way, and many of them will be at First Midwest Bank Amphitheatre, 19100 S. Ridgeland Ave., Tinley Park.

“It’s a busy summer and there’s just a …

Field Museum, with an extensive but costly collection, faces millions of dollars in cuts

With more than 25 million specimens, the Field Museum has one of the world’s largest and most renowned collections. Maintaining this massive collection comes with a price, though, one the Field Museum can’t sustain. Museum leaders now are grappling with what the museum of the future will look like and what role the collection and research will play in it.

Our guide to suburban Chicago area bike trails

Cycling is a great way to get out and enjoy the spring weather