To be eligible for my mid-year and end-of-year lists, titles must meet the following criteria:
1.) I had to have seen it.
2.) The movie had to have a premiere theatrical run in the Chicagoland area in that given year (excludes festival screenings).
3.) Movies that had a legal and domestic home-video release date that given year are eligible if said release date precedes a theatrical run in the Chicagoland area. This rule is intended for formats like DVD and Blu-ray. Films available through “on demand” or online distribution channels will be determined on an ad hoc basis.