Arts

Arts

Adam Sandler And The Safdie Brothers Discuss Manic Thriller 'Uncut Gems'

2:07pm December 19, 2019

by Terry Gross

In a new film by writer/directors Josh and Benny Safdie, Adam Sandler plays a jewelry store owner and gambler who's deep in debt. The brothers' father worked in Manhattan's diamond district.

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The Cave, The Farewell, Booksmart, Little Women, Hustlers and Fast Color (from left, starting in top row) all made NPR's favorite-movie list this year.

Arts

NPR's Favorite Movies Of 2019

10:22am December 19, 2019

Parasite, Knives Out, Avengers: Endgame, Little Women and Marriage Story are among the year-end list of 20 films that NPR critics loved the most.

Mark Hamill takes off his storm trooper helmet in a scene from the film Star Wars.

Arts

'Star Wars,' The Trilogy That NPR Turned Into Radio Drama

5:05am December 19, 2019

A long time ago, in an NPR far, far away, the network got into the Star Wars saga by producing a radio drama of the original trilogy.

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Books
Arts

'Impeachment: A Handbook': How A Watergate-Era Essay Can Guide Us Today

5:43pm December 18, 2019

by Rose Friedman

Originally published in 1974, the barely 60-page essay by Charles L. Black Jr. is considered one of the reference works on the subject — and it's getting renewed attention.

Chewbacca (Joonas Suotamo), Poe (Oscar Isaac), Rey (Daisy Ridley) and Finn (John Boyega) take on the enemy one last time in Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker.

Arts

'The Rise Of Skywalker' Makes For An Exciting, Exhaustive, Effortful Ending

9:39am December 18, 2019

by Glen Weldon

The final chapter in "The Skywalker Saga" returns J.J. Abrams to the director's chair, and the result, while overstuffed with characters and plot, delivers on space-operatic action.

Geri Hongeva (left), who voiced C-3PO in the Navajo translation of A New Hope; artist Duane Koyawena (center); and engineer Joe Mastroianni with Hopi R2 at the Museum of Northern Arizona in Flagstaff.

'The Force Is With Our People' Connects Indigenous Culture To A Galaxy Far Away

5:46am December 18, 2019

by Ryan Heinsius

The Rise of Skywalker speaks to the historical experiences of many in the Indigenous community. An exhibit by Native artists attempts to shed light on those connections.

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Books
Arts

A Book Of Poetry For Everyone

5:34pm December 17, 2019

Poet Tess Taylor shares some of her favorite poetry collections from the year — good for both savoring alone or gifting to others.

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Keita Takahashi designed an in-ground slide for a since-cancelled Nottingham playground.

Arts

Meet 'Wattam,' The Newest Absurd Video Game Playground From Keita Takahashi

4:23pm December 17, 2019

by Vincent Acovino

From the designer of Katamari Damacy and other cult favorites comes a new work — one just as eccentric and earnest as his past games.

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Julie Andrews poses with baby Emma in November 1962. Andrews began filming Mary Poppins a few months after Emma's birth.

Books
Arts

When Mom Is Mary Poppins: Julie Andrews Writes Memoir With Her Daughter

2:21pm December 17, 2019

by Terry Gross

"It was sometimes difficult to share her," Emma Walton Hamilton says of life with her famous mom. Hamilton and Andrews have written 32 books together; their latest is Home Work.

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Arts

'Fresh Air' Remembers 'Do The Right Thing' And 'Ruby' Actor Danny Aiello

2:15pm December 17, 2019

by Terry Gross

The Oscar-nominated actor, who died Dec. 12, started out as an official with the New York Transit Union, but quit when he was 35 to pursue acting. Originally broadcast in 1992.

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