'Aladdin': A CGI World, Neither Whole Nor New
Though some elements generate fresh sparks, the remake "mostly has the beat-for-beat quality of the live-action Beauty and the Beast, the current standard-bearer for pointlessness."
Arts
'Booksmart' Is A Wise And Warm Summer Comedy
Director Olivia Wilde and leads Beanie Feldstein and Kaitlyn Dever do wonderful work in a film about two high-school best friends who have one night to reverse course.
These 'Empty Words' Are Full Of Life
The late Uruguayan novelist Mario Levrero was known for his gleeful weirdness. Empty Words follows a writer who tries to cure his block by writing boring nothings — and it's anything but boring.
'Nuking The Moon' Looks At Intelligence And Military Schemes That Didn't Make It
Nuking the Moon is a new book that chronicles the history of unusual confidential military projects.
One LA Community Where Folk And Rock Converged
Singer-songwriter Jakob Dylan and director Andrew Slater talk about the documentary Echo In The Canyon about music from Laurel Canyon in LA that went on to influence a later generation.
ABC Takes A Risky Gamble By Reviving 2 Classic Sitcoms For Live Broadcast
Jamie Foxx plays George Jefferson and Woody Harrelson is Archie Bunker in the ABC special Live in Front of a Studio Audience, which recreates individual episodes of two vintage Norman Lear shows.
Binyavanga Wainaina, Kenyan Writer And LGBTQ Activist, Dies At 48
The author founded a platform for young Kenyan authors and came out as gay in a place where homosexuality has long been illegal. "Binyavanga was unbound in his imagining," said a friend and colleague.
'Theodore Roosevelt For The Defense' Makes A Libel Case Into Gripping Reading
Gifted writers Dan Abrams and David Fisher, who previously brought us Lincoln's Last Trial, are clearly fascinated by how Teddy Roosevelt's court case played out — bringing an enthusiasm to readers.
He Could Go 'All The Way': Joe Namath Enters His 4th Quarter
In a new autobiography, the great NFL quarterback details his ups (like a Super Bowl victory) and downs (like the Suzy Kolber incident and alcoholism) as he stares down his legacy.
Anita Hill On 2020 Election: We Don't Need 'To Take The Lesser Of Two Evils'
Hill, who testified against Clarence Thomas during his 1991 Senate confirmation hearings, accepted a PEN America Courage Award on Tuesday. She spoke to NPR about Joe Biden and the #MeToo movement.