Arts & Life

Melissa McCarthy stars as a detective investigating a string of puppet killings in The Happytime Murders.

Arts

A New Addition To The Long Tradition Of Puppets Behaving Badly

10:28am August 24, 2018

by Barry Gordemer

The Happytime Murders is a new movie starring Melissa McCarthy and a cast of extremely raunchy puppets. It's definitely not for kids — which continues a legacy dating back to the Middle Ages.

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Arts

What Does It Mean To Choose To Dye Your Hair Blonde?

5:42pm August 23, 2018

NPR's Ailsa Chang talks with poet Claudia Rankine about her art exhibit on choosing to dye one's hair blonde called "Stamped."

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In What Keeps You Alive, Jackie (Hannah Emily Anderson) and Jules (Brittany Allen) head to a cabin in the woods and everything works out fine, because nothing bad ever happens in cabins in the woods.

Arts

'What Keeps You Alive': When You Marry A Killer, The Anniversary Gifts Are Murder

5:01pm August 23, 2018

by Glen Weldon

In writer/director Colin Minihan's slack but stylish horror thriller, two women visit a remote cabin to celebrate their anniversary; a deadly cat-and-mouse game ensues.

Maci (Haley Lu Richardson) and Lisa (Regina Hall) share a laugh in the workplace comedy Support the Girls.

Arts

In 'Support The Girls,' The Script ... Doesn't

5:00pm August 23, 2018

by Mark Jenkins

Regina Hall stars in this comedy set in a chain sports bar where young female servers scramble for tips, but the underwritten screenplay relies on a ceaseless stream of clunky one-liners.

Florence (Emily Mortimer) unpacks her inventory in an adaptation of Penelope Fitzgerald's 1978 novel The Bookshop.

Arts

'The Bookshop': A Caustic Tale of Clashing Sensibilities Gets A Too-Gentle Treatment

5:00pm August 23, 2018

by Ella Taylor

To make Penelope Fitzgerald's astringent novel more broadly palatable, adapter Isabel Coixet softens it nearly beyond recognition. Fitzgerald fans, be warned: The result is marketable but mealy.

Detective Connie Edwards (Melissa McCarthy) and private eye Phil Philips (Bill Barretta) investigate underhanded goings-on in The Happytime Murders

Arts

Raunchy But Thin 'The Happytime Murders' Isn't Deeply Felt

5:00pm August 23, 2018

by Scott Tobias

Unlike the more allegorical Meet the Feebles or Team America: World Police, this latest excuse to make jokes about puppet-sex isn't interested in doing anything more than make jokes about puppet-sex.

Arts

How An Israeli Journalist's Coverage Of The Palestinian Conflict Inspired 'Fauda'

1:56pm August 23, 2018

by Dave Davies

After years as a reporter, Avi Issacharoff co-created an action series about an elite unit of the Israeli military whose members work undercover in the West Bank. Fauda is now streaming on Netflix.

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An illustration of Little Women's Jo, Beth, Meg and Amy by British artist Harold Copping.

Books
Arts

After 150 Years, 'Little Women' Still Resonates

11:21am August 23, 2018

by Ilana Masad

In Meg, Jo, Beth, Amy, Anne Boyd Rioux describes how the sisterly bond of the March girls that Louisa May Alcott created many years ago remains a paragon of female friendship and inspiration.

How Are You Going to Save Yourself is author JM Holmes' first story collection.

Books
Arts

'How Are You Going To Save Yourself' Asks The Hard Questions

10:00am August 23, 2018

by Michael Schaub

JM Holmes asks a lot of questions in his debut story collection, a shockingly powerful, gorgeously written book about four African American friends growing up and growing apart.

Arts

Actors, Married For 35 Years, Enrich Their Lives With Others' Words

5:07am August 23, 2018

by Jeff Lunden

Plays are often so intense that actors fall in love. It was 35 years ago, Nance Williamson and Kurt Rhoads were cast opposite each other in Shakespeare's As You Like It and their showmance continues.

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