Movie Reviews

Arts

A Girl Spreads Her Wings In 'Eagle Huntress'

5:53am November 02, 2016

A documentary about a teenager who breaks a 2,000-year-old Mongolian tradition is so satisfying it makes you feel good about feeling good. says Morning Edition film critic Kenneth Turan.

Arts

Lush And Romantic 'Handmaiden' Is The Year's Most Irresistible Love Story

1:43pm October 28, 2016

by David Edelstein

Though he's known for making quasi-horror films, director Park Chan-wook's latest movie is a melodrama set in 1930s Korea. Critic David Edelstein says The Handmaiden is fun and full of twists.

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"We weren't like the other bands," says The Stooges drummer Scott Asheton in the music documentary Gimme Danger.

'Gimme Danger': Finding Cool On The Brink Of Catastrophe

9:26pm October 27, 2016

by Andrew Lapin

In Jim Jarmusch's jagged documentary, Iggy Pop reflects on the necessary recklessness that made The Stooges punk legends.

Tom Hanks and Felicity Jones star in Inferno, a film based on the book by Dan Brown, author of The Da Vinci Code.

Arts

'Inferno' Stokes The Embers Of A Dying Franchise

5:00pm October 27, 2016

by Mark Jenkins

After three adaptations, including The Da Vinci Code and Angels & Demons, the lively heresies of Dan Brown's bestselling thrillers have sunk into timid incoherence.

National

'Moonlight': A Film About A Black Man's Coming-Of-Age In South Florida

4:58pm October 21, 2016

NPR's Kelly McEvers talks to actor Mahershala Ali about the complex and nuanced ways his characters exemplify black masculinity - particularly in the new film, 'Moonlight.'

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Arts

'Moonlight': A Cinematic Poem Of Love, Loneliness And Coming Out

4:58pm October 21, 2016

by Bob Mondello

The most rewarding coming-of-age film in many a moon, lyrically luminous Moonlight is the story of a gay African-American youngster in Miami who experiences trouble, trauma and unexpected grace.

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Angela Davis appears in the new Netflix documentary 13th, which explores how the United States became the country with the world's largest prison population, and why a disproportional number of those prisoners are black.

'13th' Maps The Road From Slavery To Mass Incarceration

2:51pm October 21, 2016

by John Powers

Ava DuVernay's new film takes its name from the amendment that abolished slavery, but allowed for prisoner servitude. Critic John Powers says 13th puts forth a searing interpretation of U.S. history.

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Left to right: Tom Cruise plays Jack Reacher, Judd Lormand plays Local Deputy and Jason Douglas plays Sheriff in Jack Reacher: Never Go Back.

Arts

With A Second 'Jack Reacher,' Tom Cruise Finally Exceeds His Grasp

5:00pm October 20, 2016

by Chris Klimek

After a five-year winning streak as Hollywood reigning action hero, Tom Cruise falls back to earth with a can't-miss sequel that misses.

Zach Galifianakis and Isla Fisher as Jeff and Karen Gaffney in Keeping Up with the Joneses.

Arts

'Keeping Up' With These Suburban Spies Is All Too Easy

5:00pm October 20, 2016

by Andrew Lapin

Zach Galifianakis loses his edge in a Mr. and Mrs. Smith knockoff that strands a gifted cast in a bland cul-de-sac spy adventure.

Ashton Sanders in Moonlight, a film directed by Barry Jenkins.

Arts

A Melancholy Youth Finds Himself Under The Heavenly Glow Of 'Moonlight'

5:00pm October 20, 2016

by Ella Taylor

In Barry Jenkins' incandescent coming-of-age tale, three different actors cover three phases in the life of an African-American who takes a wayward path into manhood.