In 'Wicked: Part I', Cynthia Erivo defies gravity — and convention — as Elphaba
Cynthia Erivo says being different had "something to do with" her role as Elphaba in 'Wicked: Part 1.'
Movies
Opinion: Remembering the marvel, Maggie Smith
Jean Brodie, Minerva McGonagall, Violet Crawley: Maggie Smith embodied these memorable roles on stage and screen. NPR's Scott Simon has a remembrance of the actor, who died yesterday at the age of 89.
Critics often slam movies. Sometimes the movies slam back.
Ian McKellen plays a brutal theater critic in a new film. That sent our own film critic back into the archives, musing about portrayals of critics on screen.
Aperture Cinema set to premiere trailer for German-language film festival
Aperture Cinema will premier the trailer for its Kino im Nord Karolina film festival, an event designed to highlight contemporary German-language films.
$#@*! we're talking profanity in pop culture
We've got dirty words on the brain, and we're chatting about the use and functions of profanity in entertainment. In this encore episode from 2013, we cover everything from Anchorman to South Park to Shakespeare.
Hunter Schafer's 'Cuckoo' serves up Alpine horror
In the new, stylishly odd horror film Cuckoo, Hunter Schafer plays an American teenager who reluctantly moves with her family to a mysterious resort in the German Alps. Her rebellious spirit clashes with the resort's creepy proprietor, played by Dan Stevens. When weird stuff starts happening, long-buried family secrets come to light and the resort's true nature stands revealed.
‘Sebastian’ re-writes the sex work movie
Director and writer Mikko Mäkelä says he wasn’t interested in creating yet another sex worker drama focused on trauma. Instead, Sebastian is a knowing but conflicted young man learning about himself.
The trailer for Disney’s live-action ‘Snow White’ remake has some people very Grumpy
The film, set to be released in March 2025, has been mired by a string of controversies on everything from its new “woke” messaging to its depiction of dwarfism.
Joan Chen on her role in coming-of-age film 'Dìdi'
NPR's Scott Simon talks to Joan Chen. The actor is getting Oscar buzz for the new film, "Dìdi," in which Chen plays the mother of a Taiwanese-American skater kid in the Bay Area.
Matt Damon and Casey Affleck are 'The Instigators' in a classic heist film throwback
After a heist goes bad, two inept Boston crooks (played by Damon and Affleck) become uneasy partners. The Instigators is a reasonably enjoyable film that reflects an earlier cinematic era.