Movies

Cumberbatch is very convincing as a rancher in 'Power of the Dog,' Turan says

5:05am December 01, 2021

NPR's Steve Inskeep talks to film critic Kenneth Turan for a review of the new film: The Power of the Dog — starring Benedict Cumberbatch and Kirsten Dunst. a Montana rancher.

Rebecca Hall (right) works on the set of Passing with actors Ruth Negga (left) and Tessa Thompson.

Arts

'Passing' filmmaker Rebecca Hall shares the personal story behind her movie

2:10pm November 30, 2021

by Terry Gross

Hall's new Netflix film centers on two light-skinned Black women — one of whom passes for white. The story is a personal one for Hall: Her grandfather and mother also passed as white.

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Arts

'Original Cast Album: Company' provides a glimpse of Sondheim's perfectionism

2:08pm November 30, 2021

by Lloyd Schwartz

In 1970, Stephen Sondheim's comic musical Company broke most of the conventions of American musical theater. Now, a newly restored documentary goes inside the making of the original cast album.

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Books

'House of Gucci' author gives her take on the new film adapted from her book

4:50pm November 28, 2021

NPR's David Folkenflik speaks with Sara Gay Forden about her book, The House of Gucci, which has just been released as a feature film starring Lady Gaga and Adam Driver.

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National

Review: Paul Thomas Anderson's 'Licorice Pizza' may be the year's best film

4:24pm November 26, 2021

by Bob Mondello

Cooper Hoffman, the son of the late Phillip Seymour Hoffman, stars in Paul Thomas Anderson's Licorice Pizza, a warmly raucous look at an ambitious teen on the make in 1980s Los Angeles.

Music & Culture

New docuseries gives fans unprecedented access to The Beatles

5:01am November 26, 2021

by Ann Powers

NPR Music critic Ann Powers reviews a new docuseries called "The Beatles: Get Back". It centers around hours of unseen footage of Paul McCartney, John Lennon, George Harrison and Ringo Starr.

National

A peek at some of the 30 films that are opening this holiday season

4:44pm November 25, 2021

by Bob Mondello

More than 30 films are opening between Thanksgiving and New Year's Eve. Here's a selective peek at all the wanna-be blockbusters and awards contenders that Hollywood has wrapped up for the holidays.

Cooper Hoffman and Alana Haim are unlikely friends in Licorice Pizza.

Arts

Paul Thomas Anderson's 'Licorice Pizza' is an endearing slice of '70s Hollywood

10:00pm November 24, 2021

by Justin Chang

An enterprising teen and a 20-something photographer's assistant become unlikely friends — and then zig-zag from one comic episode to the next — in this altogether wonderful film.

Steven Van Zandt [left], James Gandolfini and Tony Sirico starred in HBO's hit television series, The Sopranos.

Books

HBO revolutionized TV, but the next few years are tipped to be pivotal for its future

7:30pm November 24, 2021

by Eric Deggans

Journalist James Andrew Miller and NPR TV critic Eric Deggans talk about how HBO changed television and why the next few years are pivotal for the network's future.

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National

Sandra Bullock on playing an ex-con trying to reenter society after 20 years

5:44pm November 24, 2021

NPR's Mary Louise Kelly speaks with actor Sandra Bullock about her new film, The Unforgivable, a story about a woman who leaves prison after 20 years incarcerated and tries to rebuild her life.

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