Movies

A 5-year-old Jeffrey Sherman is pictured with his father, songwriter Robert Sherman, in the early 1960s.

His Vaccine Story Inspired His Father To Write A Disney Classic

9:13am January 08, 2021

by Jo Corona

As a kid, Jeffrey Sherman told his father, songwriter Robert Sherman, about his experience getting a polio vaccine. It sparked Robert to craft the now famous Mary Poppins song, "A Spoonful of Sugar."

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'Ratatouille: The TikToK Musical' Raises Money For The Actors Fund

5:04am January 04, 2021

A campaign to make Disney's Ratatouille into a musical raised more than a million for the Actors Fund. The musical's songwriter lays out how the idea went from TikTok to a phenomenon.

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Arts

To Make 'The Godfather' His Way, Francis Ford Coppola Waged A Studio Battle

1:33pm January 01, 2021

by Terry Gross

Coppola was 29 years old when he signed on to direct a film. "I was young and had no power," he said in 2016, "so [the studio] figured they could just boss me around." But Coppola fought back.

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Kristen Bell, William Jackson Harper, Ted Danson and D'Arcy Carden in NBC's afterlife comedy series The Good Place, which ended after four seasons.

50 Wonderful Things From 2020

5:56pm December 29, 2020

by Linda Holmes

Linda Holmes' annual list of highlights from pop culture includes TV, movies, games, podcasts, TikTok videos and whatever else made the year a little easier.

What 2020 Was Like For The Movie Industry

3:52pm December 29, 2020

by Bob Mondello

This year was quite bad for most movie theaters — but not bad at all for movies. NPR discusses what 2020 was like for the movie industry.

Maud (Glenda Jackson) is haunted by two mysteries in the television film Elizabeth is Missing, based on a novel by Emma Healey.

Arts

Dementia Complicates The Search For 2 Lost Women In 'Elizabeth Is Missing'

9:22pm December 28, 2020

by John Powers

A new PBS Masterpiece psychological thriller stars Glenda Jackson as a woman desperately trying to solve two mysteries — even as her own grasp of reality is slipping away.

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Regina King Imagines What 4 Black Icons' Gathering In 1964 Might Have Looked Like

3:45pm December 28, 2020

by Bob Mondello

Regina King's directorial film debut, One Night in Miami, envisions a 1964 gathering of boxer Cassius Clay, activist Malcolm X, fullback Jim Brown and singer Sam Cooke.

Arts

'Soul' Surprises With Its Messages About Finding Purpose

5:00pm December 27, 2020

by Eric Deggans

Pixar's new film stars Jamie Foxx as a jazz musician whose soul gets separated from his body. The animated feature explores themes of music and transformation.

Arts

New Documentary Follows San Francisco Gay Men's Chorus Performances In U.S. South

10:12am December 27, 2020

Sarah McCammon speaks with director David Rodrigues and San Francisco Gay Men's Chorus artistic director Tim Seelig, subject of the new documentary "Gay Chorus Deep South."

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Carey Mulligan stars as Cassie in Promising Young Woman.

Arts

'Promising Young Woman' Is A Dark Comedy That Will Keep You On Your Toes

10:18am December 26, 2020

by Linda Holmes

The darkly comic thriller Promising Young Woman, starring Carey Mulligan as a woman on a mission, is a carefully constructed mix of genres and moods that doesn't pull its punches.