Movies

Tom Hanks stars as the beloved children's performer Fred Rogers in A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood.

Arts

'A Beautiful Day In The Neighborhood': Can You Say 'Sincere' And 'Heartening?'

5:00pm November 21, 2019

by Ella Taylor

Marielle Heller's new film isn't Fred Rogers' story — it's the story of two damaged outsiders (Tom Hanks and Matthew Rhys) finding a connection that overcomes the darkness in their childhoods.

Mark Ruffalo stars as a lawyer facing off against Dupont in Todd Haynes's Dark Waters.

Arts

In 'Dark Waters,' A Conventional But Compelling Tale Of Corporate Comeuppance

5:00pm November 21, 2019

by Mark Jenkins

In "the most conventional movie of [director Todd] Haynes' career," Mark Ruffalo plays a lawyer taking on DuPont. The film distills years of litigation into an urgent story.

Jennifer Lee was named chief creative officer of Walt Disney Animation Studios following the departure of John Lasseter from the company. She is also the screenwriter and co-director of Frozen II.

Arts

Disney Animation Chief Jennifer Lee Is The Queen Behind Elsa And Anna

4:44pm November 21, 2019

by Elizabeth Blair

Her credits include Frozen, Wreck-It Ralph and Zootopia. Now, Jennifer Lee is the first female chief creative officer of Walt Disney Animation Studios — oh, and she co-directed the Frozen sequel.

Queue Listen Now

Mark Ruffalo And Robert Bilott On The New Film 'Dark Waters'

4:12pm November 21, 2019

NPR's Ari Shapiro speaks with actor Mark Ruffalo and the real life attorney he plays, Robert Bilott, in the new film Dark Waters.

"The way the public feels about Tom Hanks has a similar quality to how we feel about Mister Rogers," says director Marielle Heller. But she found that Hanks and Rogers had a very different energy. At the beginning, she tried to "rein Tom's natural buoyanc

Arts

'Beautiful Day' Director On Mister Rogers' 'Radical Notion': Telling Kids The Truth

12:20pm November 21, 2019

by Terry Gross

"He wasn't afraid of any of the hardest parts of childhood," Marielle Heller says. Her film A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood centers on Rogers' unlikely friendship with a cynical journalist.

Queue Listen Now

Elsa (voiced by Idina Menzel) is headed for a fall in Frozen II.

Arts

'Frozen II' Lets It Go ... Darker

11:52am November 20, 2019

by Glen Weldon

Yes, there's another earworm-ballad, but the sequel at least attempts to course-correct for the pernicious princess obsession that Disney unleashed on the world in the first place.

'Luce' And Waves' Boost Actor Kelvin Harrison Jr.'s Career

5:03am November 19, 2019

by Marc Rivers

Kelvin Harrison Jr. has two breakout roles this year in Luce, and the new film Waves which will rolls out in theaters this weekend. The New Orleans native has very quickly become an indie darling.

In the late 2000s, Robert Pattinson began playing vampire Edward Cullen in the film adaptations of the Twilight novels. "It was so sudden, it didn't feel real to me at all," he says of the fame.

Arts

Robert Pattinson Does Not Want To Play An English Prince, Thank You Very Much

2:21pm November 18, 2019

by Terry Gross

Even since he was a kid, Pattinson has been drawn to antihero characters. In his new film, he and costar Willem Dafoe play lighthouse keepers who get stranded by a bad storm in 1890s New England.

Queue Listen Now

"The Report" European Premiere - 63rd BFI London Film Festival

Politics & Government

Releasing "The Report"

1:24pm November 18, 2019

Scott Z. Burns' new film dramatizes the process of releasing a report on "enhanced interrogation techniques" during the Bush administration.

Actor Sterling K. Brown Plays A Strict, Demanding Father In His New Movie 'Waves'

4:24pm November 15, 2019

NPR's Ailsa Chang speaks with Sterling K. Brown about starring as a father trying to hold his family together in the new film, Waves.