Movies

'Everybody Knows' Marries Far-Flung Talent To A Story About A Wedding Gone Wrong

4:27pm February 06, 2019

by Bob Mondello

A wedding is disrupted by a kidnapping in Everybody Knows, a film starring Penélope Cruz and Javier Bardem, and directed by award-winning Iranian director Asghar Farhadi of A Separation.

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Science
Arts

Environmental Photographer Focuses On Protecting The Climate — And Its People

1:28pm February 06, 2019

by Dave Davies

The new documentary The Human Element follows James Balog as he captures the places and people affected by the rising oceans, wildfires and air pollution associated with climate change.

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Oscar statue watches over the 91st Oscars Nominees Luncheon at the Beverly Hilton hotel in Beverly Hills, California.

Arts

Oscars Will Not Be Hosted For The First Time Since 1989

4:40pm February 05, 2019

by Richard Gonzales

Questions about who would host the Academy Awards lingered ever since the scheduled host, comedian Kevin Hart, dropped out in December.

Books
Arts

How 'A Star Is Born' Became One Of Judy Garland's 'Biggest Heartbreaks'

1:19pm February 05, 2019

by Sonari Glinton

Judy Garland's daughter Lorna Luft talks about what her mother went through while making the 1954 film. The movie was produced by Sid Luft, who was Lorna's father and Garland's husband at the time.

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Cai Cohrs plays the young version of Kurt Barnert in Never Look Away. Following World War II, actor Tom Schilling picks up the role as Kurt becomes an artist.

Arts

Confronting Germany's Past In Oscar-Nominated 'Never Look Away'

7:40pm February 04, 2019

by Bilal Qureshi

Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck's newest historical epic tells the story of an artist after World War II. It touches on the sensitive subject of national guilt — and not without controversy.

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In High Flying Bird, directed by Steven Soderbergh with a screenplay from Tarell Alvin McCraney, André Holland plays Ray Burke — a sports agent with a scheme to shake up the NBA.

Sports

'High Flying Bird': In An NBA Lockout, An Agent Shoots His Shot

8:07am February 02, 2019

by Scott Simon

Actor André Holland imagined professional basketball if athletes had real agency. So he teamed up with director Steven Soderburgh for a movie which imagines what that might look like.

Jay (Roy Chiu) and Sanlian (Ying-Xuan Hsieh) have at least one thing in common in Dear Ex.

Arts

'Dear Ex': A Man Dies, Leaving Behind A Wife, A Son And A Secret Gay Lover

7:00am February 02, 2019

by Andrew Lapin

When it focuses on 13-year-old Chengxi (Joseph Huang), this "shaggy-but-lovable" Taiwanese film now on Netflix dutifully tugs the heartstrings.

As in Dan Gilroy's previous film, Jake Gyllenhaal stars in the comedy-horror hybrid Velvet Buzzsaw. Gyllenhaal plays an art critic named Morf, while Zawe Ashton plays gallery assistant Josephina.

Arts

Both Satire And Slasher, 'Velvet Buzzsaw' Sends Up Contemporary Art

5:42pm February 01, 2019

Writer and director Dan Gilroy brings back Jake Gyllenhaal and Rene Russo for his newest feature, a horror-comedy set in the modern art world. Also, the male lead is named Morf.

Arts

Remembering Character Actor Dick Miller

1:22pm February 01, 2019

by Terry Gross

"You don't have to be a leading man" to make it in Hollywood, Miller told Fresh Air in 1990. He appeared in more than 100 films, including Gremlins and The Little Shop of Horrors.

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Gina Rodriguez is Gloria, a young woman drawn against her will into crime and violence by a skeezy drug kingpin, in Miss Bala.

Arts

Gina Rodriguez Kicks Butt And Takes Nombres In 'Miss Bala'

5:07pm January 31, 2019

by Chris Klimek

Miss Bala invites comparisons to other, more effective films with similar butt-kicking protagonists, but as compelling, well-acted genre filmmaking, it succeeds.