Movies

The Phantom Minas?: Amazon announced it will bring a Lord of the Rings prequel to television. (Elijah Wood in The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring)

Books

10 Great, Perfect, Solid-Mithril Ideas For 'Lord Of The Rings' TV Spin-Offs

6:13am November 14, 2017

by Glen Weldon

Amazon Studios is bringing an ongoing Lord of the Rings prequel series to television. The deal includes an option for "a potential additional spin-off series." Tom Bombadil, call your agent.

In New Film, 'My Friend Dahmer' Author Portrays Serial Killer As Sympathetic Outcast

6:16pm November 12, 2017

by David Barnett

My Friend Dahmer, based on the best-selling graphic novel by John Backderf, tells a story of serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer's high school years and the kids who knew him, including Backderf.

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New Exhibit Shows Off Special Effects Pioneer Ray Harryhausen's Lasting Works

6:12pm November 12, 2017

by Nomin Ujiyediin

A new exhibition in Oklahoma City presents the work of pioneering stop-motion animator Ray Harryhausen. In an age of CGI and 3-D animation, his work still influences and delights.

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Julia Roberts plays Isabel, the mother of Auggie Pullman (Jacob Tremblay), in the new movie Wonder.

Arts

Julia Roberts Is Mom In 'Wonder,' And In Life

7:52am November 12, 2017

by Lulu Garcia-Navarro

In a new movie, Roberts plays mother to a child with facial differences about to enter fifth grade in a new school. She took the role in part because her family loved the book it's based on.

Director Lee Unkrich poses with the Oscar for Toy Story 3 in 2011.

Arts

Not My Job: We Quiz 'Coco' Director Lee Unkrich About Taco Bell

12:53pm November 11, 2017

Since the Pixar director's new film pays homage to actual Mexican culture, we decided to ask him about the "Mexican" fast food chain.

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Arts

Kenneth Branagh On His Meticulous Master Detective Role In 'Murder On The Orient Express'

5:33pm November 10, 2017

Actor Kenneth Branagh has been Henry the Fifth, Iago in Othello, Victor Frankenstein, and now he's taken on another famous literary character, Agatha Christie's meticulous master detective, Hercule Poirot. Branagh both stars and directs the latest version of Murder on the Orient Express and talks with NPR's Kelly McEvers about the project.

Arts

'Murder On The Orient Express' Moves In Inspired Fits And Starts

2:44pm November 10, 2017

by Justin Chang

Kenneth Branagh's adaptation of Agatha Christie's 1934 mystery novel features a cast that rips into individual roles with gusto — but never fully jells as an ensemble.

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The mustache should get second billing: Kenneth Branagh is Hercule Poirot in Murder on the Orient Express.

Arts

Latest 'Murder On The Orient Express' Is A Classic Whydoit

5:01pm November 09, 2017

by Ella Taylor

Critic Ella Taylor says Kenneth Branagh's wildly unnecessary retread of the Agatha Christie tale is "fatally tepid."

Swing and a Diss: Mildred (Frances McDormand) and Willoughby (Woody Harrelson) discuss Mildred's Burma-Shave-inspired quest for justice in Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri.

Arts

Mourning Becomes Electrifying In 'Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri'

5:00pm November 09, 2017

by Chris Klimek

In this, Irish filmmaker Martin McDonagh's third and best feature, the director has "finally begun to grapple with the violence of American life in a way that doesn't feel like the work of a tourist."

Arts

In 'Mayhem,' Office Workers Try To Get Ahead In Business Without Really Dying

5:00pm November 09, 2017

by Andrew Lapin

A virus causes a law firm to descend into bloodsport in this B-movie splatterfest starring The Walking Dead's Steven Yuen.