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Movie Reviews
A Disappointing Thriller Channels Hitchcock And Bram 'Stoker'
March 1, 2013 The film is ripe with a creepy-crawly feel that would be affecting if the tone weren't so arch. Directed by Park Chan-wook, written by Wentworth Miller and starring Nicole Kidman, Mia Wasikowska and Matthew Goode, Stoker is a vile little chamber horror, says critic David Edelstein.
Movie Interviews
'The Gatekeepers' Offer Candid Assessment Of Israel's Security
February 28, 2013 Director Dror Moreh interviews six former heads of the Israel's Shin Bet security service in his Oscar-nominated documentary. The men look back on their work and conclude that continued Israeli occupation of the Palestinians will not resolve the conflict.
Music Reviews
Ben Goldberg's Variations: Two New Albums From A San Francisco Jazz Staple
February 28, 2013 Known for his work in New Klezmer Trio, clarinetist Ben Goldberg has just released two new albums for different quintets: Subatomic Particle Homesick Blues and Unfold Ordinary Mind.
Book Reviews
Dorothea Lange's 'Migrant Mother' Inspires The Story Of 'Mary Coin'
February 28, 2013 Marisa Silver's new novel imagines the meeting of a Depression-era photographer and her now-iconic subject. Giving the characters different names but similar stories to their real-life counterparts, Silver tackles big questions about the morality of art.
Music Reviews
Aretha Franklin Before Atlantic: The Columbia Years
February 27, 2013 Franklin found her voice in songs such as "I Never Loved a Man" for Atlantic Records in the 1960s. Before Atlantic, however, Franklin recorded for Columbia, and in those early recordings you can hear the legend just beginning to emerge.
The Papal Succession
'Behind The Scenes' At The Vatican: The Politics Of Picking A New Pope
February 27, 2013 John Thavis covered the Vatican from Rome for nearly 30 years while working for the Catholic News Service. In his new book, The Vatican Diaries, he describes a place much less organized and hierarchical than the public imagines.
Commentary
Historical Vocab: When We Get It Wrong, Does It Matter?
February 26, 2013 We're living in an age obsessed with authenticity, says linguist Geoff Nunberg, but we often choose to nitpick the wrong details. Whether it's Downton Abbey, Mad Men, Lincoln or Argo, Nunberg argues, a historical novel or screenplay should give us a translation, not a transcription.
The Salt
How The Food Industry Manipulates Taste Buds With 'Salt Sugar Fat'
February 26, 2013 From food scientists who study the human palate to maximize consumer bliss, to marketing campaigns that target teens to hook them for life on a brand, Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Michael Moss' new book goes inside the world of processed, packaged goods.
Author Interviews
Whitey Bulger Bio Profiles Boston's Most Notorious Gangster
February 25, 2013 Reporters Kevin Cullen and Shelley Murphy, who covered Bulger for years for The Boston Globe, have a new book out about the career criminal. Bulger was wanted for 19 murders when he was captured by the FBI in 2011. He faces trial in June.
Music Reviews
Guards: Anthems With Gravitas
February 25, 2013 The debut album from the New York trio Guards is big on atmospherics, but also features a grandness of intent that connects the group to acts as varied as U2, Arcade Fire and The Beach Boys.
Fresh Air Weekend
Fresh Air Weekend: Blanco And Bazelon
February 23, 2013 Blanco, who read his poem "One Today" at Obama's second inauguration, is the first immigrant, Latino and openly gay poet chosen to read at an inauguration. Emily Bazelon explores teen bullying and how the rise of the Internet and social media make the experience more challenging.
Movie Interviews
Affleck On 'Argo' And The 1979 Hostage Crisis
February 22, 2013 Ben Affleck's Argo won Golden Globes for best director and best motion picture/drama. The film now has Oscar nominations for Best Picture and Best Adapted Screenplay. Affleck talks about his approach to the story of six diplomats who managed to escape a hostile Iran in 1979.
Movie Interviews
Bradley Cooper Finds 'Silver Linings' Everywhere
February 22, 2013 The actor, nominated for an Academy Award for his role in David O. Russell's film, talks about watching movies with his father as a kid in Philadelphia, his childhood fascination with soldiers and being up against Daniel Day Lewis for an Oscar.
Book Reviews
Karen Russell's 'Vampires' Deserve The Raves
February 21, 2013 The author of Swamplandia! has a new collection of short stories called Vampires in the Lemon Grove. Critic Maureen Corrigan says the stories are daring and devastating, and with them Russell establishes herself as one of the great American writers of our young century.
