Movie Reviews : NPR

2 New Works Confront The Refugee Crisis With Empathy And Humanity

Gianfranco Rosi's documentary, Fire at Sea, is set on the tiny Sicilian island of Lampedusa, where tens of thousands of migrants come ashore each year. 01 Distribution hide caption

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01 Distribution

Arts & Life

2 New Works Confront The Refugee Crisis With Empathy And Humanity

Fresh Air

November 30, 2016 • Critic John Powers discusses the Italian documentary, Fire at Sea, and the novel, These Are the Names. The works take very different — but nonetheless poignant — approaches to the refugee situation.

2 New Works Confront The Refugee Crisis With Empathy And Humanity

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In 'Lion,' A Man Uses Google Earth To Search For His Family

November 25, 2016 • NPR movie critic Bob Mondello reviews Lion, a dramatic true story starring Dev Patel as a man who uses Google Earth to search for his family.

In 'Lion,' A Man Uses Google Earth To Search For His Family

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'Mifune' Can't Quite Capture A Screen Legend

Movie star Toshiro Mifune and director Akira Kuroswa on the set of Seven Samurai. Strand Releasing hide caption

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Strand Releasing

'Mifune' Can't Quite Capture A Screen Legend

November 24, 2016 • Critic Mark Jenkins says a new documentary focused on Toshiro Mifune's relationship with director Akira Kurosawa could have used a bit more verve and a few more voices.

Movies

Holiday Movie Preview: Lightsabers, Musicals And Jackie

November 24, 2016 • NPR movie critic Bob Mondello has a preview of the would-be awards contenders and blockbusters Hollywood will be opening as the rest of us open presents.

Holiday Movie Preview: Lightsabers, Musicals And Jackie

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'Allied' Revives The Old-Fashioned Wartime Thriller

Brad Pitt plays Max Vatan and Marion Cotillard plays Marianne Beausejour in Allied. Daniel Smith/Paramount Pictures hide caption

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Daniel Smith/Paramount Pictures

'Allied' Revives The Old-Fashioned Wartime Thriller

November 23, 2016 • Critic Chris Klimek says Allied, the relatively rare mid-budget studio film made for adults, is more than just a period piece — it's an anachronism.

Proud Grinches Beware: Sentimentality Sinks 'Bad Santa 2'

Brett Kelly stars as Thurman Merman and Billy Bob Thornton as Willie Soke in Bad Santa 2. Jan Thijs/Broad Green Pictures/Miramax hide caption

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Jan Thijs/Broad Green Pictures/Miramax

Proud Grinches Beware: Sentimentality Sinks 'Bad Santa 2'

November 23, 2016 • The original Bad Santa has long delighted holiday misanthropes, but an "irredeemably squishy center," says critic Scott Tobias, means its sequel won't give them what they crave.

Disney's 'Moana' Needs No Prince, Just The Land And Sea

The animated Disney movie Moana is a comedy-adventure about a spirited teenager on a mission to fulfill her ancestors' quest. Walt Disney Studios hide caption

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Walt Disney Studios

Disney's 'Moana' Needs No Prince, Just The Land And Sea

November 23, 2016 • Critic Andrew Lapin says Disney's new animated film Moana builds a lush visual world for its young Polynesian heroine and makes its most honest effort yet at appreciating the culture where it's set.

'Fantastic Beasts' And 'The Red Turtle' Bring Magic To The Screen

November 18, 2016 • NPR movie critic Bob Mondello reviews a critter double-feature: J.K. Rowling's Fantastic Beats and Where To Find Them and the Studio Ghibli's The Red Turtle.

'Fantastic Beasts' And 'The Red Turtle' Bring Magic To The Screen

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Bleak, Mournful 'Manchester By The Sea' Packs An Emotional Punch

Fresh Air

November 18, 2016 • Casey Affleck is a man returning to his hometown to bury his brother and reconnect with his teen nephew in Manchester by the Sea. Critic David Eldestein calls the film draining, but also worth seeing.

Bleak, Mournful 'Manchester By The Sea' Packs An Emotional Punch

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Pop Culture Happy Hour: 'Arrival' And Pop Culture Mood-Boosters

Louise Banks (Amy Adams) and Ian Donnelly (Jeremy Renner) in Arrival. Jan Thijs/Paramount Pictures hide caption

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Jan Thijs/Paramount Pictures

Pop Culture Happy Hour

Pop Culture Happy Hour: 'Arrival' And Pop Culture Mood-Boosters

November 18, 2016 • On this week's show, we talk about one of our favorite movies in a while and we offer some music and other stuff that can give you a boost when you need one.

Pop Culture Happy Hour: 'Arrival' And Pop Culture Mood-Boosters

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Teen Comedy 'The Edge Of Seventeen' Is Razor-Sharp

Hailee Steinfeld and Hayden Szeto in The Edge of Seventeen. Murray Close/STX Productions hide caption

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Murray Close/STX Productions

Teen Comedy 'The Edge Of Seventeen' Is Razor-Sharp

November 17, 2016 • A sharp-tongued young woman weathers the sundry mortifications of teenage life in a film from first-time writer/director Kelly Fremon Craig.

In Lonergan's 'Manchester By The Sea,' Submerged Emotions Bubble To The Surface

Casey Affleck and Lucas Hedges in the drama Manchester by the Sea, written and directed by Kenneth Lonergan. Claire Folger/Roadside Attractions hide caption

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Claire Folger/Roadside Attractions

In Lonergan's 'Manchester By The Sea,' Submerged Emotions Bubble To The Surface

November 17, 2016 • Casey Affleck delivers a haunted, searing performance as a guilt-ridden man unexpectedly forced to look after his teenage nephew.

Tom Ford Delivers Pristine But Portentous Pulp In 'Nocturnal Animals'

Jake Gyllenhaal in writer/director Tom Ford's romantic thriller Nocturnal Animals. Merrick Morton/Focus Features hide caption

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Merrick Morton/Focus Features

Tom Ford Delivers Pristine But Portentous Pulp In 'Nocturnal Animals'

November 17, 2016 • This bifurcated film cross-cuts between the sterile existence of a coolly patrician L.A. gallery owner and the action of her ex-husband's raw-boned novel.

'Bleed For This' Captures The Grime And Grit Of A Boxer's Astonishing Comeback

Miles Teller plays boxer Vinny Pazienza, who returned to the ring after a spinal injury. Open Road Films hide caption

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Open Road Films

'Bleed For This' Captures The Grime And Grit Of A Boxer's Astonishing Comeback

November 17, 2016 • Miles Teller is light-middleweight boxer Vinny "The Pazmanian Devil" Paz in this intimate biopic that leans more into kitchen-sink realism than glossy uplift.

Sci-Fi Saga 'Arrival' Asks: Can Humans Learn To Speak The Language Of Aliens?

Fresh Air

November 11, 2016 • Amy Adams plays a professor tasked with talking to eight-tentacled aliens in Denis Villeneuve's new film. Critic David Edelstein says Arrival is a strange and tantalizing puzzle.

Sci-Fi Saga 'Arrival' Asks: Can Humans Learn To Speak The Language Of Aliens?

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