Movie Review: 'The Lovely Bones'

Tue, 01 Dec 2009 17:40:44 GMT

The Lovely BonesHeavenly CreaturesLord of the Rings(Article continued below…)

A New Kind of Bollywood Film

Fri, 27 Nov 2009 20:07:59 GMT

Midway through Vishal Bhardwaj's 2009 movie ]]>KamineyScoundrels

Orson Welles: Back From the Dead

Wed, 25 Nov 2009 21:05:17 GMT

Welles's death in 1985 didn't rescue his reputation. "For the television generation," wrote frequent lunch companion Gore Vidal in 1989, "he is remembered as an enormously fat and garrulous man with a booming voice, seen most often on talk shows and in commercials where he somberly assured us that a certain wine would not be sold 'before its time,' whatever that meant." In 1993 the critic Jonathan Rosenbaum, one of Welles's most perceptive chroniclers and staunchest defenders, lamented that he is "mainly regarded in the U.S. today as a failed artist." Even now, YouTube serves as a repository of Welles's bad late-life behavior, like the gruesome clips that keep "Orson Welles drunk" and "Orson Welles frozen peas" among his most popular Google searches. (Look them up for yourself if you're cruel.)

Movie Review: 'Crazy Heart'

Wed, 25 Nov 2009 20:56:04 GMT

First-time director Scott Cooper, who wrote the screenplay from a Thomas Cobb novel, gives his cast (which includes Duvall, in a small but tasty role) lots of breathing room. What he prizes in this character study is not originality, but authenticity. From the songs Blake sings (written by Stephen Bruton and T. Bone Burnett) to the light in the eyes of his aging groupies, the details feel right. ]]>Crazy Heart

Movie Review: Clint Eastwood's 'Invictus'

Wed, 25 Nov 2009 20:53:45 GMT

During his incarceration, Mandela studied his Afrikaner enemies and was wise to the role sports played in the national psyche. South Africa's less-than-sterling rugby team, the Springbok, was as beloved by whites as it was despised by the black population, to whom it had become a symbol of oppression. Yet Mandela, taking a huge political risk, refuses to give in to his supporters' demand that the team be dismantled and renamed. To do so, he sees, would only stoke fear and racial paranoia in the Afrikaner population. Enlisting the team's captain (Matt Damon) to his side, Mandela challenges him to turn its losing ways around. His goal is to use rugby to bridge the racial divide in his country.

Jason Reitman: The Grown-Up's Director

Wed, 25 Nov 2009 20:46:01 GMT

There hasn't been a studio movie as unapologetically adult, sophisticated, and nuanced as ]]>Up in the Air

Does Television's Gay Influx Promote Stereotypes?

Fri, 13 Nov 2009 00:12:50 GMT

Gays on TV once helped promote tolerance. Now they may be hurting it.

Joe Papp: The Man Behind Shakespeare in the Park

Thu, 12 Nov 2009 23:29:18 GMT

Papp made theater free, and proved it was priceless.

Bluegrass and Old-time Music Legend Ralph Stanley: The Last Hillbilly

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 21:17:04 GMT

The world that Stanley evokes is fast fading. It's neither an insult nor a joke to call him the Last Hillbilly. He doesn't mind the word, he says, although now he's proud to be called Dr. Stanley, in acknowledgement of the honorary degree he received from Lincoln Memorial University in 1976. In his singing, songwriting, and playing, you hear the sounds of a world gone by, and you hear it plainly in the wistful tone of this account. "We were the last generation from these mountains to live from the earth," he says. "It was a hard life and there was a lot of suffering. But the music we made couldn't have come from any other place or time. The suffering was part of what made the music strong, and I reckon that's why it's lasted … What's real doesn't die."

Wes Anderson's 'Mr. Fox' Is Fantastic

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 21:09:34 GMT

Fantastic Mr. FoxMr. FoxThe Royal Tenenbaums.

Hollywood Discovers Korea's Talented Actors

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 20:52:13 GMT

Next up: Jeong Ji Hoon, a.k.a. Rain, a pop superstar in much of Asia but still little-known on the global stage. On Nov. 25, Joel Silver and the Wachowski brothers will release their latest big-budget martial-arts thriller, ]]>Ninja Assassin

Wanda Sykes and Late Night TV's New Color Barrier

Thu, 29 Oct 2009 18:02:44 GMT

African-Americans have done well breaking into late night. What they've failed in is being funny.

Calista Flockhart on Ally McBeal and Harrison Ford

Thu, 29 Oct 2009 17:38:39 GMT

It's been 12 years since Calista Flockhart started dancing with an imaginary baby, and now, Ally McBeal is finally back—on DVD. Flockhart spoke to Ramin Setoodeh.

Review: The New 'Twilight' Album

Thu, 22 Oct 2009 19:20:30 GMT

Thanks to the 'Twilight' sequel, the sun has set on a hip band.

Is MTV's Alexa Chung the New Carson Daly?

Mon, 19 Oct 2009 19:55:03 GMT

The music video channel is experiencing some serious growing pains, and it hopes Alexa Chung will be its new Carson Daly. That might be part of the problem.

A Q&A With Carey Mulligan

Sat, 17 Oct 2009 16:49:43 GMT

Mulligan plays Jenny, a '60s British teenager who grows up fast, in ]]>An Education

Exclusive: A Talk With the 'Wild Things' Creators

Fri, 09 Oct 2009 14:52:41 GMT

Let the wild rumpus start!

Supreme Court May Rule on Redskins' Name

Mon, 05 Oct 2009 17:49:45 GMT

A lawsuit challenges the Washington Redskins' trademark on their name, saying its offensive nature means it should be revoked.

Israeli Filmmakers Tackle the Mideast Conflict

Fri, 02 Oct 2009 20:53:12 GMT

A young Arab gasps for breath as he tears down the street, his feet pounding rhythmically on the asphalt. Omar, who comes from the downtrodden Jaffa neighborhood of Ajami, has just witnessed a killing and he is running for his life. It's early morning, and the streets around Tel Aviv's Court of Justice are deserted. It's an apt metaphor; there is no justice here, only a panicked teenager fleeing his own destiny. In his head, Omar hears the soothing voice of his younger brother, telling him to close his eyes and relax. His breath catches as he turns the corner and trips, falling hard on the pavement. "On the count of three you'll open your eyes," his brother's voice promises, "and find yourself in another place." But in the Middle East, there is no escape from the realities of hatred, violence, and oppression. Omar, who has been involved in a drug deal gone wrong, arrives at the getaway van, only to find it's locked and he's trapped. "One…two…three. Open your eyes!" his brother's voice says. On this somber note, ]]>Ajami

Madeleine Albright on the Pins She Wore

Tue, 29 Sep 2009 15:14:20 GMT

Former secretary of state Madeleine Albright tells NEWSWEEK about the pins she wore for diplomacy, and the stories behind them.

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