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Movie Reviews Reviews of new movies, classic and art films, foreign films, and popular movies. Featuring Bob Mondello, Kenneth Turan, David Edelstein, and Mark Jenkins.

Movie Reviews

Rappers took the White House. Now what?

A crowd of White House press looks on as Kanye West and then-President Donald Trump meet in the Oval Office on Oct. 11, 2018. Ron Sachs/Consolidated News Pictures/Getty Images hide caption

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Ron Sachs/Consolidated News Pictures/Getty Images

Music Features

Rappers took the White House. Now what?

A new documentary, Hip-Hop and the White House, considers rap's association with presidential politics — and in so doing, reveals a persistent misunderstanding of how both operate.

Ryan Gosling is 'The Fall Guy' in this cheerfully nonsensical stuntman thriller

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Universal Pictures

Ryan Gosling is 'The Fall Guy' in this cheerfully nonsensical stuntman thriller

Fresh Air

Though it might have benefited from tighter editing, there's no denying the pleasure of this gloriously overwrought film.

Ryan Gosling is 'The Fall Guy' in this cheerfully nonsensical stuntman thriller

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Anne Hathaway finds love with a pop star in 'The Idea of You'

Nicholas Galitzine and Anne Hathaway in The Idea of You. Prime Video hide caption

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Prime Video

Pop Culture Happy Hour

Anne Hathaway finds love with a pop star in 'The Idea of You'

The new movie The Idea Of You tells the story of a boy band star (Nicholas Galitzine) who falls in love with an older divorced mother (Anne Hathaway). It's based on a hit novel that's at least partially inspired by Harry Styles' life and career.

Anne Hathaway finds love with a pop star in 'The Idea of You'

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The movies, TV and music we're excited about this summer

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Brian Roedel /Netflix

Pop Culture Happy Hour

The movies, TV and music we're excited about this summer

Today, we're offering up a guide to spotlight some of the movies, TV, and music we are most excited about this summer.

The movies, TV and music we're excited about this summer

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A dying father looks for the perfect family to adopt his son in 'Nowhere Special'

Daniel Lamont, left, and James Norton in Nowhere Special. Peter Marley/Cohen Media Group hide caption

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Peter Marley/Cohen Media Group

A dying father looks for the perfect family to adopt his son in 'Nowhere Special'

John (James Norton) is a young single dad who has just a few months to live and no family to turn to. So he goes out in search of the perfect family for his 4-year-old son.

A dying father looks for the perfect family to adopt his son in 'Nowhere Special'

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Watch a tense romantic triangle play out on the tennis court in 'Challengers'

Art (Mike Faist), Tashi (Zendaya) and Patrick (Josh O'Connor) are embroiled in a love triangle in Challengers. Metro Goldwyn Mayer Pictures hide caption

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Metro Goldwyn Mayer Pictures

Watch a tense romantic triangle play out on the tennis court in 'Challengers'

Fresh Air

Three superb actors — Zendaya, Mike Faist and Josh O'Connor — star in this sweaty, sexy, entertaining drama about tennis stars with a very complicated past.

Watch a tense romantic triangle play out on the tennis court in 'Challengers'

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The Zendaya-led 'Challengers' is much more than a sexy tennis movie

Zendaya stars as Tashi in Challengers. Niko Tavernise/Amazon MGM Studios hide caption

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Niko Tavernise/Amazon MGM Studios

Pop Culture Happy Hour

The Zendaya-led 'Challengers' is much more than a sexy tennis movie

The terrific new film Challengers is about being intense about tennis, sex, and competition. Directed by Luca Guadagnino, the film stars Zendaya as Tashi, a tennis coach and object of desire to two men. She's married to Art (Mike Faist), who is facing his old friend Patrick (Josh O'Connor) at a Challengers event. This reopens all the trio's old wounds, and they excavate all of their relationships with each other.

The Zendaya-led 'Challengers' is much more than a sexy tennis movie

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What makes a good sex scene?

Jennifer Tilly and Gina Gershon star in the 1996 film Bound. Alamy hide caption

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Alamy

Pop Culture Happy Hour

What makes a good sex scene?

It's easy to notice when a sex scene is bad. But what makes a sex scene good? Today, we are recommending films with good sex scenes, including Bound, Love & Basketball, Magic Mike's Last Dance, and Oppenheimer.

What makes a good sex scene?

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'The Beast' jumps from 1910, to 2014, to 2044, tracking fear through the ages

Gabrielle and Louis (Léa Seydoux and George MacKay) meet in 1910 Paris, 2014 Los Angeles and again in 2044 in The Beast. Carole Bethuel/Kinology hide caption

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Carole Bethuel/Kinology

'The Beast' jumps from 1910, to 2014, to 2044, tracking fear through the ages

Fresh Air

This wildly original adaptation of the Henry James novella The Beast in the Jungle follows human alienation and anxiety, asking why, in every era, we disengage from life and the people around us.

'The Beast' jumps from 1910, to 2014, to 2044, tracking fear through the ages

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'Civil War' is a doomsday thought experiment — that could have used more thinking

Kirsten Dunst plays a battle scarred photojournalist in Civil War. Murray Close/A24 hide caption

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Murray Close/A24

'Civil War' is a doomsday thought experiment — that could have used more thinking

Fresh Air

This ambitious thriller comes across as an empty stunt — a democracy dystopia that sidesteps the politics of the present moment. But Kirsten Dunst is excellent as a battle scarred photojournalist.

'Civil War' is a doomsday thought experiment — that could have used more thinking

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'Civil War' envisions a too-near future

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A24

Pop Culture Happy Hour

'Civil War' envisions a too-near future

The new film Civil War depicts a contemporary America torn apart by a military conflict between the federal government and an alliance of secessionist states. Directed by Alex Garland (Ex Machina), the film follows a small band of journalists led by Kirsten Dunst's jaded war photographer. They embark on a harrowing journey to the heart of the conflict, encountering brutality and bloodshed along the way.

'Civil War' envisions a too-near future

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'Girls State' provides hope and disappointment for the state of our democracy

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Apple TV+

Pop Culture Happy Hour

'Girls State' provides hope and disappointment for the state of our democracy

The new Apple TV+ documentary Girls State asks: how would high school girls do things if they were in charge? The film is a follow-up to 2020's Boys State, and this time, follows an annual high school program that gives hundreds of girls a chance to create a mock government, complete with elections and a Supreme Court. It was made during the 2022 session, which ended days before the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, and the case is very much on the minds of the girls in the program.

'Girls State' provides hope and disappointment for the state of our democracy

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A guide to Stephen King

Stephen King at a press conference in 2013, in Paris. Eric Feferberg/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

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Eric Feferberg/AFP via Getty Images

Pop Culture Happy Hour

A guide to Stephen King

Stephen King is one of the most successful living writers. He's written more than 50 books that have sold hundreds of millions of copies. And his works have been adapted into a number of classic films, including The Shining, The Shawshank Redemption, and It. This month marks the 50th anniversary of his first novel, Carrie, so we are revisiting our guide to Stephen King.

A guide to Stephen King

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In 'Monkey Man,' Dev Patel gets revenge through gorilla warfare

Dev Patel in Monkey Man. Akhirwan Nurhaidi/Universal Pictures hide caption

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Akhirwan Nurhaidi/Universal Pictures

Pop Culture Happy Hour

In 'Monkey Man,' Dev Patel gets revenge through gorilla warfare

The new action film Monkey Man is Dev Patel's film – he serves as star, director, and co-writer. He plays a young man whose village was destroyed and mother murdered by elite members of society. He sets out to infiltrate their corrupt, rarified existence and seek his bloody, bloody revenge. There's plenty of gunplay, knife-play, ax-play, bone-crunching, tuk-tuk chases, and gouts of blood.

In 'Monkey Man,' Dev Patel gets revenge through gorilla warfare

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'Coup de Chance' is a typical Woody Allen film — with one appalling final detail

Niels Schneider and Lou de Laâge star in Coup de Chance. GRAVIER PRODUCTIONS hide caption

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GRAVIER PRODUCTIONS

'Coup de Chance' is a typical Woody Allen film — with one appalling final detail

Fresh Air

Set in France, Allen's latest film covers familiar territory, including an adulterous romance, a premeditated murder and a darkly cynical consideration of the role that luck plays in human affairs.

'Coup de Chance' is a typical Woody Allen film — with one appalling final detail

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'La Chimera' is marvelous — right up to its most magical ending

Carol Duarte and Josh O'Connor in La Chimera. Neon hide caption

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Neon

'La Chimera' is marvelous — right up to its most magical ending

Fresh Air

An archeological tomb robber wanders Italy, haunted by the memory of lost love. La Chimera is a playful fable that builds to not one but two thrilling scenes of underground exploration.

'La Chimera' is marvelous — right up to its most magical ending

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Revisiting the movies of 1999

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Getty Images

Pop Culture Happy Hour

Revisiting the movies of 1999

Movies had a big year in 1999. Today, we're going back 25 years to talk about some of the most interesting movies released in 1999 — including Drop Dead Gorgeous, Office Space, and The Talented Mr. Ripley. In this encore episode, we'll talk about what holds up, what looks really different, and what we miss the most.

Revisiting the movies of 1999

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'Godzilla x Kong' and 'Godzilla Minus One' revamp the classic monster story

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Warner Bros. Pictures

Pop Culture Happy Hour

'Godzilla x Kong' and 'Godzilla Minus One' revamp the classic monster story

Godzilla has been around for 70 years and recently won his first Oscar. The beloved 2023 Japanese production Godzilla Minus One won an Oscar for visual effects. Now, the Hollywood MonsterVerse franchise rolls on with Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire, which pairs the two titans as they face a common enemy. Today, we talk about both movies and how they offer different takes on the decades-old monster story.

'Godzilla x Kong' and 'Godzilla Minus One' revamp the classic monster story

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'Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire' is a chill hang

Finn Wolfhard, Celeste O'Connor, Paul Rudd, Kumail Nanjiani, Logan Kim and Carrie Coon in Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire. Columbia Pictures hide caption

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Columbia Pictures

Pop Culture Happy Hour

'Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire' is a chill hang

Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire is the latest entry in the blockbuster action-comedy franchise. This time, the crew has set up shop in New York, and, with the help of the surviving original Ghostbusters, tries to stop a demon looking to freeze the world and rule over it. The film is packed with both newer and nostalgic cast members, including Finn Wolfhard, Mckenna Grace, Paul Rudd, Dan Aykroyd, Ernie Hudson, and more.

'Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire' is a chill hang

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This recycled 'Road House' can't capture the B-movie spirit of the original

Jake Gyllenhaal is a former UFC star who becomes a bouncer in Road House. Laura Radford/Prime Video hide caption

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Laura Radford/Prime Video

This recycled 'Road House' can't capture the B-movie spirit of the original

Fresh Air

The new remake of the 1989 Patrick Swayze film comes up short, caught between an unironic '80s homage and a more wised-up contemporary sensibility.

This recycled 'Road House' can't capture the B-movie spirit of the original

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Jake Gyllenhaal punches up a 'Road House' remake

Jake Gyllenhaal in Road House. Laura Radford/Prime Video hide caption

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Laura Radford/Prime Video

Pop Culture Happy Hour

Jake Gyllenhaal punches up a 'Road House' remake

The 1989 movie Road House starred Patrick Swayze as a no-nonsense bouncer who saves a honky-tonk bar from a local toughs. Now, in the new remake, Jake Gyllenhaal plays a former UFC fighter who accepts a job to clean up a seaside bar in the Florida Keys that's being terrorized by a motorcycle gang. There's still plenty of fighting and plenty of brooding, but how does it hold up to the original cult classic?

Jake Gyllenhaal punches up a 'Road House' remake

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