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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.

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Fiennes Brings Dickens To 'Perfect' Life In 'Invisible Woman'

The works of Charles Dickens have been made into literally hundreds of films and TV episodes, but almost nothing has been done with the great author's life, until now. Our reviewer says The Invisible Woman is an exceptional film about love, longing and regret.

Fiennes Brings Dickens To 'Perfect' Life In 'Invisible Woman'

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In 'Osage County,' A Family Consuming Itself

Julia Roberts, Meryl Streep and Julianne Nicholson are three of the warring Weston women in a blistering film adaptation of the Pulitzer Prize-winning play August: Osage County. Claire Folger/The Weinstein Company hide caption

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Claire Folger/The Weinstein Company

In 'Osage County,' A Family Consuming Itself

The much-ballyhooed film adaptation of Tracy Letts' Pulitzer Prize-winning play has a mind-boggling cast and a bitterly funny script. Critic Ian Buckwalter says it can be so intimate and painful that you feel like you shouldn't be watching.

A Wall Street Predator With An Appetite For Excess

Leonardo DiCaprio plays a profoundly corrupt stock-market manipulator in The Wolf of Wall Street, based on the real-life story of convicted fraudster Jordan Belfort. Mary Cybulski/Paramount Pictures hide caption

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Mary Cybulski/Paramount Pictures

A Wall Street Predator With An Appetite For Excess

Leonardo DiCaprio and Martin Scorsese deliver a wicked tour through the life of a high-living bad boy in The Wolf of Wall Street. Awash in sex, drugs and rock 'n' roll, the film is less cautionary tale than exuberant romp.

In A 'Miraculous Year' For Movies, Edelstein Picks His Favorites

In the sci-fi romance Her, a lonely man (Joaquin Phoenix) finds love in a rather unexpected place — with a computer operating system named Samantha. Warner Bros. hide caption

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Warner Bros.

In A 'Miraculous Year' For Movies, Edelstein Picks His Favorites

Fresh Air

In 2013, "you really feel as if directors are taking chances in their storytelling," says film critic David Edelstein. He loved the movie Her, and says the biggest surprises of the year were All Is Lost and Much Ado About Nothing. He also explains why 12 Years a Slave didn't make his top 10.

In A 'Miraculous Year' For Movies, Edelstein Picks His Favorites

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Great New DVD Box Sets: Blasts From The Past And 'Breaking Bad'

A new MDV Entertainment boxed set called Here's Edie: The Edie Adams Television Collection features the widow of Ernie Kovacs, in shows from her 1962-64 ABC variety series, which was televised just after her husband's death. AP hide caption

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AP

Great New DVD Box Sets: Blasts From The Past And 'Breaking Bad'

Fresh Air

In addition to Breaking Bad, critic David Bianculli recommends some rare television treats from the '60s and '70s that are now available on DVD. They include Here's Edie: The Edie Adams Television Collection, The Dean Martin Celebrity Roasts, The Rutles: Anthology and Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman.

Great New DVD Box Sets: Blasts From The Past And 'Breaking Bad'

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'Her,' Another Quirky Film For Director Spike Jonze

Spike Jonze is known for directing emotionally resonant films — like Being John Malkovich and Adaptation. Los Angeles Times and Morning Edition film critic Kenneth Turan reviews Jonze's new film Her.

'Her,' Another Quirky Film For Director Spike Jonze

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A Man And His Machine, Finding Out What Love Is

In the sci-fi romance Her, a lonely man (Joaquin Phoenix) finds love in a rather unexpected place — with a computer operating system named Samantha. Warner Bros. hide caption

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Warner Bros.

A Man And His Machine, Finding Out What Love Is

Fresh Air

The film Her, written and directed by Spike Jonze (Being John Malkovich), follows a lonely man who falls in love with a computer operating system. Critic David Edelstein says it's the best film of the year by far. (Recommended)

A Man And His Machine, Finding Out What Love Is

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From An Oscar Winner, A 'Past' Still Hauntingly Present

Asghar Farhadi's The Past focuses on the complex family dynamics between Marie (Berenice Bejo), her soon-to-be ex-husband, her new love (Tahar Rahim, above) and her children. Carole Bethuel/Sony Pictures Classics hide caption

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Carole Bethuel/Sony Pictures Classics

From An Oscar Winner, A 'Past' Still Hauntingly Present

Director Asghar Farhadi's film — which follows a man returning to his estranged wife to finalize a divorce — has garnered quite a few awards. NPR's Bob Mondello says that it definitely deserves its accolades. (Recommended)

From An Oscar Winner, A 'Past' Still Hauntingly Present

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'The Selfish Giant' Spins A Grim Modern Fairy Tale

Living in poverty and expelled from school, Arbor (Conner Chapman) turns to collecting scrap metal with a cart and horse in The Selfish Giant. Agatha A. Nitecka/Sundance Selects hide caption

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Agatha A. Nitecka/Sundance Selects

'The Selfish Giant' Spins A Grim Modern Fairy Tale

Loosely based on a story by Oscar Wilde, the film follows two boys living in poverty in the U.K.; trying to help make ends meet, they get mixed up with a seedy scrap dealer. (Recommended)

Ron Burgundy, Still A Legend In His Own Tiny Mind

Great Odin's Raven! Will Ferrell's cheerfully idiotic Ron Burgundy and Christina Applegate's whip-smart Veronica Corningstone are back for a comedy sequel that critic Ian Buckwalter says is essentially an avalanche of one-liners. Gemma LaMana/Paramount Pictures hide caption

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Gemma LaMana/Paramount Pictures

Ron Burgundy, Still A Legend In His Own Tiny Mind

Will Ferrell's airheaded newsman heads to New York and a national platform — and more clueless self-humiliation. Critic Ian Buckwalter says the oddly lovable idiot is in fine form — and at the center of a veritable tsunami of absurdity in Anchorman 2.

LaBute's 'Velvet Morning': Nothing Soft About These Surfaces

When Fred (Stanley Tucci) shows up on the doorstep of his former lover (Alice Eve) ready to resume their relationship, it doesn't necessarily go smoothly. Rogier Stoffers/Tribeca Film hide caption

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Rogier Stoffers/Tribeca Film

LaBute's 'Velvet Morning': Nothing Soft About These Surfaces

Written and directed by Neil LaBute (In the Company of Men), Some Velvet Morning focuses on the less-than-happy reunion of a married man and his former mistress. Stanley Tucci and Alice Eve star.