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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

Tuesday

'Don't Look Up' is an environmental satire that squanders its resources

Cate Blanchett, Tyler Perry, Leonardo DiCaprio, and Jennifer Lawrence in Don't Look Up. Niko Tavernise/Netlfix hide caption

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Niko Tavernise/Netlfix

Pop Culture Happy Hour

'Don't Look Up' is an environmental satire that squanders its resources

The new Netflix film Don't Look Up has a crazy Academy Awards pedigree. Writer-director Adam McKay won an Oscar for The Big Short and the Oscar-studded cast includes Leonardo DiCaprio and Jennifer Lawrence as scientists who discover that a massive comet is hurtling toward Earth. The only problem: They can't get the media's attention (represented here by Cate Blanchett and Tyler Perry) or get the president (played by Meryl Streep) to care. But with all these stars in the mix, did Don't Look Up miss the mark?

'Don't Look Up' is an environmental satire that squanders its resources

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Saturday

In 'Parallel Mothers,' Almodóvar hitches unruly passions to women and family

Filmmaker Pedro Almodóvar takes a long, colorful look at motherhood in his melodrama Parallel Mothers, starring Penélope Cruz.

In 'Parallel Mothers,' Almodóvar hitches unruly passions to women and family

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Thursday

Review: Every beat of 'The Tragedy of Macbeth' is a cinematic flourish

Denzel Washington takes on the title character in Joel Coen's Bard-based film, The Tragedy of Macbeth, with murder-minded Lady Macbeth played by Coen's wife, Frances McDormand.

Review: Every beat of 'The Tragedy of Macbeth' is a cinematic flourish

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This 'Macbeth' adaptation distills Shakespeare's tragedy to its furious essence

Denzel Washington and Frances McDormand play Shakespeare's famously murderous couple in The Tragedy of Macbeth. Apple TV+ hide caption

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Apple TV+

This 'Macbeth' adaptation distills Shakespeare's tragedy to its furious essence

Fresh Air

Director Joel Coen's The Tragedy of Macbeth is a bewitching piece of craftsmanship, featuring Denzel Washington and Frances McDormand as the murderous power couple.

This 'Macbeth' adaptation distills Shakespeare's tragedy to its furious essence

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Wednesday

Should you enter 'The Matrix Resurrections'?

Carrie-Anne Moss and Keanu Reeves return as Trinity and Neo in The Matrix Resurrections. Warner Bros. hide caption

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Warner Bros.

Pop Culture Happy Hour

Should you enter 'The Matrix Resurrections'?

When The Matrix opened in 1999, it thrilled audiences with its strangely cerebral mix of stylized violence, existential crisis, and tight, black leather. The new movie The Matrix: Resurrections continues the story. Directed by Lana Wachowski, the film takes us back inside the simulation that the machines are using to keep humanity docile as they harvest our energy. Keanu Reeves and Carrie-Anne Moss return as Neo and Trinity, who, alongside an array of new characters, attempt to, once again, lead an uprising to let us all live authentic lives.

Should you enter 'The Matrix Resurrections'?

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Monday

Bradley Cooper is Guillermo del Toro's monster in 'Nightmare Alley'

Cate Blanchett and Bradley Cooper in Nightmare Alley. Kerry Hayes/Searchlight Pictures hide caption

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Kerry Hayes/Searchlight Pictures

Pop Culture Happy Hour

Bradley Cooper is Guillermo del Toro's monster in 'Nightmare Alley'

Nightmare Alley is a stylish neo-noir that's as seedy as its title sounds. The film is directed by Guillermo del Toro and is inspired by the book and 1947 movie adaptation of the same name. It stars Bradley Cooper as Stan, an ambitious 1940s drifter who joins a traveling carnival and learns to develop his own mentalist act. An encounter with a mysterious psychologist, played by Cate Blanchett, leads to a fateful and destructive turn of events.

Bradley Cooper is Guillermo del Toro's monster in 'Nightmare Alley'

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Friday

Justin Chang pairs the 10 best movies of 2021 — plus 1 film that stands alone

(Clockwise from upper left) Passing, The Souvenir Part II, Drive My Car, Parallel Mothers, Memoria and The Green Knight are among Justin Chang's favorite films of 2021. NPR hide caption

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NPR

Justin Chang pairs the 10 best movies of 2021 — plus 1 film that stands alone

Fresh Air

Drive My Car tops Chang's list of the year's best movies, but plenty of other films made the return to theaters extra special.

Justin Chang pairs the 10 best movies of 2021 — plus 1 film that stands alone

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'Spider-Man: No Way Home' mixes fun and fan service

MJ (Zendaya) and Spider-Man (Tom Holland) in Spider-Man: No Way Home. Matt Kennedy/Sony/Columbia Pictures hide caption

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Matt Kennedy/Sony/Columbia Pictures

Pop Culture Happy Hour

'Spider-Man: No Way Home' mixes fun and fan service

In Spider-Man: No Way Home, we spend time with some familiar characters. The film stars Tom Holland as Peter Parker and Zendaya as MJ, and, this time, also brings in Doctor Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch), plus an array of villains who'll already be familiar to fans of the franchise. But the film is more complicated than that, as the Marvel Cinematic Universe delves deeper into the mysteries of the Multiverse.

'Spider-Man: No Way Home' mixes fun and fan service

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Thursday

A review of 'Spider-Man: No Way Home' with as few spoilers as possible

Marvel's latest superhero film, Spider-Man: No Way Home finds its hero battling foes he thought he'd already vanquished.

A review of 'Spider-Man: No Way Home' with as few spoilers as possible

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Monday

Cloy to the world: 'It's A Wonderful Life' revisited

James Stewart, Donna Reed and Thomas Mitchell appear in the 1946 film It's A Wonderful Life. ASSOCIATED PRESS hide caption

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ASSOCIATED PRESS

Pop Culture Happy Hour

Cloy to the world: 'It's A Wonderful Life' revisited

For many, It's A Wonderful Life is the quintessential Christmas movie. George Bailey's story is filled with life lessons, the importance of community, and a little kid playing carols on the piano. While it wasn't a box office hit when it first debuted 75 years ago, It's A Wonderful Life has somehow persisted and become a staple of holiday viewing.

Cloy to the world: 'It's A Wonderful Life' revisited

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Friday

From Steph Curry to 'Squid Game,' this year-end list will surprise and delight you

Steph Curry of the Golden State Warriors reacts after the Phoenix Suns missed a basket during a game Dec. 3. Ezra Shaw/Getty Images hide caption

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Ezra Shaw/Getty Images

Pop Culture

From Steph Curry to 'Squid Game,' this year-end list will surprise and delight you

Fresh Air

As the year draws to a close, critic John Powers singles out seven revelatory people or things that made 2021 a little brighter. At the top of his list? Basketball star Steph Curry.

From Steph Curry to 'Squid Game,' this year-end list will surprise and delight you

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Thursday

Spielberg offers a more complete telling of musical theater classic 'West Side Story'

Tony and Maria, Sharks and Jets — Steven Spielberg and Tony Kushner take a fresh look at the musical theater classic West Side Story.

Spielberg offers a more complete telling of musical theater classic 'West Side Story'

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Steven Spielberg's 'West Side Story' will make you believe in movies again

Ariana DeBose (center) is Anita in West Side Story. 20th Century Studios hide caption

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20th Century Studios

Steven Spielberg's 'West Side Story' will make you believe in movies again

Fresh Air

This is the first musical Spielberg's ever made, but he proves a natural: Few other American filmmakers have a more instinctive sense of rhythm and visual flow, or more direct access to your emotions.

Steven Spielberg's 'West Side Story' will make you believe in movies again

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