Movie Reviews : NPR

Adolescent Angst Turns Deadly In 'Stoker'

Evelyn and India Stoker (Nicole Kidman and Mia Wasikowska) slowly descend into icy paranoia after their family patriarch dies through suspicious circumstances in the horror thriller Stoker. Fox Searchlight Pictures hide caption

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Fox Searchlight Pictures

Adolescent Angst Turns Deadly In 'Stoker'

February 28, 2013 • South Korean director Park Chan-wook makes his English-language debut with this taut horror thriller. Though at times the narrative wears thin, tense imagery and a haunting narrative keep the action moving along to a terrifying finale. (Recommended)

Soviet Ghosts Resurface In Soggy 'Phantom'

Grizzled Soviet submarine captain Demi (Ed Harris) fights crew subversion and personal pain in a losing Cold War struggle against American opponents. RCR Distribution hide caption

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RCR Distribution

Soviet Ghosts Resurface In Soggy 'Phantom'

February 28, 2013 • A surprising flip of Cold War submarine thrillers, Phantom shows what the Soviets might have been thinking as they battled their American foes. It's unfortunate that the American-produced film that results is such a soggy mess.

'Hava Nagila: The Movie' Pays Homage To Unlikely Jewish Touchstone

Young newlyweds are serenaded with the strains of "Hava Nagila." The unlikely origins of the popular Jewish standard are explored in Roberta Grossman's documentary feature Hava Nagila: The Movie. International Film Circuit hide caption

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International Film Circuit

'Hava Nagila: The Movie' Pays Homage To Unlikely Jewish Touchstone

February 28, 2013 • You may not know all the words to the Jewish staple "Hava Nagila," but you probably know the tune. Roberta Grossman wants to show the unlikely origins of the global phenomenon in her charming documentary — and the result might surprise you. (Recommended)

'Jack The Giant Slayer': A Fun, Fractured Fairy Tale

Nicholas Hoult plays the young Jack, who must wage battle against an ancient race of giants in Jack the Giant Slayer. Warner Bros. Pictures hide caption

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Warner Bros. Pictures

'Jack The Giant Slayer': A Fun, Fractured Fairy Tale

February 28, 2013 • A new film takes a meta approach to tell the simple story of a boy, a girl and some giants. After those confused excesses are tossed aside, the movie is strongest when it focuses on its lovely story of fairy tale romance.

'Leviathan': Of Fish And Men, Without Chats

The dingy commercial fishing boats that dot the waters off the Atlantic coast of the U.S. and Canada have lives all their own in the new documentary Leviathan. The Cinema Guild hide caption

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The Cinema Guild

'Leviathan': Of Fish And Men, Without Chats

February 28, 2013 • There's a quiet kind of artistry in this commercial fishing documentary — extra quiet, because there's no dialogue. The movie might be an art-house gimmick or even an oceangoing tone poem.

A Disappointing Thriller Channels Hitchcock And Bram 'Stoker'

Nicole Kidman (left) and Mia Wasikowska star as Evelyn and India Stoker in Park Chan-wook's new thriller. Macall Polay/Fox Searchlight Pictures hide caption

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Macall Polay/Fox Searchlight Pictures

A Disappointing Thriller Channels Hitchcock And Bram 'Stoker'

Fresh Air

February 28, 2013 • The film is ripe with a creepy-crawly feel that would be affecting if the tone weren't so arch. Directed by Park Chan-wook, written by Wentworth Miller and starring Nicole Kidman, Mia Wasikowska and Matthew Goode, Stoker is a vile little chamber horror, says critic David Edelstein.

Chicano Classic 'Bless Me, Ultima' Becomes A Movie

February 28, 2013 • Rudolpho Anaya's 1972 novel Bless Me, Ultima is a classic of Chicano literature. The story begins for Antonio, 6, when Ultima comes to live with his New Mexico family in 1944. Ultima is called a witch, but she considers herself a woman with healing knowledge of medicinal herbs and remedies.

Remembering The Oscars That The Academy Forgot

February 24, 2013 • Weekend Edition Sunday host Rachel Martin speaks with Matt Atchity, editor-in-chief of the movie website RottenTomatoes.com, about Academy Awards that are no longer given out. Some previous categories include: best juvenile performance, best comedy score, best assistant director and best dance direction.

'Inescapable' Ambiguities In Prewar Syria

Paul (Joshua Jackson, left), a suave Canadian diplomat in chaotic Damascus, works to help Adib (Alexander Siddig) find his missing daughter as the city falls apart. IFC Films hide caption

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IFC Films

'Inescapable' Ambiguities In Prewar Syria

February 21, 2013 • Director Ruba Nadda's debut entry in the thriller field weaves a tale of a missing daughter, a worried father and a country on the brink of revolution.

'Snitch': Johnson And The Rock, At Odds In A Drug Drama

As hard-hitting father John, Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, goes deep undercover to save his son from stern drug-crime laws. Steve Dietl/Summit Entertainment hide caption

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Steve Dietl/Summit Entertainment

'Snitch': Johnson And The Rock, At Odds In A Drug Drama

February 21, 2013 • There are two very different movies going on in Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson's new drama, Snitch: One stars Johnson as a concerned father, the other stars The Rock as an undercover drug dealer. The warring conflicts make for a film that works against itself.

Wang Han (Liu Wenqing) is given the honor of leading his schoolmates in daily calisthenics, but the honor poses hurdles for his struggling family. First Run Features hide caption

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First Run Features

'11 Flowers': A Revolutionary Childhood

February 21, 2013 • The stark Chinese drama 11 Flowers meditates on the universal experiences of childhood even as it details the bizarre specifics of growing up during Mao's Cultural Revolution. The acquisition of a new white shirt changes a young boy as the revolution draws to a close. (Recommended)

'Red Flag,' 'Rubberneck': A Filmmaker Turns Inward (Twice)

The deeply personal narrative that drives writer-director Alex Karpovsky's road trip comedy Red Flag even extends to his protagonist's name. (Pictured: Karpovsky and Caroline White) Tribeca Film hide caption

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Tribeca Film

Movies

'Red Flag,' 'Rubberneck': A Filmmaker Turns Inward (Twice)

February 21, 2013 • Writer-director-actor Alex Karpovsky has two intensely personal films out this week, and in one of them he's straight-up playing a version of himself. That film, the wacky road comedy Red Flag, plays better than his overly tense thriller, Rubberneck.

Everything You Need To Know About The Best Picture Nominees

NPR

Oscars 2013: The 85th Annual Academy Awards

Everything You Need To Know About The Best Picture Nominees

February 20, 2013 • Ready to check off your Oscar ballot? Catch up on coverage of this year's Best Picture nominees with reviews, interviews and features from across the NPR network.

Voting Pinochet Out Was More Than Just A Yes Or 'No'

Gael Garcia Bernal stars as an advertising man in Chile under Pinochet in the 2012 film No, which is nominated for Best Foreign Language Film at the upcoming Academy Awards. Sony Pictures Classics hide caption

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Sony Pictures Classics

Voting Pinochet Out Was More Than Just A Yes Or 'No'

Fresh Air

February 20, 2013 • In the Chilean film No, which is nominated for Best Foreign Language Film, a young ad man devises a campaign to vote the dictator Augusto Pinochet out of office using rainbows and catchy theme songs.

As dockworker Terry Malloy in Elia Kazan's On the Waterfront, a young Marlon Brando firmly established himself as a leading Hollywood icon. Criterion Collection hide caption

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Criterion Collection

Pop Culture Happy Hour

Home Video Review: 'On The Waterfront'

February 15, 2013 • Marlon Brando gives a strong case for method acting in the film's famous "I coulda been a contender" sequence. Film critic Bob Mondello says there's no madness to his method — or to the Academy Award-winning film, now out in a superb Blu-ray Disc.