Movie Reviews : NPR

Souls Audition For Their Bodies In Sundance Hit 'Nine Days'

July 30, 2021 • Filmmaker Edson Oda was a breakout director at last year's Sundance Film Festival with his philosophical movie, Nine Days, which stars Zazie Beetz and Benedict Wong.

Souls Audition For Their Bodies In Sundance Hit 'Nine Days'

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Celebrate Life On Earth With 4 Films That Look Into The Great Beyond

Winston Duke (left) and Zazie Beetz in a realm where souls are auditioned for life on Earth in Nine Days. Michael Coles/Sony Pictures Classics hide caption

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Michael Coles/Sony Pictures Classics

Celebrate Life On Earth With 4 Films That Look Into The Great Beyond

July 30, 2021 • The new film Nine Days — at its essence, a reminder to celebrate every moment you're given — is both deep and fun. Here are three other movies that ponder the meaning of life.

You've Ridden This 'Jungle Cruise' Before

Dwayne Johnson and Emily Blunt star in Disney's Jungle Cruise. Frank Masi/Disney Enterprises, Inc. hide caption

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Frank Masi/Disney Enterprises, Inc.

You've Ridden This 'Jungle Cruise' Before

July 30, 2021 • What do you get when you take one part The African Queen, one part Raiders of the Lost Ark, two parts Pirates of the Caribbean, a pinch of the Fast and Furious series, and every Disney movie trope ever? You've got Jungle Cruise. Emily Blunt and Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson team up to play a researcher and a riverboat skipper on a quest to track down a highly coveted object in the Amazon. But of course, they must face some adversaries along the way, including a scenery-chewing villain played by Jesse Plemons.

You've Ridden This 'Jungle Cruise' Before

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'The Green Knight' Fulfills A Quest To Find New Magic In An Old Legend

Dev Patel stars as Sir Gawain, King Arthur's nephew, in The Green Knight. A24 hide caption

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A24

'The Green Knight' Fulfills A Quest To Find New Magic In An Old Legend

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July 29, 2021 • Dev Patel stars as a young adventurer from King Arthur's court in David Lowery's inventive adaptation of an enduring 14th-century poem.

'The Green Knight' Fulfills A Quest To Find New Magic In An Old Legend

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'Shrek' – A Weird, Flatulent And Beloved Franchise – Turns 20

Donkey (voiced by Eddie Murphy) and Shrek (voiced by Mike Myers) 2001 film Shrek. Courtesy of Dreamworks Animation hide caption

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Courtesy of Dreamworks Animation

'Shrek' – A Weird, Flatulent And Beloved Franchise – Turns 20

July 29, 2021 • Shrek is many things: a pop culture canvas, an Academy Award winner and a recent entry into the National Film Registry. And it all started with the story of a crabby green ogre who just wants a bunch of fairy tale characters to stay out of his swamp. Today, Shrek has spawned a multibillion-dollar franchise, become a cultural milestone and above all, remained relevant — even 20 years later.

'Shrek' – A Weird, Flatulent And Beloved Franchise – Turns 20

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In 'Old,' M. Night Shyamalan Takes Us To The Beach

Vicky Krieps, Thomasin McKenzie, Gael García Bernal and Luca Faustino Rodriguez in M. Night Shyamalan's new film Old. Phobymo/Universal Pictures hide caption

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Phobymo/Universal Pictures

In 'Old,' M. Night Shyamalan Takes Us To The Beach

July 23, 2021 • The psychological horror thriller Old comes with the kind of twist we've come to expect from writer-director M. Night Shyamalan. That twist is right there in the title: A bunch of tourists find themselves trapped on a secluded beach where they all age at an alarming rate.

In 'Old,' M. Night Shyamalan Takes Us To The Beach

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'Ailey' Doc Shows How Alvin Ailey Changed The Landscape Of Dance For Dancers Of Color

July 22, 2021 • Alvin Ailey, the most influential and celebrated Black choreographer of the 20th Century is the subject of the documentary Ailey.

'Ailey' Doc Shows How Alvin Ailey Changed The Landscape Of Dance For Dancers Of Color

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'The Woman Who Ran' Puzzles Out The Mysteries Of Everyday Life

Gamhee (Kim Min-hee) shared a meal with a friend (Song Seon-mi) in The Woman Who Ran. Cinema Guild hide caption

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Cinema Guild

'The Woman Who Ran' Puzzles Out The Mysteries Of Everyday Life

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July 22, 2021 • Hong Sang-soo's new film follows a mild-mannered woman as she makes three different visits. Each chapter is absorbing on its own, but it's even more intriguing to contemplate how it all fits together.

'The Woman Who Ran' Puzzles Out The Mysteries Of Everyday Life

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I Thought I Knew Anthony Bourdain. 'Roadrunner' Shows Us Who He Really Was

Anthony Bourdain, in Roadrunner, the new documentary about his life. CNN/Focus Features hide caption

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CNN/Focus Features

I Thought I Knew Anthony Bourdain. 'Roadrunner' Shows Us Who He Really Was

July 16, 2021 • Chef and food writer Anthony Bourdain died by suicide in 2018. The new documentary Roadrunner gathers people who knew him well to praise and remember him, and also to rage about his death.

'Space Jam: A New Legacy' Is The Ultimate Vanity Project

LeBron James stars alongside Bugs Bunny in Space Jam: A New Legacy. Warner Bros. Pictures hide caption

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Warner Bros. Pictures

'Space Jam: A New Legacy' Is The Ultimate Vanity Project

July 16, 2021 • Twenty-five years ago, the movie Space Jam paired Bugs Bunny and Michael Jordan. Now, Space Jam: A New Legacy brings together Bugs Bunny and LeBron James. It's now in theaters and streaming on HBO Max.

'Space Jam: A New Legacy' Is The Ultimate Vanity Project

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After Attending Cannes From Afar, Justin Chang Recommends 7 Bold Festival Films

Stillwater centers on an Oklahoma oil worker (Matt Damon), who seeks the help of a French theater actress (Camille Cottin) when his daughter is accused of murder in Marseille, France. Jessica Ford/Focus Features hide caption

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Jessica Ford/Focus Features

After Attending Cannes From Afar, Justin Chang Recommends 7 Bold Festival Films

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July 14, 2021 • Reviewer Justin Chang didn't travel to the Cannes Film Festival this year, but he managed to see a number of the movies in Los Angeles. His favorites include The Souvenir Part II and Stillwater.

After Attending Cannes From Afar, Justin Chang Recommends 7 Bold Festival Films

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Documentaries 'Summer Of Soul' And 'McCartney 3-2-1' Celebrate The Sound Of The '60s

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July 10, 2021 • Summer of Soul reveals never-before-seen film from a '69 Harlem concert series known as the Black Woodstock. McCartney 3-2-1 is a six-part series in which Paul McCartney talks to producer Rick Rubin.

Documentaries 'Summer Of Soul' And 'McCartney 3-2-1' Celebrate The Sound Of The '60s

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'Black Widow' Speeds Down A Narrative Dead-End

Natasha (Scarlett Johansson) and Yelena (Florence Pugh) survey the damage in Marvel's Black Widow. Marvel Studios hide caption

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Marvel Studios

Pop Culture Happy Hour

'Black Widow' Speeds Down A Narrative Dead-End

July 9, 2021 • When Scarlett Johansson started playing Natasha Romanoff, she was the only female Avenger. And despite multiple appearances in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Black Widow never got her own movie. That changes with the release of Black Widow, which looks back on a previously unexplored part of the character's history.

'Black Widow' Speeds Down A Narrative Dead-End

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With Summer Underway, Marvel Returns To Focus On The Origins Of Black Widow

July 8, 2021 • Hollywood had had fingers crossed for months about what might finally happen this weekend. Marvel has aimed to prove that the theater experience is back with Black Widow.

With Summer Underway, Marvel Returns To Focus On The Origins Of Black Widow

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'No Sudden Move' Intrigues With Double-Crosses, Dirty Dealings In 1950s Detroit

Benicio Del Toro and Don Cheadle play low-level gangsters who get sucked into a into a major corporate conspiracy in No Sudden Move. Claudette Barius/Warner Bros. hide caption

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Claudette Barius/Warner Bros.

'No Sudden Move' Intrigues With Double-Crosses, Dirty Dealings In 1950s Detroit

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July 2, 2021 • Benicio Del Toro and Don Cheadle play low-level gangsters who get sucked into a into a major corporate conspiracy in Steven Soderbergh's engrossing new film.

'No Sudden Move' Intrigues With Double-Crosses, Dirty Dealings In 1950s Detroit

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