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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

Gordon-Levitt's 'Don Jon' Is An Openhearted Directorial Debut

Joseph Gordon-Levitt --€” in his writing and directing debut --€” plays Jon, a porn addict with no interest in relationships until Barbara (Scarlett Johansson) changes things. Relativity Media hide caption

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Relativity Media

Gordon-Levitt's 'Don Jon' Is An Openhearted Directorial Debut

Fresh Air

Joseph Gordon-Levitt also wrote and stars in the film, about a prolific seducer and porn addict who changes his ways when Scarlett Johansson's character enters the picture. Critic David Edelstein says Don Jon is smart, with a subversive touch.

Clip Jobs: A Sedaris Story And Another Helping Of 'Meatballs'

Barry the sentient strawberry is just one of the "foodimals" our heroes Flint (Bill Hader) and Sam (Anna Faris) encounter when they return to Swallow Falls in Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs 2. Sony Pictures Animation hide caption

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Sony Pictures Animation

Pop Culture Happy Hour

Clip Jobs: A Sedaris Story And Another Helping Of 'Meatballs'

With upwards of 650 movies out in an average year, there's no way NPR's critics are gonna write full-on reviews of everything we see. Herewith, short takes on two that didn't quite make the cut: a David Sedaris story turned into a quirky indie, and the sequel to an animated smash.

'What We Are': Fresh, Grade A Horror, (Re)Made In America

In We Are What We Are, Iris (Ambyr Childers, right) must take up the responsibility of ... let's say "putting food on the table" for the Parker clan, including her younger sister Rose (Julia Garner, left). Entertainment One hide caption

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Entertainment One

'What We Are': Fresh, Grade A Horror, (Re)Made In America

We Are What We Are, based on a 2010 Mexican horror hit, relocates the original's story of a separatist cannibal clan from the slums of Mexico City to a rural town in the Catskills. Directed by Jim Mickle, the remake may actually improve on the original. (Recommended)

Music Doc Packs 'Muscle' (Plus A Whole Lotta Soul)

Roger Hawkins, a member of the Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section (also known as the Swampers), is just one among the many musicians captured in this documentary about the famous town. Magnolia Pictures hide caption

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Magnolia Pictures

Music Doc Packs 'Muscle' (Plus A Whole Lotta Soul)

A rich documentary looks at an Alabama town where a host of classic R&B tracks were laid down. Aretha Franklin, Percy Sledge, Clarence Carter, Etta James and many more musical legends appear to help tell the story. (Recommended)

'Out In The Dark,' Where Nothing Is Black Or White

Nicholas Jacob (Nimr) and Michael Aloni (Roy) are star-crossed lovers of a different stripe in the Israeli drama Out in the Dark. Ran Aviad/Breaking Glass Pictures hide caption

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Ran Aviad/Breaking Glass Pictures

'Out In The Dark,' Where Nothing Is Black Or White

The film, a romantic drama from Israeli director Michael Mayer, follows two men, one an Israeli lawyer and the other a Palestinian student, as they fall in love and subsequently become entangled in their region's conflict.

For Richer And For Poorer, But What Of That Vanishing Middle?

Former U.S. Labor Secretary Robert Reich, now a professor at the University of California-Berkeley, takes a look at growing income disparity in Inequality for All. Radius/TWC hide caption

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Radius/TWC

For Richer And For Poorer, But What Of That Vanishing Middle?

In Inequality for All, former Labor Secretary Robert Reich takes on the income disparity that's been on the rise in America since the Great Recession. The film is inspired by Reich's book Aftershock: The Next Economy and America's Future.

Gandolfini Is So Vivid In 'Enough Said,' You Forget He's Gone

James Gandolfini plays a divorced TV archivist who falls in love with a divorced masseuse, played by Julia-Louis Dreyfus, in Nicole Holofcener'€™s Enough Said. Lacey Terrell/Fox Searchlight hide caption

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Lacey Terrell/Fox Searchlight

Gandolfini Is So Vivid In 'Enough Said,' You Forget He's Gone

Fresh Air

The late actor stars opposite Julia Louis-Dreyfus in the new comedy about a divorced TV archivist who falls in love with a divorced masseuse. David Edelstein praises Louis-Dreyfus' farcical timing, as well Gandolfini's ability to change his rhythm and demeanor.

In 'Rush' As In Real Life, It's The Driver, Not The Car

The radically different Formula One racers James Hunt (Chris Hemsworth, left) and Niki Lauda (Daniel Bruhl) are at the center of Ron Howard's Rush, a biographical drama that's as strong on character as on cars. Jaap Buitendijk/Universal Pictures hide caption

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Jaap Buitendijk/Universal Pictures

In 'Rush' As In Real Life, It's The Driver, Not The Car

Ron Howard's high-octane biographical drama turns on the legendary rivalry of two Formula One drivers from '70s. Daniel Bruhl, Chris Hemsworth and Olivia Wilde star in the film, in which racing action ultimately takes a back seat to character-driven drama. (Recommended)

From Lebanon To Israel, With An Olive Tree In Tow

Zaytoun follows Yoni (Stephen Dorff), an Israeli fighter pilot, and Fahed (Abdallah El Akal), a young Palestinian boy, as they travel together and form an unlikely bond. Eitan Riklis/Strand Releasing hide caption

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Eitan Riklis/Strand Releasing

From Lebanon To Israel, With An Olive Tree In Tow

In Zaytoun, director Eran Riklis tells the story of an Israeli pilot and a Palestinian boy who form an unlikely bond as they work together to get from a crash site to Israel.

'Prisoners' Of A Story, Bound By That Devil Subtext

An underemployed contractor (Hugh Jackman) takes the law --€” and a few things outside it --€” into his own hands with regard to the man (Paul Dano) he suspects has kidnapped his daughter. Wilson Webb/Warner Bros. hide caption

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Wilson Webb/Warner Bros.

'Prisoners' Of A Story, Bound By That Devil Subtext

In a thriller from Incendies director Denis Villeneuve, two young girls go missing, and a father goes to extreme lengths in their attempted rescue. Hugh Jackman, Jake Gyllenhaal, Viola Davis and Terrence Howard star.

A 'Shot' In The Gloom, And All Hell Breaks Loose

Sam Rockwell plays John Moon, an unemployed farmer who launches a series of unfortunate and bloody events after he mistakenly shoots a woman while hunting a deer. Tribeca Film/Well Go USA Entertainment. hide caption

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Tribeca Film/Well Go USA Entertainment.

A 'Shot' In The Gloom, And All Hell Breaks Loose

In the gritty and graphic A Single Shot, a man accidentally kills a woman while hunting and becomes entangled with a group of criminals. Directed by David M. Rosenthal, the film stars Sam Rockwell, Jeffrey Wright and William H. Macy.