Arts & Life

Eddie Redmayne stars as Lili Elbe in Tom Hooper's The Danish Girl.

Arts

Eddie Redmayne: Reading 'Danish Girl' Script Was Like Getting 'Sucker-Punched'

5:32pm December 24, 2015

by NPR Staff

The film centers on Lili Elbe, one of the first people known to have had gender reassignment surgery. Redmayne says it's "about love not being defined by gender ... but really being about souls."

Arts

A Marriage Upended In '45 Years'

5:00pm December 24, 2015

by Ella Taylor

Charlotte Rampling takes the lead in the story of a couple whose long and stable union is thrown off-balance by news that dredges up the past.

Jennifer Lawrence and Bradley Cooper in a scene from Joy.

Arts

A Sagging 'Joy' That Doesn't Live Up To Its Inspiration

5:00pm December 24, 2015

by Mark Jenkins

David O. Russell re-teams with Jennifer Lawrence and Bradley Cooper in a film based on the story of a real-life inventor. Unfortunately, the story is neither believable nor particularly interesting.

Samuel L. Jackson plays Major Marquis Warren in The Hateful Eight.

Arts

Tarantino Holes Up A Few Outlaws In 'The Hateful Eight'

5:00pm December 24, 2015

by Scott Tobias

Quentin Tarantino makes a three-hour Western pastiche with help from Samuel L. Jackson, Jennifer Jason Leigh, and a cast of other old and new associates.

Encore: Among Santa And Mistletoe, A British Christmas Includes Comedy

4:18pm December 24, 2015

by Ari Shapiro

For many people in the United Kingdom, the Christmas season includes a visit to a pantomime or a silly comedy musical. This story originally aired on Dec. 25, 2014 on All Things Considered.

Filmmaker Alejandro González Iñárritu's latest is called The Revenant — a tale of endurance, survival, love and revenge. The film was shot using only natural sunlight and firelight in remote areas of Canada and Argentina. "Every molecule of this film

Arts

Iñárritu Delivers A '360-Degree Emotional Experience' In 'The Revenant'

1:59pm December 24, 2015

by Mandalit del Barco

The Revenant is a brutal Western, set in 1823. Filmmaker Alejandro González Iñárritu shot the film chronologically, using only natural sunlight and firelight in remote areas of Canada and Argentina.

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Jonathan Banks (left) and Bob Odenkirk star in the AMC series Better Call Saul, which tops David Bianculli's 2015 10-Best list.

Arts

'Another Great Year For TV': David Bianculli On The Best (And Worst) Of 2015

11:44am December 24, 2015

by David Bianculli

Though broadcast TV didn't impress him much this year, critic David Bianculli says Better Call Saul and a number of other shows from cable and streaming services made 2015 a great year for viewers.

Across India, several Christian communities prepare sweet homemade wines for the festive season from a rich array of local fruit, roots and grain. Above, a glass of golden pineapple wine.

From Beetroot To Pineapple, Homemade Wines Sweeten Christmas In India

11:21am December 24, 2015

by Nina Martyris

Across India, Christian communities make sweet homemade wines for the festive season from an array of local fruit, roots and grain. But the know-how behind this ancient tradition may be disappearing.

Ivan Day shapes his mince pies using traditional patterns from hundreds of years ago.

Big, Bold, Wild: We Re-Create Christmas Dinners Of Centuries Past

10:09am December 24, 2015

by Robert Smith

Same Christmas dinner as last year? You're doing it wrong. In 17th-century Britain, Christmas dinner was a lavish, experimental, 12-day drunken affair. Think Mardi Gras with snow.

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8th June 1979: Disc jockey, Peter Powell, with young Michael Ives

Arts

Recess!

9:44am December 24, 2015

Host Ophira Eisenberg and house musician Jonathan Coulton ring the bell for recess, and take classic games to the next level in "Playground Nationals."

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