Movie Interviews

Abraham Attah plays a child soldier and Idris Elba is his commander in Cary Fukunaga's Beasts of No Nation.

Arts

When Children Go To War: A Heartbreaking Portrait In 'Beasts Of No Nation'

6:19pm December 14, 2015

The film tells the story of a child soldier in an unnamed West African country. Director Cary Fukunaga says that he tried to protect the young actors from some of the movie's most violent scenes.

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A Big-Screen Star Who's More Of A Sphere: Meet BB-8

5:24pm December 13, 2015

In preparation for the new Star Wars film, NPR's Michel Martin speaks with franchise fan and podcaster Mike Pilot about a new name you might hear next week — BB-8, a droid in the new film.

In Krampus a family is stalked by a horrible figure taken from German and Austrian mythology. Above, Allison Tolman from left, Adam Scott Toni Collette.

Arts

Oh Holy Fright: Christmas Horror Movies That Slay

7:25pm December 12, 2015

by Neda Ulaby

Holiday horror is a peculiar — and rich — genre of film. From evil elves to Satanic snowmen, NPR;s Neda Ulaby looks back at the history of ho, ho, ho in horror.

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Maggie Smith plays Mary Shepherd and Alex Jennings plays writer Alan Bennett in The Lady in the Van. Bennett says people in his London neighborhood still remember Shepherd.

Arts

For 15 Years, The Real 'Lady In The Van' Lived In This Playwright's Driveway

9:06am December 12, 2015

by NPR Staff

When Alan Bennett invited Mary Shepherd to move into his driveway, he thought she'd only be there for three months. After she died, he turned Shepherd's story into a memoir, a play and now a film.

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Steve Carell plays Mark Baum and Ryan Gosling plays Jared Vennett in The Big Short. Director Adam McKay says, "One of my favorite moments in the movie is where you see ... Mark Baum make a large chunk of money and feel absolutely disgusted by it."

Books
Arts

On The Money: How 'The Big Short' And Its Jerk Heroes Explain Finance

7:21pm December 11, 2015

by NPR Staff

How do you make a subject as dense as the subprime mortgage crisis into a compelling movie? That's the challenge Adam McKay took on when he decided to turn Michael Lewis' book into a film.

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Arts

Moment Of Truth In 'Youth' Hits Home For Actor Harvey Keitel

7:57am December 05, 2015

Harvey Keitel plays a film director spending time at a spa in the Swiss Alps in the movie, "Youth." He talks with NPR's Scott Simon about the production and a chance meeting in Sarajevo, years ago.

Michael Caine and Harvey Keitel star in Youth as the fictional composer Fred Ballinger and his filmmaker friend Mick Boyle.

Music & Culture

'We Use Music To Understand Where We Are': David Lang On The Music Of 'Youth'

9:27pm December 04, 2015

by NPR Staff

David Lang was tasked with writing music for Michael Caine's character, an elderly composer who gets abruptly called out of retirement.

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Top CIA 'Spymasters' Agree: We Can't Kill Our Way Out Of Terrorism

1:42pm December 03, 2015

Filmmakers Chris Whipple and Jules Naudet discuss their Showtime documentary, Spymasters, which features 12 former CIA directors discussing the tough choices they've had to make in fighting terrorism.

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Michael Fassbender Is The Latest Actor To Take On 'Macbeth'

6:15am December 03, 2015

NPR's Renee Montagne talks to Michael Fassbender, who stars in the new film adaptation of Shakespeare's Macbeth. It opens Friday. Fassbender specializes in complex characters.

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Arts

'Hollywood Reporter' To End Annual Index Of Powerful Women In Entertainment

2:21pm December 01, 2015

Janice Min, president of The Hollywood Reporter, tells Steve Inskeep why the magazine will stop publishing its "Women in Entertainment Power 100" list as a ranking.

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