Search results for

The science-fiction action film The Matrix and the animated Monsters Inc. may belong to different genres, but they have a striking similarity: both tell the story of an alternate universe fueled by the efforts of humans who are unaware that they are doing the fueling. NPR's Bob Mondello offers his thoughts on the subject.

The film The Matrix Reloaded has excited philosophers, clerics and theologians who find rich in spiritual meaning in the film trilogy's underlying themes. NPR's Rick Karr speaks with authors and experts about the religion of The Matrix trilogy and the the significance of being "The One."

Mexican cinema has experienced a renaissance in recent years with Amores Perros, Y Tu Mama Tambien and The Crime of Padre Amaro. Herod's Law is the latest Mexican film to reach the United States. The film, released in 2000, was the first to attack Mexico's then-ruling Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI) by name. Los Angeles Times and Morning Edition film critic Kenneth Turan offers a review.

After four years of a record industry war on illegal file-sharing, more people than ever are flouting the rules and swapping music online. The Recording Industry Association of America is trying various tactics to end the practice. NPR's Laura Sydell reports.

NPR's Bob Mondello reviews Sweet Sixteen, a Scottish film about a tough teenager determined to raise enough money to buy a gift for his mother upon her release from prison -- a mobile home near the water.

Production is underway in Texas for a new movie that may explode long-standing myths surrounding the 1836 siege of the Alamo. The film aims to set history straight by portraying the faults of such Alamo heroes as David Crockett and telling the story in part through the eyes of Mexican soldiers. NPR's John Burnett reports.

Pat Dowell profiles Canadian Director Guy Maddin, whose new movie, Pages from a Virgin's Diary, is a screen adaptation of the Royal Winnipeg Ballet's production of Dracula. Maddin describes his movie making technique as "primitive," because he strives to give his story telling a dream-like effect. He was motivated to make this movie by curiosity about elements of female sexuality and male jealousy in the Dracula story.

In Washington, several aspiring conductors get a chance to learn from a maestro. Leonard Slatkin, music director of the National Symphony Orchestra, offers his young charges advice ranging from clothing tips to the physicality of the job. NPR's Steve Inskeep reports.

City Lights, the West Coast bookstore of the Beat Generation and American alternative culture turns 50 on June 8. Commentator Andrei Codrescu offers a poem, paying homage to a San Francisco icon and to City Lights founder Lawrence Ferlinghetti.

Screen legend Katharine Hepburn, who starred in more than 50 films and projected the ideals of independence and intelligence to generations of women, dies at 96. Hepburn won a record four best actress Oscars in her 60-year career, for her roles in Morning Glory, Guess Who's Coming to Dinner, The Lion in Winter and On Golden Pond. Hear Pat Dowell.