Director Stephen Frears directed the adaptation of the play, Les Liaisons Dangereuses, about a contest of sexual conquest and infidelity. Film critic Stephen Schiff praises how it handles eroticism. Despite some casting missteps, he believes it's "a brilliant tarentella" of a movie.
Tuckwell doesn't see his shift from French horn performance to orchestra conducting as a career change -- it's all music to him. He joins Fresh Air to talk about his experiences as a soloist and working with other conductors.
Classical music critic Lloyd Schwartz reviews a new album featuring a 1932 recording of the composer's Bolero, performed by the Orchestre des concerts Lamoureux, and helmed by Ravel himself
Critic Ken Tucker lauds the VHS release of Letter from an Unknown Woman, a 1948 drama about a philandering pianist and the mother of his child. Tucker also recommends Floating Weeds, License to Drive, and Monkey Shines.
Oliver Stone directed a film adaptation of Bogosian's play Talk Show, about a radio shock jock. Bogosian stars; he acts regularly in theater and television.
Lorde is open about her identity as a black lesbian feminist; she hopes her visibility will help other women like her feel less alone. She joins Fresh Air to talk about her romantic relationships with men and women, and the tensions between African American and feminist communities. Her new collection of essays, A Burst of Light, deals with her experience with breast cancer.
Book critic John Leonard says poet Brad Leithauser writes difficult fiction. The author's new novel, Hence, features an apocalyptic view of the modern world. Leonard calls it a contradictory book filled with Nabokovian cleverness.
Jazz critic Kevin Whitehead says that a number of New Orleans musicians left the city after they rose to prominence. He reviews a new series of albums featuring the innovations of players who stayed in their hometown.
TV writer John Schulian says his career change was a logical one: he was a good writer and sick of sports journalism. He got his break on the show L.A. Law. He's now the executive story editor on Wiseguy.
Rock critic Ken Tucker talks with Fresh Air host Terry Gross about the year in music. He says 1988 had an eclectic array of hits, with folk and hard rock albums both reaching the top of the charts.
Film critic Stephen Schiff talks with Terry Gross about this years movies. He says 1988 was an unusually good year for American films, though his favorite Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown, by Spanish director Pedro Almodovar. His least favorite movie was Willow.
Film critic Stephen Schiff says that movies about the corporate world all seem to follow the same formula: an executive's failure coincides with a subordinate's rise. He says Working Girl, starring Melanie Griffith and Sigourney Weaver, is no different.
The veteran jazz musician is critically acclaimed, but McKenna considers himself a "barroom pianist." He makes a living as a solo performer, and plays several songs for Fresh Air listeners.
Rock critic Ken Tucker says that sales of movie soundtracks have become inextricably tied to the films they come from. He takes a look at three recent CDs featuring songs from Twins, Beaches, and I'm Gonna Git You Sucka.
Terry Gross interviews Fresh Air jazz critic Kevin Whitehead. He's worked as a rock and restaurant critic. He believes he distinguishes himself by actively featuring artists outside the insular New York jazz scene. Whitehead is also a former seminarian, and a bassist who plays free improvised music.
Wilkinson says she is one of three women cartoonists on the national scene. She works for the Philadelphia Daily News and contributes to Ms. Magazines. Wilkinson joins Fresh Air to discuss the efficacy of her work, and the legal and editorial risks involved with her trade.
Book critic Maureen Corrigan reflects on the literary legacy of the hard-boiled novelist, who was born one hundred years ago. She says Chandler's writing had an existentialist bent, and that Chandler may have been dismayed by the recent crop of politically-minded mystery novels, which feature gay and women detectives.
