Theater

Conductor John McGlinn says that his decision to bring back the controversial language of Jerome Kern's classic musical posed some challenges, but was necessary to recapture the poignant and insightful nature of the work. McGlinn's efforts can be heard on a new CD on the EMI label.

Film critic Stephen Schiff says January isn't the best month for movies; screenwriter John Patrick Shanley's latest cop drama is no exception -- the January Man is so quirky that it's hard to take seriously.

TV critic David Bianculli says the drama, set it in a restaurant, took a while to find its footing, but is now on solid ground. But poor ratings have led NBC to retool the show as a half-hour program -- a decision Bianculli hopes won't diminish Tattinger's quality.

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.

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.

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.

Harvey Fierstein wrote and stars in the new movie Torch Song Trilogy, which is based on his play of the same name. Fierstein in openly, and hopes his visibility in the acting community will help normalize homosexuality.

The new Barry Levinson movie, also starring Tom Cruise, tells the story of two brothers, one of whom is severely autistic -- and the inheritor of three million dollars. Film critic Stephen Schiff says, despite Hoffman's masterful performance, Rain Man lacks focus.

Film critic Stephen Schiff says the movie turns the story of murdered civil rights workers into a stiff police procedural with a reductionist view of race relations.

Harnick collaborated with composer Jerry Bock on hit musicals like Fiorello! and Fiddler on the Roof. One of their earlier works, She Loves Me, has found newfound success; the original cast album has just been reissued on CD.

TV critic David Bianculli reviews the new ABC special, Roots: The Gift, which revisits protagonist Kunta Kinte. He says it's a true successor to the original miniseries, and exceeds it in quality.

Jazz critic Kevin Whitehead says the movie star had a range of about six notes, but he had personality and a swinging house band. Yet Astaire deserves praise for making famous several songs which later became standards.

Critic Ken Tucker revisits the classic Jack Nicholson film, now on home video. He says the movie is idiosyncratic, but fizzles out by the end, after Nicholson's character has killed off so many of his emotions.

The new film, a thriller about drug smuggling, was written by Robert Towne, who is considered by many to be the best screenwriter in Hollywood. Film critic Stephen Schiff says the movie is a sensual feast.

Television critic David Bianculli reviews the new show TV 101, about a student who covers his high school's news on closed-circuit television. Bianculli says the premise and cast are excellent; he only hopes that the show can eventually live up to its potential.

TV critic David Bianculli says that the new CBS drama, about a couple's marriage and divorce, reminds him of the Wonder Years, Moonlighting, and Thirtysomething. The flashbacks to past decades are novel, but replete with unrealistic dialogue and stilted references to pop culture of the time.

Sondheim briefly wrote for the television show Topper before becoming the lyricist for the Broadway hits West Side Story and Gypsy. A trained composer, he later began writing his own musicals which, Sondheim says, continued in the Rogers and Hammerstein tradition. They include Sweeney Todd, A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum, and Into the Woods.

The new film Cry in the Dark dramatizes the true story of Lindy Chamberlain, who was wrongfully convicted of infanticide while camping in Australia. Film critic Stephen Schiff says the movie proves Schepisi is a great director.

Actor Robert Prosky is best known for his performance as a role call sergeant in Hill Street Blues. He appears in David Mamet's new movie Things Change. For 23 years he worked at Washington, DC's Arena Stage.

The sequel to the lackluster Winds of War is well worth the time, says TV critic David Bianculli. The miniseries about World War II already has a third installment in the works, which is slated to air next year.