Gordon Gekko’s extreme makeover We know the “greed is good” speech by heart. We’ve committed enough of the dialogue from the original film to memory that, with the release of Wall Street 2: Money Never Sleeps, the temptation might be to write off this sequel to Oliver Stone’s barbed paean to the amphetamine...

A writer’s crack-up, and part way back For acclaimed screenwriter Aaron Sorkin, the triumph of writing some of the more memorable movies and television  series of the last 20 years (and the much-awaited Facebook movie The Social Network, out Oct. 1) is tempered by the pain of his battles...

Jimi's not-so-slight return Forty years after Jimi Hendrix’s death in London, fans and scholars alike are again re-examining his music, his persistent impact on popular culture, and his status as a trailblazer whose impact on rock culture sought to transcend the confines of racial identity. This even-numbered...

Tyler Perry changes the game Tyler Perry, the multihyphenate African American filmmaker whose work has generated as much anger as acclaim in recent years, returns to the screen with a film that promises to be a game-changer in the perception of black American women. Perry's Madea films have made him a target of opportunity of those who condemned its over-the-top comedic portrayals of black urban...

Facebook at the multiplex It was probably inevitable: The most powerful social networking force in the world finding common ground with the most popular communal art form in the world. Social media meets the movies.                        ...

Toronto: The film festival Oscar watches The TIFF file: In recent years, the Toronto International Film Festival has had a knack for being an early-warning system for films likely to make an impact on moviegoers. To Steven Zeitchik of the Los Angeles Times, TIFF (which started Thursday) showcases films...

Exhaling, years later The last time we looked in on Savannah, Robin, Bernadine and Gloria — the protagonists of Terri McMillan’s breakthrough novel Waiting to Exhale — they were facing down life’s challenges, four single black women in Phoenix, grappling with family and relationship issues and finding...

Jimmy Page, page by page For about a dozen years as the guitarist for Led Zeppelin, his was the six-string sound of the hammer of the gods. Jimmy Page’s legendary sonic stylings — by turns blues-drenched and folky, whimsical and otherworldly — have become an indelible part of rock and roll history;...

Moscow: Theater season gets serious In the months to come, Moscow will be the place to be for seeing a broad range of cutting-edge theatrical productions. With contemporary playwrights weighing in with several new works, and adventurous directors taking the helms of established plays by authors from...

A most un-American ‘American’ Almost from the start, you can see that The American, the moody, introspective collaboration of George Clooney and director Anton Corbijn, isn’t your usual actioner. Bill Gibron of PopMatters says it’s “a film destined to be loathed or loved by those expecting thrills … something completely different and unique.”              ...

Amazon’s remote possibilities The landscape (or the battlefield) of television is about to get interesting: The online super-retailer Amazon is said to be at work developing a subscription service intended to bring customers TV shows and movies online, in a definite shot across the bows of Netflix and...

Conan’s big reveal You’ve been asking, pleading, clamoring for the name of Conan O’Brien’s new show. Now it can be told to you. Watch as the man himself lets you in on the secret:...

Emmy Awards: Newcomers, old familiars “Mad Men” and “Breaking Bad” brought back trophies — how many times have we heard that before? — but young upstarts like “Glee” and “Modern Family” were also winners Sunday at the 62nd annual Emmy Awards. Cable programming continued its Emmy dominance, besting broadcast...