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Monday

'The Little Mermaid' is the latest of Disney's poor unfortunate remakes

Halle Bailey stars as Ariel in Disney's live-action The Little Mermaid — the studio's latest blatant cash-grab. Giles Keyte/Disney hide caption

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Giles Keyte/Disney

Review

Pop Culture Happy Hour

'The Little Mermaid' is the latest of Disney's poor unfortunate remakes

Disney has a formula: Take a beloved animated property, update its sensibilities for modern audiences, recast it with a bunch of familiar faces and voices, and rehash it all in "live-action"/CGI form.

Wednesday

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Wednesday

Tuesday

Hit animated film 'Moana' will receive a live-action remake, Disney announced

Actors Dwayne Johnson, left, and Auli'i Cravalho appear at the 2016 AFI Fest - "Moana" world premiere in Los Angeles on Nov. 14, 2016. Disney chief executive Bob Iger on Monday announced that a live-action "Moana" remake is in development in a call with investors. Dwayne Johnson is set to return as the demigod Maui. Cravalho, who voiced Moana in the original, is to be an executive producer. Willy Sanjuan/Willy Sanjuan/Invision/AP hide caption

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Willy Sanjuan/Willy Sanjuan/Invision/AP

Movies

Hit animated film 'Moana' will receive a live-action remake, Disney announced

Auli'I Cravalho and Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, who voiced Moana and Maui, respectively, in the 2016 film, will reprise their roles in the live-action version, Disney said.

Thursday

Saturday

Opinion: The autocrat threatened by Winnie the Pooh

Pro-democracy activists tear a placard of Winnie-the-pooh that represents Chinese President Xi Jinping during a protest against a proposed new security law outside the Chinese Liaison Office in Hong Kong on May 24, 2020. ISAAC LAWRENCE/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

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ISAAC LAWRENCE/AFP via Getty Images

Opinion

Simon Says

Opinion: The autocrat threatened by Winnie the Pooh

The slasher film Winnie the Pooh: Blood and Honey has been pulled from theaters in Hong Kong and Macau - and not because of its terrible Rotten Tomatoes score. The Silly Old Bear has been used in protest memes against President Xi Jinping.

Opinion: The autocrat threatened by Winnie the Pooh

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Friday

Let It Be Morning shines light on Palestinians' unease with the status quo in Israel

'Let it Be Morning' is the story of Sami (Alex Bakri), a Palestinian citizen of Israel living in Jerusalem who receives an invitation to his brother's wedding forcing him to return to the village where he grew up. Cohen Media Group hide caption

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Cohen Media Group

Movie Interviews

Let It Be Morning shines light on Palestinians' unease with the status quo in Israel

NPR's Leila Fadel speaks with Israeli filmmaker Eran Kolirin and Palestinian actor Alex Bakri about the film 'Let it Be Morning'.

Let It Be Morning shines light on Palestinians' unease with the status quo in Israel

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Friday

Tuesday

The best movies and TV of 2022, picked for you by NPR critics

Clockwise from top left: The Banshees of Inisherin, Everything Everywhere All at Once, Only Murders in the Building, Nope, This Is Going to Hurt and The Dropout Searchlight Pictures, A24, Hulu, Universal Studios, AMC Networks, Hulu hide caption

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Searchlight Pictures, A24, Hulu, Universal Studios, AMC Networks, Hulu

Review

Pop Culture Happy Hour

The best movies and TV of 2022, picked for you by NPR critics

Whether you plan to head out to the theater, or binge from the couch, our critics have gathered together their favorite films and TV shows of the year. Happy watching!

Monday

James Cameron aims to finally put that 'Titanic' door debate to rest, 25 years later

Fans have long debated whether there was room for both Jack (Leonardo DiCaprio) and Rose (Kate Winslet) on the makeshift raft in the 1997 blockbuster Titanic. CBS Photo Archive via Getty Images hide caption

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CBS Photo Archive via Getty Images

Movies

James Cameron aims to finally put that 'Titanic' door debate to rest, 25 years later

The blockbuster hit theaters on Dec. 19, 1997. Since then, fans have debated whether Jack could have survived on the makeshift raft. Now Cameron says a forensic analysis rules that out definitively.

Thursday

These are the life lessons Geena Davis learned from 3 of her most famous movies

Geena Davis attends the Emmy Awards in Sept. 2022. This month, she spoke with NPR's Morning Edition about her movie career and upcoming memoir. Robyn Beck/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

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Robyn Beck/AFP via Getty Images

Movies

These are the life lessons Geena Davis learned from 3 of her most famous movies

Geena Davis' new memoir, Dying of Politeness, looks back on her life and career. In a conversation with NPR's Morning Edition, she reflects on some of those iconic roles and how they shaped her.

These are the life lessons Geena Davis learned from 3 of her most famous movies

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Wednesday

Halle Bailey's 'Little Mermaid' is already making waves among young Black girls

Dozens of parents of young Black girls are posting videos across social media of their children's reactions to the newly released trailer of Disney's live action "Little Mermaid" starring Halle Bailey as Ariel. Screenshot by NPR/Walt Disney Studios hide caption

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Screenshot by NPR/Walt Disney Studios

Culture

Halle Bailey's 'Little Mermaid' is already making waves among young Black girls

Social media has been filled with videos of Black children watching the teaser of the trailer for the new Little Mermaid movie, which stars Bailey.

Saturday

Opinion: In China, movie villains don't get away

Visitors to a cinema showing the latest "Minions: The Rise of Gru" movie get their tickets checked in Beijing. Ng Han Guan/AP hide caption

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Ng Han Guan/AP

Opinion

Simon Says

Opinion: In China, movie villains don't get away

In China, the new "Minions" movie ends with assurances that the bad guy serves time, rather than escapes. NPR's Scott Simon details how Chinese authorities could adjust the endings of other movies.

Opinion: In China, movie villains don't get away

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