The president offered his thanks, Brian Dunkleman forgave Ryan Seacrest, JLo reminded everyone how it’s done, and Simon Cowell and his chest hair were once again reunited with Randy Jackson and Paula Abdul. Oh, and in big upset, Trent Harmon won the thing. But even in the 15th and final finale...
When Iranian director Asghar Farhadi won the 2012 best foreign language Oscar for his exceptional "A Separation," the film seemed to come out of nowhere: a throwback to the intense character- and narrative-driven films of Hollywood's golden age with the added twist of coming from a society we knew...
Low-key rom-dramedy "Temps" claims to be about those temporary hourly workers, but the title's pretty misleading. The romantic leads do meet at a temp job, but it quickly becomes less about their work life and more about their sex life. "Temps" explores that millennial predilection to engage in...
There are plenty of loving close-ups of food in "Sweet Bean," but this tender drama is no mere foodie indulgence. Zeroing in on one particular dish, the Japanese confection dorayaki, the story uses simple ingredients as it brings together three lonely souls. Writer-director Naomi Kawase, adapting...
Important story, subpar execution. That's the takeaway from "Sold," a disturbing, Dickensian tale of human trafficking that called for a more epic telling than this choppy, rudimentary adaptation of Patricia McCormick's 2006 novel. Lakshmi (Niyar Saikia) is a poor 13-year-old girl from Nepal whose...
Somewhere between the romantic absurdity of what a trip to the moon used to inspire, and the reality of the NASA age, lies the low-fi charm of "A Space Program." Director Van Neistat's movie diorama is a conceptual recording of artist (and colleague) Tom Sachs' DIY "Space Program 2.0: MARS," a...
Eryk Rocha's soccer documentary, "Sunday Ball," offers an impressionistic, colorful look at a tournament played in some of Rio de Janeiro's poorest neighborhoods. Though almost entirely devoid of facts and figures, the film represents the best kind of cinematic journalism — more like a live-action...
The less you know about Karyn Kusama's excellent psychological thriller "The Invitation" the better. The trailer promises a dinner party among old friends where something goes very wrong, and that's about all the premise one needs. The party takes place at a rambling Midcentury Modern home (which...
Many fine small moments pepper the family dramedy "One More Time," but they don't add up to a satisfying enough whole. The film, written and directed by Robert Edwards, gives veteran actor Christopher Walken a meaty supporting role as Paul Lombard, a washed-up crooner once called the King of Romance....
The opening shot of the namesake "big house" in Fellipe Barbosa's "Casa Grande" sets the stage for a Brazilian melodrama that considers the country's long-standing racial and class divisions, from the perspective of one suddenly struggling aristocratic family. Thales Cavalcanti stars as Jean, the...
New York-based Japanese indie punk band Peelander-Z travels down the well-trodden road to oblivion in the documentary "Mad Tiger," headbanging through a set list of rock's greatest cliches that the mockumentary "This Is Spinal Tap" had uncannily satirized. Basing their stage act on Power Rangers...
Reprising the most cloying aspects of performance vehicles like "Fame" and the "In Step" franchise without bringing any fresh beats to the "Glee"-club, "High Strung" wears its tired let's-put-on-a-show clichés as if they were neon turquoise leg-warmers. Meet fresh-faced Midwest transplant Ruby...
"Catching the Sun," chronicling international efforts to harness solar energy, kicks off with a bang courtesy of footage from Chevron's 2012 refinery explosion in Richmond, Calif. But Shalini Kantayya's debut documentary feature never stays in any one place long enough to make a sufficient impact....
Anyone who's ever had a contentious relationship with a parent should find something to relate to in Gayle Kirschenbaum's enjoyable documentary "Look at Us Now, Mother!" The film, which features a lifetime's worth of family photos, home movies, fly-on-the-wall interviews and much more, takes an...
"How'd you get that scar?" Martha (Anna Kendrick) asks her mysterious new beau, Francis (Sam Rockwell). He answers flippantly, something about a chunk of tile from an exploding building in Bosnia. What "Mr. Right" presupposes: What if he's not kidding? Playing with the notion that dating requires...
Subtract just a few creepy images from the metaphor-heavy Brazilian horror movie "Hard Labor" and the film could be a straight drama. Co-writers and co-directors Marco Dutra and Juliana Rojas take an unusual approach to a story about their country's changing social structures, producing something...
The warning at the beginning of "Darling" alerts us to "flashing lights and hallucinatory images," but the movie that follows from indie-horror writer-director Mickey Keating — though stylish in its black-and-white chilliness — is more likely to dull by repetitive creep than memorably rattle the...
When it comes to films that demand to be experienced on the big screen, Irish director Tomm Moore's 2014 "Song of the Sea" is high on the list, and this weekend provides an opportunity to see it both bigger than life and for free. Playing with no admission charge as part of the UCLA Film & Television...
Many fine small moments pepper the family dramedy "One More Time," but they don't add up to a satisfying enough whole. The film, written and directed by Robert Edwards, gives veteran actor Christopher Walken a meaty supporting role as Paul Lombard, a washed-up crooner once called the King of Romance....
The lo-fi sci-fi film "The Phoenix Incident" blends true crime, documentary and "Independence Day" to create a sort of "Blair Alien Project"-style thriller. Using the real events of the 1997 Phoenix lights UFO sighting and the simultaneous disappearance of four young men in the area, writer-director...
Here and not here — that would describe the war photographer played by the redoubtable Isabelle Huppert in "Louder than Bombs." As the movie opens, she's been dead three years, but her husband and sons still tangle daily with her memory, especially as they prepare for a retrospective exhibit of...
Their cars are old, and the parts are either used, bought illegally or homemade. But the dreams of Cuba's auto racers burn as brightly as they have since the Revolution — which considered racing elitist and dangerous — effectively drove them underground. Bent-Jorgen Perlmutt's documentary "Havana...
An experiential grenade tossed into the action genre, "Hardcore Henry" locks you in to 90 minutes of first-person mayhem that, while signaling an impressive aesthetic breakthrough as subjective moviemaking, is too stuck in the swamp of empty machismo to be anything more than the feature equivalent...
Ahead of “American Idol's” series finale tonight, we asked Justin Guarini, the runner-up of the show's inaugural season in 2002, to recount his time on the show -- and his career after he placed second behind Kelly Clarkson. This is his story as told to Los Angeles Times staff writer Gerrick D....
Using a bit of humor and her show's opening monologue, Ellen DeGeneres spoke out Thursday regarding the religious-freedom law signed this week by the governor of Mississippi that would allow discrimination based on sexual orientation. "I'm not a political person, I'm really not, but this is not...
Fox has renewed two first-year dramas, "Lucifer" and "Rosewood," for second seasons, the network announced Thursday. "Lucifer" stars Tom Ellis as Lucifer Morningstar, who gets bored with his life in hell and relocates to Los Angeles, where he teams up with LAPD homicide detective (Lauren German)....
A computer-generated portrait created in the style of 17th century Dutch master Rembrandt van Rijn was unveiled this week, with its makers saying that they based the new piece on extensive digital analysis of the artist's known body of work. Organizers said the new "painting" -- which depicts a...
Move over Pat Robertson -- Freeform wants to be the next network to enter the late-night comedy business. As part of its upfront announcement for the 2016-17 TV season, the Disney/ABC-owned cable channel said its developing a talk show, called “Later Bitches,” from “Daily Show” Executive Producer...
Lawyers have crafted the outlines of a potential settlement in the high-stakes legal drama over whether media mogul Sumner Redstone is mentally competent to handle his affairs.The various sides were finalizing an agreement late Thursday between Redstone and his former companion, according to two...
Country singer and songwriter Emmylou Harris will play in an unusually intimate setting on April 26, a few days before her performance slot at the 2016 Stagecoach Country Music Festival, for a fundraiser concert benefiting the animal shelter she’s long supported. Harris is slated to perform at...
Attention Cary Grant fans: A newly restored version of the seldom-seen 1937 musical comedy “When You’re in Love,” starring Grant and opera singer Grace Moore, debuts on GetTV on May 6 at 5 p.m. PDT. Grant plays an American artist marooned in Mexico because he can’t pay his hotel bill, while Moore...
Not a shred of irony is to be found in the extensive Julian Schnabel show at Blum & Poe. Irony is such an aesthetic mainstay now that hunger for it feels startling, but the arrogance and bombast here are suffocating. Even a whiff of the sardonic would be refreshing. "Infinity on Trial" encompasses...
The Recording Academy is saluting this year’s batch of special merit award recipients with an all-star concert that also will be a PBS “Great Performances” music special. Earth, Wind & Fire, Lila Downs, Martina McBride, J.D. Souther, Lucretia, Andy Garcia & the CineCon All-Stars are on the first...
You don't know what you got ... 'til it's gone. I have never been a fan of Laurel Lance. Actually, that's too kind, I've been an avowed enemy of the character during "Arrow's" four-season run. I complained that she was selfish and irritating, often criticizing her as an unnecessary part of Team...
Behold the super-dramatic, ultra-serious teaser trailer for Disney and Lucasfilm's first "Star Wars" feature film spinoff. Set just before the events of "Star Wars: A New Hope," the heist movie follows the gang of rogues too rebellious even for the rebellion who stole the Death Star plans. The...
A brush with death causes hardcore KGB officer Elizabeth Jennings (Keri Russell) to reconsider her priorities. And an act of kindness costs a former low-level KGB agent her life in “Chloramphenicol,” Episode 404 of “The Americans” on FX. Chloramphenicol is a medicine that combats bacterial diseases....
“It's going to be the closest race in ‘Idol’ history,” “American Idol” judge Keith Urban announced after La’Porsha Renae and Trent Harmon gave their final performances on the opening night of the long-running competition’s two-part swan song at the Dolby Theater. And Urban’s prediction isn’t off...
Slim culottes paired with powdered wigs. Dandyish suits in shades of candy pink. Leathers custom-designed for motorcycle rides. The upcoming fashion design exhibition at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art has these -- and many other styles -- covered. "Reigning Men: Fashion in Menswear, 1715-2015"...
The Czech Republic's ties to the cinema industry run deep. The father of former Prime Minister Václav Havel helped pioneer the film industry in the 1930s. Film production thrived during the Communist era and through the 1990s and 2000s, when the country hosted a number of big Hollywood movies,...
The Lyons want their Empire back, and they’re willing to do a number of things to get it, keep it and ensure Camilla (and her wife Mimi) end up far away from it. It all comes to a head in this week’s “Empire” episode, titled “A Rose by Any Other Name.” We begin with Hakeem, as the new (perhaps...
Kesha Rose Sebert's case against Sony Music was dismissed Wednesday after a New York judge rejected the pop singer's claims that she should be released from her contract because of alleged sexual and emotional abuse by superstar producer Lukasz "Dr. Luke" Gottwald. In her ruling, the judge said...
As one of the creators of country music’s influential Bakersfield sound, Merle Haggard will undoubtedly be remembered for what he helped begin. But on the day of his death at age 79, let’s not forget how this lifelong iconoclast went out: curious, dogged, unflinching. Though he’d canceled several...
Kesha suffered another setback Wednesday in her legal action against Dr. Luke after a New York judge dismissed parts of her case, denying the singer an emergency order to be let out of her recording contract with Sony Music Entertainment. The pop star has accused the music producer Dr. Luke, real...
Turning 25 years old is a major milestone in anyone's life. It's the point at which one is expected to put away childish things in favor of more grown-up and mature activity. Unless, of course, the one coming of age is the MTV Movie Awards. To celebrate the momentous occasion, the award show, hosted...