Film

Zucker has made a number of parody films with his brother David, including Police Academy and The Naked Gun. His first solo movie, Ghost, is now in theaters.

Curtis's parents are Hollywood actors Jane Lee and Tony Curtis. In contrast to her own childhood, she keeps her own daughter out of the public eye. Curtis joins Fresh Air to talk about her roles in horror, comedy, and TV.

Cage stars in the upcoming David Lynch movie. The actor says he enjoyed Wild at Heart's dreamlike atmosphere, which allowed him to push the boundaries of his performance. He joins Fresh Air to discuss some of his earlier work, and the extremes he's gone to capture a character. Cage is the nephew of Francis Ford Coppola; he changed his name to distinguish himself from his famous family.

Critic Own Geliberman reviews the home video release of Harvey, starring Jimmy Stuart in an unusual and never-matched role. Gleiberman says the movie is unique today for its 40-year-old perspectives on alcoholism and mental health.

Kirby has had prominent roles in films like Good Morning, America, The Godfather II, and When Harry Met Sally. He stars in a new, mob-themed comedy called The Freshman. His father is fellow movie actor Bruce Kirby.

Almereyda's first feature film, Twister, about a Cleveland family caught in a storm in Kansas, was based on Mary Robison's book Oh!. It stars Crispin Glover and Harry Dean Stanton.

Miller starred in dozens of Roger Corman's B-movies, including Bucket of Blood. Later, big name directors so admired his work that they began to give Miller small parts in their films. He appeared in all of of Joe Dante's movies, including the recent Gremlins 2.

Director Alan J. Pakula's adaptation of the bestselling novel lacks the complexity and humor of the book, says film critic Stephen Schiff. The story concerns the murder of a woman lawyer and the difficult, sexually-charged investigation that follows.

Some directors and distributors say the rating, often associated with hardcore pornography, amounts to de factor censorship of their movies -- many theaters won't play them, and advertising is hard to secure. MPAA President Jack Valenti, who invented the rating, director Wayne Wang, and Senior Vice President of Marketing Russell Schwartz respond to the controversy.

Rooker appears in two recently-released films -- the big budget action flick Days of Thunder, and the independently produced Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer. He was born into a poor, predominantly white town in Alabama, and later moved to a black neighborhood in Chicago. After growing up among people working 15-hour days, it took Rooker until his early twenties to believe that acting could be a real job.

The film actor enjoyed working with the puppets and puppeteers for the new movie, Gremlins 2. Glover's character is based on Donald Trump; he frequently portrays sleazy villains, like in his earlier movie, 52 Pick-Up.

Fear of spiders -- and the infestation of rain forest arachnids in a small California town -- drive the new Frank Marshall horror film. Film critic Stephen Schiff says that it captures producer Stephen Spielberg's charm and humor -- but also his blandness.

As a Vietnam veteran, Stone was able to enroll in film school on the GI Bill. His success as a screenwriter opened the door for him to direct. He talks about the trajectory of his career, and how he learned to work within the Hollywood system.

Part I of the Fresh Air interview. Stone's newest movie, about the rock band the Doors, will soon be in theaters. The director is a Vietnam War veteran who earned a Purple Heart; his was experiences informed his early movie, Platoon.

The African American film director is best known for Sweet Sweetback's Baadasssss Song, which added a political dimension to the black action movie genre. Van Peebles says that, unlike his own work, the blaxploitation films that came later were apologies for systems of oppression, not critiques of them. Prior to his career in film, he lived in France as a writer. His new book, coauthored by his son Mario, is called No Identity Crisis.

Critic Owen Gleiberman says "Ghost" is a tense, touching, and funny love story starring Patrick Swayze, Demi Moore, and Whoopi Goldberg. Swayze's character dies, and Goldberg channels his spirit to communicate with his still-living love Demi Moore.

Peter Bart was a senior vice president of the MGM/United Artists studio, and has just written a new book called "Fade Out." He discusses his efforts to turn the company around as the Hollywood studio system came to a close.

Critic Owen Gleiberman reviews The Adventures of Ford Fairlane, which stars comedian Andrew Dice Clay as a rock and roll detective. Gleiberman calls the movie monotonous; Clay's performance, like his standup, is crass, but not without charisma.

Film scholar Douglas Gomery has a new essay in the anthology Seeing Through Movies, in which he discusses the history of the movie theater, and how theater owners designed the audience experience over the decades.

Film critic Owen Gleiberman says the original Die Hard succeed in part because it was tightly plotted and plausible -- for an action movie. But it's hard to imagine Bruce Willis's John McClane fighting terrorists throughout the sprawl of Washington, D.C.