Film

Directors Valerie Faris and Jonathan Dayton, and writer Michael Arndt. Little Miss Sunshine, their bittersweet film about a dysfunctional family, has been nominated for four Academy Awards. This was Faris and Dayton's feature film debut after directing hundreds of music videos, and also the first screenplay of Arndt's to be produced.

Former FBI Agent Eric O'Neill and Director/Screenwriter Billy Ray have collaborated on the new film Breach. It is based on the true story about FBI operative Robert Hanssen who was found guilty of treason and the FBI agent (O'Neill) who was assigned to Hanssen to draw him out of deep cover.

Director Guillermo del Toro's film, Pan's Labyrinth, is up for six Academy Awards this year, in categories including original screenplay and foreign language film. Del Toro, who grew up in Mexico, wrote and directed the film.

Gyllenhaal plays a drug-addicted ex-convict in Sherrybaby, which will be released on DVD this month. Her other films include Secretary, World Trade Center, and Stranger than Fiction.

A review of the movie Venus, starring Peter O'Toole and Vanessa Redgrave. It was written by Hanif Kureishi, the writer of the films My Beautiful Laundrette and London Kills Me.

Classical music critic Lloyd Schwartz reviews The Rodgers & Hammerstein Collection, a 12-disc DVD set of musicals created by composer Richard Rodgers and lyricist Oscar Hammerstein II.

Clint Eastwood has examined the Battle of Iwo Jima from two sides this year. His acclaimed film Flags of Our Fathers followed the stories of the American soldiers who raised the flag in one of World War II's most enduring images. His new movie, Letters from Iwo Jima, explores the perspective of the Japanese soldiers who fought it. The actor once best-known as a western and action star has directed a number of great films, including Unforgiven, Mystic River, and Million Dollar Baby.

Film critic David Edelstein reviews The Painted Veil, from a novel by W. Somerset Maugham, and Miss Potter, about the life of the author and illustrator of Peter Rabbit.

Director and screenwriter Bill Condon's new movie, Dreamgirls, is an adaptation of the Broadway hit musical. Condon also wrote and directed Kinsey and Gods and Monsters, for which he won an Oscar.

Film producer Christine Vachon's new book is A Killer Life: How an Independent Film Producer Survives Deals and Disasters in Hollywood and Beyond. She has produced more than 30 feature films, including Infamous, Far From Heaven, One Hour Photo and Boys Don't Cry. This book is a follow-up to Vachon's best-selling first book, Shooting to Kill.

Film critic David Edelstein presents his top ten movies of 2006, and also discusses the best of the holiday options.

Critic at-large John Powers reviews Preston Sturges: The Filmmaker Collection, a new DVD set of classic 1940s Preston Sturges films. Titles include The Palm Beach Story, The Lady Eve and Christmas in July.

The New York Times called Peter Boyle "one of the most successful character actors of his time." He died Tuesday at the age of 71. Boyle had roles in many films, including Young Frankenstein and Monster's Ball, and played the father on the sitcom Everybody Loves Raymond. His breakthrough role was the 1970 film Joe, in which he plays a factory worker on a rampage against hippies and the counterculture. This interview originally aired on May 25, 1995.

Film critic David Edelstein reviews the new animated feature Happy Feet. As the film's domestic earnings approach $100 million, the musical has started to pop up on lists of prospective Best Picture nominees.

The controversial new hit film Borat provides insight into how documentary and reality TV are really made. These programs all shape and color their characters, whether their intention is farce or sober assessment of a serious subject.

Film director Robert Altman died Monday night at age 81. We play back a 1990 interview with Altman, whose work includes M*A*S*H, The Long Goodbye, Nashville and this year's A Prairie Home Companion. This interview originally aired on Dec. 20, 1990.

With writer-director Christopher Guest, Parker Posey has poked fun at small-town theater, overzealous dog owners, and folk singers. Now, she takes on the Oscars, co-starring in Guest's fourth parody film, For Your Consideration. Posey has also appeared in films such as Dazed and Confused, Kicking and Screaming and The Daytrippers.

Nicholas Proffitt, who covered the Vietnam War for Newsweek magazine and wrote the book Gardens of Stone, died Nov. 10 at age 63. Gardens of Stone was later made into a film directed by Francis Ford Coppola. This interview originally aired on May 25, 1987.