Terry Gross

Film critic Stephen Schiff reviews the new film based on the life of legendary saxophonist Charlie Parker. Schiff says it makes up for its lack of narrative drive with insight and an excellent soundtrack.

Critic-at-large Laurie Stone reviews the photographer's new exhibition at the Museum of Modern Art. Nixon's photos document the progression of sickness and disease -- including AIDS -- in his subjects. Stone says Nixon's moving work neither sentimentalizes nor intrudes.

Film critic Stephen Schiff says the new biopic about the late zoologist, Gorillas in the Mist, is malarkey, with a script that shies away from the most compelling parts of Fossey's story. But star Sigourney Weaver shines.

Film critic Stephen Schiff says some viewers can't get past the graphic violence in David Cronenberg's movies to see the craft beneath. Now they have a chance with Dead Ringers, about twin gynecologists, both played by Jeremy Irons. The film may be less explicit, but it still features Cronenberg's signature psychological dread.

Critic Stuart Klawans says Patricia Eakins' new short story collection is as preoccupied with strange animals as it is different literary traditions. The tales are instructive, while not always uplifting.

Critic-at-large Laurie Stone reviews Joan Rivers' new standup act. Stone says the performance loses steam midway through, when Rivers resorts to attacking the women in her audience. Rivers has grown more confident, accomplished and glamorous over the years; Stone hopes her comedy will one day reflect those changes.

Joan Micklin Silver's film, set in New York City, is about a single woman in the publishing industry who recruits a matchmaker to find love. Film critic Stephen Schiff says it reminds him of the TV show Moonstruck, but without the motivational message.

Film critic Stephen Schiff wonders if he's the only reviewer who laughed at Paul Mazursky's new comedy, about an actor impersonating the late dictator of a fictional Caribbean country. Schiff asks Fresh Air listeners to send their own reviews to the radio station.

A revival of Ain't Misbehavin', featuring the original cast, is now playing on Broadway. Critic-at-large Laurie Stone says she jumped at the chance to see it. Overacting and exaggerated choreography plagued the first act, but the cast showed restraint during the last half.

Eight Men Out, about a 1919 baseball scandal, is directed by John Sayles. Film critic Stephen Schiff says there are some good performances, but the movie is more of a moralistic argument than a story; it could have used some of the wit Sayles injected into his earlier B-movies.