Film

Film critic John Powers reviews "Limbo" by director John Sayles.(Lone Star, City of Hope, Eight Men Out) This is the story of an Alaskan fisherman (Strathairn) who has been away from the sea for years because of a tragic accident, who falls in love with a traveling lounge singer

Today, as part of our series on American popular song, we continue our profile of Harry Warren (1893-1981), a successful but little known songwriter who produced a number of hits during the 1930's, 40's and 50's. Today in part two of our profile, we focus on Warren's songs of the 40's and 50's, including some of the most popular love ballads of the world war two years, one of Dean Martin's biggest hits, and the theme for a tv western.

Philip Furia is currently writing a book on Hollywood's musicals. He discusses the impact of Harry Warren on movie musicals. Furia is the author of The Poets of Tin Pan Alley, and Irving Berlin: A Life in Song. He is chair of the English department at the University of North Carolina at Wilmington.

Philip Furia is currently writing a book on Hollywood's musicals. He discusses the impact of Harry Warren on movie musicals. FURIA is the author of "The Poets of Tin Pan Alley," "Irving Berlin: A Life in Song." He is chair of the English department at the University of North Carolina at Wilmington.

We continue with Philip Furia on Harry Warren's role in the evolution of the Hollywood musical in the 1930's.

Guest film critic F.X. Feeney, of the L.A. Weekly, reviews the new Star Wars film "The Phantom Menace."

Today marks the Centennial of Fred Astaire's birthday. First, we'll hear from Will Friedwald on Astaire's singing ability. He says while Astaire didn't have the best voice, he was still wonderful to listen to. Friedwald is author of several books on Singers including: The Tony Bennett autobiography "The Good Life," "Sinatra! The Song is You: A Singer's Art," and "Jazz Singing :America's Great Voices from Bessie Smith to Bebop and Beyond"

Film director Stanley Donen (DAH-nen) talks about directing Fred Astaire in "Funny Face," and "Royal Wedding." Last year, Donen received the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Academy of Motion Pictures. His other films include: "Singin' in the Rain" (1952) "It's Always Fair Weather" (1955) "Seven Brides for Seven Brothers" (1954) and "Charade" (1963)

Critic John Powers reviews David Cronenberg's new film "EXistenz."

Film critic John Powers reviews the new comedy "Election" about an election in a high school.

Film producers Dustin Hoffman and Tony Goldwyn. Their new film is "A Walk on the Moon" by Miramax. Goldwyn, who also directed the film, is the grandson of studio executive Samuel Goldwyn of MGM. . Dustin Hoffman is a veteran actor whose first big break was starring in "The Graduate." Some of the films he's starred in include: "All The President's Men," "Kramer vs. Kramer," "Rainman," and "Tootsie."

Film critic John Powers reviews two new French films "The Dreamlife of Angels" and "I Stand Alone." Both films take place in the city of Lille, France. The Dreamlife of Angels received Best Actress (for both Elodie Bouchez and Natacha Regnier) at the 1998 Cannes Film Festival.

Filmmaker Steven Okazaki talks about his movie "Black Tar Heroin: The Dark End of The Street." It will show on HBO tomorrow night 4/14. The film tracks five teenage addicts in San Francisco over a two-year period. As a filmmaker, Okazaki won an Academy Award in 1991 for his film "Survivors" which retold the stories of several Hiroshima survivors. He also directed "Living on Tokyo Time" a comedy about a Japanese dishwasher . He lives in Berkeley, California.

Film critic John Powers reviews the film "Go." Set over a 24-hour period in L.A. and Las Vegas, this comedy is told from the perspectives of three parties involved in outrageous events.

Film critic John Powers reviews the new film "EDtv." It opens in theaters nationally today.

Screenwriter Stephen Schiff talks about writing the scripts for "True Crime" and "Deep End of the Ocean."He first established his reputation as a film critic for Vanity Fair and Fresh Air. He also wrote film essays and profiles for The New Yorker. He served an unprecedented three terms as chairman of the National Society of Film Critics. His first screenplay was for the most recent film adaptation of Lolita.

Composer John Barry. He's best known for his 11 James Bond scores, including "Goldfinger," and "Thunderball." Barry has won five Oscars: for the song and score of "Born Free," and for scores for "Lion in Winter," "Out of Africa," and "Dances with Wolves." He has a new CD compilation of his work, "John Barry: The Hits & The Misses" (Play it Again label).

Fresh Air film critic John Powers gives us his thoughts on the Oscar awards and the Oscar ceremony.

Film critic John Powers reviews the new Clint Eastwood film, "True Crime."

Film critic John Powers comments on the plan to award Elia Kazan an honorary Academy Award. Kazan is best known for his films "On The Waterfront," and "A Streetcar Named Desire." The award is controversial because Kazan turned over names of suspected communist members during the 1950s.