Search the Fresh Air Archive

Close Search

"Mississippi Burning" Is a Step Backward

Film critic Stephen Schiff says the movie turns the story of murdered civil rights workers into a stiff police procedural with a reductionist view of race relations.

03:54
Queue

Guest

Host

Related Topics

Other segments from the episode on December 15, 1988

Fresh Air with Terry Gross, December 15, 1988: Interview with Robert Towne; Review of comedy albums by Sam Kinison, Will Durst, and Dennis Miller; Interview with Joseph Hansen; Review of the film …
Queue
27:46

Screenwriter and Director Robert Towne

Towne is widely considered to be the best screenwriter in Hollywood. His latest film -- his first since 1982 -- is called Tequila Sunrise, about cops, drug dealers, and betrayal. Towne talks about the tension between the intent of the screenwriter and the interpretation of a script by an actor or director.

Interview
Queue
06:11

A New Breed of Stand-Up Comics

Rock critic Ken Tucker says the recent crop of comedy albums has the chaotic, aggressive spirit of rock music. They don't have the same structure and allure as LPs from the 60s and 70s, but new CDs from Sam Kinison, Will Durst, and Dennis Miller are worth checking out at least once.

Review
Queue
09:34

Detective Novelist Joseph Hansen

Hansen's books feature a gay man in the hyper-masculine role of private detective. Hansen himself is gay, and hopes that his novels will help his readers become more accepting of homosexuality.

Interview

Transcript

Transcript currently not available.

Transcripts are created on a rush deadline, and accuracy and availability may vary. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. Please be aware that the authoritative record of Fresh Air interviews and reviews are the audio recordings of each segment.

You May Also like

Queue
22:18

Tom Hulce on Playing a Slain Civil Rights Worker.

Actor Tom Hulce. He was nominated for an Oscar for his portrayal of Mozart in the movie "Amadeus," and for a Golden Globe for his role as brain-damaged garbage man in "Dominick & Eugene." More recently, Hulce played the black-sheep of the family in "Parenthood." Next week, Hulce stars in "Murder in Mississippi," a made-for-TV movie about the freedom summer.

Interview
Queue
09:33

The Best and Worst Movies of 1988

Film critic Stephen Schiff talks with Terry Gross about this years movies. He says 1988 was an unusually good year for American films, though his favorite Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown, by Spanish director Pedro Almodovar. His least favorite movie was Willow.

Interview
Queue
09:40

An Actor Who Specializes in Psychotic Characters

Brad Dourif has played several killers and disturbed people throughout his career. He won an Oscar for his portrayal of a mental patient in the movie One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest. He voices a killer puppet in the new horror flick, Child's Play. Dourif says these kinds of roles pay the bills, but he keeps his eye out for other, more varied parts.

Interview

Did you know you can create a shareable playlist?

Learn How
Advertisement

There are more than 22,000 Fresh Air segments.

Let us help you find exactly what you want to hear.
Just play me something
Your Queue

Would you like to make a playlist based on your queue?

Generate & Share View/Edit Your Queue