LAT
Why Michael Mann wrote ‘Heat 2,’ his movie sequel, as a novel
“Heat 2” is an odd sort of novel: a debut by filmmaker Michael Mann that happens to be a sequel to his 1995 film,...
California child-care providers fight to ‘retire with dignity’
SACRAMENTO — Renee Kuykendall woke up at 4 a.m. to prepare for the arrival of her first client. She won’t be done with her last client...
‘Bullet Train’ nabs No. 1 at the domestic box office
Sony Pictures’ “Bullet Train” arrived at the top of the domestic box this weekend with $30.1 million, according to estimates from measurement firm Comscore.The...
‘Bullet Train’ review: Brad Pitt movie is sleek but shallow
All aboard the “Bullet Train”! The express from Tokyo to Kyoto has everything, but mostly it has a lot of highly trained assassins with...
Democrats’ health, tax and climate bill clears first vote
WASHINGTON — Senate Democrats on Saturday advanced their long-delayed healthcare, tax and climate bill following months of back-and-forth on whether the party would be able to...
James Franco cast as Fidel Castro
James Franco has been cast as many things in recent years offscreen, but now the Golden Globe winner is stepping into the role of...
Tia Carrere lets her Filipino heritage shine in ‘Easter Sunday’
In 1996, four years after she cemented herself in Hollywood as the iconic Cassandra Wong in “Wayne’s World,” Tia Carrere was in Las Vegas...
California DMV accuses Tesla of false advertising
The California Department of Motor Vehicles has accused Tesla of false advertising in its promotion of the company’s signature Autopilot and Full Self-Driving technologies.The...
The Senate has a climate deal. Now comes the hard part
After decades of inaction on the climate crisis, the federal government is on the verge of enacting a sweeping plan to slash planet-warming pollution,...
Predator actor Dane DiLiegro on creature roles and ‘Prey’
Dane DiLiegro’s hands are as meaty as beefsteaks. He could hold an entire deck of cards — fanned out — without anyone seeing them....
How ‘Bodies Bodies Bodies’ movie got Gen Z right
Here’s a Hollywood math problem for you: Feature filmmaking as we know it is well over 100 years old. Members of Generation Z,...
A Pacific Palisades girl was killed in an electric bike crash. Her parents see...
Enchanted Way is a little street in the Pacific Palisades with breathtaking views of the ocean spread out below. But ever since their 12-year-old...
‘The Flash’ on track for 2023 despite Ezra Miller allegations
The DC film universe is in the middle of a shakeup, but unscathed from the fallout is “The Flash,” starring the embattled Ezra Miller....
Things to do, movies in LA, OC: Jeff Bridges, James Caan
Find a flick with our weekly curated list of classic movies, cult favorites, film festivals, etc., playing at theaters, drive-ins and pop-ups and/or streaming...
‘Big Bang Theory’ star Johnny Galecki lists Spanish hideaway for $11.9 million
Actor Johnny Galecki, who’s best known for his role in the hit CBS sitcom “The Big Bang Theory,” is shopping around his Spanish-style villa...
‘Bodies Bodies Bodies’: A horror film for, and about, Gen Z
In the smirky, squirmy comic freakout “Bodies Bodies Bodies,” a bunch of rich, horny 20-somethings throw a party during a hurricane, only to find...
‘Ali & Ava’ movie review: A superb interracial love story
In “Ali & Ava,” a lovely surprise from English filmmaker Clio Barnard, music is more than just a soundtrack; it’s the characters’ very lifeblood....
No joke: Lady Gaga joins Joaquin Phoenix in ‘Joker 2’
J-J-J-Joker face, J-J-Joker face. Lady Gaga has officially joined the cast of Warner Bros.’ “Joker” sequel opposite Joaquin Phoenix’s Arthur Fleck. After weeks of...
‘Batgirl’ star Leslie Grace thanks fans for ‘love and belief’ after movie canceled
Days after the “Batgirl” movie was unexpectedly canned by Warner Bros., Leslie Grace is opening up about the journey to nowhere.Grace was set to...
From ASMR to TikTok, how Beavis and Butthead will face 2022
Hellbent on “scoring,” the lewd animated duo Beavis and Butt-Head have equally amused and disgusted audiences since the early 1990s, when we first heard...
Villa Firenze just got a $40-million price cut. It’s still not cheap
A lesson in ambition is currently unfolding in Beverly Park, where an Italian-inspired showplace known as Villa Firenze just returned to market at $79.5...
Flight canceled or delayed? Getting a refund may get easier
Responding to a “flood of air travel service complaints” during the pandemic, the U.S. Department of Transportation proposed rule changes Wednesday to make it...
6 Starbucks stores across L.A. area permanently close
Hollywood resident Sara Blair has been living in the neighborhood for the last four years and every morning, she would head to the Starbucks...
NFL star David Bakhtiari looks to tackle Tarzana home sale
Weeks before the start of football season, Green Bay Packers star David Bakhtiari is listing his home across the country for $6.3 million.The offensive...
‘Batgirl’ directors ‘shocked’ Warner Bros. scrapped the film
The directors of “Batgirl” are speaking out after Warner Bros. abandoned plans to release the superhero film on HBO Max.Following reports that the Burbank...
How Jo Koy overcame the odds to make ‘Easter Sunday’ movie
It’s not April, but “Easter Sunday” is right on time for Jo Koy.“Summers are all about your blockbusters, right? We got ‘Top Gun: Maverick,’...
Column: A $50-million condo in L.A.’s land of tents
Just when we thought the real estate market had cooled, along comes evidence that in the land of make-believe, there is no ceiling.My colleagues...
Dropil founders sentenced to prison for $1.9-million crypto scheme
Two Orange County men were sentenced Monday to more than two years in federal prison for their roles in a cryptocurrency scheme that fraudulently...
Rent-A-Center to settle California lawsuit alleging illegal markups
National rent-to-own giant Rent-A-Center will pay $15.5 million to settle a lawsuit that alleged the company had engaged in unlawful business practices including overcharging...
Producer Janet Yang elected president of the film academy
Hollywood’s most prestigious organization is now under new management. Producer Janet Yang was elected the 36th president of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts...
Penguin Random House, Simon & Schuster trial explained
The biggest antitrust trial to hit the publishing industry in recent memory kicked off this week, and today the King of horror had his...
GEICO closes all California locations
GEICO is no longer offering in-person locations to purchase car and homeowners insurance in California, the company’s website shows. The American insurance giant,...
Dev Patel acted on ‘natural instinct’ to stop knife fight
“Slumdog Millionaire” and “Lion” actor Dev Patel attempted to break up a knife fight during a stabbing in Australia, but he doesn’t...
How Pat Carroll’s Ursula, ‘Little Mermaid’ changed Disney history
You could describe “The Little Mermaid’s” Ursula as an ambitious, villainous, octopus-like sea witch, but Pat Carroll would disagree with you on at least...
Marilyn Monroe estate defends Ana de Armas’ ‘Blonde’ accent
The Marilyn Monroe estate has come to the defense of “Blonde” star Ana de Armas after some criticized the Cuban Spanish actor’s voice in...
Rosewood Residences Beverly Hills condos chase record prices
A $100-million boutique condominium complex rising in the vaunted Golden Triangle district of Beverly Hills is escalating Southern California’s luxury vertical-living rivalry with a...
California rents could skyrocket 10%. Blame inflation
When Antioch, Calif., resident Teresa Cardenas found a notice on her door May 31 informing her that starting Aug. 1 her rent would go...
Opendoor pays $62 million to settle claims it misled sellers
Opendoor Technologies Inc. agreed to pay $62 million to the Federal Trade Commission to settle allegations that it misled potential home sellers in...
Rebecca Hall breathes life into creepy ‘Resurrection’
What makes Margaret run? In the darkly arresting, committedly preposterous psychothriller “Resurrection,” she races up and down city streets, her limbs pumping like pistons,...
Paul Haggis gets a win in Italy sex-assault case
A judge in Lecce, Italy, ruled in favor of Paul Haggis late Friday, finding no reason to continue investigating a British woman’s allegations that...
Why ‘Not Okay’ movie fails to take down performative activists
Danni Sanders (Zoey Deutch), the protagonist of “Not Okay,” isn’t meant to be liked. In fact, the viewer is explicitly warned to this effect:...
Billy Porter is paying it forward with ‘Anything’s Possible’
The category is: creative (r)evolution. And Emmy-, Grammy- and Tony-award winning multihyphenate Billy Porter is in the midst of it.After closing out his acclaimed...
Sylvester Stallone slams ‘Drago,’ another ‘Rocky’ spinoff
Don’t expect Sylvester Stallone to be in Drago’s corner.The famed “Rocky” star and writer, who has been lashing out at the original film’s producers...
Casting director wants to elevate art of acting for video games
I was curious to talk to a respected video game casting director about her new book and what those who want to perform in...
Photos: Marilyn Monroe’s star still shines bright, 60 years after her death
Like ripples on a pond, her memory lives on through the people who celebrate her and remember her. Aug. 4 will mark the...
Nichelle Nichols death: ‘Star Trek’s’ George Takei mourns
George Takei led an outpouring of tributes Sunday to his “Star Trek” co-star Nichelle Nichols, who died Saturday at age 89.On Twitter, Takei shared...
‘Sharp Stick’ review: Lena Dunham returns with sexual comedy
Twelve years after her breakthrough 2010 indie darling “Tiny Furniture,” New York-born writer, director, producer and actor Lena Dunham returns to feature filmmaking with...
Disneyland has been raising food prices. Blame inflation
Even within the walls of the Happiest Place on Earth, there’s no escaping inflation.Disneyland patrons entering the park are used to enduring regular price...
Review: Zoey Deutch in big-swing social satire ‘Not Okay’
‘Not Okay’
Quinn Shephard made an impressive writing and directing debut — in her early 20s, no less — with 2017’s “Blame,” a keen and...
Johnny Depp’s first fine-art offerings sell out fast
Johnny Depp just made his first public foray into painting, and it almost instantly brought in $3.6 million. The actor-musician debuted a collection of...
Will Smith talks Oscars slap in new video
Four months after slapping comedian Chris Rock at the 2022 Oscars, Will Smith spoke out in a new video released Friday about the fallout...
Under Armour agrees to pay UCLA $67.49 million to settle suit
A six-year saga that started with smiles and handshakes ended with a sterile settlement document, Under Armour agreeing to pay UCLA $67.491 million to...
B.J. Novak and Ashton Kutcher talk ‘Vengeance’
In 2003, not long before he vaulted to fame as Ryan Howard on NBC’s “The Office,” a then-unknown B.J. Novak landed his first major...
Things to do, movies in LA, OC: Eddie Murphy, Will Ferrell
Find a flick with our weekly curated list of classic movies, cult favorites, film festivals, etc., playing at theaters, drive-ins and pop-ups and/or streaming...
‘Thirteen Lives’ review: Ron Howard brings drama to true story
An extraordinary story of nerve-wracking heroism gets an appealingly straightforward, propulsive retelling in Ron Howard’s “Thirteen Lives,” which dutifully dramatizes the risky 2018 operation...
‘A Love Song’ review: Dale Dickey in the role of a lifetime
For nearly all of “A Love Song’s” 81 minutes, we are in the presence of Faye, a 60-something widow camping in the mountains of...
Radio’s Tom Joyner sells Florida home with a boxing ring
Radio host Tom Joyner has cashed out of Golden Beach, Fla., selling his waterfront mansion for $19 million.Joyner, who retired in 2019 after 25...
‘Blonde’ trailer: Ana de Armas becomes Marilyn Monroe
Diamonds are a girl’s best friend, and fame is Marilyn Monroe’s worst enemy in the dramatic trailer for Netflix’s “Blonde,” starring Ana de Armas...
‘Vengeance’ review: B.J. Novak looks for America in smart satire
“Vengeance,” the debut feature of writer-director-star B.J. Novak, opens with a scene of acidic social commentary that sets the tone for the smart satire...
U.S. economy shrank in 2nd quarter, fueling recession fears
WASHINGTON — The government’s announcement Thursday that the U.S. economy had two straight quarters of no growth set off new fears about an impending recession, but...
Hollywood has a hiring problem. Can a new crop of apps help?
Business is booming for the TV industry. That has caused problems for hiring.Normally when a show is staffing up, the producers call up a...
Op-Ed: The federal American Data Privacy and Protection Act protects everybody’s data
When a business signals “whites only,” it does not matter if it is written in ink or pixels, words or code. The discrimination is...
L.A. County General Hospital is set to become affordable housing
Los Angeles County officials are moving forward with a plan to convert the mostly vacant General Hospital building, on the site of L.A. County-USC...
Facebook is in trouble. Its escape plan: Turn into TikTok
Aging tech products often suffer from what’s known as feature creep: excessive complexity caused by the accretion of bells and whistles over the years....
‘Nope’ movie connection to Jordan Peele’s ‘Us,’ explained
Amid alien contact, thrilling chase sequences and cathartic emotional beats, “Nope” considers a range of ideological concepts — legacy, race, exploitation and the taming...
Guillermo del Toro’s ‘Pinnochio’ trailer drops
Netflix on Wednesday released the latest trailer for director Guillermo Del Toro’s stop-motion “Pinocchio.” And it looks and feels exactly like what you might...
Worried about mortgage interest rates? Here’s what the Fed’s rate hikes mean
If you’re in the market for a new mortgage or if you have one with an adjustable interest rate, you may worry that the...
Hiltzik: The true toll of ransomware
When ransomware bandits struck his business last June, encrypting all his data and operational software and sending him a skull-and-crossbones image and an email...
‘Gimme Shelter’: The new COVID normal for California tenants
In Los Angeles, many tenants are still protected against eviction for not paying rent and from rent increases. But in many other parts of...
Knott’s Berry Farm extends chaperone policy to include Sundays
Knott’s Berry Farm has decided to extend its “well-received” chaperone policy to include Sundays, park officials announced Tuesday. The chaperone policy, which went...
Battling to tamp down inflation, Fed gears up for another big interest rate hike
WASHINGTON — The Federal Reserve is expected to announce Wednesday another aggressive interest rate increase as the central bank presses its attack on inflation despite rising...
‘DC League of Super-Pets’ review: Lighter take of Justice League
The DC Extended Universe has mostly taken a dark, gritty approach to blockbuster comic book movies. But perhaps there’s another way to explore the...
‘My Old School’ review: Doc probes student’s identity crisis
The curious case of Brandon Lee, an enigmatic 16-year-old who in 1993 arrived at Bearsden Academy near Glasgow, is told twice in the generally...
Elon Musk abandons plans for Ontario Airport tunnel
Five years ago, tech mogul Elon Musk posited a way to curtail rush-hour traffic in Southern California: Build high-speed underground tunnels.Among those plans, Musk’s...
‘Precious’ producer eyes $50 million for Carpinteria polo compound
Some listings are all about the house. This one is about everything besides the house.In the coastal city of Carpinteria, a working polo ranch...
West Hollywood’s Book Soup unionizes
The employees of Book Soup, West Hollywood’s self-proclaimed “bookseller to the great and infamous,” are embarking on a new chapter as members of a...
Hiltzik: Book bans and the threat to freedom
Attacks on books occupy a special place among the signposts of philistinism and anti-democratic suppression. So it’s proper to be alarmed at the upsurge...
The story behind the making of ‘Bull Durham’
There’s a temptation when speaking to directors of classic films to ask whether their career-defining movie could get a studio’s green light today. The...
Can strawberry-picking robots save California’s growers?
In a strawberry field surrounded by strawberry fields on the outskirts of Santa Maria, a pair of robots have been picking berries all summer.Each...
More than a mobster: A look at Paul Sorvino’s best roles
Paul Sorvino could play more than a mobster, even though mafioso roles became standards in his prolific career.But Sorvino, who died Monday at age...
The internet clowns Logan Paul for not understanding ‘Nope’
You Tube star and professional wrestler Logan Paul took to Twitter Monday afternoon to declare that Jordan Peele’s “Nope” “is one of the worst...
Mira Sorvino opens up after father Paul Sorvino’s death
Mira Sorvino, who followed in her father’s footsteps to become an actor, opened up on social media after Paul Sorvino died Monday at the...
How to get free broadband in L.A. if you’re a lower-income resident
Tim Hebb lives in one of more than 1.6 million households in Los Angeles that qualify for a new federal subsidy program for high...
Jason Momoa, motorcyclist OK after scary Calabasas crash
Jason Momoa and a motorcyclist are OK after a car he was driving collided with the motorcyclist this weekend near Los Angeles.The “Aquaman”...
‘Hangover’ producer Scott Budnick lists Sherman Oaks farmhouse for $3.55 million
Scott Budnick, the film producer-turned-prison reform advocate, is shopping around his Sherman Oaks farmhouse for $3.55 million.Budnick produced “The Hangover” and its sequel before...
The real-life celebrity divorce that inspired ‘Irma Vep’ HBO
French filmmaker Oliver Assayas’ “Irma Vep,” a streaming series adaptation of his own movie adaptation of a silent serial, has become a stealthy summer...
HBO’s ‘Irma Vep’ TV show will restore your faith in movies
For a show as deliriously playful as “Irma Vep,” the HBO limited series created, written and directed by the French filmmaker Olivier Assayas, its...
L.A. dining scene braces for possible indoor masking return
As Los Angeles hurtles toward a possible return of a countywide indoor mask mandate, restaurateurs and bar owners are bracing for a new wave...
In another pandemic fallout, used car prices are way up, and the repo man...
WASHINGTON — Healthcare worker Cleveland Wishop landed at Baltimore-Washington International Airport last fall expecting to retrieve his car from long-term parking and drive home.It never crossed...
Jordan Peele achieves rare box office feat with ‘Nope’
Universal Pictures’ “Nope” opened atop the domestic box office with $44 million this weekend, according to estimates from measurement firm Comscore.The latest cinematic offering...
More people of color are finding peace in the Inland Empire
MORENO VALLEY, Calif. — My ideas about the Inland Empire have always been seeded with a prickly skepticism.As far as I was concerned, passing through towns...
Marvel unveils ‘Black Panther 2,’ new ‘Avengers’ at Comic-Con
Marvel Studios has a history of announcing big projects at San Diego Comic-Con during its panel events in Hall H — and...
How Gordy the chimpanzee, the shoe and more help explain ‘Nope’
Spoiler alert: The following story discusses plot details from Jordan Peele’s “Nope.” For spoiler-free coverage read our review here. Jordan Peele’s enigmatic sci-fi horror...
First Starbucks, then Amazon, now a Korean BBQ restaurant union. Wage workers know they...
Three years ago I wrote about labor violations at Genwa, a Koreatown barbecue restaurant where a plate of short ribs cost $75. The...
Tinder’s Sean Rad pays $35 million for stunning estate
Not many homes look like Yvette Mimieux’s. Not in Southern California. Not anywhere.The colorful Bel-Air compound — a bohemian bouquet of art and architecture...
Marvel unveils $25-million Infinity Stones at Comic-Con 2022
In the Marvel universe, the Infinity Stones — six gems whose unique properties give the owner control over time, space, reality, the mind, power...
Ethan Hawke explains why Paul Newman, Joanne Woodward worked
Ethan Hawke has already had a busy year, with roles in the Marvel/Disney+ series “Moon Knight” plus the movies “The Northman” and “The Black...
6 key Spielberg movie references that help explain ‘Nope’
Plenty of filmgoers who’ve already seen Jordan Peele’s highly anticipated “Nope,” which opens this weekend, have left the theater in high spirits. Others have...
Review: Summer docs on mother’s health, Don McLean, Nolan Ryan
‘Aftershock’
In the U.S., a lot of the conversation surrounding pregnancy — whether it has to do with abortion or carrying a child to term...
Blame airlines for a summer of flight delays and cancelations
It’s been called the summer of “revenge travel” — a time when Americans who stayed home for the last two years because of the...
