Kenneth Turan - Los Angeles Times

Kenneth Turan

Kenneth Turan was film critic for the Los Angeles Times and National Public Radio’s Morning Edition as well as the director of the Los Angeles Times Book Prizes. He has been a staff writer for the Washington Post as well as The Times’ book review editor. A graduate of Swarthmore College and Columbia University’s Graduate School of Journalism, he teaches film reviewing and non-fiction writing at USC. His most recent books are “Never Coming To A Theater Near You” and “Free For All: Joe Papp, The Public and The Greatest Theater Story Ever Told.” He retired from The Times in April 2020.

Latest From This Author

Movies

She made an honest movie about Poland’s migrant crisis. That’s when her problems began

After weathering censorship from the government and even death threats, the veteran Oscar nominee has been vindicated by the success of her film “Green Border.”
June 26, 2024
Movies

We strap in with director George Miller, the ‘Mad Max’ mastermind, back with ‘Furiosa’

Australia’s leading export of postapocalyptic mayhem, Miller reflects on 45 years of action, the lure of digital and the summer’s most anticipated blockbuster.
May 6, 2024
Movies

Saved from oblivion, these are the movies worth seeing at UCLA’s Festival of Preservation

A Norma Shearer silent, film noir from Argentina and a classic Richard Pryor comedy TV special are among the rarities at this year’s Festival of Preservation.
April 3, 2024
Movies

After a career wobble, director Alexander Payne rebounds, ready to play the long game

“The Holdovers,” a reunion with “Sideways” star Paul Giamatti, is earning Payne his best reviews in years. It also marks the end of a period of uncertainty.
Oct. 26, 2023
Movies

For Subscribers

Christopher Nolan goes deep on ‘Oppenheimer,’ his most ‘extreme’ film to date

Diving into an explosive episode of 20th century history that launched the nuclear age, director Christopher Nolan unleashes the most ambitious film of his career.
July 11, 2023
Movies

The rare films you shouldn’t miss at the 2022 UCLA Festival of Preservation

Betty White, Rod Serling, Harold Lloyd, ‘All That Money Can Buy’ and ‘Force of Evil,’ plus other picks for this year’s Festival of Preservation.
May 15, 2022
Movies

Review: Gene Hackman is listening and 1974’s ‘The Conversation’ is more relevant than ever

Francis Ford Coppola’s classic 1974 thriller “The Conversation,” starring Gene Hackman, returns to the Nuart in a new 35 mm print.
Jan. 27, 2022
Movies

Joel Coen wouldn’t have made ‘Macbeth’ with his brother Ethan. Here’s why

Inside Joel Coen’s solo venture, after a career co-directing with his brother Ethan, to film Shakespeare’s ‘Macbeth’ with Denzel Washington and Frances McDormand.
Jan. 7, 2022
Movies

Jane Campion explains her enigmatic career choices: ‘I’m careful about the bones I care to chew on’

With Netflix’s “The Power of the Dog,” Jane Campion is enjoying her most celebrated film in years. And the long journey makes it all the sweeter.
Dec. 1, 2021
Entretenimiento

A los 91 años, Clint Eastwood lanza un puñetazo y monta a caballo en su nueva película. Y él no está listo para renunciar

Con ‘Cry Macho’, Clint Eastwood puede ser el estadounidense de mayor edad en dirigir y protagonizar una película importante. Pero pregunte si algo ha cambiado desde su inicio y obtendrá el equivalente verbal de un divertido encogimiento de hombros.
Sept. 12, 2021