FilmWeek

The whales are making their way toward San Francisco Bay, and are looking healthier and more active as they swim toward the sea. KPCC reporter Julie Small has been watching their progress from a boat following along. * KPCC Reporter Julie Small

On May 25, 1977, Star Wars was released in 32 theaters across the country, including Grauman's Chinese Theatre in Hollywood. Today, on the film's thirtieth anniversary, Larry and guest David Weitzner of USC's school of cinematic arts discuss the impact Star Wars and its sequels have had on our culture and on the art and business of filmmaking.

Larry and critics Charles Solomon, animation critic for Amazon.com, Jean Oppenheimer of Village Voice Media, and Claudia Puig of USA Today, discuss this week's new releases including Shrek the Third, The Wendell Baker Story, Fay Grim, Brooklyn Rules, Day Night Day Night, Once, Paris, and Even Money.

Bruce Dern has worked with practically every notable actor and director over the last fifty years, and he's not afraid to say what he thinks about all of them. His long list of credits includes roles in They Shoot Horses, Don't They?, Coming Home, and That Championship Season. Currently he stars on the HBO series Big Love. Larry talks with the Academy Award and Golden Globe nominated actor about his new autobiography, Things I've Said But Probably Shouldn't Have: An Unrepentant Memoir (Wiley).

Former White House Aide and Film Industry Lobbyist Jack Valenti died Thursday. Valenti was best known as a long-time president of the Motion Picture Association of America and as the creator of the MPAA film rating system. Larry discusses Valenti's life and legacy with guest Tim Gray of Variety, and opens the phones to listeners who knew him.

Since the success of Mel Gibson's "The Passion of the Chirst," which made 370 million dollars domestically, Hollywood production companies have positioned their resources to tap an audience open to "faith-based" (mostly Christian) films. Larry Mantle talks with Daily Variety features editor Peter DeBruge, Impact Productions President Tom Newman and Samuel Goldwyn Films President Meyer Gottlieb about the new trend.

Larry talks with writer/director Todd Robinson about his new film, Lonely Hearts, which stars John Travolta as Detective Elmer C. Robinson, who investigated the murder spree of the "Lonely Hearts Killers." Salma Hayek, Jared Leto, and James Gandolfini also star in the film. Larry talks with Robinson about his film and his career in Hollywood.

Commute got you down? You are not alone. About one in six American workers commutes more than forty-five minutes each way. And 3.5 million people travel an hour and a half each way. New Yorker writer Nick Paumgarten explores the soul of the commuter and studies the social and material trade-offs in the lives of American workers in transit. * Nick Paumgarten, staff writer, New Yorker

Larry and critics Henry Sheehan of HenrySheehan.com and Peter Rainer of the Christian Science Monitor discuss this week's new releases, including Grindhouse, The Reaping, The Hoax, Killer of Sheep, and Black Book.

Yesterday's Supreme Court ruling on global warming could help California triumph over the Alliance of Automobile Manufactures. The case has rested in a federal court in Fresno. But court wins are one thing, and actual implementation is another thing. Guest host Jon Beaupre talks about the potential hurdles to the emissions ruling. * Janet Wilson: Staff Reporter, Los Angeles Times