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The Battle of Algiers, a 1965 film depicting Algerian uprisings against French troops occupying their country, is being re-released in theaters Friday. Many filmgoers say the movie is as relevant today as it was a half-century ago. Los Angeles Times and Morning Edition film critic Kenneth Turan offers a review.

Dutch writer Harry Mulisch has often been cited as a candidate for the Nobel Prize in Literature, but his work is not well known in the United States. In his latest novel, Siegfried, Mulisch envisions a world in which Hitler has a son who is part Jewish. Frank Browning profiles the author.

Nathan Lane and Matthew Broderick's return to Broadway has resuscitated the hit musical The Producers. Audiences have eagerly welcomed the actors back to the roles they played in 2001. The pair's return comes as they prepare for a re-make of the 1968 movie. NPR's Melissa Block talks with Ben Brantley, theater critic for The New York Times.

Irish writer Eoin Colfer has found great success enchanting readers with the fanciful adventures of Artemis Fowl. His new book The Wish List is about saving souls, cell-phone conversations between St. Peter and Beelzebub, and the online presence of both Heaven and Hell. Frank Browning profiles the writer.

Dream Jungle is the third novel by Jessica Hagedorn, who was born and raised in the Philippines. Hagedorn places the story in her home country in the 1970s, and weaves together several narratives involving a number of characters, including a young country girl, an urban businessman and an American journalist. Alan Cheuse reviews the book.

Checkers and alphabet blocks beat out Candy Land, Clue and Big Wheel to win two coveted spots this year in the National Toy Hall of Fame. There are now 28 toys in the Hall of Fame, including Mr. Potato Head, Barbie, Etch-A-Sketch, Legos and the teddy bear. Brenda Tremblay from member station WXXI reports.

Los Angeles Times and Morning Edition movie critic Kenneth Turan reviews Elf. Turan thinks that this elf is no turkey. And even though it's weeks before Thanksgiving, Turan says this movie has enough Christmas cheer to spare.

James Carter, the lead singer of "Po' Lazarus," the opening song on the Grammy award-winning soundtrack to O Brother, Where Art Thou?, died Nov. 26. He was 77. Folk music collector Alan Lomax recorded Carter singing "Po' Lazarus" in 1959, while the latter worked on a chain gang at the Mississippi State Penitentiary in Parchman. NPR's Bob Edward has a remembrance.

The Barbarian Invasions, winner of the "Best Screenplay" and "Best Actress" awards at this year's Cannes International Film Festival, opens in U.S. theaters. Los Angeles Times and Morning Edition movie critic Kenneth Turan offers a review.

Back in 1971, college student Ted Chapin got extra credit for working on the Broadway-bound Stephen Sondheim musical, Follies. Thirty years later, Chapin has written about that experience in the book, Everything Was Possible: The Birth of the Musical 'Follies', which details the ups and downs of what became a controversial production. Hear NPR's Liane Hansen and Ted Chapin.