Top Picks: 'The King and I' in theaters, the album 'case/lang/veirs,' and more

The film 'Hitchcock/Truffaut' depicts the meeting of two movie legends, the film 'The Family Fang' successfully manages the transition from tragic to uplifting, and more top picks.

Two movie legends

In 1962, two movie legends met for a discussion about cinema; the resulting book, “Hitchcock/Truffaut,” became a classic. The new documentary Hitchcock/Truffaut features greats including Martin Scorsese and Wes Anderson discussing Hitchcock’s work and how the book became important for Hollywood. The film is now available through HBO on platforms such as HBO Now. Viewers should be aware of adult content.

Wide-ranging history

What do photography and the Greek muses have in common? They’re two of the topics that those behind the wide-ranging In Our Time BBC podcast selected for discussion on the history show. Melvyn Bragg and his guests explore how various developments and historical figures affected society. Find it at http://bit.ly/inourtimeshow.

Musical classic

The 1956 movie musical The King and I, starring Yul Brynner and Deborah Kerr, has become a classic, and now you can see the sumptuous costumes and stagings of the famous musical numbers on the big screen with Fathom Events’ screening of the film on Aug. 28. Check out http://www.fathomevents.com to see if the movie will be at a theater nearby. 

Uplifting film

Kevin Wilson’s novel The Family Fang is brought to the screen with a new film, which is now available on DVD and Blu-ray. Jason Bateman stars and directs the movie, and the actor is extraordinarily good as the son of parents who forced him and his sister (Nicole Kidman) to participate in performance art. Christopher Walken as the father of the family is at his best. The movie successfully manages the difficult transition from loopy to tragic to uplifting.

Powerful trio

case/lang/veirs is not a law firm, but a female supergroup of sublime voices. Virginia native Neko Case, Canadian k.d. lang, and Portland, Ore., resident Laura Veirs blend their significant songwriting, singing, and arranging skills on this eponymous first album; the result is an exultant celebration of solo and ensemble singing. The fairly lush arrangements at times veer into the saccharine, but the co-written songs are lyrically rich and varied, priming the appetite for the (hopefully) next collection from these gifted women.