Costume designer Ann Roth was already a legend even before she took home her second Oscar earlier this year. But scoring the prize for “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom” puts her in rarefied company. Roth is one of only 25 costume designers, in the history of the movies, who have netted two Academy Awards.
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U2’s “With Or Without You” in The Americans
U2’s “With Or Without You” is an unexpected song choice for a Cold War espionage drama, but it’s an oddly perfect fit for
The Americans’ intense series finale. The crushing impact of the music and lyrics is most felt when it drops during the poignant moment when Philip and Elizabeth see their daughter, Paige, at the train station, and they realize she’s chosen to stay in America instead of escape with them to Russia. Bono belting the song’s falsetto has never felt more like a personal attack than when combined with Keri Russell’s heartbreaking expressions. [Saloni Gajjar]