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Critic David Edelstein reviews The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie, now in theaters. He calls the TV cartoon that spawned the animated film "a joyful spasm of whacked-out surrealism," but says the film has a much more straightforward plot and some pedestrian characters.

Percussionist T.S. Monk talks about his new CD, Higher Ground, and a new two-disc CD/DVD package of some of his father's previously unreleased live recordings.

The creators of South Park have something new to insult the sensibilities of just about everyone — an R-rated satire of big-budget action movies, the politics of Hollywood, Michael Moore, jingoistic patriotism and racial profiling gone awry. NPR's Bob Mondello says Team America: World Police, populated entirely by puppets, gives creators Matt Stone and Trey Parker a chance to blow up some of the most elaborate miniature sets ever built.

Day to Day television critic Andrew Wallenstein reviews Cold Turkey, a new reality show on Pax TV that puts 10 chain smokers under one roof, and presses them to quit smoking. A.J. Benza hosts.

The new multi-million-dollar headquarters of jazz at New York City's Lincoln Center opens Monday night. Artistic director Wynton Marsalis calls it the "house of swing." But some question whether vast concert halls will encourage the same creativity that once sprung from smoky jazz joints. Howard Mandel reports.

NPR's Linda Wertheimer talks to Lara Weaver in Bloomington, Ind., about the city's new public art project. To encourage people to vote, Weaver enlisted artists to decorate 20 plywood voting booths that will line the streets of downtown Bloomington through Nov. 2.

Slate contributor Ben Williams delivers a weekly roundup of what film critics are saying about this weekend's new film premieres. This week: Shall We Dance?, Team America: World Police and the independent release PS.

The notion that beauty could inspire civic virtue informed the construction of the New York subway a century ago. Now a city program spreads beautiful mosaics, sculptures and other hidden treasures underground. NPR's Margot Adler reports.

Day to Day TV critic Andrew Wallenstein discusses the dual endings for a recent episode of the police drama Law & Order: Criminal Intent. He advises programs not to leave plot lines in the hands of the audience -- though this clever approach does boost ratings.

The new book In Focus: National Geographic Greatest Portraits pulls hundreds of photos from the magazine's vast archives. Hear NPR's Alex Chadwick, the book's editor, Leah Bendavid-Val, and Ashley Riggs, whose portrait appears on the cover.