In this week's Movie Date podcast, Rafer and Kristen round up some the best documentaries of the year. From the front lines of late-term abortion clinics to the unsung backup singers, the genre thrived in 2013. "20 Feet from Stardom," "We Steal Secrets," "After Tiller," "The Act of Killing," and "Room 237" all make the Movie Date's list.

In this week's Movie Date podcast, Rafer and Kristen review seven of the big movies being released on Christmas Day 2013. The films touch on everyone's favorite holiday topics, including family fights, financial corruption, elder abuse, war, extramarital affairs, lay-offs, and samurais. So pour yourself a cup of eggnog, and hear what Rafer and Kristen have to say about: "Lone Survivor," "August: Osage County," "Invisible Woman," "47 Ronin," "Wolf of Wall Street," "Grudge Match," and "The Secret Life of Walter Mitty."

Tomorrow is Christmas, the last and biggest movie release date of the year. Movie Date co-hosts Rafer Guzman and Kristen Meinzer give their thoughts on some of the big ones: "The Secret Life of Walter Mitty," "Grudge Match," "47 Ronin," and "Wolf of Wall Street."

What's it like to write a hit holiday song? Randy Brooks has some idea. Nearly 35 years ago, he wrote “Grandma Got Run Over By A Reindeer,” a holiday song which has sold an estimated 40 million copies worldwide, even outselling classics like “White Christmas” in some years. The song is Randy’s one and only real hit, and depending on who you ask, it’s either brilliant or awful. He joins The Takeaway to discuss how the song became such a hit and how he feels each year when he hears it on the airwaves.

This week's Movie Date podcast has Rafer wishing he knew how to do the hustle and Kristen questioning whether computers will eventually try to have sex with us all. On the chopping block: the star-packed heist film by David O. Russell, "American Hustle"; the long-awaited next chapter in the Ron Burgundy saga, "Anchorman 2"; and the Spike Jonze artificial intelligence romance, "Her." To help separate fact and fiction in her "Her," Kristen and Rafer are joined by a very special guest. Gary Marcus is an artificial intelligence expert and NYU professor, and, as he sees it, we could be only a few years away from living the plot of "Her."

In this week's Movie Date podcast, Rafer and Kristen look back on their own magical childhood memories as they review the making-of-"Mary Poppins" movie, "Saving Mister Banks" and the second installment in "The Hobbit" trilogy, "The Desolation of Smaug." They also consider whether the Golden Globe Award nominations make any sense whatsoever, and help a listener who needs advice on how to make holiday travel a little less torturous.

We’re well into December, which means that the Oscar contenders are taking over the theaters. Our Movie Date team is here to talk about two of those contenders today: The second installment in “The Hobbit” series called “The Desolation of Smaug,” and “Saving Mister Banks,” starring Emma Thompson and Tom Hanks. In addition to hosting the movie date podcast, Rafer Guzman is film critic for Newsday and Kristen Meinzer is culture producer for The Takeaway.

All this week, we’re looking at the ways that technology is changing our holidays and our traditions. As we look at the digital migration of the holidays, we wanted to see how the retro department store window displays are responding to technology. Jeremy Bergstein is managing partner and head of strategy for the Science Project, which designed this year's Christmas windows for Saks Fifth Avenue. He joins The Takeaway to discuss the ways new technologies are being incorporated into the age-old tradition of holiday window displays.

The South Dallas Concert Choir has produced a remarkable project to honor the life of President John F. Kennedy, and some history that was never made. The project is called "Unspoken Speech" and it's based on the last speech that Kennedy had prepared—and was on his way to deliver—before he was assassinated. Jowanda Jordan, the director of the choir, joins us today to discuss this music project and a piece of history that never got to happen.

Nearly 44 years after Eric Idle, Terry Jones, John Cleese, Terry Gilliam and Michael Palin first starred on “Monty Python’s Flying Circus”—along with the late Graham Chapman—the comedians have announced that they’re reuniting in a stage show. Is this a good idea? Helping us to ponder this is Andy Zaltzman, the British comedian and author who co-hosts The Bugle podcast along with comedian John Oliver.

In the 50 years since the assassination of President John F. Kennedy, people have found themselves horrified, fascinated and mystified by the story. Some have explored those feelings through writing, others though film and music. In recognition of the 50th anniversary of the assassination, KERA News is presenting an ongoing series on how artists have responded to JFK’s death. Jerome Weeks, Art & Seek Producer and Reporter at KERA in Dallas, joins The Takeaway to explain how the Kennedy assassination lives on in pop culture.

A close friend of Henri Matisse and Pablo Picasso, art dealer Paul Rosenberg once dominated Paris's art scene. Nazi forces confiscated much of Rosenberg's collection, at least 400 artworks worth millions of dollars. Marianne Rosenberg, Paul's granddaughter and Alexandre's son, continues her family's quest to recover their stolen art. This week, Marianne confirmed that one of her family's Matisse paintings was in the trove of Nazi-confiscated art recently discovered in Munich. 

Acclaimed musician Vijay Iyer was recently named a MacArthur Fellow, in part, for his contributions to changing conceptions of modern-day jazz. Now, he's expanded his artistry through a new collaborative project with veterans returning home from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. In the new album, "Holding It Down: The ...

This week’s movie releases include "Our Nixon," which examines the Nixon presidency, and “Closed Circuit,” the British crime thriller, in addition to “One Direction: This Is Us,” a documentary on the boy band One Direction. As usual, the Movie Date team, Rafer Guzman and Kristen Meinzer, weigh in with their thoughts.

This week’s big movie releases include the star-packed “Butler,” the biopic/Apple promo “Jobs,” the geeks-spying-on-geeks tech suspense thriller “Paranoia,” and the comic book sequel that swears like a sailor “Kickass 2.” As usual, the Movie Date team, Rafer Guzman and Kristen Meinzer weigh in with their thoughts.

Greg Louganis is a gay athlete who won a total of four gold medals in 1984 and 1988 Summer Olympic Games for diving. He also has personal experience with Olympic boycotts. Back in 1980, he was favored to win two gold medals in the Moscow games, but was unable to compete due to the boycott. Louganis joins The Takeaway to discuss Russia's stance against LGBTQ people and whether or not that could hurt the games in 2014.