Carson, Sofia (1993- )

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    With ‘The Life List,’ Sofia Carson Is a Go-To Netflix Star

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    Sofia Carson had just come back to earth.On a recent March morning, the actress-singer awoke at 3 to take a sunrise hot-air balloon ride over the rolling hills of Temecula, Calif. The adventure had been arranged by Netflix as a promotional stunt for the streamer’s new film, “The Life List,” in which Carson stars as a languishing teacher who must complete her childhood bucket list before she can receive the inheritance left to her by her mother (played by Connie Britton).Now back at her hotel, Carson delicately adjusted her black turtleneck as she settled in front of her laptop for our video interview.“It was really special,” she said of the skyward voyage. “I wasn’t scared at all.”In fact, Carson seems to belong in another realm entirely.“I’m 10 years into my career,” Carson said, “yet, it still feels, and I say this with my heart, that it’s just the beginning.”Kobe Wagstaff for The New York TimesUnlike many millennial stars, the 31-year-old doesn’t share much about her private life in interviews or get too candid with her nearly 20 million Instagram followers. Her red carpet looks are a parade of opulent gowns and elbow-length gloves. She cites Audrey Hepburn as her “end-all be-all inspiration.” Even her given name, Sofia Lauren — like the actress Sophia Loren — is partly a tribute to Old Hollywood royalty.It’s an elegant persona for an actress who not long ago was known primarily for her role as Evie, the blue-haired teenage daughter of the Evil Queen in Disney Channel’s “Descendants” TV movies. That wildly popular musical franchise spawned lunchboxes, dolls, throw pillows and endless merchandise featuring Carson’s likeness.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

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      ‘Carry On’ Review: Travel Nightmares Amplified

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      In this tense thriller, Taron Egerton plays a T.S.A. agent who goes up against an implacable terrorist (Jason Bateman). The man has a funny idea of what he wants to bring on a plane.If you’re a fan of white-knuckle-tension suspense thrillers, you know the debate as to whether or not the 1988 classic “Die Hard” is a Christmas movie. “Carry-On,” directed by the expert technician Jaume Collet-Serra, makes absolutely no bones about being a Christmas movie as it seeks to work your nerves in the “Die Hard” tradition.The setting here is a Los Angeles airport. The T.S.A. agent Ethan Kopek, played by Taron Egerton, finds himself the unwilling pawn of a determined terrorist hellbent on getting a nasty package on an eastbound jet. Kopek has a history of not putting himself out there — for years he’s tamped down his ambitions to become a real police officer — who is now blackmailed into stepping up in all the wrong ways. The alternative is a staggering body count.While the character details are conventional and treacly — what do you know, Kopek’s beautiful wife (Sofia Carson) also happens to be pregnant with the couple’s first child! — the suspense mechanisms of T.J. Fixman’s script, which support a fat-free running time of nearly two hours, are consistently tightly wound.As Kopek’s nameless tormentor, Jason Bateman is chilling. A lot of actors who’ve spent their careers playing relatively amiable characters, as Bateman has, can barely restrain themselves from winking at least a little when they take on a bad guy role. But the actor only ever knuckles down at being loathsome.While the picture doesn’t break any new genre ground, it has several jaw-dropping set pieces, including an incredibly physical fight inside a speeding car. Collet-Serra’s staging is excellent throughout. The simulated airport setting is filled with hustle and bustle that looks just as annoying as real air travel is, especially during the holidays. Except this particular airport is way more sparkling and clean than any in real life.Carry OnRated PG-13 for violence and language. Running time: 1 hour 59 minutes. Watch on Netflix. More

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      ‘Purple Hearts’ Review: A Marriage of Convenience

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      Netflix’s romantic drama, featuring the Disney-minted star Sofia Carson, follows a Marine and a musician who wed out of financial desperation.The romantic Netflix drama “Purple Hearts” tries to wring a heartfelt story from an arrangement that can’t help but feel absurd.Based on the novel by Tess Wakefield, the film depicts the fraudulent military marriage between Cassie (Sofia Carson), a singer-songwriter and Type 1 diabetic, and Luke (Nicholas Galitzine), a former addict who’s attempting to win back his father’s approval by joining the Marines. While they both initially seek the benefits of marriage out of financial desperation, the couple’s dynamic changes when Luke is injured in combat, forcing Cassie into the role of unwilling caretaker.“Purple Hearts” had the potential to be a poignant melodrama — or maybe a sharp satire — about the options available to those left behind by the U.S. health care system. Instead, the film wallows in contrived plots and subplots, made worse by the dearth of chemistry between the two leads. By the time Luke violently confronts his former dealer in a parking garage in what resembles a deleted “Euphoria” scene, you wonder how much of the movie was dictated by Netflix’s content algorithm.The film frames itself as a star turn for Carson, whose character’s ascendance from dive bar performances to opening for Florence + the Machine at the Hollywood Bowl resembles Carson’s own recent rise to fame through the Disney Channel ranks. But the music, just like the marriage, rings hollow.Purple HeartsNot rated. Running time: 2 hours 2 minutes. Watch on Netflix. More