DAVID BIANCULLI

Founder / Editor

ERIC GOULD

Associate Editor

LINDA DONOVAN

Assistant Editor

Contributors

ALEX STRACHAN

MIKE HUGHES

KIM AKASS

MONIQUE NAZARETH

ROGER CATLIN

GARY EDGERTON

TOM BRINKMOELLER

GERALD JORDAN

NOEL HOLSTON

 
 
2016
Nov
14
 
 
Frank Sinatra records would rarely be confused with Public Enemy records. But the thing to understand about record production, says Hank Shocklee, is that the principle is the same...
 
 
 
  
 
 
2016
Nov
14
 
 
MINISERIES PREMIERE: Close to the Enemy is a period miniseries, set in post-WWII England, that pulls you immediately into its intrigue, with a raft of mysterious characters played by very talented actors. Jim Sturgess stars as a British agent charged with persuading a German inventor with a young daughter to switch allegiance to the U.K., within a strict seven-day timetable. Other characters include several familiar from U.S. TV and Hollywood movies, including Angela Bassett, Alfred Molina and B
 
 
 
  
 
 
2016
Nov
14
 
 
Last week, in the first live edition of the current Voice cycle, the Top 20 was cut, quickly and sometimes ruthlessly, to a more manageable Top 12. Among the survivors was the performer of the night: former child singer Billy Gilman, whose rendition of “Crying,” made famous by Roy Orbison, was, unthinkably, as chillingly emotional as the original. Tonight, Gilman and 11 others perform – and learn of their fates, after the national vote, tomorrow night.
 
 
 
  
 
 
2016
Nov
14
 
 
This 1969 documentary is one of the movies to which Alvy Singer dragged Annie Hall in 1977’s Woody Allen comic masterpiece, Annie Hall (seen here). Tonight, without being dragged, you can watch this Marcel Ophuls film by tuning to TCM. In it, Ophuls mixes then-new interviews with survivors of the Nazi occupation of France with news and propaganda footage from the years leading up to, and during, WWII.
 
 
 
  
 
 
2016
Nov
14
 
 
MINISERIES PREMIERE: This six-part documentary series about the feasibility of a manned space expedition to Mars, with scripted fictional elements imagining a possible future on another planet, comes from Ron Howard, whose Apollo 13 movie was one of the best space films ever made. He’s reason enough to go on this particular journey – but the planet Mars, which has inspired some of the best science fiction ever written, is even more compelling. For a full review, see David Hinckley&rs
 
 
 
  
 
 
2016
Nov
14
 
 
SERIES PREMIERE: This limited documentary series looks at the history of recorded music – and begins with an installment showcasing the two most influential producers in rock music history. One is Sam Phillips, whose Sun Records in Memphis launched the careers of Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash, Roy Orbison, Jerry Lee Lewis and others. The other is George Martin, who in England produced almost all the singles and albums by the Beatles. For a full review, see David Hinckley’s All Along the
 
 
 
  
 
 
2016
Nov
14
 
 
Not sick of politics and political intrigue yet? If so, you’re in the silent minority – but that means you might derive special enjoyment from tonight’s new episode of Timeless, which takes its time-traveling team back to the White House, circa the early 1970s. And Watergate. If you record this episode, don't be surprised if it ends up with an 18-and-a-half-minute gap.
 
 
 
  
 
 
2016
Nov
14
 
 
On last week’s acerbic but hilarious post-election installment of Full Frontal, Samantha Bee likened the election of Donald Trump to the installation of a backyard above-ground pool: “Our neighbors will never look at us the same way again.” That episode was presented the day after Trump became President-Elect Trump. For tonight’s episode, she and her writing staff have had a few more days to process… and I’m very interested to see how they’re reacting n
 
 
 
  
 
 
2016
Nov
13
 
 
Acorn TV, best known as an importer of overseas programming, has banged out a solid hit with a new original production, the period spy drama Close to the Enemy...
 
 
 
  
 
 
2016
Nov
13
 
 
Soon approaching its golden anniversary (it premiered in 1968), 60 Minutes continues not only to survive, but to thrive. Tonight, Lesley Stahl presents the first post-election extended interview with President-Elect Donald Trump. First time I’ve typed that particular appellation, paired with that particular name.