Preston Sturges’ 1941 movie about a filmmaker suffering an existential crisis – do his films really matter, especially the lighter ones? – has directly inspired several other brilliant films, including Woody Allen’s Stardust Memories and the Coen Brothers’ O Brother, Where Art Thou? (whose title comes from the working title of the movie being written by Joel McCrae’s filmmaker in Sullivan’s Travels). But on its own, it&rsquo

2019

Aug

SHERMAN'S SHOWCASE By David Bianculli

Tonight’s episode is devoted to “The Ladies of Showcase” – which should be a bit like devoting an episode of a documentary series on Hullaballoo to the cage dancers. Or an episode of a documentary series on In Living Color to The Fly Girls. Or a bit of both…

2019

Aug

‘MINDHUNTER’ ALL THAT AND MORE IN INTENSE, TIGHTLY WOUND SECOND SEASON By Alex Strachan

This is a review that asks — and hopefully answers — the big-picture questions, such as whether Mindhunter’s second act lives up to the promise of the first, for those who appreciated it, and whether it will change the minds of those who sampled the first season and found it wanting...

2019

Aug

THE MANCHURIAN CANDIDATE By David Bianculli

There’s not much on TV tonight – but if your program lineup includes MGM, you’ve got an uncut look at one of the most disturbing films of the 1960s: The Manchurian Candidate, the 1962 psychological thriller that is much more psychological than most. Laurence Harvey, Frank Sinatra, Janet Leigh and James Gregory star – and Angela Lansbury, in a role that sneaks up on you, is unforgettable.

2019

Aug

THE TERROR: INFAMY By David Bianculli

The supernatural elements of this new season of The Terror were the least effective part of last week’s premiere. The setting and characters, though, is captivating – and captive, in this case, has more than one meaning. Infamy follows a Japanese-American family, at the very start of the U.S. entry into WWII, as they’re rounded up in an internment camp for Japanese Americans.

2019

Aug

OUR BOYS By David Bianculli

Last week, HBO presented the first two episodes of Our Boys, serving up one revelation after another. One was the presentation of a fact-based murder mystery, based on a West Bank kidnapping of three teen Israelis in 2014, from two very different perspectives: Israeli and Palestinian. Another was probing that crime, and others to follow, only from the perspective of investigators, neighbors, friends and family, never showing the perpetrators themselves. And finall

2019

Aug

CARPOOL KARAOKE: WHEN CORDEN MET MCCARTNEY By David Bianculli

My favorite TV moment of last year – James Corden taking Paul McCartney on an expanded tour of McCartney’s home town of Liverpool – was expanded even more in this retrospective prime-time special, repeated tonight by CBS. Watch it. Record it. Keep it. Every time you visit it, it’ll make you smile, and maybe even shed a tear.

2019

Aug

SUMMER UNDER THE STARS: AUDREY HEPBURN By David Bianculli

All day and night, Audrey Hepburn is today’s saluted star, and the rich TCM lineup includes 1964’s My Fair Lady at 5 p.m. ET, 1954’s Sabrina at 8 p.m. ET, and one of my favorite films, 1963’s Charade, co-starring Cary Grant, at midnight ET.

2019

Aug

DOWNTON ABBEY LIVE! By David Bianculli

SPECIAL: Broadcast live from New York City, this celebratory special features mostly the second-tier cast of the popular TV show and upcoming movie: the biggest scheduled in-person stars include Laura Carmichael (Lady Edith) and Lesley Nicol (Mrs. Patmore). ABC’s Deborah Roberts hosts, and the special features clips not only from the beloved PBS series, but from the upcoming film. Check local listings.

2019

Aug

THE MOVIES: "THE GOLDEN AGE" By David Bianculli

This installment of The Movies crams three decades of film history into one two-hour program, covering the 1930s through the 1950s. This is more of a reflection of expectations of the audience’s attention span and interest for older films than of their perceived importance and value. You could do a solid two-hour program on the films from 1939 alone, starting with Gone with the Wind, Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, Stagecoach, and The Wizard of Oz. (My son argue

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