THE GIRL
HBO, 9:00 p.m. ET
There’s an odd imbalance to this new HBO telemovie, which tells of the brief and by all accounts troubled film career of actress Tippi Hedren, who was “discovered” by Alfred Hitchcock and starred in his The Birds and Marnie. It’s told entirely from Hedren’s Birds-eye view, which means we must accept at face value her account of the director’s behind-the-scenes misogyny, sexual harassment and intentionally shocking off-color limericks. In this docudrama, Sienna Miller captures Hedren’s icy look, but even with all the script’s sympathy thrown her way, embodies less of an intriguing character than Tony Jones’ Hitchcock. And by choosing to all but avoid Sean Connery (the co-star of Marnie) and most of the visual set pieces of The Birds, The Girl does itself no favors. It’s a curiosity worth watching – but unlike many films by the real Hitchcock, it’s no classic.