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

 
 
2017
Dec
10
 
 
I recommended this 1989 Australian movie recently – and, as I often do with my Best Bet recommendations, find myself ensnared all over again by own traps. (Just last Monday, after pointing out the special showing of All the President’s Men on HBO, I watched it again from start to finish – for about the 50th time.) But Dead Calm, whether you’ve seen it or not, is worth a visit, too. It’s beautifully photographed, intensely edited, and the two male leads, Sam Neill an
 
 
 
  
 
 
2017
Dec
10
 
 
TCM is noting, and celebrating, the 40th anniversary of Steven Spielberg’s groundbreaking sci-fi film, 1977’s Close Encounters of the Third Kind. Just think of how much artistry and enthusiasm, and a sense of wonder and drama, Spielberg brought to this film, just as he had with Jaws two years earlier. Then think about how both Close Encounters and Jaws would be very different – and, most likely, very inferior – if not for the crucial musical contributions by composer John
 
 
 
  
 
 
2017
Dec
10
 
 
The midseason finale is presented tonight, bringing to a head – finally – the various battles and wars that, in a wider view, add up to this two-year Rick vs. Negan cage match.
 
 
 
  
 
 
2017
Dec
10
 
 
SPECIAL: I love this idea, and expect it to carry on to a series. Kristen Bell, one of the vocal stars of Frozen, hosts, and the idea of this program is to reunite members of a high school musical theater group, from 20 years or so earlier, and give them one week (with some professional help) to mount, once again, one of the musicals they performed in their salad days. For this special, it’s Into the Woods. And if a future show would open up the concept to a high school troupe that was clo
 
 
 
  
 
 
2017
Dec
10
 
 
Late Night with Seth Meyers writer Amber Ruffin shows Seth how a real man apologizes, in the style of recent sexual harassers, after committing her own style of blatant assault – a left-cross to the jaw...
 
 
 
  
 
 
2017
Dec
9
 
 
An early holiday treat: This 1964 movie musical gave Julie Andrews one of her most iconic and beloved roles, as the magical nanny who speaks softly and carries a heavy bumbershoot. Dick Van Dyke co-stars. And after you watch this and put the kids to bed, find the 2013 movie Saving Mr. Banks, starring Emma Thompson and Tom Hanks in a film about the making of Mary Poppins, and enjoy a perfect double feature.
 
 
 
  
 
 
2017
Dec
9
 
 
Ever since NBC and parent corporation Universal locked up exclusive rights to this 1946 Frank Capra Christmas film, its appearance on TV during the holidays has shrunken from just about everywhere (because the movie had previously lapsed into public domain, and been free for stations to televise) to only a few times each year. NBC is one such place and time. Tonight, on cable sister network USA, is another. And every time Universal gets its profits, somewhere a bell rings…
 
 
 
  
 
 
2017
Dec
9
 
 
Tonight’s guests: Sir Elton John, Stephen Fry, Robbie Williams (my all-time favorite Graham Norton guest), and Pink.
 
 
 
  
 
 
2017
Dec
9
 
 
Tonight’s musical guest is SZA, and the guest host is James Franco.
 
 
 
  
 
 
2017
Dec
8
 
 
SEASON PREMIERE: Season 2 of The Crown appears today on Netflix, and begins with an episode focusing on tensions both personal and international. On the personal front, there’s the marriage of Queen Elizabeth (Claire Foy) and Prince Philip (Matt Smith), which, as we meet them for this new season, is severely tested by his behavior at home and on tour. And on the international front, there’s the crisis at the Suez Canal, with the Egyptian uprising challenging British rule. And that&rs