THURSDAY

AUGUST 15

2013

BIANCULLI’S BEST BETS

AMC, 7:00 p.m. ET

What a movie – and what a cast. Quentin Tarantino’s 1994 epic is a seminal addition to AMC’s Mob Week, and John Travolta and Samuel L. Jackson, as two hit men having a very eventful day, are the standout stars of this sprawling story line. But there are so many other great performances, and set pieces, from the likes of Uma Thurman, Brice Willis, Ving Rhames, Harvey Keitel, Amanda Plummer and Tim Roth. Like Finnegan’s Wake, it starts somewhere in the middle of its story. Unlike Finnegan’s Wake, I’ve gotten all the way through it. Several times.

JERRY MAGUIRE

CMT, 8:00 p.m. ET

Cameron Crowe wrote and directed this 1996 romantic comedy, starring Tom Cruise as a hot-shot sports agent who finds himself out on his own, and desperate for both clients and affection. He finds the former thanks to Cuba Gooding Jr., and the latter thanks to Renee Zellweger. Oh, and Bonnie Hunt, as her sister, is wonderful, too.

THE MAN IN THE GRAY FLANNEL SUIT

TCM, 9:45 p.m. ET

Nunnally Johnson both directed and wrote the screenplay adaptation for this 1956 movie, which can almost be considered a Mad Man prequel. It’s about a WWII veteran who gets a demanding job doing public relations for a TV network – then has second thoughts about whether all that work, and all that commuting and corporate intrigue and such, is worth it. Gregory Peck stars, along with Jennifer Jones and Fredric March.

HOLLYWOOD GAME NIGHT

NBC, 10:00 p.m. ET

The games aren’t tough here, but I keep watching this show, because its participants, sooner or later, drop their guard and show something about what they’re really like – and, especially, what they do and don’t know about pop culture and their fellow celebrities. This week’s players include Felicity Huffman from Desperate Housewives, Dominic Monaghan from Lost, and Kristin Chenoweth, Aubrey Plaza, Wilber Valderrama and Molly Shannon.

ANNIE HALL

HBO Family, 10:30 p.m. ET

One of the best comedies ever made. Woody Allen directed and co-wrote (with Marshall Brickman) this 1977 comic masterpiece, which manages to be a love letter to both Diane Keaton and New York. There are so many things to enjoy in this movie, there’s no point trying to list them all. But each time around, I savor something else. This time, I’ll look, in particular, for Christopher Walken driving the car, Diane Keaton singing "Seems Like Old Times" as a torch song, and, of course, Marshall McLuhan making one of the funniest cameos ever put on film.

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David Bianculli

Founder / Editor

David Bianculli has been a TV critic since 1975, including a 14-year stint at the New York Daily News, and sees no reason to stop now. Currently, he's TV critic for NPR's Fresh Air with Terry Gross, and is an occasional substitute host for that show. He's also an author and teaches TV and film history at New Jersey's Rowan University. His 2009 Dangerously Funny: The Uncensored Story of 'The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour', has been purchased for film rights. His latest, The Platinum Age of Television: From I Love Lucy to the Walking Dead, How TV Became Terrific, is an effusive guidebook that plots the path from the 1950s’ Golden Age to today’s era of quality TV.

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BIANCULLI’S BEST BETS

AMC, 7:00 p.m. ET

CMT, 8:00 p.m. ET

TCM, 9:45 p.m. ET

NBC, 10:00 p.m. ET

HBO Family, 10:30 p.m. ET

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