MONDAY
MAY 26
2014

BIANCULLI’S BEST BETS

 

TCM, 8:00 p.m. ET

TCM’s Memorial Day marathon of war movies continues, and its final prime-time presentations are hallmarks of the genre. First up, at 8 p.m. ET, is 1949’s Twelve O’Clock High, about the Army Air Corps in England during World War II. Released only four years after the war was over, it’s both respectful and raw – showing both the heroism of the men stationed there, and their many missions, but also the raw effects of what, in time, would come to be called Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. Gregory Peck stars. Then, at 10:30 p.m. ET, comes 1946’s The Best Years of Our Lives, which may as well serve as a documentary of postwar adjustment by returning veterans. It was filmed the year after the war ended, and one of its stars is a played by a real double amputee, whose storyline is about returning to America after barely surviving a serious wartime injury.
 
  
 
 

Fox, 9:00 p.m. ET

Tonight, on the fifth hour of this season’s latest (and limited) day, former lovers Audrey (Kim Raver) and Jack (Kiefer Sutherland) reunite, face to face, for the first time in years. Ka-chung! Ka-chung!
 
  
 
 

History, 9:00 p.m. ET

MINISERIES PREMIERE: Part 1 of 3. This History Channel's dramatic miniseries links the two world wars by following young men who were involved in and affected by the first World War, and went on to be prominent players in WWII – including, pictured, a young George Patton, shown here during WWI as played by Matt Dearman.

 
  
 
 

Lifetime, 9:00 p.m. ET

This is a telemovie sequel to January’s Flowers in the Attic, starring the same actors as the twisted adults (Heather Graham, Ellen Burstyn), but featuring new co-stars as the incestuous children, who, in this sequel, are 10 years older and no longer children at all. Playing the part of Cathy, the imprisoned girl played by Kiernan Shipka of AMC’s Mad Men, is Rose McIver (pictured), who may be familiar from her recurring roles as Tinker Bell on ABC’s Once Upon a Time and Vivian Scully on Showtime’s Masters of Sex.

 
  
 
 

FX, 10:00 p.m. ET

The involved storyline involving Louie (Louis C.K.), his daughters, his ex-wife and his neighbors, which so far has consumed three straight episodes of Louie, continues for two more, as the series presents parts four and five of “The Elevator.” Tonight, Louie and ex-wife Janet (Susan Kelechi Watson) go to joint therapy.

 
  
 
 
 
 
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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.