THURSDAY

JULY 26

2012

BIANCULLI’S BEST BETS

IFC, 8:00 p.m. ET

It’s a bold claim, but it’s true: This low-budget 2003 film is the scariest, most engrossing aquatic thriller since Jaws. Blanchard Ryan and Daniel Travis play a couple who go out on a scuba boat while on vacation in a foreign land – and the boat accidentally leaves them behind, stranded in the open ocean in waters occupied by, among other creatures, sharks. The sound and images in the movie are hauntingly naturalistic, putting you right there in the water – even when you don’t want to be.

MARTY

TCM, 9:00 p.m. ET

Tonight is TCM’s memorial tribute to the late Ernest Borgnine, an evening that begins at 8 p.m. ET with a biographical Private Screenings special of the famed character actor. That’s followed by this 1955 production of Marty (pictured), the Paddy Chayefsky story about a lonely butcher – the movie version, not the original live TV drama, which starred Rod Steiger. That’s followed at 10:45 p.m. ET by 1953’s From Here to Eternity – and set your recorders for 1 a.m. ET, when Borgnine holds his own as one of the many tough guys in Sam Peckinpah’s violent 1969 Western, The Wild Bunch.

BURN NOTICE

USA, 9:00 p.m. ET

Michael (Jeffrey Donovan) accomplished his mission last week, which gave Fiona (Gabrielle Anwar) a promotion of sorts to an official agency asset. However, she remains behind bars, at least for now, as Michael chases down his latest info in hopes of finding, and punishing, the man who framed Fiona, and betrayed them both.

ROCK CENTER WITH BRIAN WILLIAMS

NBC, 10:00 p.m. ET

It was inevitable, and here it comes: The night before NBC presents the opening ceremonies of the 2012 Summer Olympic Games from London, NBC devotes its entire hour of Rock Center to Olympics build-up hype, with Williams reporting live from England. Where it’s the middle of the night, but hey – this is going to be an Olympics that’s tape-delayed in prime time, but available live elsewhere, including your home computers.

LOUIE

FX, 10:30 p.m. ET

Part 2 of 2. Parker Posey continues her guest role as the new woman in Louie’s life – the woman who tests his patience, and his eagerness, by running him through a gauntlet of emotional, physical and embarrassing tests. What a role for Posey – and what fantastically well-acted reactions from Louis C.K.

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4483 Comments

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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

IFC, 8:00 p.m. ET

TCM, 9:00 p.m. ET

USA, 9:00 p.m. ET

NBC, 10:00 p.m. ET

FX, 10:30 p.m. ET

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