FRIDAY
SEPTEMBER 27
2013

BIANCULLI’S BEST BETS

 

Fox, 8:00 p.m. ET

SERIES PREMIERE: On the surface, it sounds like a recipe mixing oil and water: the short-tempered, sharp-tongued Gordon Ramsay mentoring and judging a bunch of kids, ages 8 to 13, and putting them through their paces in the kitchen. But remember, a lot of Ramsay’s act is just that – and he’s also a father, and once hosted a holiday show in which he demonstrated how much he delighted in sharing counter space with young ones. So give this a chance… for the joy of it. And for the joy of cooking.

 
  
 
 

PBS, Check local listings

The latest TV version of William Shakespeare’s four-play history cycle, begun last week with Richard II, continues tonight Henry IV, Part 1, with Tom Hiddleston as Prince Hal, Jeremy Irons as King Henry, and Julie Walters in a showy role as the proprietress of Mistress Quickly’s tavern.” Check local listings.

 
  
 
 

Showtime, 9:00 p.m. ET

Marina Zenovich explored the subject of this particular controversial filmmaker five years ago, in a documentary called Roman Polanski: Wanted and Desired. Now comes a 2012 sequel, starting with his arrest the year after that previous documentary was made.

 
  
 
 

HBO, 10:00 p.m. ET

One of my favorite outspoken Hollywood celebrities, Tim Robbins, is the top-of-show interview guest tonight, so get ready for anything. When he spoke at the National Association of Broadcasters meeting in 2008, during a presentation I moderated, he made major news for his outspoken views.  And on the panel tonight is economic Robert Reich, who isn’t shy about speaking his mind, either.

 
  
 
 

TCM, 1:30 a.m. ET

TCM’s futuristic Fridays conclude tonight, with one last rundown of sci-fi movies, most showing dystopian futures. Here’s a particular favorite: a 1974 comedy-drama about a futuristic loner who roams dangerous territory with his telepathic, much smarter dog. The story comes from Harlan Ellison, one of my all-time favorite speculative-fiction writers – and the movie stars Don Johnson, a decade before he’d become a star on Miami Vice.

 
  
 
 
 
 
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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.