MONDAY

JANUARY 28

2013

BIANCULLI’S BEST BETS

IFC, 8:00 p.m. ET

I admit it: This is one of my “spider-web movies.” And there are plenty of reasons to be ensnared, repeatedly, by this 1995 modern film noir – but the two biggest, for me, are Jennifer Tilly and Gina Gershon as scheming lovers, who hatch a plan to separate a low-level mob guy (Joe Pantoliano, who’s terrific, too) from his money, and more.

THE MARK OF ZORRO

TCM, 8:00 p.m. ET

Douglas Fairbanks starred in the original version of this movie, a swashbuckling silent film released in 1920. This movie, however, was made two decades later, with Tyrone Power playing the vigilante swordsman who leaves his mark with the tip of his sword, righting wrongs and defending the little guy in early California. Power to the people!

THE FOLLOWING

Fox, 9:00 p.m. ET

In tonight’s episode two, Debra Parker, played by Annie Parisse from Person of Interest, joins the FBI manhunt as the new person in charge. This is the episode where the Edgar Allen Poe masks come out, and where the violence gets even more unsettlingly portrayed. Kevin Bacon stars.

DALLAS

TNT, 9:00 p.m. ET

SEASON PREMIERE: The Season 2 opener, like a handful of other episodes about to be televised, features scenes with Larry Hagman, as J.R. Ewing, filmed before Hagman’s recent death. It’s Hagman’s last work, and that’s more than enough reason to tune in and appreciate it. For a final appreciation and report from a veteran Dallas TV critic, see Ed Bark’s Uncle Barky’s Bytes.

INDEPENDENT LENS: "THE REVISIONARIES"

PBS, 10:00 p.m. ET

It’s no secret that the textbooks from Texas, for decades, have been the tail wagging the national dog – but this 2011 documentary by director Scott Thurman hones in on some aggressive new moves by the Texas State Board of Education to question evolution and push creationism in their state’s science books. However, since this documentary was made, the Texas State legislature shifted control to local school districts, which makes the problem more complicated but less monolithic. In any event, The Revisionaries is just what you’d want a documentary on textbooks to be: educational. Check local listings.

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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, 8:00 p.m. ET

Fox, 9:00 p.m. ET

TNT, 9:00 p.m. ET

PBS, 10:00 p.m. ET

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