FRIDAY
JANUARY 8
2016

BIANCULLI’S BEST BETS

 

TCM, 1:00 p.m. ET

Two classic Elvis Presley movies are shown this afternoon on TCM, and both of them feature noteworthy leading ladies. This 1957 film, which includes the title tune, as well as “Treat Me Nice” and others, co-stars Judy Tyler as Elvis’ leading lady. Tyler became a TV star thanks to her role on the Golden Age kids’ TV show Howdy Doody, playing Princess Summerfall Winterspring.

 
  
 
 

TCM, 2:45 p.m. ET

This 1964 movie musical is the second Elvis Presley classic shown by TCM this afternoon. This one, co-starring Ann-Margret, pairs two of the era’s reigning sex symbols in a frothy film flirtation set against the Las Vegas speedway.

 
  
 
 

Showtime, 8:00 p.m. ET

This 2014 movie is, in essence, a dramatized international version of Restaurant Wars. Helen Mirren plays Madame Mallory, the stuffy operator of a Michelin-starred restaurant in France – and Manish Dayal co-stars as Manish, a gifted cook who brings from India his family recipes, and his family, and sets up shop across the street from Madame Mallory, with his own ethnic eatery. Directed by Lasse Hallstrom, director of Chocolat, What’s Eating Gilbert Grape and My Life As a Dog.

 
  
 
 

PBS, 9:00 p.m. ET

Tonight’s theme is a “Celebration of Creativity” – and its roster includes Audra McDonald (pictured), Smokey Robinson, James Taylor, Carol Burnett, Usher, and others. Check local listings.

 
  
 
 

WE TV, 10:00 p.m. ET

This is definitely not a recommendation. It’s basically a warning, even though it’s sight unseen, which may seem unfair. But last year, We TV gave us the worst show of 2015 in a tasteless reality-show “relationship” program called Sex Box, in which couples had sex on stage in an opaque box, then emerged to audience applause and the questions of “counselors.” This new series, premiering tonight, sounds like a contender for worst show of 2016. It’s called Ex Isle, and takes former couples to a remote island, and forces them to confront one another about still-unresolved issues. Maybe next year it’ll be a show called Forced Intake TV, in which TV critics are strapped down, like poor Alex in A Clockwork Orange, and forced to watch this kind of television. I’ll watch Ex Isle, to see if it indeed is as barrel-bottomy as I suspect – but that’s my job. You should stay away, unless your curiosity streak extends to the culturally masochistic. Carmen Electra hosts.

 
  
 
 
 
 
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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.