Monday: Chuck
Now that Hugh Laurie and his dreamy blue eyes (so much brighter in HD!) have moved to Mondays at 8, we’re pretty much resigned to the fact that Chuck won’t be around for a third season. But! Rather than get down in the dumps about its inevitable ouster, we’ll enjoy the show while we can. The push for Chuck‘s first new episode of 2009 has been relentless, most likely because it’s airing in … 3-D! (Cue: thunderclaps!) We couldn’t care less about all that third dimension hooey; instead, we’re amped to see Lost‘s Dominic Monaghan playing a flashy British rocker who is most certainly not Charlie Pace (or so say the NBC lawyers).
Monday: Chuck
Now that Hugh Laurie and his dreamy blue eyes (so much brighter in HD!) have moved to Mondays at 8, we’re pretty much resigned to the fact that Chuck won’t be around for a third season. But! Rather than get down in the dumps about its inevitable ouster, we’ll enjoy the show while we can. The push for Chuck‘s first new episode of 2009 has been relentless, most likely because it’s airing in … 3-D! (Cue: thunderclaps!) We couldn’t care less about all that third dimension hooey; instead, we’re amped to see Lost‘s Dominic Monaghan playing a flashy British rocker who is most certainly not Charlie Pace (or so say the NBC lawyers). Here’s hoping this is a prologue to the Drive Shaft reunion we never got to see. [NBC, 8 p.m.]
Tuesday: Confessions of a Dangerous Mind
After a brilliant first hour that features some virtuoso camera trickery and a young Michael Cera asking a girl if she wants to “lick it,” George Clooney’s directorial debut stumbles a bit. But chances are that has more to do with Gong Show creator Chuck Barris’ batshit memoirs—which describe his alleged escapades as a C.I.A. assassin—than anything Mr. Clooney had control over. As it stands, Confessions of a Dangerous Mind is notable because it seems to be the only movie this side of Choke that ably taps into Sam Rockwell’s manic intensity. This performance is his Mona Lisa. [HDNet, 10 p.m.]
Wednesday: Hannah and her Sisters
When talking about Hannah and her Sisters, you can table the flowery hyperbole. Put simply, it’s a great movie propelled by a tight screenplay and performed by a troupe of actors and actresses at the height of their powers. There’s a good chance Mr. Allen has never been more likable on-screen, and huzzah to Diane Wiest, as the youngest of the sisters. She’s the perfect foil for Mr. Allen’s bitter hypochondriac. [TCM, 2:30 a.m.]
Thursday: 30 Rock
It’s a bad time to be one of our favorite shows. Lost is only three episodes into season five and its already clear we’re in for a bumpy ride. Meanwhile, 30 Rock hasn’t been consistently funny for months. Granted there are splashes of hilarity, but most of the time the third season has felt too disjointed and haphazard. Maybe the arrival of Mad Men‘s Jon Hamm will stabilize things. Don Draper himself shows up for a highly anticipated arc as a potential boyfriend for Tina Fey’s Liz Lemon. We’ve seen the clips (memo to Jon: we prefer the Don Draper hair) as well as Mr. Hamm’s brilliant hosting turn on Saturday Night Live, so we know he’s more than ready to shine as 30 Rock‘s latest guest star. At the very least, he’s gotta be better than Salma Hayek. [NBC, 9:30 p.m.]
Friday: Goldfinger
We’ve always thought the entire collection of James Bond films are slightly overrated. Still, Goldfinger stands head and shoulders above the rest. It’s the archetype of the Bond formula: Mr. Connery is dapper, hilarious and misogynistic as 007; the script is filled with endlessly quotable one-liners (“No, Mr. Bond, I expect you to die”); Shirley Bassey breaks glass with the bombastic theme song; and Goldfinger gives us not one but two memorable villains, in Auric Goldfinger and his henchman, Odd Job. Plus, let’s not forget the Aston Martin. Daniel Craig only wishes he could have this much fun. [Encore, 10:50 p.m.]
