NOW SEE THIS OCTOBER 16, 2020
Welcome to Now See This, THR chief TV critic Daniel Fienberg's weekly viewer guide newsletter dedicated to cutting through the daunting clutter of the broadcast, cable and streaming TV landscape! Comments and suggestions welcome at daniel.fienberg@thr.com. My Kind of Town, 'Chicago' Is If you're in the mood for Aaron Sorkin's brand of fast-talking, star-studded indignation, this is your kind of weekend. THR chief film critic David Rooney calls The Trial of the Chicago 7, Sorkin's second feature as writer-director, "powerful and timely" and raves about the ensemble led by Sacha Baron Cohen, Yahya Abdul Mateen II, Eddie Redmayne and Mark Rylance. It's new on Netflix! For more weekend Sorkin, if you didn't rush to check out HBO Max's A West Wing Special to Benefit When We All Vote, a staged presentation of the West Wing episode "Hartsfield's Landing," when it premiered on Thursday, it's a solid reunion for a solid cause. All of TV's a Stage, and All the Networks Merely Streamers Broadway may not return to live performances until next May, but TV this weekend resembles a trip to the Great White Way, lacking only a stop at your favorite deli or Halal Guys afterwards. On Friday, Amazon launches Marielle Heller's filmed version of Heidi Schreck's What the Constitution Means to Me, which Rooney, in his theater-reviewing capacity, called "an impassioned civics debate illuminated by intense personal reflection." And Saturday marks the HBO debut of Spike Lee's take on David Byrne's American Utopia, which Rooney called a "cathartic celebration." Or you can just watch Hamilton again. 'Army' and Darkness Perhaps as counter-programming to all of the theatrical joy permeating TV this weekend, several other offerings are defined by their self-seriousness. Hulu's Helstrom has little to do with its Marvel source material and is basically a gloomy, by-the-numbers demon-fighting drama that should only be watched if you've already checked out the first season of CBS’ Evil. THR's Inkoo Kang is more enthusiastic about Netflix’s Grand Army, which features a strong cast and a dogged eagerness to tackle social issues in a generally well-meaning way. I found it exhausting, but occasionally effective. S'all 'Good Man' Arthur Jones' documentary Feels Good Man, one of the best reviewed at January's Sundance Film Festival, makes a quick PBS premiere on Monday night as part of Independent Lens. I thought the doc was a solidly told recounting of Pepe the Frog's journey from amiable slacker amphibian to alt right icon, but I didn't buy the optimism about the character's possible redemption. It's still worth checking out. Honoring Conchata Ferrell You may not have known Conchata Ferrell's name, but the two-time Emmy nominee for Two and a Half Men (with a third for L.A. Law) was one of those actresses who never failed to make everything she was in better, whether she was a regular or had only one line. Two and a Half Men is available to stream on Peacock. If you're a Fandor subscriber, you can watch one of her few starring roles in the 1979 film Heartland, while she also stole scenes in Mystic Pizza (available on Starz OnDemand) and in the TV series Hearts Afire (on Amazon). Mongo Just a Pawn Ahead of Netflix's terrific The Queen's Gambit, whet your chess appetites with Searching for Bobby Fischer (CBS All-Access), Queen of Katwe (Disney+) and The Seventh Seal (HBO Max). "Hartfield's Landing" is about chess as well, so if you watch the West Wing special, that also counts as homework. Oh, and the West Wing special is a filmed stage play, too. It's everything! This Week's THR Staff Pick Eriq Gardner, THR's senior editor, law and policy, has some international recs. He writes: "Lately, I've been scratching an itch to escape incessant American politics by traveling the globe. Thanks to the pandemic, literally getting on an airplane ain't an option, but I've fortuitously discovered that Netflix has invested in highly bingeable shows from around the world, especially of the gritty caliber I gravitate toward. Spain's Money Heist is an obvious destination, but Brazil's 3%, Germany's Dark and India's Sacred Games have also earned passport stamps. My escape from election season has only been semi-successful as I'm in the midst of indulging in Denmark’s Borgen, which splits the middle between The West Wing and House of Cards."
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