The Media Tourist

What to watch, and more, March 21 – March 27

Nicole Kidman goes Dutch, ‘Wicked’ streams & David Blaine pushes boundaries

Nicole Kidman stars in ‘Holland.’

FRIDAY, March 21
Sing Sing
Acclaimed film about a theatrical program for inmates at the New York prison stars Dominique Colman and Paul Raci (Max).

Wicked
Yes, Wicked! If you missed it in theaters, or just want to see it again (and again, and again), the spectacular-looking Hollywood treatment of the hit Broadway musical with the backstory of the Wizard of Oz witches, starring Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande, below, comes to streaming (Peacock). 

SATURDAY, March 22
Single Black Female 3: The Final Chapter
Original network movie stars Raven Goodwin, Porsha Williams and Kennedy Chanel in the tale of a woman wrongly convicted of murder, then exonerated, but discovering that freedom can come at a price (8 p.m., Lifetime).

SUNDAY, March 23
Do Not Attempt
Join magician and “endurance artist” David Blaine on a globe-trotting exploration of the boundaries between the real world and the realm of magic. But kids, don’t try this at home! (National Geographic).

Marie Antionette
In season two, the seeds of revolution begin to take root, threatening the foundations of France’s long-standing monarchy. With Emila Schüle and Louis Cunningham (10 p.m., PBS).

MONDAY, March 24
Home Court
Documentary about a Columbian American high school basketball prodigy who finds her life intensifying amid college recruitment, injury and triumph (streaming on Independent Lens, the PBS App and PBS Passport).

TUESDAY, March 25
The Cleaning Lady
Season four begins about the increasingly dangerous double life of a former surgeon now an undocumented immigrant in Las Vegas and evading the law as part of a criminal organization. Cleaning can be complicated (8 p.m., Fox).

Family Legacy
Meet more kids of famous music-makers—including the Go-Go’s, Slipknot, Lil John and Matchbox 20—in the new season of this half-hour cross-genre docuseries (Paramount+).

WEDNESDAY, March 26
Side Quest
Four-part anthology based on the Mythic Quest universe and starring Rob McElhenney looks at the game’s impact on players and makers with a blend of docu-reality and comedy (Apple TV+). 

The Studio
New comedy series, above, stars Seth Rogen (who also writes and directs) as a newly appointed Hollywood exec walking the line between success and failure. With Catherine O’Hara, Kathryn Hahn and Ike Barinholtz (AppleTV+).

THURSDAY, March 27
Paul American
Reality series go into the world of internet-sensation “content creators” Jake and Logan Paul and their burgeoning empire of followers, fight promotion, sports drinks, men’s products and gaming (Max).

Holland
Nicole Kidman, Matthew Macfadyen, Jude Hill and Gael Garcia Bernal star in this twisty tale of a teacher whose life is upended by suspicions, secrets and the realization that things—in picture-perfect Holland, Mich.—aren’t what they seem (Prime).

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Forty years ago, Tina Turner exploded into the pop mainstream with her iconic breakthrough album Tiny Dancer. A new 5-CD set (from Parlophone) commemorates the milestone with a grand collection of remastered original tracks, plus B-sides, extended versions, rarities, previously unreleased cuts, two live in-concert discs and a Blu-ray of promo videos for “Let’s Stay Together,” “What’s Love Got to Do With It,” “Better Be Good to Me” and “Private Dancer.”

Commemorating the 50^th anniversary of its release, Paul McCartney’s chart-topping 1975 album Venus and Mars has been remastered from the original tapes to sound even better than before. It has all the tunes (including “Rock Show,” “Listen to What the Man Said” and the title track) plus other goodies, like a pair of posters and a bookmark sticker.

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How can we trust what our eyes see? It’s getting hard, in the age of artificially generated images online and in other media. In the fascinating The Synthetic Eye: Photography Transformed in the Age of A.I. (Thames & Hudson), author Fred Ritchin, a digital photography expert, investigates how artificial intelligence continues to transform our sense of what’s real, and its enormous ramifications for the future.

Get the inside scoop on one of America’s formative festivals for music, art, politics and freakshows, in Lollapalooza: The Uncensored Story of Alternative Rock’s Wildest Festival (St. Martins Press). It’s an oral history of the groundbreaking event as told by insiders and musicians who lived it during the ‘90s, including Pearl Jam, Jane’s Addiction, Nine Inch Nails, Tool, Smashing Pumpkins, Green Day and more.

Dec. 6 – Dec. 12

Classic Christmas flicks, Simpsons football & Paris & Nicole go to the opera!

Reality TV stars Paris Hilton & Nicole Richie are back in a TV special.

All times Eastern.

FRIDAY, Dec. 6
The Sticky
Inspired by real events, this six-part heist comedy series stars Margo Martindale as a maple syrup farmer who turns to crime when the going gets…well, gummy. With Chris Diamantopoulos and Jamie Lee Curtis (Prime Video).

Paris Has Fallen
When a terrorist group attacks a high-profile Paris event in this eight-episode series, investigators discover someone hellbent on widespread vengeance (Hulu).

SATURDAY, Dec. 7
Home Alone
Would Christmas be as Christmas-sy without this 1990 classic, which made little McCauley Caulkin into everyone’s favorite pint-sized holiday prankster? Methinks not. And stick around: It’s followed by its sequel, Home Alone 2 (3:25 p.m., Freeform).

Merry ‘80s Marathon
Time travel back to a decade of yore with this slate of classics, including National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation (above), Ghostbusters and The Great Outdoors (AMC).

SUNDAY, Dec. 8
Miss Scarlet
Victorian England’s first female detective (Kate Phillips from Peaky Blinders) gets a new start for the show’s fifth season with a new “boss” in Scotland Yard (PBS Masterpiece Prime).

The Equalizer
In tonight’s holiday-themed episode, “Slay Ride” (above), McCall, Dante and Miles find themselves held hostage in a hospital that’s been taken over by a cartel (8:30 p.m., CBS).

MONDAY, Dec. 9
The Simpsons Funday Football
Monday Night Football transforms in this TV special—using state-of-the-art 3D animation—into the world of TV’s most successful primetime family as the Cincinnati Bengals take on the Dallas Cowboys (8 p.m., ESPN, Disney+ and ABC).

The Real Full Monty
Anthony Anderson rallies his male celebrity friends in this TV event to drop trou, “bare it all” and raise awareness for prostate, testicular and colorectal cancer (8 p.m., Fox).

TUESDAY, Dec. 10
Dr. Suess How the Grinch Stole Christmas
Another modern-day Christmas classic, this 2000 remake of the animated 1960s classic was directed by Ron Howard (yes, that Ron Howard) and featured Jim Carrey as the Grinch. Watch for Christine Baranski, Jeffrey Tambor, Molly Shannon…and Howard’s younger brother, Clint (8.30 p.m., Freeform).

Nature of the Crime
Get an inside look at the working of the criminal justice system in this documentary, which follows two men convicted of murder when they were teens, their attorneys and their family members as they prepare for upcoming parole interviews and reflect on their crimes and rehabilitation (HBO).

WEDNESDAY, Dec. 11
A Motown Christmas
Smokey Robinson and Halle Bailey (above) host this all-star musical event with Gladys Knight, Martha Reeves, Andra Day, Pentatonix, Jamie Foxx, the cast of MJ the Musical and more, singing holiday favorites. Dig it! (9 p.m., NBC).12.12

Too Many Christmases
How can a couple spend Christmas with both their families in an attempt to please everyone? You’ll find out in this merry holiday dramady starring Denzel Whitaker and Porscha Coleman (Bet+).

Paris & Nicole: The Encore
Two decades after making the scene with their reality-TV series, heiresses Paris Hilton and Nicole Richie return with a new TV special, this time trying to produce an operetta. Yes, you read that correctly (Peacock).

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Get in the happy holiday mood with Hartfelt Family Christmas, the new CD from the country trio Chapel Hart (and also available on vinyl). The Mississippi-based vocal group—sisters Danica and Devynn Hart, plus cousin Trea Swindle—certainly know about family, and their first Christmas CD stirs up sweet and soulful memories with Yule classics (including “Silver Bells,” “Blue Christmas,” “O Holy Night” and “O Come All Ye Faithful”), well-chosen covers (Alabama’s “Christmas in Dixie,” Ray Charles’ “Spirit of Christmas”) and all-star guests including Vince Gill, Darius Rucker, Gretchen Wilson and T. Graham Brown. It’s an all-star Christmas get-together with “hart” and harmony. https://www.chapelhart.com/shop

BRING IT HOME

If you grew up in the early ‘80s, you no doubt remember Rock ‘N’ Roll High School, a rip-roaring B-movie about a rockin’ revolt at a high school, starring P.J. Soles (the “bad girl” from Halloween) and Clint Howard (Ron’s little brother) and featuring the music of The Ramones, who sing the theme song. The 1979 flick has been newly remastered for is 45^th anniversary with a locker full of special content, including commentary, interviews and making-of features (shoutfactory.com).

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Paul McCartney has never rested on his Beatles laurels, as The McCartney Legacy Vol. 2 1974-1980 (Dey Street) shows how his post-Beatles adventures included the release of four solo albums, dabbling in music publishing, experimenting as a science fiction writer and filmmaker, recording in Nashville and smuggling cannabis past authority figures…with mixed success. This well-researched exploration of Mac’s exceptionally creative period is a snapshot of a rollicking life after being in the world’s most famous band—and some scars from the group’s breakup that would never be completely healed.

How did live music ever make it onto wax records, then magnetic tape and plastic, and finally into microscopic digital “codes”? It’s all spelled out in Into the Into the Groove: The Story of Sound From Tin Foil to Vinyl (Bloomsbury). Author and avid vinyl collector Jonathan Scott traces the history of recorded sound…including how, for many music lovers, it all came back around to vinyl! And believe it or not, it all started on paper!

Nov. 1 – Nov. 7

Classic Disney, movie remakes, box office flops, a Dunder Mifflin Christmas & oh, yeah…election night!

All times Eastern.

FRIDAY, Nov. 1
Freedom
Lucas Bravo from Emily in Paris stars as a French bandit in the 1970s who stole hearts as well as riches, masterminding dangerous heists without ever firing a shot (Prime).

30 Days of Disney
Kick off a week of programming celebrating Disney animation, kicking off today with The Great Mouse Detective, The Aristocats, Pinocchio (above), Finding Nemo, Finding Dory and Coco (10:30 a.m., Freeform).

SATURDAY, Nov. 2
Wine, Women & Dementia
An intimate look in the personal side of dementia through the lives of caregivers (check local listings, PBS).

United Way Benefit for Hurricane Relief
The stars—including the Backstreet Boys, Billy Bob Thornton, Blake Shelton, Kelsea Ballerini and Stephen Colbert—come out for this hour-long TV special to raise fund for hurricane relief (8 p.m., CBS and CMT, plus Paramount+ with Showtime).

SUNDAY, Nov. 3
Like Water for Chocolate
New adaptation of the iconic novel—about a lovestruck woman who channels her deepest desires into recipes—stars Irene Azuela and Azul Guaita (above). It was previously made into an acclaimed film in 1992 (HBO).

Holiday Wars
Host Jeff Maura oversees the competition as chefs work to out-do each other with over-the-top holiday-themed confections (9 p.m., Food Network).

Motorcycle Mary
Find out about the woman who became a motorcycle racing legend, with a career spanning 30 years and shattering gender norms (2 p.m., ESPN).

MONDAY, Nov. 4
Holiday Baking Championship
‘Tis the season…for a new season of bakers showing their seasonal stuff to judges Carla Hall, Duff Goldman and Nancy Fuller, and hoping to bag the show’s $25,000 grand prize (8 p.m., Food Network).

Inspector Ellis
Sharon D. Clark stars in this new detective drama series (above) from Great Britain about a Black female cop on a new station assignment, trying to win over her coworkers and crack open the case she came there to solve (Acorn TV).

TUESDAY, Nov. 5
Presidential Election Coverage
Pick a network, pick a channel. Chances are you’ll get a ringside seat to who’s winning, who’s losing, and what it all might mean (6 p.m., multiple platforms).

Game Changers
If you grew up, well, a couple of decades ago, you love this new series about iconic e-games, including Nintendo, Pac-Man, EA Sports, Call of Duty, Sonic the Hedgehog, World of Warcraft, Minecraft, plus a couple of grand ol’ board games, Scrabble and Monopoly (9 p.m., Discovery).

Nature—San Diego: America’s Wildest City
Find out all about the most biologically diverse municipality in America, located at the geographic intersection of the Mojave Desert, the Pacific Ocean, the Sierra Mountains and the Mexican border—a place where all kinds of wildlife thrives (8 p.m., PBS).

WEDNESDAY, Nov. 6
Feuds Turned Fatal
Retaliation and revenge unfold as friendships take furious turns. Both sides share their versions of what went south, from mouthy disagreements to murder (10 p.m., ID).

THURSDAY, Nov. 7
Rebus
Outlander’s Richard Rankin leads the cast of this BBC crime thriller series as a younger version of the iconic detective John Rebus from the detective novels of Scottish writer Sir Ian Rankin, as he’s drawn in to a violent conflict that becomes personal (Viaplay US).

The Day of the Jackal
Eddie Redmayne (above) stars as an elusive lone assassin tracked by a tenacious British Intelligence officer (Lashana Lynch) in a thrilling cat-and-mouse game across Europe (Sky, on Peacock Nov. 17).

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Everyone remembers the big hits, the box-office gold, the award winners. But now let’s hear it for the fabulous flops! In Box Office Poison (Harper Collins), author Tim Robey runs down 100 years of cinematic tankers; they might have been clunkers as popcorn fare but (some, at least) are now considered cult classics—like Freaks, Rollerball, Doctor Dolittle, The Hudsucker Proxy and Cats. Three cheers for these loveable losers!

Fans of TV’s The Office will love The Night Before Christmas at Dunder Mifflin (Mariner Hardcover), which re-imagines the classic Christmas tale as a children’s story with characters from the iconic show, including Michael Scott as Santa and Rainn Wilson as a beet-loving elf!

BRING IT HOME

Auntie Em! Auntie Em! The Wizard of Oz turns 85 this month, and this new commemorative 4K Ultra HD collection from Warner Bros Discovery Home Entertainment includes memorabilia reproduced from the classic film’s original posters, tickets and lobby cards. Plus a making-of doc, deleted scenes and much more. Like the tornado that took Dorthy to Oz, it’ll blow you away!

Director M. Night Shayamalan’s Trap is a twisty tale that stars Josh Harnett as a dad who takes his daughter to a pop concert (shades of Taylor Swift), then finds out he’s at the center of a deadly chain of events involving a serial killer on the loose. Former Disney child star Hayley Mills plays the FBI profiler trying to catch the killer, and the director’s daughter, Saleka, makes her movie debut as the pop star. Full of surprises, it comes with a making-of documentary and deleted scenes.

Strange things start to happen in Blink Twice (Warner Bros. Home Entertainment) when a cocktail waitress (Naomi Ackie) meets a guy (Channing Tatum) and agrees to visit him on his private island for a party. With Christian Slater, Simon Rex, Kyle MacLachlan, Geena Davis and Haley Joel Osment.

Hey, weren’t the ‘80s awesome? In 1982: Greatest Geek Year Ever (MVD) a host of Hollywood insiders (actors, directors, movie critics and more) run down the year’s top movies, music and pop culture with clips and commentary. It’s a gnarly hop down memory lane for anyone who lived it—or wished they did!

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Groove to the sounds of the King of Cool with Dean Martin’s Great Hits (Columbia), newly compiled and released on vinyl—just like they were originally! You’ll hear Dean-o crooning 13 of his classics, including “That’s Amore,” “Ain’t That a Kick in the Head,” “Volare” and “You’re Nobody ‘Til Somebody Loves You.” Fire up the turntable, pour yourself a cocktail, and dig it!

And take another trip down memory lane with the new release of The Carpenters’ Christmas Once More (Universal), cherry-picked from the brother-sister duo’s original holiday album releases in 1978 and 1984. The 16 tracks include “Sleigh Ride,” “Santa Claus is Coming to Town,” “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas” and “Ava Maria.”