Senses Working Overtime: This Week in Television (11/11/07)

Written by Musgo Del Jefe

MUSGO'S TOP 100 FEATURE OF THE WEEK:
No. 48 - Brief Encounter (TCM) (SAT)
This is what what every Top 100 movie should be - style and substance. There's a superb script adapted by Noel Coward from his one-act play. There's riveting acting performances from Celia Johnson and Trevor Howard. And there's the unrushed, lush style of director David Lean. The man that gave us the sweeping landscapes of Lawrence Of Arabia works his magic in the small setting of a refreshment room of a railway station. The stories constructed so simply that at the end when we revisit the opening scene, you realize the power of movies to get to the depths of a characters soul in just 90 minutes. I don't want to give too much away - approach it the way I did in 1987, little know beyond the fact that it's a "love story".

Ratings around this movie:

44 - Aliens
45 - Dazed & Confused
50 - Terminator 2
54 - Alien
58 - Dracula (1931)

RANDOM RUMINATIONS: TV RATINGS

What a difference from the past two seasons.  The current charts look like a writer's strike repeat.  Oddly, 60 Minutes makes an appearance at #3, its old spot.  Now it usually resides in the high teens.  Dancing With The Stars still rules with Grey's Anatomy (#2) and CSI (#4) picking up the leftovers.  Amazing Race 12 is off to a great start both with quality and with ratings (#17).  I'm worried about the return of Lost.  Even if it gets last year's finale numbers, that won't crack this season's top 20 and I don't want to see it finish behind Brothers & Sisters.  Bad news continues to follow my Friday Night Lights (#73).  Biggest question here - how is Samantha Who? at #14 with 14.2 million viewers when I don't know anyone that watches the show?

SUNDAY

The Simpsons (FOX)  I really enjoyed the "Treehouse Of Horror" last week.  And this week?  Everything's coming up Milhouse!

Fearless Planet (DISC)  Why do I want an HDTV?  Mainly for the Discovery Channel.  This series focuses on different natural wonders.  Tonight's subject is the beautiful Hawaiian Islands.  Where did they come from and when do they sink back into the ocean?  Hopefully not before I get a chance to visit.

MONDAY

Atlantis Squarepantis (NICK)  David Bowie alert!  Although he doesn't sing in this musical (?), you still gotta watch

Journeyman (NBC)  Two things you don't usually put together - John Schneider and "key party".  Maybe he'll restart a trend.

Article Author: Gordon S. Miller

Gordon S. Miller is the artist formerly known as El Bicho, the nom de plume he used when he first began reviewing movies online for The Masked Movie Snobs in 2003. Before that year was out, he became that site's publisher. …

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