Day: February 21, 2024

Stories

Zombies? Shakespeare? She masters it all

There are different kinds of actors out there – some verbal, some physical. You could call them Streepians and Stallonians.
Then there’s Danai Gurira, now returning to the zombie world. She masters it all.
Nine months ago, TV viewers saw her in the title role of Shakespeare’s “Richard III.” An English king was played by a Black American woman, catching fresh nuance.
And now she’s back to her alternate life. When “Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live” debuts (9 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 25, on AMC), Rick (Andrew Lincoln) and his wife Michonne (Gurira, they’re shown here) are desperate to re-unite, despite the hordes of zombies. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / February 21, 2024
News and Quick Comments

The genial side of an imposing icon

As an ambitious mini-series ends, a question lingers: What was Malcolm X (shown here) really like?
“So many people, all they know about Malcolm X is the one picture of him holding a gun, looking out the window,” Gina Prince-Bythewood told the Television Critics Association. “Or some of his words, taken out of context.”
She’s one of the producers of “Genius: MLK/X,” an eight-parter that has its final two episodes at 9 and 10:08 p.m. Thursday (Feb.22) on the National Geographic Channel,” but then remains available on Disney+.
This is a joint biography of Martin Luther King and Malcolm X. “Way too often, these two men are pitted agaist each other,” she said. But “they were coming closer and closer together. They had the same goal. They just had two different ways of going about it.” Read more…

By Mike Hughes / February 21, 2024
Daily Best Bets

Best-bets for Feb. 23: country stars and Oscar films

1) “George Jones: Still Playin’ Possum,” 9-10:30 p.m., PBS. Leaping from song to song, this is like a turbo-charged history of country music. Some of Jones’ hits zip zestfully (Justin Moore’s “White Lightning,” Tim Watson’s “One Woman Man”), some dig pits of pain, closing with Brad Paisley’s “He Stopped Loving Her Today” (shown here). Dierks Bentley, Sara Evans, Trace Adkins, Wynonna and more perform vibrantly. Read more…

By Mike Hughes / February 21, 2024