Back on track: The fourth season of 'Hell on Wheels' kicks off on AMC
MacKenzie Porter and Anson Mount star in "Hell on Wheels"
Who doesn’t love a rip-roaring Western?
Throw in a major episode in America’s history and you’ve got “Hell on Wheels,” AMC’s exciting period drama surrounding the construction of the First Transcontinental Railroad across the U.S. The show’s fourth season kicks off Saturday, Aug. 2, on the cable network.
Big Smo, on A&E
Get a look into the life of "hick-pop" artist John Lee Smith, better known as Big Smo, in this new episode. The reality series follows the rural rapper and family man as he juggles his burgeoning musical career with his duties as a husband and father.
Perception, on TNT
Pierce (Eric McCormack) believes that a gallery owner's death during a seizure is more than it seems in this new episode. He convinces Moretti (Rachael Leigh Cook) that murder is afoot and the two embark on a hunt for the killer, which lands them in the thick of an art heist.
Q: When Dr. Daniel Pierce (Eric McCormack) lectures about the human brain in "Perception," is he giving actual scientific facts?
As a matter of fact, he is, but Eric McCormack is no neuroscientist. Just like the FBI officers on his show, he has help.
"Perception," the offbeat crime series now in its third season on TNT, employs real-life neuroscientist Dr. David Eagleman as its scientific adviser.
Love Child, on HBO
An unprecedented trial for Internet addiction is examined in this intriguing documentary. In 2010, a young South Korean couple became obsessively immersed in an online game, to the extent that they neglected to care for their baby daughter.
En garde... Mince!: 'Top Chef Duels' forces former faves to face off
Chef Curtis Stone and Gail Simmons as seen in “Top Chef Duels”
OK, it's confession time. I was a doubter.
Laughs for the week July 27 - August 2, 2014
Jimmy Kimmel Live: Jimmy Kimmel
Did you watch the match between United States and Portugal? I don't know if I'm supposed to be happy or not. It ended in a tie. For a short time Americans cared about soccer.
The World Cup is very confusing. It could take up to a month after the final game to figure out who won.
Masterpiece Mystery!, on PBS
It's a matter of international intrigue for famed Belgian sleuth Hercule Poirot (David Suchet) in this new episode. In the days leading up to WWII, the detective must use his wits and wiles to track down the murderer of a Russian chess grandmaster.
New Releases for the week of July 27 - August 2
Noah
Loosely adapted from the biblical story of Noah’s Ark. Saddened by the state to which sin and evil have degraded mankind, God prepares to send a great flood to destroy nearly all of humanity. Noah (Crowe), an uncommonly righteous man, receives apocalyptic visions of the coming deluge and is instructed to build an enormous wooden ark that will carry his family and all Earth’s animal life safely through the flood.
Director: Darren Aronofsky. Stars: Russell Crowe, Jennifer Connelly, Emma Watson, Ray Winstone, Anthony Hopkins, Logan Lerman, Nick Nolte. 2014. 138 min. Action.
The Other Woman
Carly (Diaz) believes her boyfriend Mark (Coster-Waldau) is the perfect match for her -- until she discovers he is already married. She soon meets the wife he’s been cheating on and, after the two women reconcile, they begin to bond and develop an odd but close friendship. When another affair is uncovered, the three scorned women come together to exact revenge on the philanderer.
Director: Nick Cassavetes. Stars: Cameron Diaz, Leslie Mann, Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, Kate Upton, Nicki Minaj, Don Johnson. 2014. 109 min. Comedy.
Lullaby
A man returns home to try to repair his life and estranged family after receiving word that his father has chosen to take himself off life support within 48 hours.
Director: Andrew Levitas. Stars: Garrett Hedlund, Richard Jenkins, Amy Adams, Jessica Brown Findlay, Anne Archer, Terrence Howard, Jennifer Hudson, Jessica Barden. 2014. 117 min. Drama.
Five Dances
Staged by the immaculate choreographer Jonah Bokaer, this film introduces a gifted 18-year-old dancer from Kansas who has recently arrived in New York City. Once in the Big Apple, he becomes aware of his physical gifts and discovers love and friendship during his strenuous modern dance rehearsals.
Director: Alan Brown. Stars: Ryan Steele, Reed Luplau, Catherine Miller, Kimiye Corwin, Luke Murphy, Lulu Roche, Michael Borrelli. 2013. 83 min. Drama.
The Den
After studying the habits of webcam users in the comfort of her own apartment, a young woman witnesses a gruesome murder and quickly becomes a target for the next nightmare.
Director: Zachary Donohue. Stars: Melanie Papalia, David Schlachtenhaufen, Matt Riedy, Adam Shapiro. 2013. 81 min. Horror.
Fool us once: Penn & Teller are headed for home
Penn Jillette and Teller as seen in “Penn & Teller: Fool Us”
Fool us once: A short-lived U.K. series featuring two of America's favorite performers is headed to our shores.