Late Laughs for the week of June 19 - 25
The Late Show with Stephen Colbert
Despite the horrific shootings in Uvalde, Texas, the Senate just skipped town for a two-week break without any action on guns. Chuck Schumer has planned on pushing through a vote to get everyone on the record, but yesterday [May 25] he bailed, explaining there was no point in doing so given that Republican opposition was "crystal clear." Well, he's just following the old adage, "If at first you don't succeed, byeeee!"
Flatbush Misdemeanors, on Showtime
Dan (Dan Perlman) tries to clear his reputation so he can be reinstated as a teacher in this new, Season 2 premiere, but Kevin (Kevin Iso) has left town and is avidly avoiding his calls. This series follows friends in the Flatbush area of Brooklyn, N.Y.
Flatbush Misdemeanors, on Showtime
Dan (Dan Perlman) tries to clear his reputation so he can be reinstated as a teacher in this new, Season 2 premiere, but Kevin (Kevin Iso) has left town and is avidly avoiding his calls. This series follows friends in the Flatbush area of Brooklyn, N.Y.
Coast vs. coast: 'Beachside Brawl' begins on Food Network
Brooke Williamson, Antonia Lofaso and Tiffani Faison in “Beachside Brawl”
East or west — when it comes to summer foods, which coast does it best?
While this isn't quite as divisive as asking which regional barbecue style is best, it's still the big question that hangs over the new Food Network competition, "Beachside Brawl," which launches this week.
New Releases for the week of June 19 - 25
Cinderella
Trapped living with her cruel stepmother, Vivian (Menzel), and two stepsisters, Malvolia (Baillio) and Narissa (Spencer), after her father's death, aspiring dressmaker Cinderella (Cabello) dreams of escaping her home's basement and selling her dazzling creations in her own shop called "Dresses by Ella." While daydreaming in the market one day, Cinderella has a chance encounter with Prince Robert (Galitzine) and is invited to the most anticipated ball of the season. But when Vivian throws ink on Cinderella's beautiful new dress and tells her she must stay home, only Cinderella's Fabulous Godmother (Porter) can save the day.
Director: Kay Cannon. Stars: Camila Cabello, Billy Porter, Nicholas Galitzine, Idina Menzel, Pierce Brosnan, Minnie Driver, Tallulah Greive, Maddie Baillio, Charlotte Spencer, James Corden. 2021. 113 mins. Comedy/Musical.
The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent
Destitute and struggling to find work, Hollywood actor Nick Cage (Cage) plans to retire. But when Cage's agent, Richard Fink (Harris), presents him with a $1-million offer to attend the birthday party of billionaire and Nicolas Cage superfan Javi Gutierrez (Pascal), he accepts. Upon meeting Gutierrez in Majorca, Cage soon encounters CIA agents Vivian (Haddish) and Martin (Barinholtz), who require Cage to go undercover and expose the billionaire's nefarious dealings and the potential kidnapping of a politician's daughter.
Director: Tom Gormican. Stars: Nicolas Cage, Pedro Pascal, Tiffany Haddish, Sharon Horgan, Paco León, Neil Patrick Harris, Lily Mo Sheen, Alessandra Mastronardi, Jacob Scipio, Katrin Vankova, Ike Barinholtz, Demi Moore. 2022. 107 mins. Action.
After Yang
After their adoptive daughter Mika's (Tjandrawidjaja) previously owned robotic child-companion, Yang (Min), becomes unresponsive, husband and wife Jake (Farrell) and Kyra (Turner-Smith) do everything in their power to repair him. When the original producer of Yang, Brothers & Sisters Inc., recommends a replacement, Jake opts to take Yang to a repairman before settling on a museum specialist who unlocks Yang's memory bank. Discovering Yang had more of a past than either Jake or Kyra knew, they soon realize he was not what he seemed.
Director: Kogonada. Stars: Colin Farrell, Jodie Turner-Smith, Malea Emma Tjandrawidjaja, Justin H. Min, Haley Lu Richardson, Orlagh Cassidy, Ritchie Coster, Sarita Choudhury, Clifton Collins Jr. 2021. 96 mins. Drama.
Q: Who is McG and what's the name short for? I feel like I've seen his name everywhere lately.
McG is short for Joseph McGinty Nichol, and you have seen his name everywhere lately. (For the record, his mom nicknamed him "McG" to differentiate him from his uncle and grandfather, who were also both named Joe.) He's a TV and film superproducer, with a resume boasting dozens of films and some of the biggest TV hits of the past two decades -- all spanning a pretty broad range.
Buying in: 'SNL' alum lives white lie in 'I Love That For You'
Vanessa Bayer stars in "I Love That For You"
Q: Why do some movies have bleeps for censorship but others have dubbed-over words?
It seems to be a matter of taste for the broadcaster, and a matter of budget.
Out of retirement: Jeff Bridges plays 'Old Man' in FX thriller
Jeff Bridges stars in "The Old Man"
Sometimes it's best to let sleeping dogs lie, but that's not always an option as the past has a tendency to catch up with those trying to outrun it. In the case of FX's newest series, waking up that sleeping dog might come at the risk of being bitten.
Q: Does the Mr. White character appear in the original James Bond novels? He's a big part of the new movies, but I don't remember him from before.
By the time Daniel Craig ("Knives Out," 2019) became James Bond, they had almost run out of source material. In fact, his first Bond film, 2006's "Casino Royale," is his only one directly based on a novel.
