Day: April 12, 2020

Best-bets for April 14: A subtly strong season-finale

1) “New Amsterdam” season-finale, 9 p.m., NBC. This is an extraordinary episode. That’s partly because of the prologue, which we aren’t supposed to tell about. But it’s mostly because of the rare subtlety: Medical shows tend to crank up the emotion; they assume it’s more dramatic to have kin weeping and wailing. In truth, we suspect, it’s more common to have muted resolve. That’s what you get in tough moments here, played with subtle perfection by the actors (including Janet Montgomery, shown here) and new director Dinh Thai. Read more…

Best bets for April 13: Two new shows, one new season

1) “Baker and the Beauty” debut, 10 p.m., ABC. The Garcias are warm, hard-working folks who have a Miami bakery. They expect life to be kind of normal. Then Daniel (Victor Rasuk) and Noa (Nathalie Kelley, who was Cristal in the first year of the “Dynasty” reboot), a Kardashian-type pop-culture star, accidentally meet. You could call this a modern Cinderella, with the genders flipped … or a Latino “Notting Hill.” Either way, it’s subtly written, well-played and beautifully filmed. Read more…

ERA: How did a can’t-miss amendment miss?

Back in 1972, the American society seemed to be transforming.
“You just had the Civil Rights Act and the Pay Equity Act,” said Cate Blanchett (shown here), who produced and stars in “Mrs. America,” an ambitious mini-series. “So there was already change afoot.”
The next step was the Equal Rights Amendment. It seemed easy, said director Ryan Fleck. “It had Republican support, it had Democratic support – which is sort of unheard of nowadays.
The ERA sailed through the House, 354-24 and through the Senate, 84-8. Hawaii ratified it that same day, Delaware and New Hampshire the next day, Iowa and Idaho the day after that. Then Phyllis Schlafly stepped in. That’s what “Mrs. America” is about. Read more…