Fall TV Preview

Fall TV preview: 8 new shows worth checking out for a Super Fun Night

Fall TV season kicked off last week, bringing with it a plethora of programs with which to fill your DVR. While some of TV’s latest offerings aren’t worth your time, others will bring back some of our favorite actors to the small screen. Here’s our guide to some of what's new this fall, so clear your DVR and get ready to spend a night on the couch. This TV ain’t gonna watch itself.

The Blacklist

Mondays, NBC, 9/8c

Eighties dirtbag James Spader returns to TV in this crime thriller that critics are hailing as “the best new show of the season.” For decades, ex-government agent Raymond "Red" Reddington (Spader) has been one of the FBI's most wanted fugitives. Now, he's mysteriously surrendered to the FBI with an explosive offer: Red will help catch terrorist Ranko Zamani under the condition that he speaks only to Elizabeth "Liz" Keen, an FBI profiler fresh out of Quantico.

Mom

Mondays, CBS, 9:30/8:30c

West Wing vet Allison Janney is trading in her power suits for a new role — motherhood. She joins the sometimes-funny Anna Faris in this new comedy from showrunner Chuck Lorre (Two and a Half Men, The Big Bang Theory). Faris is a newly sober single mom raising two children in a world full of temptations and pitfalls, with Janney starring as her critical, estranged mother. If you’re game for a laugh-track, tune in. But don’t expect Emmy-winning fare here.

Brooklyn 99

Tuesdays, FOX, 8:30/7:30c

Andy Samberg! The goofy Lonely Island-er raised eyebrows when he left his cushy Saturday Night Live gig for television, but I’m happy to report that his decision wasn’t in vain. He joins other such indie comedy names as Joe LoTruglio (Superbad) and Chelsea Perretti (Parks and Recreation, Louie) in this cop comedy, wherein Samberg stars as all-star Detective Jake Peralta, a success story who doesn’t want to follow the rules.

The Goldbergs

Tuesdays, ABC, 9/8c

Adam Sandler’s Happy Madison Productions brings this '80s set comedy, which stars comedy all-stars Wendi McLendon-Covey (Bridesmaids) and Jeff Garlin (Curb Your Enthusiasm) matriarch and patriarch of the Goldberg family. The 1980s were the wonder years for geeky 11-year-old Adam (Sean Giambrone), and he faced them armed with a video camera to capture all the crazy. In the same vein as The Wonder Years and Freaks and Geeks, both of which captured audiences’ hearts, this nostalgic comedy could have legs. Maybe.

Trophy Wife

Wednesdays, ABC, 9:30/8:30c

Malin Ackerman stars as Kate, former party girl turned third wife to Pete, played Bradley Whitford (another West Wing alum). After a wild night at a karaoke bar, she falls into his arms, and a year later is begrudgingly welcomed into a new family, complete with two ex-wives and three stepchildren. The star quality of the show’s cast is enough to bring viewers, so this is worth a shot.

Back in the Game

Wednesdays, ABC, 8:30/7:30c

Maggie Lawson (Psych) stars as Terry, an all-star softball player who returns home after her marriage ends, moving in with her estranged father, played by James Caan. It’s a story we’ve heard before (think Clint Eastwood movie plot), but the cast’s chemistry is at least palpable.

Super Fun Night

Wednesdays, ABC, 9:30/8:30

After her hysterical turn in this year’s Pitch Perfect, it seems the world is eager to see more of Rebel Wilson. This comedy hasn’t been without its pitfalls — another network reportedly passed on the initial pilot — but those just looking for Wilson’s signature comedic style should not be disappointed. Wilson stars as Kimmie Boubier, who, with her two best friends, has a standing date every Friday night for the last 13 years. Trouble ensues when she meets a suitor (surprise, surprise) who causes Friday Night Fun Night to take a backseat. Think Never Been Kissed goes to New Zealand.

The Michael J. Fox Show

Thursdays, NBC 9/8c

Michael J. Fox makes his long-awaited return to TV with this semiautobiographical show, in which he stars as Mike Henry, one of New York's favorite news anchors, who has to put his career on hold in order to spend time with his family and focus on his Parkinson's disease diagnosis. The story picks up after his kids are grown and he's looking to get back to work. Fans of Fox are sure to be pleased, and Breaking Bad fans can take solace in the fact that Marie finally moves on from Hank (Betsy Brandt stars as Fox’s wife).

There you have it. Of course some of your old favorites will be back, some will soon be ending (RIP, Breaking Bad), and some we’ll have to wait for forever (Mad Men, ugh). But at least fall will bring some opportunities to find a new favorite.

Rebel Wilson stars in Super Fun Night.

Courtesy photo

Rebel Wilson stars in Super Fun Night.

unspecified

Movie Review

Timothée Chalamet cements star status in new movie Marty Supreme

Courtesy

Timothée Chalamet

In a time when true movie stars seem to be going extinct, Timothée Chalamet has emerged as an exception to the rule. Since 2021 he has headlined blockbusters like the two Dune movies and Wonka, and also earned an Oscar nomination for playing Bob Dylan in A Complete Unknown (his second nomination following 2018’s Call Me By Your Name). Now, he’s almost assured to get his third nomination for the stellar new film, Marty Supreme.

Chalamet plays Marty Mauser, a world-class table tennis player living in New York. But reducing Marty to his best skill doesn’t do him justice, as he’s also a motormouth schemer who will do almost anything to achieve his dreams. He doesn’t have any qualms about wooing married women like neighbor Rachel (Odessa A’zion) or actress Kay Stone (Gwyneth Paltrow), or hiding his true ping pong skills to win money in scams with friends like Wally (Tyler the Creator).

Marty is seemingly on the go the entire movie, whether it’s trying to convince Kay’s millionaire husband Milton Rockwell (Kevin O’Leary) to fund his table tennis ambitions; or trying to track down the dog of Ezra (Abel Ferrara), a man he accidentally injures; or trying to avoid the ire of the boss at the shoe store where he works. Just when you think he might slow down, he’s off to the races on another plan or adventure.

Directed by Josh Safdie and written by Safdie and frequent co-writer Ronald Bronstein, the film is an almost continuous blast of pure energy for 2 ½ hours. So many different things happen over the course of the film that the story defies conventional narratives, and yet the throughline of Marty keeps everything tightly connected. His particular type of brash behavior turns much of the film into a comedy as he does and says things that are both shocking and thrilling.

Another thing that makes the movie sing is the fantastic characterization by Safdie and Bronstein. Almost every person who is given a speaking line in the film has a moment where they pop, which speaks to airtight dialogue that the writers have created. Characters will be introduced and then disappear for long stretches of time, and yet because they make such an impression the first time they’re on screen, it’s easy to pick up their thread right away.

Safdie, as he’s done previously with brother Bennie (Uncut Gems), calls on a host of well-known non-actors or people with interesting faces/vibes to inhabit supporting roles, and to a person they are crucial to the film’s success. O’Leary (of Shark Tank fame), rapper Tyler the Creator, director Ferrara, magician Penn Jillette, and fashion designer Isaac Mizrahi each deliver knockout performances. The relative unknowns who play smaller roles are just as impressive, making each beat of the film feel naturalistic.

Leading the way is the powerhouse performance by Chalamet. For one person to believably play both the famously reserved Dylan and also a firecracker like Marty is astonishing, and this role cements Chalamet’s status as his generation’s movie star. A’zion is a rising star who gets great moments as Marty’s on-again/off-again love interest. Paltrow pops in and out of the film, lighting up the screen every time she appears. Fran Drescher as Marty’s mom and Sandra Bernhard as a neighbor also pay dividends in small roles.

Josh Safdie’s first solo directorial effort is unlike any other movie this year, or maybe even this century. Thanks to its breakneck storytelling, a magnificent performance by Chalamet, and countless intangibles that Safdie employs expertly, the film smacks viewers in the face repeatedly and demands that they come back for more.

---

Marty Supreme opens in theaters on December 25.

movies film