Up and Coming Weekly is a weekly publication in Fayetteville, NC and Fort Bragg, NC area offering local news, views, arts, entertainment and community event and business information.
Issue link: https://www.epageflip.net/i/46443
Best Western Hell on Wheels is a ripping frontier yarn TV by DEAN ROBBINS Hell on Wheels is the rare contemporary Western that actually registers as credible (Sunday, 10 p.m., AMC). The subject is the construction of the transcontinental railroad after the Civil War. That may sound prosaic, but the production has the epic quality of genre clas- sics like The Searchers and High Noon, digging into the blood-red guts of our frontier history. The tale is steeped in American sin, from slavery to government corruption to Indian genocide. As with most tales of sin, Hell on Wheels holds out the possibility of salvation — though it's unlikely to come from the church built next to a rail- road camp's makeshift whorehouse. The pilot introduces us to a rapacious businessman (Colm Meaney) who breaks every moral rule to get his railroad built; the emancipated African Americans who are still treated like slaves during construction; and Native Americans who savagely attack the intruders on their land. The most mysterious character is a Civil War veteran (Anson Mount) who's haunted by an event involving his dead wife. It's not immediately clear what happened, but whenever he hears the phrase "Meridian, Mississippi," he does something unspeakable to the person who said it. The filmmakers have a great feel for the period. You will see images and hear lines of dialogue you won't soon forget. I urge you to make time for Hell on Wheels and tell all your friends about it. Just be careful not to say the words "Meridian, Mi…" — um, never mind. Nova Wednesday, 9 pm (PBS) A four-part miniseries called "The Fabric of the Cosmos" assaults our com- mon assumptions about the universe. With help from imaginative graphics, scientists explain their current mind- bending theories about space and time. For example, all moments from the past, present and future may exist at the same time. The three-dimensional world may be just an illusion. And there may be parallel universes that contain variations of all of us — that is, our- selves with different families and careers. In some parallel universe, I hope, this blurb ends with a really funny joke. Bored to Death Monday, 9 pm (HBO) It's season three for the absurdist comedy about writer Jonathan (Jason Schwartzman), who moonlights as an unlikely private detective in New York City with help from restaurateur George (Ted Danson) and cartoonist Ray (Zach Galifianakis). I love the three main actors, and this week's episode also features impressive guest stars Mary Steenburgen, Sarah Silverman, Olympia Dukakis and Oliver Platt. Silverman plays a "friendship therapist" who uses unorthodox methods to repair the ties between Jonathan and George. "Don't apologize to the people you love!" she screams in an un-therapist-like manner. The series passes a half-hour pleasantly enough, but Jonathan Ames' scripts aren't exactly inspired. The new episode climaxes with a dumb cart chase in the grocery store as the characters throw chickens at one another. I'm sorry to say this, given my respect for the talent involved, but Bored to Death should have been a lot better than this. Oops … I forgot I'm not supposed to apologize to the people I love. Spring Semester Registration Registration for Spring Semester starts - November 1 Last day to register - January 5 Classes begin January 9 First-time or new students should check in at one of three locations: the Information Center located at the Tony Rand Student Center (Fayetteville campus), the Fort Bragg Soldier Development Center, or at the Spring Lake Campus. Current students can register online via WebAdvisor at www.faytechcc.edu or through their departmental advisors. FTCC Admissions (910) 678-8473 24 UCW NOVEMBER 2-8, 2011 WWW.UPANDCOMINGWEEKLY.COM