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/52934
Same Old Song TV by DEAN ROBBINS Some reality series remain exciting after a decade on the air — see last fall's Survivor for an example. Now starting its 11th year, American Idol (Wednesday & Thursday, 8 p.m., Fox) is not one of those series. We've been through this thing too many times to ex- pect any surprises during the four long months between the premiere and the finale. Host Ryan Seacrest will hype every tiny development to the max. The judges will go wild over mediocre vocal performances. Celebrities will appear to plug their new albums. The contestants will try to act humble while also pandering to voters. And at the end of the grueling process, we'll be left with a bland winner like Lee DeWyze, Kris Allen or last year's Scotty McCreery. There — I just saved you four months. Now go off and do something productive. Rob! Thursday, 8:30 pm (CBS) Rob Schneider has never been a critical favorite, but he handles himself like a pro in his new sitcom. Schneider plays a dweeb who somehow marries a Mexican American goddess (Claudia Bassols) way too good for him. That earns him the en- mity of her tight-knit family, which includes Cheech Marin as an ill-tempered father and Eugenio Derbez as a nutty uncle. As you'd guess, the series focuses on the culture clash, with gags referencing immigration, tequila, guacamole — anything vaguely Mexican. This would be tire- some — even offensive — if the acting wasn't so good, the comic rhythm so snappy. Schneider based the sitcom's premise on his own marriage to Mexican TV producer Patricia Azarcoya Arce, and maybe that's why the indignities he heaps upon himself feel so authentic. What can I say but: Pass the guacamole. Untouchable: Drew Peterson Saturday, 8 pm (Lifetime) Rob Lowe has spent years trying to make us forget about his creepy sex scandal and accept him as an ap- pealing leading man. So I give him credit for owning his creepiness and taking on the role of Drew Peterson, the cop accused of murdering wives three and four. Lowe commits to the role, big-time. He wears a blond mustache, speaks in a Chicago accent and succeeds in making us loathe him. The TV movie assumes Peterson is guilty, right on the eve of his trial. His lawyers must be outraged, but the rest of us can get a sleazy thrill watching the al- leged villain plot his misdeeds. He somehow charmed his beautiful wives (Kaley Cuoco, Cara Buono), so one can only assume that the real Peterson's mustache looked less repulsive than Lowe's. Napoleon Dynamite Sunday, 8:30 pm (Fox) The 2004 movie Napoleon Dynamite creates an alternate universe in small-town Idaho, populating it with nerds, weaklings and morons who are part real and part unreal. The deadpan tone is beautifully wrought, giving the film an absurdity all its own. If anybody could translate this tone to an animated TV series, it would be the movie's writer-directors, Jared and Jerusha Hess, along with the original cast. But the magic eludes them here. Unlike the movie, the series crudely sneers at characters who have little money or sophistication. And unlike the movie's Napoleon, the TV version (Jon Heder) acknowledges how pathetic he is. "I couldn't have chickened out with a better guy," he tells his brother as they run away from a fight. Napoleon Dynamite would never say such a thing. It feels kind of weird that we know that and the guys who created the character don't. American Idol has no more surprises in store Gpu h ! Ur Th 9vr $ ( Ur Uu $ Av Th Tqh7pu )" h !)" 8yrqHqh Sit down and enjoy award winning cuisine in our elegant dining rooms set in a historic home built in 1908. Complement your entree with a selection from our extensive wine list. 8ryrihrWhyrvr9hvu Hhxrrrhv surhrhrqvvtrrvrpr Experience our higher standards and excellence with our catering services. !# A7httShqAhrrvyyr I8( #'# %%(( uvyyurp p 20 UCW JANUARY 18-24, 2012 Cape Fear Region's Dependable Source for Business and Professional Communication Products, Systems & Service • 30 Years Experience • NEC MITEL TELEPHONE SYSTEMS • AUDIO • DATA NETWORKS VIDEO • WIRELESS NETWORKS • CABLE CAMERAS • FIBER Call Rick Lawson for a free consultation! 910.223.2526 www.cl-communications.com WWW.UPANDCOMINGWEEKLY.COM T