It's the rowdy victory party after a pointless battle between the forces of Sodom and Gomorrah, and Noah (Jon Voight) is looking to duck out early. "Hey," says his pal Lot (F. Murray Abraham), "aren't you staying for the orgy?" This early scene is your tip-off that Noah's Ark will not be a traditional Old Testament screen epic. First, the Book of Genesis gives no indication that Noah and Lot were acquainted. Second, that orgy line sounds more like Mel Brooks or Monty Python than Cecil B. De Mille.
Let's be clear: The comedy here is intentional. Writer Peter Barnes and director John Irvin have made a bold bid to fashion a four-hour, blockbuster mini-series that's both awesome and funny. Part 1 (pre-Flood) is entertaining, thanks largely to the barbed dialogue between Lot and his shrewish wife (Carol Kane) and the more politely amusing exchanges between Noah and his tolerant spouse (Mary Steenburgen). In Part 2, though, the ark and the story drift after the Deluge. Noah's strapping sons and their girlfriends chafe under the old man's no-sex-onboard rule, and Lot's band of brigands attacks the ark in a misguided attempt to turn a biblical saga into a pirate movie. Noah's last talks with God redeem the long voyage, though barely.
Bottom Line: Leaky boat just manages to stay afloat
CBS (Weeknights, 12:37 a.m. ET)
Craig Kilborn is sometimes described as an ironist along the lines of David Letterman, whose Late Show he now follows in the CBS lineup. After watching Kilborn's Late Late Show for a couple of weeks, I'm inclined to disagree. I suspect he really is a vain, cocksure guy—he doesn't just play one on TV.
Or maybe I've been taken in by his amazingly convincing and consistent performance. On Kilborn's new show, which replaced Tom Snyder's interview program in late March, the attitude never stops. He smirks; he preens (there was even a bit called "Let's Enjoy My Hair"); he gazes out the fake window of his set and reflects nightly on "a job well done." Kilborn's fans from his 2½ years on Comedy Central's The Daily Show may see all this as a masterly comic pose. Others may want to hit him with a can of mousse. Kilborn has furnished his new home with a few old Daily Show features, including the fast "Five Questions" quiz for guests and a satiric newscast. The former is fun; the latter is no substitute for a strong topical monologue. Such a tall, handsome host should deliver more jokes standing up.
Bottom Line: Too stuck on himself
The WB (Thursdays, 9 p.m. ET)
According to a study of racial viewing patterns released earlier this year, The Steve Harvey Show was No. 1 among blacks and No. 127 among whites for the fourth quarter of 1998 (the most recent period surveyed). Quality-wise, it ranks...somewhere in between, shall we say.
Now in its third season, the series stars Harvey (a talented comedian who doubles as host of It's Showtime at the Apollo) as Steve Hightower, a high school music teacher and former member of a popular '70s R&B group. The sitcom would be funnier if it focused on Steve's interaction with teenagers—provided the kids were portrayed with a modicum of realism. Instead, the student body is represented almost exclusively by two cartoonish goof-offs, Romeo (Merlin Santana) and Bullethead (William Lee Scott). The writers' apparent priority is to place the adults in trite situations with sexual overtones. Office assistant Lovita (Terri J. Vaughn) and gym teacher Cedric (played by the comedian known as Cedric the Entertainer) are hot for each other, while principal Regina (Wendy Raquel Robinson) pretends to be cool toward Steve. At most, I'm lukewarm about this show.
Bottom Line: C-level comedy
PBS (Sun., May 2, 10 p.m. ET)
Show of the week
It's nothing fancy, understand. Just real people, mostly sitting and talking. But this modest hour-long special offers a priceless pre-Mother's Day present: the gift of honesty. Mothers of various ages and backgrounds comment on it all—from the agony of prolonged labor to the strange quiet of the empty nest. Their words are frequently funny, sometimes sad, always frank. And occasionally, actions speak louder: With a tight smile, a martinet mother of six describes her household as "disciplined but fun"; then we see just enough of the family's life to know that her relentless war on "chaos" will never be won.
Bottom Line: Mamma mia, it's good
>Sunday, May 2 THE FIRST WIVES CLUB CBS (9 p.m. ET) Revenge is sweet for Goldie Hawn, Bette Midler and Diane Keaton in this 1996 comedy.
Monday, May 3 SUDDENLY SUSAN NBC (8 p.m. ET) Watch out for the eye gouge: Susan gets into a political battle with grappler Hulk Hogan.
Tuesday, May 4 3RD ROCK FROM THE SUN NBC (9:30 p.m. ET) There's misery in store for Dick. Kathy Bates plays an alien-hunter determined to dissect him.
Wednesday, May 5 ACADEMY OF COUNTRY MUSIC AWARDS CBS (8 p.m. ET) Garth Brooks and Dixie Chicks perform as country's best take a bow.
Thursday, May 6 ER NBC (10 p.m. ET) In an episode directed by cast member Laura Innes, a power outage has the docs in the dark.
Friday, May 7 BROTHER'S KEEPER ABC (9:30 p.m. ET) Sports agent Dena gets a hot new client, and the men in her life get jealous.
Saturday, May 8 HUSH Showtime (8 p.m. ET) Jessica Lange is extremely cruel to lovely Oscar winner Gwyneth Paltrow in this 1998 thriller.
>Norm Macdonald
Norm Macdonald isn't exactly stressing out over his new sitcom The Norm Show (Wednesdays, 9:30 p.m. ET, ABC). "I never have any pressure [on the job]," says Macdonald, 36, who plays a surly former hockey player ordered by a court to perform community service as a social worker. "I just sit in a room with a bunch of guys and tell jokes."
His last TV boss didn't even think he was particularly good at that. When NBC West Coast president Don Ohlmeyer fired Macdonald as Saturday Night live's Weekend Update anchor last year, he told him, "You're not funny." But being canned didn't faze Macdonald. "I never had any hard feelings," he says of his dismissal. "[Ohlmeyer] always seemed like a good guy."
Plus, getting fired turned out to be a smart career move. Before joining SNL in 1993, the Quebec native had a modest career as a stand-up comic and then as a writer on Roseanne. Now living alone in L.A. (he's separated from wife Connie, with whom he has son Dylan, 6), he hasn't let prime-time stardom swell his head. After all, he says, "it's not like lifting heavy furniture or anything."
- Contributors:
- Monica Rizzo.
CELINE’S INFERTILITY STRUGGLE: MY PRIVATE HEARTBREAK
Daily injections, painful tests and four failed IVF attempts: The singer, 41, reveal her dreams for a second baby. ‘I’ll try until it works’
