IN MY VIEW W
Matthew Vice
E have a brand-new show to look forward to on Monday at 18:00 on the somewhat overcrowded M-Net channel 101. It’s called Trial and
Error and it’s a parody of the those true-crime documentary shows. It stars an ensemble cast, most notably John Lithgow, and I’m always up for some Lithgow comedy — although the abiding memory I have of Lithgow isn’t a comedic one at all. It’s his role in Twilight Zone: The Movie. If you’ve seen it, you’ll know which bit I’m talking about: “There’s a man on the wing of this plane!” If you haven’t see it, well, maybe you should. It’s one of the best examples of Hitchcockian suspense-building I’ve ever seen.
I saw it on TV when I was a kid at my grandparents’ house, of all places, and it may have scarred me for a while. But it’s a nice scar and I own the DVD now. But I digress. In Trial and Error (cast pictured), Lithgow plays Larry Henderson, a man on trial for the murder of his wife. His defence attorney is junior lawyer Josh Segal (Nicholas D’Agosto from Masters of Sex), who is looking to make a name for himself by winning a high-profile case for a client more concerned that the cable guy never showed up than that his wife was murdered. And the judge in the case is one Judge E Horsedich. That should give you an idea about the kind of humour we’re dealing with here — although the actress’s real name isn’t much better: Patricia Belcher. A new drama series starts on e.tv this week. It’s called Broken Vows (Monday to Friday, 20:00) and it’s about a family-owned wedding-planning business in Midrand. It’s called Yours Truly Wedding Planners and is run by Moswane family matriarch Mam Gertrude and her two daughters. Apparently they’re so good at what they do, they even offer damage control for the weddings, including calming the monstersin-law, dealing with bridezillas and warming cold feet.
But there are dark secrets lurking underneath all the success, and they seem likely to be exposed when Mam Gertrude’s estranged husband shows up. The e.tv announcement on their website said they wanted to keep a tight lid on the cast, except for Mam Gertrude, who is played by former Zama Zama game show host Nomsa Nene.
On Wednesday at 9pm on SABC3 is Uyanda: It’s On ,a fashion magazine lifestyle show. Hosted by Ayanda Mbuli (above), we follow her as she jets around the globe exploring the world’s fashion capitals and just looking fabulous.
Also on Thursday, at 19:30, we have Thula’s Vine, a 13-part drama series about disgraced radio host Thula (Renate Stuurman) who returns to her family’s rural vineyard to escape the fallout from her affair with a married politician — only to find she has just as many troubles there, including reconnecting with her white father and black mother and making peace between her warring siblings. Then on Friday at 19:30 there’s
Soap on a Rope, another local drama series. This one is a comedy drama about drama, focusing on a struggling local soap opera titled Hard Bodies and the actors and producers who are trying to make sure it stays on the air. Perhaps they should start by changing its name?
They offer damage control for weddings, including calming the monsters-in-law and dealing with bridezillas