TUESDAY’S BEST PICKS
8 PM ( TCM) MOVIE My Journey Through French Cinema On this Bastille Day, French director Bertrand Tavernier (“Coup de Torchon”) proves an amiable aesthetic travel guide as he looks back at his country’s cinematic history, with a largely subjective focus on some 1930s-50s classics. At more than three hours in duration, this documentary is a little exhausting, if not truly exhaustive, but the sheer emotional impact some of these films clearly have had on Tavernier is deeply touching. The film also offers portraits of such masters as Jean Renoir, Jean-Luc Godard, Francois Truffaut and Claude Chabrol, among others.
9 PM ^ Frontline The 2003 invasion of Iraq and the war that followed hasn’t lacked for coverage by Western filmmakers, but award-winning director James Bluemel’s new documentary “Once Upon a Time in Iraq” promises a different perspective. The film is constructed of eyewitness accounts from Iraqis from all different backgrounds, who share their stories of what it meant to survive those violent years from the fall of Saddam Hussein to the end of the Islamic State Group.
9 PM G Alice Wetterlund: My Mama
Is a Human and So Am I Performing before a live audience in Denver, comic and actress Alice Wetterlund (“People of Earth”) delivers a set that’s a comedic tour de force, spanning topics ranging from alcoholism and her chronic problems with peeping Toms to the complexities of rearing cats and the secret alien conspiracy behind new country music.
9 PM ( BRV) Million Dollar Listing Los
Angeles The new episode “Storm the
Castle” finds Tracy trying to balance her new portfolio with her incredibly demanding developer, who has sky-high expectations and a decidedly stormy history of working with Josh Altman. Elsewhere, James and David are up against both a business deadline and Mother Nature’s body clock to find their pregnant client her dream home before she goes into labor.
9 PM ( HBO) Showbiz Kids Best known for his iconic comedy work with Keanu Reeves in the “Bill & Ted” movie series, former juvenile actor-turned-filmmaker Alex Winter directed this new 2020 film, which throws a spotlight on children who grow up in the world of show business. Becoming famous at an early age brings with it both advantages and drawbacks, as illustrated through interviews with some of the most famous former child stars in the world, including Henry Thomas (“E.T. the Extraterrestrial”), Mara Wilson (“Mrs. Doubtfire”) and Wil Wheaton (“Stand by Me”).
9 PM ( OWN) Greenleaf Grace (Merle Dandridge) hopes her family’s luck may be turning when she finds a key informant who can provide important answers for her investigation into Bob Whitmore’s (Beau Bridges) old company, Edenvale Landing, in the new episode
“The Fourth Day.” At the church, preparations for the last Sunday service at Calvary turn contentious when Charity (Deborah Joy Winans) stands her ground against Phil and Judee (Sean Blakemore, Valerie Jane Parker). Bishop (Keith David) takes the matter of the house into his own hands.
10 PM ( USA) Dirty John This true-crime
anthology drama series concludes
Season 2 — which has revolved around the Betty Broderick case — with a finale called “Perception Is Reality.” Betty (Amanda Peet) has found it possible to avoid confronting the reality of her actions, thanks to a wave of support from strangers, but ultimately the time arrives for her to face the music. Christian Slater also stars.