FRIDAY’S BEST PICKS
10:10 AM ( STRZ) MOVIE Elizabeth God save the queen. This 1998 drama about the early years of Elizabeth I earned seven Oscar nominations, including best picture, and won for makeup. Cate Blanchett was a best actress nominee for her portrayal of the formidable English monarch.
The top-notch cast also includes Richard Attenborough, Geoffrey Rush, Christopher Eccleston, Joseph Fiennes and, in one of his last roles, John Gielgud as the pope.
8 PM ( DISN) MOVIE Upside-Down Magic Adapted from a popular children’s book series, this new fantasy movie follows the adventures of 13-yearold Nory Boxwood Horace (Izabela
Rose, “Amazing Stories”) and her best friend, Reina Carvajal (Siena Agudong, “No Good Nick”) as they enter the Sage Academy for Magical Studies. Almost immediately, Reina shines in her studies, but Nory’s wonky spellcasting, and tendency to turn herself into a creature that’s half-dragon, half-kitten, land her in a special class for those with upsidedown magic. Kyle Howard, Max Torina and Vicki Lewis also star.
8 PM ( FREE) MOVIE The Blind Side A true story that had a major boxoffice impact, this 2009 drama from director-screenwriter John Lee Hancock (“The Rookie”) became an Academy Award contender for best picture and also brought Sandra Bullock an Oscar as best actress. She and country-music star Tim McGraw play a Southern couple who take in troubled youth Michael Oher (Quinton Aaron) and give him the opportunity to become a football standout. Kathy Bates co-stars. 8 PM ( MAX) MOVIE Human Capital Screenwriter Oren Moverman (“The Dinner”) adapted a novel by Stephen Amidon for director Marc Meyers’ mercilessly nasty 2019 drama about life among the rich and soulless. Peter Sarsgaard stars as hedge-fund manager Quint Manning, who suffers a serious downturn in his fortunes, yet characteristically manages to pass along the sharpest pain to those below him on the financial food chain. The exceptional cast also includes Liev Schreiber, Marisa Tomei, Maya Hawke (“Stranger Things”) and Alex Wolff (“Hereditary”).
8 PM ( SHO) MOVIE Ex Machina Writer-director Alex Garland’s critically acclaimed 2014 psychological thriller stars Domhnall Gleeson as Caleb Smith, a gifted young coder at the world’s largest internet company, who is tasked with participating in an experiment designed to evaluate a beautiful female robot known as Ava (Alicia Vikander). Specifically, during his interactions with her, Caleb must determine whether this AI unit is capable of real thought and consciousness. However, it soon becomes evident that Ava is far more self-aware and deceptive than either Caleb or his boss (Oscar Isaac) ever imagined. 8 PM ( STRZ) MOVIE Little
Women Actress turned writer and director Greta Gerwig continued her winning streak with her glowing 2019 film adaptation (the seventh, in all) of Louisa May Alcott’s beloved 1868 novel. As star-crossed couple Jo March and Laurie Laurence, Gerwig reunited her “Lady Bird” lovebirds Saoirse Ronan and Timothée Chalamet. Emma Watson, Florence Pugh, Eliza Scanlen, Laura Dern and Meryl Streep also star in the film, which won an Academy Award for its costume design, along with Oscar nods for best picture and Ronan and Pugh as best actress and best supporting actress.
8 PM ( LMN) MOVIE The Wrong Stepfather High school principal Ellen (Vivica A. Fox) is delighted that things seem to be looking up for her faculty colleague and best friend Karen (Krista Allen) ever since the latter met Craig (Corin Nemec), an absolutely charming new college advisor. Both women start to notice some red flags, though, when this budding relationship starts moving with worrying speed, with Craig popping the question after sweeping Karen off her feet. It’s not long, however, before Karen worries Craig is the worst possible stepfather for her daughter in this 2020 thriller.
9 PM ( ESPN) NBA Basketball A clash of the two top teams in the Southwest goes down in Orlando, Fla., where
James Harden and the Houston Rockets hope to put some distance between them and their opponents tonight in Luka Doncic and Dallas Mavericks. These teams have split the first two games between them this year, both played in Houston.