‘Why We Hate’ Premieres on Discovery
Society with a ‘Spielberg-ian’ ending: Here is a bit of irony for you — at the time of writing this, the trailer for Discovery’s brand-new, six-part, Spielberg-led mini-series “Why We Hate” had just one comment with two replies — two people calling each other names.
For the past four years, Discovery has been in cahoots with the man who is quantifiably one of the greatest directors of all time — Steven Spielberg (“Lincoln,” 2012). He and Alex Gibney (“The Clinton Affair”), Geeta Gandbhir (“I Am Evidence,” 2017) and Sam Pollard (“American Masters”) have created the short docuseries titled “Why We Hate,” airing Sunday, Oct. 13, on Discovery. The show plans to delve into both modern and historical situations where hate reigned supreme in order to learn from past mistakes and move forward as a changed society.
Nazis, slavery and white supremacy are just a few of the situations explored, but unfortunately those terrible things don’t only fall under the historical category. The white supremacist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, occurred just last August, and an estimated 40.3 million people are in slavery today.
The “Why We Hate” team wants us to be faced with our failures as a species and, more importantly, as human beings, then dive deep into those failures rather than sweeping them under the rug. Interwoven between images of a brain scan, monkeys fighting in the jungle, riots and fist fights, “Why We Hate” asks vital questions such as: Where does hate come from? How does it start? What fuels it?
Spielberg’s plan is for us to uncover the mystery behind our actions and learn from them; if we hide from what we were, it will remain what we are. One can only hope that our society will go the way so many other things directed by Spielberg do — despite everything seeming to head towards certain destruction and horrible consequences, the pieces fall into place by the end and it all turns out OK.
Went hunting, got hunted: I really can’t tell if Travel Channel is prompting people to travel more or less with its series “These Woods Are Haunted.” I know I won’t be planning any vacations that involve stays in cabins, caves, woods or mountains any time ... ever.
The short, nine-episode first season of “These Woods Are Haunted” featured more than enough ghosts, demons and bigfoots to keep me in hotels for the rest of my life, but who doesn’t love a good old-fashioned campfire ghost story? The people on the show claim to be retelling their true stories about “real” things that happened to them. I’m the type of person who’s inclined to believe these stories, feel horrible for people who had to experience such terror, confusion and doubt, and then get some good mileage out of the phrase “better you than me.”
The darkness, unfamiliarity and general creepiness of the freaky places in “These Woods Are Haunted” can play tricks on the mind, but whether you choose to believe in Occam’s Razor or the Occult, this Travel Channel series is really fun to watch. Part of what makes the show interesting is the reality factor — these people truly believe they were chased by hell hounds or possessed. Do you think you can tell the difference between the truth and someone who believes their own lie? Even if you are a skeptic, give the creepy, paranormal reality series “These Woods Are Haunted” a chance when Season 2 premieres Monday, Oct. 14, on Travel Channel.
Studio renovations: “Inside the Actors Studio” has been running for 22 seasons with the incomparable James Lipton (“Return to Peyton Place”) in the interviewer’s seat.After more than 24 years of the series, Lipton stepped down from the stage at the Michael Schimmel Center for the Arts and now Ovation intends to continue his legacy with a bit of a different format.
For many, there isn’t anyone on this planet who could replace Lipton, and so Ovation has called out to many different actors to interview each other and act as host instead. Not much information has been released about the all-new 23rd season yet, but we do know that it will feature Alec Baldwin (“BlaKkKlansman,” 2018), Ellen Burstyn (“The Tale,” 2018), Jane Lynch (“Hollywood Game Night”) and Al Pacino (“Once Upon a Time... In Hollywood,” 2019).
It remains to be seen how the new hosts will try to fit into what I’m sure is a very deep groove in James Lipton’s chair, but these people are artists, legends and prodigies in their field, so I think they’re going to do just fine. Variety’s “Actors on Actors” has been going remarkably well, and the new plan for “Inside the Actors Studio” is a similar format, though the audience that takes part in “Inside the Actors Studio” makes the atmosphere of the two shows very different.
Catch the rebooted “Inside the Actors Studio” premiere Sunday, Oct. 13, on Ovation.