‘Hemingway’ separates man from myth
Dueling Papas: Tune in to PBS on Monday, April 5, to catch the premiere of the new Ken Burns (“The Central Park Five,” 2012) and Lynn Novick (“Frank Lloyd Wright,” 1998) minidocuseries, “Hemingway.” Detailing the professional, public and private lives of the great American author in a way that only Burns’ veteran documentarian style could, the three-part, sixhour documentary film chronicles the dichotomy between the myth the man created and the man himself.
Over the course of the 61 years he lived before taking his own life at his cabin in Ketchum, Idaho, Ernest Hemingway made quite a name for himself. Known largely for his literary works — classics such as “The Old Man and the Sea,” “The Sun Also Rises” and “A Farewell to Arms,” to name a few — Hemingway created a persona that to this day remains unmatched by many others. From his boxing, drinking, ladies’ man, tough-guy bravado to his adventures bullfighting in Spain, hunting on African safari and fighting during World War I in Italy, the real Hemingway has become bound to the myth he perpetuated. Now, 60 years after his death, it’s become more difficult than ever to distinguish between the two.
Using carefully selected pieces of his novels, letters, photographs and other pieces of nonfiction, Burns notes that the documentary’s aim is “to show how flawed our assumptions about Ernest Hemingway and his writing have been.” Featuring the voices of Jeff Daniels (“The Purple Rose of Cairo,” 1985) as Hemingway, and those of Mary-Louise Parker (“Weeds”), Keri Russell (“Waitress,” 2007), Patricia Clarkson (“The Green Mile,” 1999) and Oscar winner Meryl Streep (“The Devil Wears Prada,” 2006) as his four wives, “Hemingway‘’ brings the legend back to life and “offer[s] viewers an honest portrayal of a complex and conflicted writer who left an indelible mark on literature” (per Burns via PBS).
Don’t miss a minute of the man they call “Papa” when the Burns and Novick docuseries, “Hemingway,” premieres Monday,April 5, on PBS.
Brutal history: Go on a journey unlike any other as Raoul Peck (“I Am Not Your Negro,” 2016) brings European Colonial nonfiction to life in “Exterminate All the Brutes.” Premiering Wednesday,April 7, on HBO, this fourepisode docuseries explores the path to the New World, the history of genocide, conquest, slavery and the creation of “Whiteness.”
Mining the majority of his research from Sven Lindqvist’s 2007 masterpiece of the same name, Michel-Rolph Trouillot’s “Silencing the Past” and Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz’s “An Indigenous People’s History of the United States,” Peck blends documentary footage, uniquely animated scenes and scripted segments starring Josh Hartnett (“Pearl Harbor,” 2001) to shine a light on some of the worst atrocities ever executed by human beings against other human beings.
Debuting on the network with two back-to-back episodes (and the remaining two airing back-to-back the following day), “Exterminate All the Brutes” dives into the history of genocide as a colonialist tactic and how this ideology persists within the confines of white supremacy and privilege.The series’ release is timed to correspond with the International Day of Reflection on the 1994 Genocide in Rwanda (April 7).
In an official news release announcing the project, Peck noted the toll this project took on him, saying, “It forced me to question not only our common knowledge but also my own experience as a filmmaker. I’m excited that HBO is supporting that vision.”
Don’t miss this important piece of documentary history when it airs in two back-to-back events on Wednesday and Thursday,April 7-8, on HBO and its streaming services.
Another ‘Guilded’ age: Awards season isn’t over yet, folks! The 27th annual Screen Actors Guild Awards are coming to Los Angeles’ Shrine Auditorium on Sunday,April 4, and TNT and TBS are airing all the action live for your home-viewing pleasure.
Honoring the best on-screen performances from Jan. 1, 2020, to Feb. 28, 2021, this year’s SAG Awards are going to be ones to remember. Leaving aside the obvious coronavirus-related struggles that have plagued studios, actors and the world at large this past year, the nominees list includes four possible wins (two solo, two ensemble cast) for the late Chadwick Boseman (for each of the 2020 films “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom” and “Da 5 Bloodz”).
In addition to Boseman’s posthumous recognition, SAG nominees include the casts of 2020 films “Minari,” “One Night in Miami” and “The Trial of the Chicago 7,” lead female performances by Amy Adams (for “Hillbilly Elegy,” 2021), Viola Davis (for “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom,” 2020), Vanessa Kirby (for “Pieces of a Woman,” 2020), Frances McDormand (for “Nomadland,” 2020) and Carey Mulligan (for “Promising Young Woman,” 2020); and leading male performances by Riz Ahmed (for “Sound of Metal,” 2019), Anthony Hopkins (for “The Father,” 2020), Gary Oldman (for “Mank,” 2020) and Steven Yeun (for “Minari,” 2020).Television series nominations also include nods to “Ted Lasso,” “Ramy,” “Ozark,” “The Flight Attendant,” “Dead to Me,” “Bridgerton,” “Better Call Saul,” “The Crown,” “The Great‘’ and popular Canadian comedy series “Schitt’s Creek,” while the TV movies and miniseries category is seeing nominations for “Hamilton” (2020), “The Undoing,” “I May Destroy You,” “The Good Lord Bird,” “I Know This Much Is True,” “Mrs. America,” “Little Fires Everywhere” and the Netflix sensation “The Queen’s Gambit.”
So, make your wagers and tune in to either TNT or TBS to see how the results play out at this year’s SAG Awards, airing live Sunday, April 4, on both networks.