Top picks for TV shows to watch this week
Settle in for a great week of TV watching and streaming:
‘Willie Nelson’s 90th Birthday Celebration’
Anyone who has seen Nelson in concert recently knows he pretty much sticks to the same set list. But a birthday bash at Los Angeles’ Hollywood Bowl provided the legend a perfect excuse to go off script. Highlights from the twoday event in April that will air Sunday include Keith Richards joining in on “Live Forever” and Sheryl Crow dueting on “Far Away Places.” While it’s a jam-packed special, it’s too bad that sets from Neil Young, Lyle Lovett and Dwight Yoakam didn’t make the final cut. 8:30 p.m. Sunday, CBS
‘Friends & Family Christmas’
The latest Hallmark Channel holiday flick includes all the standards: tree shopping, hot chocolate, one final smooch at the end. But the movie
stands out because the main lovebirds are both female — a “twist” that once seemed unfathomable for the cable network. The fact that the bubbly characters don’t make a big deal out of a same-sex courtship makes it even
more special. 8 p.m. Sunday, Hallmark
‘American Symphony’
This documentary shows how former “Late Show” bandleader Jon Batiste has struggled offstage, dealing with depression
and supporting his wife as she battled cancer. If you weren’t already eager to see Batiste live, you will be after watching this film. Netflix
‘May December’
Former Oscar-winners
Natalie Portman and Julianne Moore may very well be in the running for more awards thanks to their performances in this Todd Haynes drama about women who are tougher — and sneakier — than they first appear. Portman plays an actor doing research before taking on the role of a woman (Moore) who went to jail for having an affair with a 13-yearold boy. Your sympathies bounce back and forth between the characters until you don’t know whose side to take. It’s a complicated, fascinating quandary. Netflix
‘Archie’
Jason Isaacs nails both the look and voice of Cary Grant in this four-part docudrama about the screen legend, from his childhood days in vaudeville to his death in Davenport, Iowa. Too much of the story focuses on his marriage to Dyan Cannon (it’s based on her book) but the running time allows for plenty of nods to famous films (“North by Northwest”) and friends (George Burns). Film lovers will gobble it all up. Britbox