Minneapolis police documentary 'Women in Blue,' and four other things our TV critic is watching this week
February 5, 2021 at 2:22PM
"Women in Blue" investigates the Minneapolis Police Department, specifically its woeful record in hiring women for key positions. Former Chief Janeé Harteau is among the many faces that will be familiar to locals. The best parts of the "Independent Lens" documentary are when it delves into officers' personal lives, notably when it captures a heart-to-heart talk between a sergeant and her teenage daughter. If only the film had more of those moments.
9 p.m. Monday, TPT, Ch. 2
24
"Life in a Day 2020" offers film snippets from over 300,000 submissions to chronicle life on Earth, specifically on July 25. The fast-paced documentary, which includes lots of global reaction to the pandemic, feels like it's more intent on being preserved in a time capsule than engaging the audience. Ridley Scott is among the executive producers.
Streaming on YouTube Originals
Tulsa time
"Goin' Back to T-Town," narrated by Ossie Davis, looks at the rise and fall of Greenwood, an area in Tulsa, Okla., where Black entrepreneurs thrived until white supremacists stepped in. PBS first aired this powerful documentary in 1993, but it is wisely showing it again to mark the 100th anniversary of the riots that destroyed a dream.
8 p.m. Tuesday, TPT, Ch. 2
Paint by numbers
"Black Art: In the Absence of Light," which celebrates African American painters and sculptors, is the next best thing to visiting a museum, with gorgeous examples of works that have too often been overlooked. Director Sam Pollard, who also helped produce "T-Town," crams in a lot of fascinating history, but you'll wish the camera would linger a bit longer on the art.
8 p.m. Tuesday, HBO
Sympathy for the devil
"Devil May Care," in which an eager-to-please social media manager becomes Satan's right-hand man, has plenty to say about the living's obsession with Instagram, but the animated series is at its best when it skewers figures who were around long before we were all plugged in. The most hilarious example: The most diabolical figure in Hell is William McKinley.
11 p.m. Saturday, Syfy
Neal Justin
Critics’ picks for entertainment in the week ahead.
