‘Perfect Getaway’ Fades Into Predictability
“The Perfect Getaway” (ABC at 9) is one of those TV movies that has an appealing cast and an adequate script, but somehow manages to add up to less than the sum of its parts.
Adrian Pasdar (“Profit”) stars as part-time helicopter stunt pilot Colt Erikson, who is all but engaged to a beautiful woman (Kelly Rutherford, “Melrose Place”) from a well-to-do family. She’s been patiently waiting for him to get his helicopter charter service off the ground so they’ll have the means to get married.
But plans are turned upside down when Colt and his copter are skyjacked by a woman (Alicia Coppola, “Another World”) who has him swoop down into a prison exercise yard and spring her inmate-boyfriend (Antonio Sabato Jr., “General Hospital”).
A convoluted but somewhat believable plot unfolds that explains why Erikson was picked as the pilot. The three evade the law and head off to a deserted church, where the convict has hidden $2 million in stolen cash. Erikson’s girlfriend, naturally, takes it upon herself to find them.
After the helicopter stunts in the first half of the movie, “Getaway” fades away into a lot of predictable cat-and-mouse babble, police-manhunt blah-blah-blah and the inevitable attempted double cross.
By then, you’ll be planning a getaway to another network.
Highlights
“Olympics,” CBS at 8: Among the events available for coverage: figure skating (men’s short program); Alpine skiing (men’s super G, women’s downhill preview); speedskating (men’s 1,500m); cross-country skiing (men’s 10k classic); hockey (men’s preview); snowboarding (men’s and women’s halfpipe). Late-night coverage, which includes men’s live hockey action between the U.S. and Sweden, begins at 12:35 a.m.
“Friends,” NBC at 8: Helen Hunt and Leila Kenzle (“Mad About You”) guest star in a two-part episode from 1995 that concludes next week. Much of the story surrounds a case of mistaken identity resulting from Phoebe and her twin sister Ursula the waitress (seen in “Mad”), both of whom are played by Lisa Kudrow. A “Seinfeld” repeat follows at 8:30.
“ER,” NBC at 9: Also from 1995 is the series premiere of TV’s top-rated drama. Fans will remember that Greene (Anthony Edwards) is married and under pressure to take a high-paying job in private practice; Ross (George Clooney) is a mess, showing up for work drunk; Hathaway (Julianna Margulies), thanks to Ross, is at the end of her rope; and Benton (Eriq La Salle) is set to perform his first surgery. Noah Wyle and Sherry Stringfield also star, and Miguel Ferrer guest stars as a fragile cancer patient.
Cable Calls
“Sun Valley Serenade” (1941), AMC at 6:30: For a nostalgic alternative to the Olympics you can catch Sonja Henie in this musical set in the Rockies. Henie plays a skating war refugee traveling with her foster father (John Payne) a member of the Glenn Miller orchestra. Miller and the band play “Chattanooga Choo-Choo” and “In the Mood,” enough reason alone to tune in. Milton Berle, Joan Davis and Dorothy Dandridge co-star.
Talk Time
“Tonight,” NBC at 11:35: Kim Delaney (“NYPD Blue”) and Kobe Bryant of the NBA Los Angeles Lakers.
“Late Show With David Letterman,” CBS at 11:35: Actor-comedian Adam Sandler and animal expert Jack Hanna.
“Politically Incorrect With Bill Maher,” ABC at 12:05 a.m.: Actress Christine Lahti and author Dinesh D’Souza.
“Late Night With Conan O’Brien,” NBC at 12:35 a.m.: Singer-songwriter Paul Simon.