‘The Departed’ offers many twists
Tonight’s must-see
“The Departed” (2006), 8 p.m., HBO. Cops and robbers have rarely seemed as complex or as fascinating as they do here.
Two tough Boston guys work opposite ends: One (Matt Damon) pretends to be an honest cop; the other (Leonard DiCaprio) pretends to be a crook.
Deceptions pile up, boosted by a great cast that includes Jack Nicholson, Martin Sheen and Alec Baldwin.
“Departed” gets too clever at times, with too many twists. Still, it’s a great movie.
It won the Academy Award for best picture, plus ones for director Martin Scorsese, the script (adapted from a Japanese film) and the editing.
Today’s might-see
“Bunnytown” debut, 11 a.m., Disney Channel. Think of this as a “Laugh-In” for pre-schoolers. It zips between songs and sketches – usually by bunny puppets, occasionally by people.
One clown sketch misfires, but the music is surprisingly good and the whole thing is great fun.
Other choices tonight include
“CSI: NY,” 8 p.m., CBS. A United Nations dinner had a French-revolution theme; someone made it way too realistic, poisoning a guest. Now Mac must clear diplomatic hurdles, before investigating.
“Bionic Woman,” 8 p.m., NBC. Someone has a list of secret agents. Jaime has to get it back; she’s working with Tom (Jordan Bridges), the guy she was attracted to while going undercover at a college.
Movies, 8 p.m., cable or satellite. Take your pick of strong choices: “The Wizard of Oz” (1939, TBS) is a classic for kids or grown-ups. “Cool Hand Luke” (1967, AMC) is a tough prison-camp tale, with Paul Newman at his best. “Mission Impossible 2” (2000, TNT) has John Woo’s full-throttle direction, partly making up for an overblown story.
“The Bourne Identity” (2002), 8 p.m., USA Network. Here’s another strong movie, this one with Matt Damon as an amnesiac eluding killers. With a VCR and “Departed,” you have a Damon double feature.
“Criminal Minds,” 9 p.m., CBS. Three women are held captive and told they must decide which one will be killed.
“Chuck,” 9 p.m., NBC. While on a mission at his old college, Chuck learns about his own past and why he was thrown out of the school.
“A&E Rocks: Bon Jovi,” 10 p.m., A&E. The Bon Jovi rock band has freshened its career by adding a Nashville flavor to its “Lost Highway” album. For this special, it plans to do the entire album.
“Saturday Night Live,” 11:29 p.m., NBC. Plans had called for The Rock to host. That became iffy Monday, when the Writers Guild went on strike.
Sunday’s must-see
“How the Grinch Stole Christmas,” 7:30 p.m., TBS. Is it really Christmas time already? Apparently because the Disney Channel also has “The Santa Clause” at 8 p.m.
Sunday’s must-see II
“Desperate Housewives,” 9 p.m., ABC. Last week brought big changes. Lynette learned she’s cancer-free; Danielle had her baby.
Other tangles linger: Carlos re-hid his money and left Edie, who told Victor about the Carlos-Gabrielle affair. Tonight, Victor confronts Gabrielle about her affair; also, Bree tells Susan that Mike might be addicted to drugs.
Sunday’s other choices include
“Chicken Run” (2000), 5:45 p.m., and “The Wizard of Oz,” 8 p.m. (1939), TBS. Sandwich these around “Grinch” and you have a remarkable stretch of family fun. Alert your VCR.
“The Simpsons,” 8 p.m., Fox. When Millhouse’s parents are lost at sea he decides to mature and be an adult.
“Nature: The Cheetah Orphans,” 8 p.m., KSPS. Simon King has filmed African wildlife for 20 years. When he found two cheetah orphans, he raised them then nudged them into the wild.
“Cold Case,” 9 p.m., CBS. The bodies of four boys, who disappeared years apart, have been found in storage units.
“Masterpiece Theatre: The Amazing Mrs. Pritchard,” 9 p.m., KSPS. In a daring move, the prime minister bans most private-car use on Wednesdays. Meanwhile, family and political crises grow.
“It Was One of Us,” 9 p.m., Lifetime. At a reunion, five college friends share dark secrets – then find that one of them is blackmailing the others. This story starts poorly, with the kind of exaggerated girl-talk dialog you might get in a coffee commercial. It develops into a fairly interesting mystery, thanks to the likability of Jordan Ladd, Sarah Brown, Elisa Donovan, Marissa Winokur and Kira Clavell.
“Shark,” 10 p.m., CBS. A sniper is shooting cars on the Los Angeles freeway. The mayor demands a quick arrest.
Also note: Some viewers get the Smithsonian Channel, which has the Veterans Day debut of “Remembering Vietnam: The Wall at 25” at 8 and 11 p.m.; others can catch it at www.smithsonianchannel.com. The strength of this documentary is its thoroughness, rushing between stories involving the Vietnam memorial. The weakness is that it tries to do too much in one crowded hour.