Gene pool Now that it appears Gene Hackman has retired (his last movie was 2004's "Welcome to Mooseport"), we can shift into retrospective gear and enjoy a nearly 24-hour film festival in his honor. Highlights: 1974's "The Conversation" (9 p.m. today, TCM), in which Hackman proves himself a master of understatement, and the TCM debut of 1988's "Mississippi Burning" (11 p.m. today), in which the Oscar winner goes the other direction, spewing bluster and brashness.
Senior moment School is almost in session, which means it's time for high-school seniors to start worrying about college. "Acceptance" (8 p.m. Saturday, Lifetime), a new movie based on the Susan Coll book, urges kids not to sweat it so much. To stress that point, Joan Cusack was cast to play the pushy mother with her finger on the panic button. Rising star Mae Whitman shines as her tested teen daughter.
At world's end How can a talented pair like Steven Spielberg and Tom Cruise take a classic sci-fi tale, spend millions of dollars on special effects and then nearly destroy the project with a slapdash ending? You'll be left with that puzzler after watching 2005's "War of the Worlds" (7:30 p.m. Saturday, KSTP, Ch. 5), a roller-coaster ride that comes to a complete halt when it reaches its all-too-convenient conclusion.
I kissed a girl Kourtney Kardashian flirts with lesbianism in a new episode of "Kourtney and Khloe Take Miami" (9 p.m. Sunday, E!), but it obviously doesn't take, since she recently announced she's pregnant. I'm guessing she's willing to give it another shot -- as long as she can get another show out of it.
NEAL JUSTIN
