Anything for a laugh
No sitcom in the past four years has delivered more solid laughs per minute than "Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt," which has just dropped its final seven episodes. Creators Tina Fey and Robert Carlock exit as they entered, using every weapon in their well-stocked comedy arsenal. Some of the material feels dated — do we really need a one-hour spoof of the 1998 movie "Sliding Doors"? — but the brilliant cast, led by the unsinkable Ellie Kemper, makes every zinger feel fresh as a daisy.
Now streaming on Netflix
L.A. story
If James Ellroy had decided to tell a coherent tale about the seedy side of Los Angeles in the 1960s, he might have come up with "I Am the Night." It's an addictive if sometimes cornball miniseries about a lost teenager and a disgraced journalist who cross paths with a creepy socialite who may be responsible for the Black Dahlia murder. For every juicy bit of dialogue, there's a real groaner, but director Patty Jenkins and her "Wonder Woman" star Chris Pine always leave you with the impression that you're listening to the Gospel According to Billy Wilder.
8 p.m. Monday, TNT
A little less conversation
Eugene Jarecki takes viewers on the ultimate rock 'n' roll road trip in "The King," visiting Elvis Presley's old haunts in the late legend's 1963 Rolls-Royce. The documentary works best when celebrities such as Emmylou Harris and Ethan Hawke wax poetic, but the journey stalls every time Jarecki forces Presley's legacy to serve as an allegory for modern times.
10 p.m. Monday, TPT, Ch. 2
Neal Justin
