Love is the law
David E. Kelley, TV's chief defender of law dramas ("Boston Public," "The Practice," "Ally McBeal"), is back in the courtroom. In "Goliath," Billy Bob Thornton is a once brilliant litigator who now holds office hours in a dimly lit Miami bar. He takes on his former firm, whose payroll includes ex-wife Maria Bello. As usual, Kelley's scripts are littered with cliches and the case should be thrown out on logistical grounds, but there's no denying the thrill of watching Thornton — and William Hurt as his rival — playing mock trial.
Now streaming on Amazon Prime
The body electric
Hard to believe there hasn't been a major movie about Nikola Tesla, the troubled scientist whose lack of street smarts kept him from getting full credit for changing the world. "Tesla," a new edition of "American Experience," makes the case for his underappreciated status and lays the groundwork for a Hollywood treatment. Joaquin Phoenix would be perfect as the sometimes charming, often impossible genius who had his finger on the mysteries of electricity but couldn't figure out how to pay his rent.
8 p.m. Tuesday, TPT, Ch. 2
Mind games
"House" star Hugh Laurie puts his fake medical license to use as a frazzled neuropsychiatrist drawn into a seedy world in "Chance," which has been guaranteed a second season. The plot — innocent man gets taken down slippery slope by femme fatale — would have delighted Howard Hawks or Alfred Hitchcock, although both directors would have encouraged Laurie to show a little more of his charm.
Starts streaming Wednesday on Hulu
Neal Justin
