What's On
TV highlights for the week of April 20-26. All times are Eastern; check local listings. Ratings are listed for shows when available (see explanation box below).
SUNDAY - 4/20
Soccer (ABC, 2:30-5 p.m.): The United States takes on Mexico at Foxboro Stadium in Massachusetts in this qualifier for the 1998 World Cup, to be held in France.
James and the Giant Peach (Disney, 7-8:20 p.m.): Tim Burton and Henry Selick's creative retelling of Roald Dahl's 1961 children's story combines stop-motion animation and live action. James, a mistreated orphan who dreams of escaping to New York City, finds his dreams coming true thanks to help from some kindly, oversized creepy-crawlies and a large piece of fruit. Susan Sarandon and Richard Dreyfuss are among the stars giving voice to the critters. (TV-PG)
Ivanhoe (A&E, 8-10 p.m.): This A&E and BBC adaptation of Sir Walter Scott's classic has enough romance, swash, and chivalry for any fan of medieval mayhem. The epic's theme of class struggle still resonates: The Saxon warrior Sir Wilfred of Ivanhoe (Stephen Waddington) unites with King Richard, Robin Hood, and a Jewish money lender and his daughter to overcome the Norman treachery of Prince John (Ralph Brown) and Sir Brian de Bois-Gilbert (Ciaran Hinds). The first and third installments are rousing, but the second drags in places and is marred by unnecessary torture scenes. Victoria Smurfit tries hard with the drippy Rowena, and Susan Lynch's Rebecca has enough valor and honor for 10 knights. Parts 2 and 3 air Monday and Tuesday at 9 p.m. (TV-PG)
In the Gloaming (HBO, 9-10 p.m.): This drama, originally a short story in the New Yorker by Alice Elliott Dark, is getting attention for its novice director: Christopher Reeve. The story is about a young man with AIDS (Robert Sean Leonard, "Dead Poets Society"), who comes home to die and in the process manages to unlock the intimacy previously foreign to his uptight family - mother (Glenn Close), father (David Strathairn), and sister (Bridget Fonda). It is movingly told, but the script often limits the fine actors and is sprinkled with the occasional clich.
Jerusalem: City of Heaven (Discovery, 9-10:30 p.m.): Actor Liam Neeson's narration is just one of the things that makes this documentary engaging. Another is its thoughtful focus on the Jews, Christians, and Muslims that share this ancient city and their ongoing struggle to harmonize with one another. Visits to places sacred to each group, including the Western Wall, the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, and the Dome of the Rock mosque, are interspersed with history of the city and interviews with residents and tourists. The program digresses from its tasteful presentation only once when briefly showing a reenactment of Jesus' crucifixion. (TV-G)
Rose Hill (CBS, 9-11 p.m.): This season's final Hallmark Hall of Fame movie is a syrupy western based on the novel "For the Roses" by Julie Garwood. It tells the tale of an abandoned baby girl found in New York by a band of mischievous street boys headed out West, who raise their new charge as their sister. The program is family-friendly and has feel-good messages about devotion to relatives and true love. But the ease with which the boys survive the hardships of the West, and the tiresome pout and overacting of Jennifer Garner in the starring role, weighs this picture down. (TV-G)
MONDAY - 4/21
Boston Marathon (ESPN2, 11:55 a.m.-2:30 p.m.): The 101st running of the Boston Marathon will feature a matchup between last year's female winner, Uta Pippig, and Olympic gold-medalist Fatuma Roba. For the men, defending champion Moses Tanui will have to outrun three-time winner Cosmas Ndeti.
THURSDAY - 4/24
NBA Playoffs (TBS, 7 p.m.-12:30 a.m.; TNT, 8 p.m.-1 a.m.): TNT and TBS jump-start the 50th pro-ball postseason with double-headers both tonight and tomorrow.
Friends (NBC, 8-8:30 p.m.): Still Ross-less, Rachel (Jennifer Aniston) is accompanied by Tommy (guest star Ben Stiller, director of "Reality Bites" and "The Cable Guy") to the opening of an off-Broadway play starring Joey (Matt LeBlanc). (TV-PG)
FRIDAY - 4/25
The Dukes of Hazzard: Reunion! (CBS, 8-10 p.m.): There have been a few changes in Hazzard County in the last 12 years: Cooter is now a congressman. Daisy Duke (Catherine Bach), now in grad school, no longer has to paint herself into those tiny shorts. And instead of Bo (John Schneider) and Luke (Tom Wopat) racing for money to save Uncle Jesse's farm, they've got the General Lee revved up for an ecological cause: saving Hazzard Swamp from the clutches of Mama Max (Stella Stevens). Political correctness may have come to Hazzard, but fans of the tacky '80s show needn't worry: Good taste is still nowhere in sight. (TV-PG)
Fargo (Showtime, 8-9:40 p.m.): This 1996 film about a used-car salesman's get-rich-quick scheme features pitch-black humor with a Midwestern accent. Joel and Ethan Coen's Oscar-winning script combines a cautionary tale about greed and stupidity with a sendup of their hometown of Minneapolis. Frances McDormand won best actress for her role as a pregnant police chief hunting for connections between a series of murders. But be warned: Violence erupts out of nowhere. Rated R.
SATURDAY - 4/26
U2: a Year in Pop (ABC, 10-11 p.m.): Irish rockers U2 promote their eighth album, "Pop," with this show that looks at the making of the album and also features footage and music from their career. It wraps up with clips from the first stop on their 14-month tour - Las Vegas - that took place the night before.
PICK OF THE WEEK
Jerusalem: City of Heaven
Sunday, April 20, 9-10:30 p.m.
(DISCOVERY CHANNEL)
