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Monday, Feb. 13,
9-11 a.m. EST (TCM)
"Boys Town" (1938).
Sentimental but
emotionally honest
story of how Father
Flanagan (Spencer
Tracy) built his
school for homeless
and delinquent
youths during the
Depression. Directed
by Norman Taurog,
the Hollywood
version centers on
the conflict between
the priest's
charismatic powers
of persuasion and a
street tough (Mickey
Rooney) who only
thinks he's
hard-boiled. Tracy's
Oscar-winning
performance as a
role model for those
in need of one was a
credible blend of
the idealistic and
the pragmatic. The
Catholic News
Service
classification of
the theatrical
version was A-I --
general patronage.
Not rated by the
Motion Picture
Association of
America.
Monday, Feb. 13,
6:30-7 p.m. EST (EWTN)
"Men, Women and the
Mystery of Love."
First episode of a
five-part series in
which host Edward
Sri of the Augustine
Institute in Denver
explores romantic
relationships from a
Catholic
perspective. The
series continues
nightly 6:30-7 p.m.
EST through Friday,
Feb. 17.
Monday, Feb. 13,
9-10:30 p.m. EST
(PBS) "Slavery by
Another Name." Actor
Laurence Fishburne
narrates the
little-known story
of the labor
practices and laws
that effectively
created a new form
of slavery in the
U.S. South -- one
that persisted into
the 20th century.
Filmmaker Sam
Pollard's
documentary, based
on the Pulitzer
Prize-winning book
by Wall Street
Journal senior
writer Douglas A.
Blackmon, was a
Sundance Film
Festival selection
for 2012 (TV-G --
general audience).
Tuesday, Feb. 14,
9-11 p.m. EST (PBS)
"The Interrupters."
Filmmaker Steve
James' documentary
follows a group of
former gang leaders
trying to
"interrupt"
shootings and
protect their
communities from the
violence the gangs
once committed. A
"Frontline"
presentation.
Wednesday, Feb. 15,
8-11 p.m. EST (TCM)
"The Nun's Story"
(1959). Sent by her
religious community
to be a nurse in the
Belgian Congo, a
young nun (Audrey
Hepburn) resists her
feelings of love for
the doctor (Peter
Finch) with whom she
works, returns to
Belgium and, after
struggling with the
routine of convent
life, leaves for the
world beyond the
wall. Sensitively
directed by Fred
Zinnemann, the
fact-based story
focuses on the
interior conflict
between the nun's
idealism and her
growing sense of her
own needs as an
individual.
Convincing portrayal
of religious life as
a vocation requiring
more than good
intentions. The
Catholic News
Service
classification of
the theatrical
version was A-II --
adults and
adolescents. Not
rated by the Motion
Picture Association
of America.
Friday, Feb. 17, 1-2
p.m. EST (EWTN) "A
Profile in Courage:
Fr. John F. Harvey,
OSFS." This special
examines the life of
Oblate Father John
F. Harvey
(1918-2010), the
founding director of
the Catholic
ministry Courage,
and outlines his
efforts to assist
persons with
same-sex attraction
to live in
accordance with the
teaching of the
church.
Saturday, Feb. 18, 8
p.m.-midnight EST
(AMC) "Braveheart"
(1995). Bloody
historical epic in
which 13th-century
Scotsman William
Wallace (Mel
Gibson), spurred on
by the murder of his
wife, attempts to
unite the bickering
Scottish noblemen
under Robert the
Bruce (Angus
McFadyen) in a fight
for independence
against the ruthless
English King Edward
I (Patrick McGoohan).
Also directed by
Gibson, the lavish
production focuses
on savage battles,
betrayals and
murders of revenge,
softened by a
smattering of royal
romance, but its
many scenes of nasty
brutality tend to
overwhelm this
romanticized
biography of
Scotland's national
hero. Much gory
violence on and off
the battlefield, a
few fleeting bedroom
scenes, brief nudity
and minimal rough
language. The
Catholic News
Service
classification of
the theatrical
version was L --
limited adult
audience, films
whose problematic
content many adults
would find
troubling. The
Motion Picture
Association of
America rating was R
-- restricted. Under
17 requires
accompanying parent
or adult guardian.
Saturday, Feb. 18,
9-11 p.m. EST (ABC)
"Wild Hogs" (2007).
Four middle-age
biker buddies from
suburbia (Tim Allen,
John Travolta,
Martin Lawrence and
William H. Macy)
seize the day by
taking a
cross-country road
trip and suffering
various humiliating
mishaps as they
attempt to recapture
their youthful
vitality. The
sputtering comedy of
director Walt Becker
("National Lampoon's
Van Wilder")
subjects the
audience to an
exhausting barrage
of crude humor and
off-color banter.
Pervasive crude
language, much
sexual innuendo,
rear male nudity,
fleeting images and
sounds from Internet
pornography sites,
bathroom humor, a
drug reference and
some violence. The
Catholic News
Service
classification of
the theatrical
version was A-III --
adults. The Motion
Picture Association
of America rating
was PG-13 -- parents
strongly cautioned.
Some material may be
inappropriate for
children under 13.
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