Couch Theater: The Fight Before Christmas
By Rachel Rose
“How to With John Wilson” (TV-MA) — Director and producer John Wilson spends a lot of time walking around New York trying to find the answers to some of life’s biggest questions. This observational docuseries returns for its second season and continues to enthrall with Wilson’s deadpan sarcasm. His uncanny ability to start out with a ridiculously boring premise and somehow have it snowball into an utterly bizarre and totally different topic than anyone ever saw coming is fascinating. His lack of polished commentary is hilariously genuine. It’s like watching a 40-year-old man present an eighth-grade school project he created on his dad’s video camera. (HBOMax)
"Passing" (PG-13) — Imagine running into a childhood friend after many years, realizing they are now living their life as a member of another race, and at that moment you are the only person who knows the truth. Based on a 1929 novel of the same name, "Passing" is the story of two black women in 1920s New York City, one of whom is living as a wealthy white woman married to a racist white man who is blissfully ignorant of his wife's true self. When Clare realizes how much she misses her former black life in Harlem, she insinuates herself into Irene's family, friends, and home there. It's an emotionally charged film that relies on silence as much as dialogue, and very effectively so. Starring Tess Thompson, Ruth Negga and Andred Holland. (Netflix)
“The Fight Before Christmas” (R) -Nothing quite quashes the good cheer of merry gentlemen like a disagreement between neighbors over what constitutes “too many” Christmas lights in one’s yard. OK, so it’s not just lights, but also a 35-person choir, and a live camel or two. Jeremy Morris is an Idaho attorney who ticked off most of his town when he attempted to produce a giant Christmas show on his own property. When his homeowners’ association said “no way” and neighbors threatened legal action, it became Morris’s life’s mission to deck the halls and trees and shrubs grandly enough to be seen from space. What followed was an explosion of ego instead of peace on earth, goodwill toward men. (AppleTV+)
"The Housewife & the Shah Shocker" (NR) — Bravo's "Housewives" franchise is always good for some drama; lucky for us, producers are quick to capitalize on the salacious legal entanglements in which some of the women find themselves. From the Salt Lake City team, Jen Shaw was arrested by federal agents earlier this year, on camera, after being investigated in a money-laundering scheme. The castmates were just embarking on a group trip together when Jen received a phone call and quickly exited without explanation. The tip wasn't enough to escape agents, though. Jen was arrested along with her assistant, charged, pled not guilty, and awaits trial. This ABC News originals special will delve further into her alleged wrongdoings, the co-ordinated arrest and what her co-stars might have known about her "business". (Hulu)