■ Alan Partridge
In this hilarious 2013 comedy, Steve Coogan plays a DJ in love with the sound of his own voice, a talk-show host juggling the banalities of contemporary life. Alan Partridge is a tale of white-collar anxiety as a profits-only corporation buys the radio station, spewing jargon about “change” and “reimagining” while firing veteran employees. The DJ becomes a fish in hot water when police tap him to negotiate with a disgruntled downsized employee-turned-hostage taker.
■ Back in Crime
French police inspector Kemp notices that everything looks a little different. Ashtrays stand in his apartment building lobby, and he restrains his shock upon recognizing himself (as he was 20 year earlier) leaving for work. In a cleverly told police procedural with a time-travel twist, Kemp pays for his hotel and meals by betting on horses he recalls as winners, and tries to help his younger self to thwart the murders he knows will soon occur.
■ Weekend of a Champion
The star of the 1971 Monaco Grand Prix, Formula One racer Jackie Stewart, spent the weekend of the event in the company of his friend, Roman Polanski. Documentary filmmaker Frank Simon recorded their conversations along with the race itself. Captured are the close confines of the Grand Prix, held on the city’s winding streets, putting audience and drivers in the lap of danger. Weekend of a Champion concludes with Stewart and Polanski reminiscing in the present.
■ “Chased by Dinosaurs”
In this three-episode BBC-TV series, a garrulous “biologist adventurer” goes on a journey through time to the age of the dinosaurs. His romp through the Mesozoic is a mildly entertaining set-up for an intro lesson on the great reptiles that once roamed the Earth. In episode one, he has a mystery to solve: What manner of creature could have possessed a 28-inch claw? The computer imagery is first rate, populating the screen with hopping, squealing monsters.
