Top Gear
As this irreverent British auto show begins a new season, it makes a grudging bow to “green” technology—in the form of a green-colored car. Then the hosts get down to business: staging a soccer game played in Toyota Aygo; seeing whether a Range Rover Sport can outmaneuver
a British tank; and heaping scorn on cars they consider “uncool.” An American version of the series is in the works. Monday, July 14, at 8 p.m., BBC America
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Wide Angle: Birth of a Surgeon
Wide Angle travels to Mozambique to look at a radical solution to the nation’s acute shortage of doctors: teaching midwives to perform surgery. Cameras follow one student from surgical training in the capital city of Maputo to her baptism by fire in a tiny rural clinic, where she performs a life-saving Caesarean section. Tuesday, July 15, at 9 p.m., PBS; check local listings
The Cleaner
Like Saving Grace, this new series turns redemption into grist for melodrama, as Benjamin Bratt plays the head of a team that performs guerrilla interventions on addicts. The show has a far-fetched premise—Bratt argues constantly with God about his own issues—but the actor seems relaxed in a role tailored to him. Battlestar Galactica’s Grace Park vamps vigorously as one of his sidekicks. Tuesday, July 15, at 10 p.m., A&E
The Art of Failure: Chuck Connelly Not for Sale
In the late 1980s, painter Chuck Connelly seemed headed for the same superstar status that contemporaries Julian Schnabel and Jean-Michel Basquiat eventually achieved. But his volatile temperament alienated gallery owners and patrons. Today thousands of his works remain unsold and he is struggling to subsist. A probing portrait of a gifted yet troubled man. Wednesday, July 16, at 11:35 p.m., HBO2
Masterpiece Mystery! Foyle’s War
In the penultimate episode of this handsomely produced series, the closing days of World War II bring shortages and traumatized veterans to coastal England, where Chief Inspector Christopher Foyle probes the murder of a much-disliked doctor and the death of a runaway German POW. Michael Kitchen plays the title role. Sunday, July 20, at 9 p.m., PBS
Other highlights
The Closer
Kyra Sedgwick’s crafty but brittle L.A. police detective conducts an arson investigation in the show’s fourth-season opener. Monday, July 14, at 9 p.m., TNT
P.O.V.
“The Last Conquistador” looks at the controversy created by a proposed monument in El Paso, Texas. Tuesday, July 15, at 10 p.m., PBS; check local listings
All listings are Eastern time.
Show of the week
China’s Stolen Children
This covertly filmed documentary reveals an epidemic that China has tried to keep secret: the kidnappings of as many as 70,000 Chinese children each year. Disturbing footage chronicles two heartbroken parents and a Chinese detective on the trail of a vanished 5-year-old boy who was enticed away by a stranger with sweets. Such cases are all too common in a nation where only one child per family is allowed, couples must have permits to have a baby, and girls are considered undesirable. One consequence, in addition to forced abortions and severe gender imbalance, is pervasive human trafficking orchestrated by organized crime. Monday, July 14, at 9 p.m., HBO
Movies on TV this week
Monday, July 14
Eastern Promises (2007)
The diary of a teen who died in childbirth entangles a London midwife with the Russian mob in this fine but violent crime drama. Naomi Watts and Viggo Mortensen star. 10 p.m., Cinemax
Tuesday
Young Frankenstein (1974)
Mel Brooks’ sendup of James Whale’s classic Frankenstein films spawned the current Broadway musical. With Gene Wilder and Peter Boyle. 10:15 p.m., FMC
Wednesday
Bull Durham (1988)
Writer-director Ron Shelton drew on his experiences in minor-league baseball for this hit comedy. Kevin Costner, Susan Sarandon, and Tim Robbins form the corners of a romantic triangle. 8 p.m., Encore
Thursday
The Brother From Another Planet (1984)
Indie auteur John Sayles serves up an urban answer to E.T. in this comic drama about a gentle extraterrestrial runaway adrift in Harlem. Joe Morton stars. 11 a.m., Flix
Friday
In the Heat of the Night (1967)
Five Oscars, including for Best Picture and Actor (Rod Steiger), went to this drama about a Mississippi sheriff and an African-American cop who team uneasily to solve a murder. 8 p.m., TCM
Saturday
Akeelah & the Bee (2006)
Sincere performances by Keke Palmer, Laurence Fishburne, and Angela Bassett highlight this drama about a girl from a tough L.A.neighborhood who sets out to become a champion speller. 2:45 p.m., Showtime
Sunday
Miller’s Crossing (1990)
Ethan and Joel Coen’s third film is a period crime drama about a war between Italian and Irish mobsters. With Gabriel Byrne, Albert Finney, and John Turturro. 7 p.m., IFC
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