Netflix launches a six-part adaptation of Tom Wolfe’s 1998 novel “A Man in Full.” It arrives from prolific TV writer/producer/creator David E. Kelley.
As the 2023 documentary biography “Radical Wolfe” (also streaming on Netflix) observed, “Full” is arguably Wolfe’s last great work, an epic portrait of Atlanta power brokers considered on the level of his 1987 novel “The Bonfire of the Vanities,” which all but defined the zeitgeist of the 1980s.
Jeff Daniels stars as Charlie Crocker, a wealthy real estate mogul long associated with Atlanta’s high society, who suddenly finds himself beset with bankruptcy and legal encirclement. Diane Lane, recently seen in “Feud,” returns to form as his wife, Martha, a serene swan forced to desperately keep up appearances.
Wolfe’s books were remarkable and relevant for their near-forensic take on the details and motivations of his characters. Inspired by the works of 19th-century fictional realists like Emile Zola, “A Man in Full” captures powerful people at work and play, but also contains long, riveting passages about the punishing costs of living in near-poverty. In one scene, a character ends up in deep trouble, all for the lack of a few coins to fill a parking meter, a momentary shortfall that leads to the loss of his car, his situation and his freedom.
Such sensibilities are not necessarily in Kelley’s (“Pretty Little Liars”) wheelhouse. This prestige production is directed by Regina King and Thomas Schlamme (“ER,” “Sports Night” and “West Wing”).
— Harvey Keitel stars in the six-part adaptation of “The Tattooist of Auschwitz,” streaming now on Peacock. Sixty years after his ordeal in a Nazi camp, elderly Lale Sokolov (Keitel) hires a young, inexperienced ghost writer to recall his imprisonment and survival as a talented tattooist who marked the arms of his doomed fellow prisoners with their identification numbers. Jonah Hauer-King stars as the young Lale and Anna Prochniak stars as Gita, the woman who falls for him at first sight. A harrowing tale of collective oppression, individual survival and subsequent grief and guilt.
— Streaming on Hulu, the documentary “The Contestant” is another grim take on human cruelty and indifference. A true story, it follows a Japanese reality television star who was left naked in a room for over a year and forced to complete mundane tasks to “earn” food and other necessities, all for the “entertainment” of a voyeuristic audience.
— A celebrity vanity project that has turned into a feel-good success story and an Emmy-winning hit, “Welcome to Wrexham” (10 p.m., FX, TV-MA) enters its third season. For the uninitiated, it follows actors Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney as they become club owners of a down-and-out football (soccer) team in a Welsh city that hit hard times after the decline of the coal mining business.
— Following the prickly relationship of a hard-bitten comic (Jean Smart) and her much younger writer (Hannah Einbinder), “Hacks,” streaming on Max, also returns for a third season.
TONIGHT’S OTHER HIGHLIGHTS
— A real estate developer descends without an elevator on “Law & Order” (8 p.m., NBC, TV-14).
— Isaac’s big day on the season finale of “Ghosts” (8:30 p.m., CBS, TV-PG).
— A runaway bride has tales to tell on “Law & Order: SVU” (9 p.m., NBC, TV-14).
— A groom does not survive his posh country club wedding on “Elsbeth” (10 p.m., CBS, TV-14).
— Stabler’s status becomes uncertain on “Law & Order: Organized Crime” (10 p.m., NBC, TV-14).
CULT CHOICE
The 1971 thriller “The French Connection” (7:15 p.m., HBO Signature) was nominated for 10 Oscars and won five, including Best Picture, Director (William Friedkin) and Actor (Gene Hackman).
SERIES NOTES
The unkindest cut on “Young Sheldon” (8 p.m., CBS, TV-PG) … “Next Level Chef” (8 p.m., Fox, TV-14) … Wedding bells on “9-1-1” (8 p.m., ABC, TV-14) … Justice catches up with a predatory tennis coach “So Help Me Todd” (9 p.m., CBS, TV-14) … “Farmer Wants a Wife” (9 p.m., Fox, TV-PG) … A prisoner becomes a patient on “Grey’s Anatomy” (9 p.m., ABC, TV-14) … Vic defends the program on “Station 19” (10 p.m., ABC, TV-14).
LATE NIGHT
John Leguizamo and Laura Coates are booked on “The Late Show With Stephen Colbert” (11:35 p.m., CBS) … Jimmy Fallon welcomes Kate Hudson, Chrissy Teigen and John Legend on “The Tonight Show” (11:35 p.m., NBC) … John Mulaney and Gary Clark Jr. appear on “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” (11:35 p.m., ABC).
Adam Pally visits “Late Night With Seth Meyers” (12:35 a.m., NBC) … Taylor Tomlinson hosts Phoebe Robinson, Dewayne Perkins and Guy Branum on “After Midnight” (12:35 a.m., CBS, r).
