Posted on: Friday, November 1, 2002

Tube Notes

Tonight's Must-See

"Gladiator" (2000), 8 p.m., ABC; concludes tomorrow. Long ago, Hollywood thought people had lost interest in toga epics. Then along came this beautifully crafted Oscar-winner. It begins with a smart script, portraying an honest man, surrounded by palace politics. Ridley Scott — a movie master, from "Blade Runner" to "Black Hawk Down" — directed and cast it brilliantly. The intrigue is carried out by lots of great old actors — Derek Jacobi, David Hemmings, the late Oliver Reed and the recently departed Richard Harris — plus Joaquin Phoenix as the evil young emperor. Most important is Russell Crowe in the lead. Here is a brilliant actor who underplays perfectly. He delivers a Roman variation on the strong-and-silent cowboy.

Of Note

"The Hunt for Red October" (1990), 3 p.m., TBS. Director John McTiernan ("Die Hard") directed this film beautifully, reminding us that even tight quarters can be visually commanding. The setting for this Tom Clancy tale is a nuclear submarine where Alec Baldwin is an American officer and Sean Connery is a Soviet commander who might defect.

"An Officer and a Gentleman" (1982), 7 & 11 p.m., A&E. This is big-movie night everywhere. This one, set at a naval officer candidate school, has romance (Richard Gere and Debra Winger), drama and melodrama, plus an Oscar-winning performance by Lou Gossett and an Oscar-winning song, "Up Where We Belong."

"Sea of Love" (1989), 7 & 9:30 p.m., TNT. Two great actors are in a good story. Al Pacino is a cop and Ellen Barkin is a sexy woman who seems linked to serial murders.

"Law & Order: Special Victims Unit," 9 p.m., NBC. When a battered body is found on an airport shuttle bus, police soon think they have the case solved. Then another body complicates things.