Welcome to Hollywood.com’s Insomniac’s Guide to television, where we bring you our guide to strange, dark underbelly of television that is after-11 programming. So if you’re a night owl, or just want to set your TiVo, check out our recommendations for the week. But there’s no guarantee that these shows will look as good by the light of day.<br><br>Note: TV is recorded by the night, rather than date that it airs. For instance, if a show is on at 2 AM Tuesday morning, it will be listed as a Monday night show. All times EST.
Monday Night 8/9
Speed - 1:00 on Encore
Celebrate the imminent release of “Speed on a train”, also known as Unstoppable, by watching the original. Speed is action movie cheese at its finest, and far more fun than a story about people trapped on a bus has any right to be. Besides, if you don’t watch it, then sad Keanu will be sad at you. And it will be very sad.
Tuesday Night 8/10
Coraline - 11:55 on HBO Family
If you’re sick of slick CGI animation and flashy special effects, there’s nothing like a dose of good, old-fashioned stop motion. But it this isn’t your grandfather’s stop-motion, it’s likely that the people behind Frosty The Snowman and the other Rankin-Bass classics would have a heart attack if they saw the things Henry Selick. Coraline is a beautiful, creepy film, the kind that will give parents worse nightmares than kids.
Wednesday Night 8/11
1000 Ways To Die - 3:00 on Spike
In Spike TV’s tongue-in-cheek new TV show, over-the-top actors reinact improbable deaths for your viewing pleasure. It’s a bit campy, but still a lot of fun, especially since they seem to go out of their way to find experts who take a genuine enjoyment from explaining people’s gory deaths. Don’t worry about the schadenfreude, it doesn’t make you a bad person if you laugh.
Thursday Night 8/12
The Daily Show - 11 on Comedy Central
Jon Stewart came back from his summer vacation earlier this month, bringing with him a refreshed writing staff and a hideous beard. Tonight’s guest is indie darling band the Arcade Fire, whose new album came out last Tuesday. Normally bands don’t make the most interesting interview subjects, but there’s some depth to these Canadian rockers. Not to mention some wonderful music.
Friday Night 9/13
Cropsey - 12:00 on ID
I didn’t hear many urban legends growing up (except maybe Swiffer Girl, and that’s a different type of thing), but Cropsey is still a pretty fascinating idea for a documentary. Filmmakers Joshua Zeman and Barbara Brancaccio grew up on Staten Island with the legend of Cropsey, a local boogey man who would supposedly prey on children who wandered into the woods. But in 1987, the body of a 12-year-old girl was found, and the myth became much less mythical. It’s creepy viewing for a late night, all the more so because it’s true, but compelling none the less.
Saturday Night 9/14
The Princess Bride - 12:00 on FMC
It’s absolutely, positively inconceivable that you would miss an airing of the best fairy tale ever filmed. Even if you’ve seen the movie so many times that you can quote all of Fezzik’s rhymes, and know why you should never get involved in a land war in Asia, The Princess Bride always deserves another viewing. And if you haven’t seen it, I promise that it will be wove, twue wove.
Sunday Night 9/15
Ninja Warrior - 12:00 on G4
Like watching reality shows where people fall over? Then boy, do I have the show for you. On Ninja Warrior, an overenthusiastic Japanese announcer narrates a series of challenges, as contestants try to get through a grueling obstacle course designed to test their ninja-like strength and agility. The thing is, the challenges are actually really, really difficult, so when contestants actually make it through, it’s exhilarating. And when they don’t, it’s still hilarious.