Great White Invasion
Sunday, Discovery, 8 p.m.
Yes, Discovery's Shark Week is back for the umpteenth time. In the kick-off doc, scientists try to understand why white sharks are suddenly being seen off popular beaches and the potential threat to people. As usual, the point of Shark Week is to make you scared and bring you very close to the scariest of scary sharks. Up-close footage, special effects and fright scenes abound. This program is followed by Jaws Come Home (Discovery, 9 p.m.), in which a U.S. fisheries scientist documents six months following five great whites with names such as Curly and Ruthless on their almost 2,000-kilometre journey up and down the eastern seaboard and "reveals all he can about these much-maligned hunters." On Monday, 9 p.m., it's Rogue Sharks, about why certain sharks may "go rogue" and decide to go after humans. See, scary!
Vivienne Westwood's London
Sunday, Bravo!, 8 p.m.
This odd little program, originally made for FashionTelevision, is part celebration of the great clothing designer and part celebration of London. (It's a repeat and aired originally on a busy night in January.) The upshot is an earnest travelogue about things-to-do-and-see in London, but through the eyes of Dame Vivienne, the original Queen of Punk, CBE and, as we are told, "national treasure" in England. Westwood is a wacky, insightful guide and we see her - startlingly bright hair and all - as she cycles around and tells us about culture. A theme throughout is the question, "Can culture save humanity?" Westwood believes it can. She distinguishes between popular culture and "the love of art." She dismisses popular culture as "running around sucking things up" and "a total passive thing to do." She declares, "You're just a cipher in a world of consumerism." Then she takes us to look at paintings and talk about them. She's a total charmer, is Viv.
Masterpiece Mystery: Zen
Sunday, PBS, 9 p.m.
If you haven't seen it, catch this short-run series of British mysteries. Based on the books by Michael Dibdin, it's a must-see for lovers of British crime fiction. And, as it is set in Italy and gorgeously made, it's like an armchair getaway. Rufus Sewell plays Aurelio Zen, a cop toiling in Rome (in "a suit so watchable it deserved a separate acting credit," according to one U.K. review), separated from his wife and living with his mother. In this Italy, rife with vague corruption and endless compromise, Zen has a sterling reputation for honesty. Thus he's given the really tough cases, the ones his boss wants to know are not going to end up being a mess of murkiness. And this means dangerous cases. For a character so laconic, Aurelio gets into some very dangerous, hair-raising situations. Everything looks lovely in Rome, the actors are English and, somewhat bizarrely, it all works as witty entertainment.
Smash His Camera
Sunday, CBC NN, 10 p.m.
This fascinating and saddening look at the career of celebrity photographer Ron Galella won an award at Sundance a few years back. The viewer witnesses Galella proudly recall his encounters with Michael Jackson, Princess Diana, Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton, among others. With delight he explains how Marlon Brando broke his jaw in a scuffle, how he wore a football helmet to stalk Brando after that, and how he invited other photographers to document the incident. But his true obsession - and it was a strange one - was with Jackie Onassis. He filed a suit against her on the grounds that she and her Secret Service team were preventing him from doing his job. While the obsession is troubling, it is also suggested by people interviewed here that Galella provided the world with the most iconic images of Jackie and other celebs.
Check local listings.