Television feels like it’s at a turning point at the end of 2023. The form has said goodbye to some of its heaviest critical darlings, including losing HBO Emmy juggernauts “Succession” and “Barry,” along with the too-soon demise of FX’s “Reservation Dogs.” It really felt like there was a question of where TV goes next … and then it went nowhere.

Continue reading The 20 Best TV Shows Of 2023 at The Playlist.

Does anyone else think it’s a little quiet out there? And it’s not just because the writers are on strike. After a few years of almost too much television to watch, especially around Emmy deadline season, the first half of 2023 has been relatively… quiet. Part of it is the decline of one-time critical darlings from the peak of the TV mountain with new seasons of “Yellowjackets” and “Ted Lasso” falling short of viewer expectations.

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Taking its title from a quote with which Miep Gies, the woman who helped hide Anne Frank and her family in Amsterdam during WWII, often ended her speeches later in life, “A Small Light” is the latest engaging, richly detailed biographical drama from National Geographic.

Co-creators Joan Rater and Tony Phelan (“Grey’s Anatomy”) find a deeply humanist angle to this well-known piece of history by telling the story of Frank and her family through those who aided them.

Continue reading ‘A Small Light’ Review: A Richly Detailed Portrait Of Anne Frank Protector Miep Gies at The Playlist.

We know you’ve watched a lot of films and television about World War II. We know you’ve seen a lot of films and television about the Holocaust. You’ve also likely seen the story of Anne Frank and her family told in one fashion or another. That being said, it’s sort of remarkable it took this long for the story of Miep Giles to make it to any screen. And, Bel Powley, who plays Giles, one of the heroes who hid Frank and her family, can easily make the case why you should see history play out once more in the new National Geographic limited series “A Small Light.”

READ MORE: Emmys 2023: Lead Actress in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie Contenders and Predictions

“Well, A, it’s about an unlikely female hero that we don’t know about,” Powley says.

Continue reading Bel Powley On Why Anne Frank’s Story In ‘A Small Light’ Is More Relevant Than Ever [Interview] at The Playlist.

Most people have learned the story of Anne Frank. In many schools, her story is taught in history classes and her diaries are read as classic works. But in the new series, “A Small Light,” the story of Anne Frank is told through the perspective of the woman who promised to keep her safe. 

READ MORE: ‘The Last Thing He Told Me’ Review: Jennifer Garner Can’t Save Apple TV+’s Plodding Thriller

As seen in the trailer for “A Small Light,” the limited series tells the story of Miep Gies, a young woman who takes on the challenge of hiding the Frank family from the Nazis during WWII after Otto Frank asked her to help.

Continue reading ‘A Small Light’ Trailer: Bel Powley, Joe Cole & Liev Schreiber Tell The Story Of Hiding Anne Frank’s Family in WWII at The Playlist.

The streaming wars have led to an excellent time for well-crafted television. The quality of TV shows keeps elevating with compelling dramatic performances from actors from both the worlds of film and television alike as it’s not as taboo these days to move between the two mediums. Disney+ is now looking to shift toward darker stories and will set its sights on an original series tackling the Holocaust.

Deadline reports that the streaming service is behind an eight-episode drama series, “A Small Light.” The National Geographic limited series tells the remarkable true-life story of a Dutch woman, Miep Gies, who risked her life to shelter Anne Frank’s family from the Nazis in occupied Amsterdam for more than two years and then preserved Anne’s diary that was later published for the public.

Continue reading ‘A Small Light’: Bel Powley, Liev Schreiber & Joe Cole Tapped For Disney+ Holocaust Limited Series at The Playlist.