TV TIP

Lopez vs. Lopez

8 p.m. Fridays, NBC

“Lopez vs. Lopez” feels as though it should be on CBS instead of NBC. By that, I mean it has an old-school vibe, where the comedy is broad (hello, “Ghosts”!) and the laugh track is cranked up to 10 (hello, “The Neighborhood”!). But I like “Lopez” more every time I watch a new episode. One of its greatest assets is George Lopez. He’s a standup who, with plenty of experience on his own previous sitcoms, nuances punchlines like a pro. He also gives his character a realness that’s often missing in sitcoms. The setup for the series is based on his past difficult relationship with daughter Mayan in real life; they didn’t talk for several years after George left Mayan’s mother. Mayan plays the daughter here, and she’s OK as a foil, although another actress might have brought more to the enterprise. The fictional George and Mayan squabble over things like a child’s birthday, and they slowly grow to understand the other as a person. Selenis Leyva is fun as the over-the-top Rosie, George’s ex and Mayan’s mom. The great Liz Torres pops up as a friend of Rosie’s in one episode, and I hope she returns.

— Kristina Dorsey

STREAMING TIP

Christmas with the Campbells

Prime Video, Apple TV

As far as rampant plagues go, the Hallmark/Lifetime-style holiday movies are fairly harmless — although their ability to multiply beyond known algorithms is alarming. But just in time for Santa comes “Christmas with the Campbells,” a deliciously hilarious satire of those films. Vince Vaughn is one of the clever folks behind this story of holiday-loving Jesse (Brittany Snow), who gets dumped at the height of the season by her boyfriend Shawn. Still, Shawn’s parents talk Jesse into spending Christmas with them in their idyllic little snow-clustered town. After all, Shawn’s away on business — and when his rustically charming cousin David (Justin Long) shows up to celebrate with the family, he and Jesse are attracted to each other. The brilliance of this is that the basic story follows the recipe and STAYS faithful. All the fun comes through subtle differences — chiefly dialogue and small behavioral idiosyncrasies — that give the characters a bit of ridiculous and refreshingly ribald depth.

— Rick Koster

MOVIE TIP

The Good Nurse

One of the most unnerving sequences I’ve watched recently is an opening scene of this movie. Eddie Redmayne is a nurse standing against a far wall as a patient dies despite the frantic efforts of others on the hospital staff. What I knew, having read about this film before, is that Redmayne’s character, Charles Cullen, is a murderer — a serial killer, in fact, whom no one suspects because of his occupation. Redmayne’s acting is impeccable, as Cullen tries to present a concerned face to the world while secretly thrilling at the deaths he is causing. It’s chilling. Even more chilling: This drama is based on a true story. Jessica Chastain is typically wonderful as the fellow nurse who befriends and then becomes suspicious of Cullen.

— Kristina Dorsey