Viewers won't have to brush up on their Shakespeare to appreciate screenwriter Andrew Davies' update of "Othello" on "Masterpiece Theatre" (8 p.m., PBS). His recent films include "Pride and Prejudice" and "Bridget Jones' Diary." Davies has jettisoned Shakespeare's iambic pentameter and changed the drama's story from an Italian court intrigue to a modern British police drama.
"Othello" stars Eamonn Walker ("Oz") as John Othello, a black officer in the predominately white and casually racist London Metropolitan Police Department. His star has risen under the tutelage of his friend and mentor, Ben Jago (Christopher Eccleston, "Elizabeth"). Othello's passion for police work comes a close second to his absolute devotion to his new wife, Dessie (Keeley Hawes), a beautiful white woman from a posh background. Dessie is equally smitten with her new husband.
Early in the drama, Othello gets his face on the front pages by skillfully diffusing a near race riot sparked by an alleged case of police brutality. A politically-savvy prime minister decides that he is the perfect man to put a new, racially sensitive face on the police force. Much to Othello's surprise, he is promoted over his old friend and teacher.
This sends Jago into a jealous rage, and gives Eccleston the chance to deliver a memorable performance as an old-fashioned, two-timing, scheming villain. Still feigning allegiance to his old friend, he slyly plants seeds of doubt in Othello's mind about Dessie's fidelity. Jago channels his rage into an impish, wicked wit that may remind some viewers of Malcolm McDowell's legendary performance in "A Clockwork Orange." Cleverly conceived, stylishly executed and flawlessly performed, this is the "Othello" Shakespeare might have written had he signed a contract with HBO.
"Modern Marvels" (History, TV-G) begins a five-night, nine-episode celebration of really neat stuff for guys, entitled "Boys Toys." These include "Private Jets" (8 p.m. tonight); "Gadgets" (9 p.m. Tuesday); "Power Tools" (8 p.m. Wednesday) and "Remote Controls" (9 p.m. Wednesday). There's something fitting about an hour-long TV documentary devoted to the remote control. Can a history of the reclining chair be far behind?
Some of these celebrations almost cross the line between documentary and product endorsement. Tonight's installment is a rave for the luxurious Gulfstream jet. But, there are plenty of factual nuggets to chew on. We learn that the Hammacher-Schlemmer catalog has been around since 1881. In 1914, Russia's Czar Nicholas II ordered every item in the catalogue. No wonder Russia lost the war, and Nicholas lost his life to the Bolsheviks! And, while power tools may appear to be the province of macho men, the circular saw was actually invented by Tabitha Babbitt, a Shaker sister, in 1810. She based her invention on her spinning wheel.
Tonight's other highlights
Scheduled on "Intimate Portrait" (6 p.m., Lifetime): a profile of pop singer and "Moesha" star Brandy.
"Biography" (7 p.m., A&E) kicks off a week-long Super Bowl collaboration with NFL Films to examine the lives of five NFL Hall of Fame legends. Tonight: Frank Gifford.
Ray gets competitive over Ally's scout troop cookie drive on "Everybody Loves Raymond" (8 p.m., CBS).
Bosco befriends an embittered sharp-shooter (Gerald McRaney) on "Third Watch" (8 p.m., NBC).
The gang settle in for the night at the haunted mansion on part two of the three-part miniseries "Rose Red" (8 p.m. ABC). A student's plunge from a dorm window may have been a mob-related murder on "Crossing Jordan" (9 p.m., NBC).
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