HBO's 'Treme': an actors' paradise

Late Thursday, I shirked my duties writing about the long-but-fun American Cinematheque celebration of Ben Stiller — sample Stiller line, "I would like to thank the Academy ... someday" — to watch screeners of the final two episodes of season three of HBO's "Treme," which wraps its third (and almost final) season over the following two Sundays. 

Awards possiblities for "Treme" sailed away long ago — and given the fact that David Simon's "The Wire" was never friended by the TV Academy, I suppose it's little surprise that his latest project has been similarly ignored. But even if the pace wasn't for you (though it was for me) and the music wasn't your style (though I reveled in its diversity), the acting on "Treme" should knock any viewer out.

In those final two-plus hours (the season finale runs past the 60-minute mark), "Treme" becomes a showcase for Khandi Alexander, Rob Brown, Chris Coy, Kim Dickens, Michiel Huisman, Melissa Leo, Lucia Micarelli, David Morse, Clarke Peters, Wendell Pierce, Jon Seda and Steve Zahn. That's a dozen performers — an ensemble to rival any show's — all getting choice moments again and again. 

If you gave up on this show, you missed out. Track it down over Thanksgiving week and try to catch up.