TiVoPlex
TiVoPlex for Tuesday, October 30, 2007 through Monday, November 5, 2007
By John Seal
October 29, 2007
BoxOfficeProphets.com
Tuesday 10/30/07
7:00 PM Turner Classic Movies
Tender Comrade (1943 USA): Ground Zero for the Hollywood Blacklist? Perhaps that's the most significant legacy of Tender Comrade, a rarely seen RKO drama written by fellow traveller Dalton Trumbo and directed by commie simp Edward Dmytryk. The film stars Ginger Rogers as Jo, the erstwhile leader of a group of female factory workers waiting for their men to return home from the war. In order to save money, Jo suggests that the group pool their resources and take up residence in a communal home where they can raise their children together and enjoy some sisterly solidarity. What's that got to do with the blacklist, you ask? Well, Rogers was a rock-ribbed Republican, and felt uncomfortable delivering Trumbo's seditious dialogue - lines such as ‘share and share alike' got her dander up, as she wrote in her autobiography, Ginger: My Story. Between Tender Comrade and Mission to Moscow (also 1943), Hollywood reactionaries had all the ammunition they needed with which to weed out Tinsel Town's reds - and Trumbo and Dmytryk both spent considerable time in exile or jail as a result. As for Tender Comrade itself, well, it couldn't be more of a sentimental flag-waver if it tried, and it's truly hard to believe Rogers got her knickers in such a twist over such mundane and warm-hearted fare.
10:00 PM IFC
Three Times (2005 TAI): Apparently influenced by Virginia Woolf's Orlando, this Taiwanese drama features Qi Shu (Millennium Mambo) and Chen Chang (Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon) in three stories of relationship in pre-and post-imperial China. Set in 1911, 1966, and the present day (though not presented in that order), these are languid ruminations on the more melancholy aspects of love and romance, with the 1911 segment shot entirely sans dialogue. Directed by Hou Hsiao-hsien (who also utilized the triptych format in 1995's Good Men Good Women), Three Times is art-house stuff for hardcore cineastes - it looks stunning, but won't get your heart racing any faster than normal.
Wednesday 10/31/07
9:15 AM Turner Classic Movies
Cry of the Werewolf (1944 USA): Awooooh! Not sure how you would actually put the cry of the werewolf into words, but that's the best I can do. As for CoIumbia's Cry, it features Nina Foch as Celeste, a young gypsy woman (in Louisiana, no less!) who is also the daughter of a lycanthrope, and unwitting heir to all that entails. Her dark secret is threatened, however, when meddling Dr. Morris (Stephen Crane, not the author) discovers the truth behind the curse and plans to ride it to professional success via academic monograph (because we all know everyone reads those things, right?). Driven to despair (and probably a little hungry for human flesh), Celeste is determined to put a stop to Morris' nefarious research project - and will stop at nothing, including a little voodoo, to do it. This tame and confused genre entry (which also, believe it or not, was titled Bride of the Vampire at one point) co-stars Osa Massen and Barton MacLane. It's followed at 10:30 AM by the shoddier but more enjoyable 1956 chiller The Werewolf, in which two well-meaning scientists bring out the inner beast in a car crash victim (Steven Ritch) under their care.
Thursday 11/01/07
1:30 AM Sundance
Diameter of the Bomb (2005 GB-CAN): The wide ranging after-effects of a Jerusalem suicide bombing that left 20 dead and scores more injured are explored in this even-handed, cool-headed National Film Board of Canada production. Shot in the wake of a 2002 bus bombing, Diameter of the Bomb interviews relatives of five of the victims - including the mother of the bomber. The film doesn't (and probably couldn't) provide any satisfactory answers to the Middle East conundrum, but the final 90 seconds - in which the horrors of the preceding 84 minutes are boiled down into a brief and bloodless BBC news story - speaks volumes about the numbing regularity and normalcy of such horrors. If you want another look at modern-day suicide bombing, you may also want to check out a brand new HBO doc, To Die In Jerusalem, which premieres today at 6:00 PM and 9:00 PM.
2:30 PM IFC
Buddy Boy (1999 USA): Featuring the great Susan Tyrrell as a monstrous stepmother, Buddy Boy is the product of a genuinely independent American cinema, and all the better for it. That's not to suggest that it's a great film - it certainly isn't - but director Mark Hanlon proves it's possible to make a film with attitude, style, and ambition without sucking up to what critic Dave Poland calls the "dependents", faux-independents such as Paramount Classics and Fox Searchlight. Tyrrell plays Sal, a harridan who shares a musty apartment with good Catholic stepson Francis (Aidan Gillen), whose job as a photo developer provides him an escape from the hectoring demands of Mom. He also finds relief by spying on his attractive neighbor (Emmanuelle Seigner), and the film reflects the influence of voyeuristic creep-out efforts ranging from Michael Powell's Peeping Tom (1960) to Todd Solondz' Happiness (1998). If you're an admirer of those films, you'll get your money's worth from Buddy Boy (which makes its widescreen television premiere this evening after some pan and scan screenings on Encore); if not, you can probably give it a miss.
Friday 11/02/07
9:00 PM IFC
Q: The Winged Serpent (1982 USA): For giant monster fun, you can't do much better than this terrific Larry Cohen picture. The film features David Carradine as Shepard, a New York City detective trying to solve a series of increasingly bloody deaths - which eyewitnesses claim have been caused by the eponymous creature. Left to their own devices, the sceptical cops can't find the perp - but when ex-con Jimmy Quinn (Michael Moriarty, giving a bravura performance) offers to lead them to Q's lair, Shepard puts aside his doubts and clambers atop one of Manhattan's most iconic buildings in search of the beast. A camp delight featuring some wonderfully old-fashioned stop motion special effects, Q: The Winged Serpent co-stars Richard Roundtree, Candy Clark, and former Los Angeles Dodger Ron Cey in his one and only big screen appearance to date.
11:00 PM Turner Classic Movies
Get Carter (1971 GB): Subjected to an entirely unwelcome turn-of-the-millennium Hollywood remake featuring Sly Stallone, the original Get Carter finally returns to American television tonight, and in its original aspect ratio, too. Directed by Mike Hodges (Croupier), the film stars Michael Caine as Jack Carter, a London wide boy who travels to distant Newcastle to investigate the suspicious death of his brother. Needless to say, the local hard men don't take kindly to Carter's visit to their manor, and ask him to leave - but their request is refused, and they soon find themselves looking down the wrong end of our anti-hero's pump action shotgun. The film that set the template for all British gangster flicks to come, Get Carter also features Britt Ekland, Ian Hendry, and playwright John Osborne, who seems to have enjoyed himself portraying Black Country crime lord Kinnear.
11:30 PM Flix
The Beach Girls (1982 USA): A drive-in staple during the early ‘80s, The Beach Girls makes a rare appearance on premium cable tonight. Debra Blee stars as high school student Sarah, who, with best buds Ginger and Ducky, take up summer residence in their uncle's groovy beachside pad. It's all sex, drugs, and pizza from there on out, as the girls carry on in decidedly risqué fashion. Average T & A fare at best, The Beach Girls at least has the presence of biker movie vet Adam Roarke in the cast to recommend it, as well as former Playboy Playmate Jeana Tomasina as party hardy gal pal Ducky.
Saturday 11/03/07
6:00 PM Starz
Apocalypto (2006 USA): I didn't see Apocalypto on the big screen, but my 12-year-old son managed to sneak into the theatre on my behalf. (I know, I'm a terrible parent.) So rather than offer my own suppositions regarding the film's premium channel debut, here's Johnny Seal to tell you why you should care:
Apocalypto is one of those movies that is action-packed. It gives you a whole new understanding about Mayan life. It totally takes you into the lives of many tribes while they invade each other's villages one by one. Although it has many action packed scenes, of course there are sad parts in it. I think the film was beautifully made and plotted. The scenery was outstanding and made you feel as if you were there. So for the people who haven't seen Apocalypto this is a definite thumbs up.
Thanks, kid! Also airs at 9:00 PM.
Sunday 11/04/07
1:00 AM Showtime Extreme
Bandits (1997 GER): An unusual crime drama indeed, Bandits stars Katja Riemann as the leader of an all-woman rock band comprised of four prison inmates. When the quartet are hired to provide entertainment at a policeman's ball, they decide to do a runner from the gig, and after overcoming the guards head off for Hamburg (and steerage to, of all places, Guyana). The Bandits soon come to the attention of hard-boiled police inspector Schwartz (Hannes Jaenicke), who pledges to get them back behind bars before he finishes his current pack of ciggies, or before they sign a major label contract, whichever comes first. As far-fetched as all this sounds, the film is extremely enjoyable and doesn't entirely defy credulity - though the tragic ending will have more sensitive types reaching for their hankies.
9:00 PM Sundance
Gemini (1999 JAP) : Directed by Tetsuo: The Iron Man creator Shinya Tsukamoto, Gemini is ostensibly based on an Edugawa Rampo story, but bears more than a passing resemblance to David Cronenberg's Dead Ringers (1988). The film features Masahiro Motoki as Yokio, a wealthy doctor who refuses to treat the downtrodden, plague-ridden patients who reside on the other side of the tracks. Things get decidedly odd when Yokio's long lost twin brother Sutekichi (Motoki again) reappears, leading to family upheaval and unanticipated changes in his sibling's medical practice. An unexpected exploration of Japanese class warfare, Gemini represents a more mature approach by Tsukamoto, who forgoes his usual cyberpunk cinematography in favor of something a little less visually grating. It's still not for the faint of heart, but at least there are no hydraulic members on hand.
Monday 11/05/07
3:00 AM Turner Classic Movies
The Whistler (1944 USA): Popular radio mystery show The Whistler got the ‘B' movie treatment for an eight film series in the late 1940s, and six of the films air in chronological order this morning on TCM. First up, of course, is the first of the series, a brisk William Castle-helmed entry introducing the enigmatic man of mystery as his presence intrudes on the case of Earl Conrad (Richard Dix), a distraught widower determined to end it all by hiring his own killer. When his wife shows up not quite dead yet, Earl has a change of heart - but finds he can't convince his would-be assassin (J. Carroll Naish) to take a powder. As much noir as second feature boilerplate, The Whistler oozes atmosphere, and Castle's penchant for the macabre is already evident at this early stage of his career. Dix went on to portray different characters in each of the preceding Whistler features, including The Power of the Whistler (1945), which airs at 4:15 AM; Voice of the Whistler (1945) at 5:30 AM, Mysterious Intruder (1946) at 6:45 AM, Secret of the Whistler (1946) at 8:00 AM, and Return of the Whistler (1948) at 9:15 AM.
6:00 PM IFC
Born Into Brothels (2004 IND-USA): This isn't the sort of documentary I usually find all that appealing, but it does provide the emotional uplift that Academy voters favor (the film won the Best Documentary Oscar in 2005), and ultimately it's hard to argue with the result. Filmed on the mean streets of Mumbai, Born into Brothels was intended to be about prostitution, but soon evolved into a film about the children of the city's red-light district. Though there is the whiff of cultural imperialism about this feature - the great white filmmakers come to save their little brown brothers - it is ultimately a very simple and moving tale of the human condition, and the economic and bureaucratic barriers assembled to impede its improvement.