TiVoPlex
By John Seal
September 20, 2010
BoxOfficeProphets.com
Tuesday 9/21/10
3:00 AM Turner Classic Movies
Wild Guitar (1962 USA): The wild, wild world of rock ‘n’ roll gets the special Hall family treatment in this supremely goofy musical. When aspiring Presley clone Bud Eagle (Arch Hall Jr.) rides into town on his chopper, he meets cute with sexy hash slinger Vicki (Nancy Czar), who helps him get a gig on a local TV show. Unscrupulous scumbag Mike McCauley (Arch Hall Sr.) likes what he sees and signs Bud to an exclusive contract, but our hero quickly learns that showbiz ain’t nothin’ but a peanut butter and banana sandwich. Featuring a handful of Hall Junior’s wacky compositions (since collected by Norton Records on a must-have CD of the same name), Wild Guitar was written by Daddy Hall and directed by the legendary Ray Dennis Steckler (The Thrill Killers, The Incredibly Strange Creatures Who Stopped Living and Became Mixed Up Zombies). Unsurprisingly, there’s no other film quite like it.
9:00 PM IFC
Hush (2009 GB): The British social phenomenon known as "white van man" - usually a middle-aged Caucasian with a clean-shaven head and a white van he uses to deliver goods and services around the country - gets the cinematic treatment in this decent thriller from writer-director Mark Tonderai. William Ash and Christine Bottomley play Zakes and Beth, a young couple who, whilst driving along Britain’s main arterial road, the M1, espy a woman apparently being held against her will in a transit van. When Zakes decides discretion is the better part of valor and refuses to get involved, Beth storms off in disgust, only to herself be snatched up by the mysterious motorist. Will Zakes finally put on his man-pants and rescue her? Filmed on location in Yorkshire, this British blend of Duel and The Vanishing is a pretty decent effort, especially considering it’s Tonderai’s first feature film.
Wednesday 9/22/10
2:35 AM More Max
The Glory Brigade (1953 USA): Victor Mature leads his men into battle in this average but well cast Korean War drama. Big Vic plays Lieutenant Sam Pryor, commander of a platoon of G.I.’s assigned to provide cover for a unit of Greek troops reconnoitering behind enemy lines. Pryor is himself of Greek descent and considers the mission an honor - that is, until the Spartans disintegrates under fire and his squad gets decimated by the Chicoms. In addition to Lee Marvin as demolition expert Bowman and Alexander Scourby as Greek commander Niklas, The Glory Brigade also co-stars Richard Egan, who strangely won a Golden Globe for his performance as Sergeant Johnson. Why strange? Because the award was for "Most Promising Newcomer," and Egan had already appeared in almost two dozen films!
8:30 PM Turner Classic Movies
Brewster McCloud (1970 USA): Remember last week, when I proclaimed Quintet to be Robert Altman’s worst film, beating Brewster McCloud by a nose? Well, my opinion is about to be put to the test, and I’ll either come out of this smelling like a rose or smelling like…something else. As for the film, it stars Bud Cort as the titular character, an oddball who has taken up residence in the (then relatively new) Houston Astrodome’s fallout shelter (do all baseball stadiums have one?). Brewster has constructed a set of wings with which he intends to fly - within the confines of the ‘dome, of course. For some reason, whenever I think of this film, I also think of Philip Kaufman’s 1967 "comedy" Fearless Frank…which is, I believe, even worse than Brewster McCloud.
Thursday 9/23/10
4:45 AM Turner Classic Movies
The Chief (1933 USA): Based on a character created by star Ed Wynn for a long forgotten radio show, The Chief will appeal primarily to admirers of Keenan Wynn’s dad, of whom, presumably, there aren’t too many still alive at this point. However, forgotten pop culture is something we love in the TiVoPlex, so we’ll give The Chief a mention. Wynn plays a milquetoast fireman who lucks into heroism thanks to the misadventures of skirt Dixie Dean (Dorothy Mackaill), and then finds himself a pawn of the local political establishment. If you’re not a Wynn fan, there’s also 13-year-old Mickey Rooney, seen here hurling a firecracker. Is there anyone else like the Mickster, now into his tenth decade of screen work? The man is truly amazing, and celebrates his 90th birthday today!
3:30 PM Turner Classic Movies
He’s a Cockeyed Wonder (1950 USA): And to continue the celebration, consider this obscure Columbia comedy starring Mickey as a migrant farm worker who inherits a fortune and becomes a magician. Really, that’s what the IMDb plot synopsis suggests - I’ve never seen He’s a Cockeyed Wonder, so I’ll have to tune in to assess its accuracy for myself. If Mickey isn’t sufficient enticement, the supporting cast includes William Demarest, Terry Moore, and Mike Mazurki, which sounds like a downright irresistible combination to me.
9:30 PM Showtime Extreme
D.O.A. (Dead On Arrival) (2008 SWE): Between this and the original (and judging from the trailer of the American remake, Let Me In, superior) version of Let the Right One In, there seems to be some sort of minor thriller/horror renaissance going on in Sweden at the moment. Maybe it’s the shock of living with a right-wing government (only the third one since World War II, I believe) that’s inspired the mini-movement or perhaps it’s just coincidence, but regardless of the reason, it’s the cause for some celebration: no one does dark and gloomy as well as the Swedes! Dead on Arrival stars Samir el Alaoui as David, a young man who makes a miraculous recovery after a potentially fatal accident and then falls in love with pretty nurse Maria (Nathalie Soderqvist). All seems well with the world…until the young lovers take a vacation and have an unfortunate encounter with some well-armed thugs. Dead On Arrival is not particularly original, but the cast is uniformly fine, and it’s an impressive accomplishment for director Henric Brandt, who supposedly shot the film for $20,000.
Friday 9/24/10
1:05 PM Showtime Extreme
The Brotherhood (1968 USA): The program guide indicates this will be a letterboxed airing of this Kirk Douglas gangster pic, but even if it turns out to be pan and scan it’s still worth your time. The dimpled one headlines as Frank Ginetta, an old-fashioned gangster running the family firm after the death of his father. When younger brother Vince (Alex Cord) returns from Vietnam, however, relations become strained: Vince wants to modernize and expand the business into areas Frank is uncomfortable with. To make matters worse, Frank also discovers that fellow goombah Dom Bertolo (Luther Adler) was responsible for the patriarch’s death, and a mob war is soon bloodying streets and sidewalks from New York to Palermo. Directed by Martin Ritt and penned by John Lewis Carlino, The Brotherhood brought the gangster film up-to-date and lay the groundwork for the Scorsese and Coppola films that would follow. An excellent supporting cast, including Irene Papas, Susan Strasberg, and Eduardo Ciannelli, and a lively Lalo Schifrin score render The Brotherhood required viewing for mob movie mavens.
Saturday 9/25/10
12:15 AM Turner Classic Movies
The Devil Within Her (1975 GB): A popular (or at least ubiquitous) title on home video, The Devil Within Her (also known as I Don’t Want to Be Born and, less commonly, Sharon’s Baby) makes its widescreen television debut in the TCM Underground this morning. Joan Collins stars as Lucy, a new mother who soon discovers that her sprog is…not normal. In fact, the little devil seems to have been possessed by the spirit of an evil dwarf who once tried to have his way with Mum, and swore vengeance after being spurned by her. Oh, those evil dwarfs. Considering the film was directed by Peter Sasdy (also responsible for superior Hammer chiller Hands of the Ripper, as well as sci-fi classic Doomwatch), this should be a better film than it actually is, but with Collins headlining and Ralph Bates, Caroline Munro, and Donald Pleasence co-starring, horror fans will still want to scope it out.
7:30 AM Turner Classic Movies
Hold That Line (1952 USA): In what was perhaps the inspiration for John Landis’ Trading Places, Hold That Line (series entry 25) sees the Bowery Boys sent to college as part of a bet between two toffs. Matriculating at fancy-pants Ivy U., the Boys will either acquire an education or drive the Dean crazy. Though this film is not, of course, to be confused with either Hold That Baby! or Hold That Hypnotist, I suspect there’s a doctoral thesis in here somewhere…why were the Bowery Boys always holding things?
5:00 PM HBO
Up In the Air (2009 USA): It wasn’t my favorite film of 2009 and I didn’t even find it particularly enjoyable, but there’s still a fair amount in Up in the Air to be admired and appreciated. George Clooney (who seems to be specializing in playing characters with unpleasant jobs, viz. this years The American) is predictably excellent as professional "executioner" Ryan Bingham, who travels the country laying people off. He’s matched scene for scene by Vera Farmiga as fellow sky citizen Alex Goran, whilst Anna Kendrick does quite well as the woman who threatens to destroy Ryan’s livelihood by reducing his role to that of video-conferencing coordinator. It’s a very good, solid film, though not perhaps worthy of all the Oscar nominations it snagged. Also airs at 8:00 PM, 8:15 PM, and 11:15 PM.
5:00 PM Showtime
The Hurt Locker (2009 USA): In a head-to-head showdown of epic television proportions - the biggest one, perhaps, since Gabe Kaplan and the rest of the ABC team fought their way to glory in the very first Battle of the Network Stars in 1976 - 2010’s winner of the Best Film Oscar makes its small screen premiere in the same time slot as rival Up in the Air. Of the films nominated, I thought The Hurt Locker was the best, but I was disappointed that Jeremy Renner didn’t win the Best Actor in a Leading Role gong for his performance as comfortably numb bomb disposal expert William James. It’s a remarkable performance in a great film - but I’m sure you already knew that. Also airs at 8:00 PM.
Sunday 9/26/10
11:15 PM Turner Classic Movies
La Bandida (1963 MEX): TCM concludes its month-long salute to the Mexican Revolution with La Bandida, a Roberto (not Robert) Rodriguez-helmed romantic melodrama featuring (who else?) Pedro Armendariz as Roberto, a revolutionary who returns home from the wars to reclaim the hand of ‘La Bandida’, Maria (Maria Felix), only to find the fiery spitfire in bed with another man. Shortly after her new man-friend has, shall we say, been ‘dispatched’ by Roberto, Maria returns to her previous trade - street-walking - but soon regrets her decision when she realizes she really loves the man who killed for her. There’s enough telenovela action here for a full season, all of it lensed in gorgeous Technicolor by the great cinematographer Gabriel Figueroa.
Monday 9/27/10
7:00 AM Turner Classic Movies
Her Kind of Man (1946 USA): Here’s one of TCM’s more unusual film fests: six films featuring the great Dane Clark! Even though I’ve seen some of these films, I don’t think I could pick Mr. Clark out of a police lineup, but I guess every dog (or actor) has his day, and here’s Dane’s. The fest commences with Her Kind of Man, a film I always get confused with the superior Robert Mitchum-Jane Russell vehicle His Kind of Woman. Clark plays Don Corwin, a muckraking journalist vying for the hand of sweet Georgia King (Janis Paige) - but his competition is Steve Maddux (Zachary Scott), one of the gamblers Don’s been raking muck about. It’s a fairly standard crime story with romantic underpinnings, but hey…Ladies and Gentlemen, Mr. Dane Clark! There he is! No, over there…what, you don’t recognize him, either? Her Kind of Man is followed at 11:30 AM by 1947’s Deep Valley, a superior drama featuring Clark as an escaped convict and Ida Lupino as the young lady who takes pity on him; at 1:30 PM by That Way With Women (also 1947), in which our hero runs a gas station with Sydney Greenstreet’s money; at 3:00 PM by 1948’s Embraceable You, with Dane playing a gangster having regrets about his lifestyle choice; at 4:30 PM by Fort Defiance (1951), a western in which Mr. Clark plays a Civil War vet out to avenge his brother’s murder; and at 6:00 PM by Never Trust a Gambler (also 1951), a forgotten Columbia programmer about a poor fellow who’s of interest to both the cops and the mob.