TiVoPlex
By John Seal
April 18, 2011
BoxOfficeProphets.com
Tuesday 04/19/11
3:00 AM Showtime 3
Prophecy (1979 USA): Oh, how the mighty sometimes fall. Helmed by John Frankenheimer (The Manchurian Candidate, Seconds), Prophecy shows a precipitous decline in the director’s mojo, even in comparison to his mediocre previous effort, the absurd but enjoyable Black Sunday (1977). Prophecy continues the absurd theme, but is not particularly enjoyable: it’s a stodgy, preachy tale of eco-horror starring Talia Shire as the wife of a scientist (Robert Foxworth) investigating reports of monstrous mutations lurking in the woodlands of Maine. Turns out an evil industrialist (Richard Dysart) has been polluting the environs to ill effect, including the genesis of a bear-monster with a taste for human flesh. Prophecy makes William Girdler’s Grizzly look like prize-winning material in comparison, but is (supposedly) airing in widescreen format this morning, rendering it a mild buy in this week’s TiVoPlex market.
10:00 AM Showtime Extreme
Fragile (2005 GB-ESP): A Calista Flockhart horror flick that’s actually pretty good? Believe it or not, such a beast exists and its name is Fragile. The actress who launched a thousand anorexia jokes headlines as Amy Nicholls, a temp nurse in an Isle of Wight children’s ward who suddenly finds herself very busy one night following a train accident. (There’s a rail line on the Isle of Wight? I did not know that.) Our heroine has replaced Susan (Susie Trayling), an RN scared off by a relentless series of bumps in the night, and sure enough weird things start happening on Amy’s shift, too — the result of a ghost stalking the second floor hallways and scaring the kiddies. Directed by Jaume Balaguero (Darkness, [Rec]), Fragile may not offer much in the way of originality, but has atmosphere to spare, and as long as you don’t mind looking at a stick insect is a perfectly reasonable distraction.
6:35 PM Flix
Mayor of the Sunset Strip (2005 USA): One of my favorite films of 2004, Mayor of the Sunset Strip is a bittersweet documentary tribute to Rodney Bingenheimer, one of America’s most influential and important disc jockeys. That may sound like hyperbole to those who have never listened to his show, but his longevity and continued commitment to new music elevate him towards Alan Freed territory. The diminutive Bingenheimer moved from Northern California to Hollywood in the late 1960s, where he doubled for Monkee Davy Jones, opened a seminal glam rock dance club called Rodney’s English Disco, and found on-air notoriety courtesy progressive FM station KROQ. Rodney’s show helped spur Los Angeles’ punk and new wave scenes, and was required listening on Southland weekends, when you’d hear up and coming local bands like X, The Screamers, and The Germs, out-of-towners such as The Damned and The Sex Pistols, and, oddly, starlet Brooke Shields, who was frequently seen about town on Rodney’s arm. Bingenheimer comes across as a very shy, somewhat morose individual on camera, perhaps unsurprising considering the paltry recognition he has received for his contributions to rock ‘n’ roll radio. He’s as important an on-air figure as Britain’s late, beloved John Peel, and this wonderful film gives him the recognition he so richly deserves. You can help Rodney regain his prime time radio spot by signing the petition at www.rodney.panopia.com.
Wednesday 04/20/11
12:45 AM Turner Classic Movies
The Uninvited (1944 USA): It’s often hard to pin down the particular moment when you tumbled head over heels for something, but I blame The Uninvited for inculcating my deep and abiding love of horror films. I was introduced to the film by my mother, a huge movie buff who also enjoyed a good ghost story now and then (as long as it was atmospheric and not bloody). The Uninvited stars Ray Milland and Ruth Hussey as siblings who discover that, though they got a pretty good deal on their new home — a remote seaside mansion on the Dorsetshire coast — they also got something they didn’t expect: the ghost of a young woman who jumped off a nearby cliffside. The wrinkle, though, is that there’s a second ghost stalking the premises...and its intentions are less than honorable. Directed by Lewis Allen (who would work again with Milland on 1948’s So Evil My Love, which aired on TCM last week), The Uninvited may be very old-fashioned and not as frightening as it was when I was eight, but remains a must-see for any fan of supernatural cinema.
2:45 PM Flix
Jennifer Eight (1992 USA): You won’t find me recommending many films starring Oprah - oops, Uma - Thurman, and she isn’t much good in this one either. Nonetheless, this is a surprisingly good suspense film, well written and directed by Bruce Robinson, the man behind How to Get Ahead In Advertising and Withnail and I, two of the best British films of the ‘80s. Dare I suggest this film would have been even better in a British setting? Suppositions aside, Andy Garcia is decent enough as the fish out of water L.A. cop thrust into a murder investigation in a backwater town. He’s ably supported by local policeman Lance Henriksen, who delivers his usual fine performance in a role somewhat larger and more prestigious than the ones he’s used to getting. Atmospherically shot by Conrad Hall, Jennifer Eight is strongly recommended to suspense fans who can cope with Ms. Thurman playing a blind girl. It’s screening this afternoon in its correct 1.85:1 aspect ratio.
Thursday 04/21/11
2:00 AM Turner Classic Movies
Devil’s Doorway (1950 USA): An unusual Anthony Mann-helmed western, Devil’s Doorway stars one of Hollywood’s most boring leading men — white bread Robert Taylor — as a Native American Civil War veteran with paleface problems. Taylor is Vance Poole, a Billy Yank who returns to the old homestead after the end of hostilities with dreams of living a quiet, peaceful life. No such luck, of course: the local Caucasians are eager to claim Vance’s verdant farmland for themselves and don’t seem to understand why that might present a problem. Complications and hints of interracial romance ensue. In all fairness to Taylor, he’s actually pretty good here, and Mann brings a level of social commentary to the film unusual for oaters of the time (though, thanks in large part to Mann’s efforts, this was about to change). A solid supporting cast, including Rhys Williams, Louis Calhern, and Dabbs Greer, provides extra viewer value.
3:20 AM Encore Action
The Killer Elite (1975 USA): James Caan and Robert Duvall play tough guys mixed up in CIA monkey business in this shot in San Francisco Sam Peckinpah joint. Caan plays Mike Locken, who with good buddy George Hansen (Duvall) has been working as a freelance operative for the Langley spooks. When George turns out to be a double agent and tries to kill Mike, however, their friendship comes to an end and revenge is now on the menu, assuming Mike can recover from his wounds. Gig Young is excellent as a retired agent, there’s an exciting finale set amidst the ‘mothball fleet’ anchored in the Sacramento Delta, and Burt Young, Mako, and Bo Hopkins are on hand, too.
Saturday 04/23/11
9:00 AM Turner Classic Movies
Tarzan Finds a Son! (1939 USA): It didn’t take long for Tarzan to descend into "B"-movie territory, but the series was still getting "A"-level budgets in 1939. Tarzan Finds a Son! delivers the goods as advertised, with the jungle lord (Johnny Weissmuller) and lady Jane (Maureen O’Sullivan) acquiring — through non-sexual means, we assure you — an heir to the throne. Said sprog is Boy (the recently deceased Johnny Sheffield, later known as Bomba the Jungle Boy), the sole survivor of a plane crash and heir to a vast fortune. Soon enough, the lawyers are hot on his trail, and Tarzan and Jane are confronted by that problem we all must one day inevitably face: penthouse or tree-house? Don’t worry, they make the right decision.
7:15 PM Turner Classic Movies
Sea Fury (1958 GB): The final film of Victor McLaglen’s lengthy screen career — which began in 1920, and also included such sterling adventure flicks as Beau Geste (1926) and Gunga Din (1939) — Sea Fury is a fitting capstone for the great man’s filmography. McLaglen plays Bellew, a crusty salvage boat captain racing against time to beat the Dutch competition to the spoils of a shipwreck. He’s also engaged in a love triangle with First Mate Abel Hewson (Stanley Baker) and hottie Josita (Lucianna Paluzzi), and though one has to squint pretty hard to believe that the 72-year old McLaglen could beat Stanley Baker at checkers, never mind love, ho doesn’t embarrass himself. Look for Robert Shaw in a small role as ship’s crew.
Sunday 04/24/11
9:00 PM Turner Classic Movies
The Godless Girl (1929 USA): This Cecil B. De Mille feature asks the big question: can atheists and bible-thumpers live side-by-side on America’s college campuses? Like many De Mille films, The Godless Girl finds itself torn between the sacred and the profane, and though intended as a plea for tolerance can’t help but betray De Mille’s right-wing prejudices. There are moments — especially in the early going, as flapper Judy Craig (sexy Lina Basquette) stuffs subversive fliers into lockers and generally tries to undermine the authority of almighty God — when the film is a little more daring than your average Sunday School lesson, which you get during the stodgy second act. Things liven up again in final scenes set in a reformatory (because that’s where atheists need to go, y’know). As with many other Cecil B. epics, The Godless Girl is far too long, but remains strangely fascinating nonetheless — must be the influence of that Lina Basquette. She’s 100% woman. Rroww.