TiVoPlex
TiVoPlex for March 16 2010 through March 22 2010
By John Seal
March 15, 2010
5:00 PM Sundance
Joe Strummer: The Future is Unwritten (2007 GB): Or as I prefer to call him, Saint Joe. The punk rock man of the people, already beatified in 2004's Let's Rock Again!, gets another dollop of hero worship in this excellent Julien Temple rockumentary. How could one man be so good, and do so much good for all the peoples of the world? Tune in to see the truth behind the snark behind the snarling man with the mohawk.
11:00 PM Turner Classic Movies
Kitten with a Whip (1964 USA): This week's TiVoPlex Movie of the Week, Kitten with a Whip stars Ann-Margret in all her full, mid-sixties sex goddess glory. She stars as Jody, a troubled young woman who knifes a matron, sets a fire, and escapes from reform school. She tries to inveigle her way into the good graces of nearby neighbor David Patton (John Forsythe), but he doesn't fall for the schtick and sends her on her way. But Jody won't settle for rejection, and she soon returns to David's house—with a whole gang of malchicks and droogs to back her up this time. As outrageous as they come, Kitten with a Whip would make a great double-bill partner with Lady in a Cage, another overheated 1964 melodrama about out of control youth (and, I might add, another forgotten film that needs to get an airing in the TCM Underground).
Saturday 3/20/10
7:30 AM Turner Classic Movies
Bowery Bombshell (1946 USA): Hardboiled specialist Phil Karlson is behind the camera once again for this decent entry in the Bowery Boys series. This time out, the gang are trying to help Louie's Malt Shop stay afloat, but in the process find themselves mixed up in a bank robbery. Bowery Bombshell benefits from a decent supporting cast, including Sheldon Leonard as a hoodlum and Milton Parsons as loopy Professor Schnackenberger—in fact, if you squint hard enough whilst watching it, you could mistake it for a Warner Brothers bill-filler.
9:00 PM Turner Classic Movies
The Ruling Class (1972 GB): The rich are different from the rest of us, as are the aristocracy. And never have they appeared more different than in The Ruling Class, Peter Medak's magisterial dissection of the silly asses otherwise known as the upper classes. Peter O'Toole stars as Jack, newly minted 14th Earl of Gurney and replacement toff for his deceased father, the 13th Earl (Harry Andrews). Dad has popped his clogs as the result of a little auto-erotic asphyxiation, and the apple hasn't fallen far from the tree: Jack thinks he is, quite literally, Jesus Christ. Though the film is a bit too long, it's still one of the best black comedies ever, and the supporting cast—including Alistair Sim, Arthur Lowe, Coral Browne, Nigel Green, James Villiers, Kay Walsh, and many more—is awesome.
Sunday 3/21/10
7:00 PM Sundance
Girl by the Lake (2007 ITA): A refreshingly old-fashioned murder mystery from Italy, Girl by the Lake makes its American television debut this evening. Based on a novel by Norwegian writer Karin Fossum, the film examines the death of Anna (Alessia Piovan), found dead lakeside with no signs of struggle and her clothing folded neatly beside her. It's up to big city Police Inspector Sanzio (Toni Servillo) to solve the crime, but the victim's back story is as elusive as the identity of the killer, and he soon finds himself in need of an assist from local PC Siboldi (Fausto Maria Sciarappa). Did the village idiot do the deed—or was it the troubled divorcé? Perhaps the hockey coach? There are red herrings aplenty, but you won't get too lost in the proceedings, and the film (shot in the Dolomites of Northern Italy) is beautiful to look at. Also airs 3/22 at 12:05 AM.
Monday 3/22/10
6:00 PM Playboy
Cherry, Harry, and Raquel! (1970 USA): Playboy is on to a good thing here. Meyer's fans, starved for their hero's output (the Region 1 DVDs are out of print, the PAL discs from the UK very expensive), probably won't object to paying a sawbuck for the pleasure of seeing the films in good condition. (Though I do wonder if anyone bothered to pony up for the March 1 broadcast of Faster, Pussycat! Kill! Kill!, which has aired on TCM in the not too distant past).) As for Cherry, Harry, and Raquel!, this was Meyer's immediate precursor to Beyond the Valley of the Dolls, and features that film's Charles Napier as the titular sheriff of a small Nevada town, where he's in the tank with local drug dealers whilst enjoying erotic dalliances with lady of the evening Raquel (Larissa Ely) and nurse Cherry (Linda Ashton). Oh, and Uschi Digard's breasts. Also airs at 9:00 PM.
Continued:
1
2
3
Print this column
