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From the obscure to the obscurest to the merely overlooked or underappreciated; they all have a home in the TiVoPlex! All times Pacific.

Tuesday 09/04/07

4:15 AM Turner Classic Movies
Devil's Island (1940 USA): Fans of Boris Karloff get a double dose of the gruesome one this morning, starting with Devil's Island, a decidedly un-spooky prison drama set on the eponymous penal colony. Karloff plays Dr. Charles Gaudet, a prominent brain surgeon (of the benign variety, naturally) sentenced to hard labor for the crime of treating an ailing man who also happened to be a committed revolutionary. Gaudet's constantly a source of irritation for prison commandant Lucien (James Stephenson) - but when Luclen's daughter falls ill, only the good doctor has the knowledge necessary to save her life. A crown jewel of Warner's B unit featuring excellent cinematography by George Barnes, Devil's Island incurred the wrath of the French government, who demanded cuts be made before the film was granted a European release. It's followed at 5:30 AM by The Devil Commands (1940), a Columbia thriller in which Karloff reverts to type and depicts a scientist (this time of the mad genus) trying to communicate with his dead wife via some press-ganged brains.

9:00 AM IFC
Trauma (2003 GB): Poor Colin Firth - unlucky enough to be typecast as a floppy haired romantic comedy lead in rough congruence with the mighty Hugh Grant, his international career never really took off, condemning him to appearances in a host of low budget British films that rarely got more than a cursory release in the US. One such feature is Trauma, a BBC production starring Firth as Ben, an artist newly awakened from an accident-induced coma struggling to come to terms with the death of his wife (Naomie Harris). Ben tries to settle down in new digs, but finds himself mixed up with a medium (Brenda Fricker) who seems to think wifey is still alive, a parka clad mystery man, and the police, who suspect him of involvement in the death of a pop star. Firth looks good in stubble and bandages, and though Trauma is unnecessarily complex (and mines similar territory to the superior Memento), it's a worthy follow-up to director Marc Evan's peeping tom near masterpiece My Little Eye.

1:00 PM Fox Movie Channel
The Pirate Movie (1982 AUS): Yo ho yech! Here's the widescreen television debut of this appalling sea-bound musical comedy, featuring then flavor-of-the-day Kristy McNichol as Mabel, an ugly duckling schoolgirl who falls for hunky faux pirate Frederic (The Blue Lagoon's Christopher Atkins) whilst on a trip to a seaside theme park. Invited to a skinny dipping party by hunky Fred, Mabel takes a detour via the Golden Arches, hops into a motorboat, and upon encountering rough seas gets a nasty bump on the head, setting in motion an 1870s-set dream-fantasy revolving around an assortment of dreadful songs and some not terribly thrilling high seas hi-jinks. For those of a certain age (and who were 15 or 16 in 1982), The Pirate Movie is a font of happy memories - but for the rest of us, it's a cheesy extravaganza that rang down the curtain on director Ken Annakin's previously quite exemplary career. If you loved Xanadu, don't miss The Pirate Movie - otherwise it's strictly for movie masochists such as myself.

4:10 PM Starz
The Queen (2006 GB): Helen Mirren deservedly won 2007's Best Actress Academy Award for her performance as Queen Elizabeth II in Stephen Frears' superb depiction of Her Majesty's 1997 annus horribilis. Set in the days immediately following the Paris death of Princess Diana (and, by coincidence, the rise to power of Tony Blair), the film depicts a hidebound Royal Family trying to come to terms with the 24 hour news cycle and a public demanding more from them than the stiff upper lip and balcony appearances that had served them so well since the 1950s. Making its American television debut this afternoon, The Queen does not solely rely on Mirren for its power and effectiveness, however - also of note are James Cromwell as the emotionally tone-deaf Prince Philip, Michael Sheen and Helen McCrory as conniving power couple Tony and Cherie Blair, and Sylvia Sims as the Queen Mum, who may not qualify as a QMILF but is pretty good nonetheless. The only discordant note is struck by Alex Jennings, who can't quite duplicate the gormless charm of the real life Prince Charles. Also airs at 7:10 PM.

Wednesday 09/05/07

3:00 AM Turner Classic Movies
This Could Be the Night (1957 USA): A rarely seen gangster melodrama from renowned director Robert Wise, This Could Be the Night features Jean Simmons as Anne Leeds, a schoolteacher hired to work part-time as secretary for reformed bootlegger and inveterate gambler Rocco (Paul Douglas). She meets and falls in love with Tony Armotti (Tony Franciosa), one of Rocco's minions and a ladies man who goes through women like Kleenex. Tony doesn't like the idea of virginal Anne working for a heel like Rocco, and the two goombahs engage in a tug of war over the sweet young thing's career path. This is definitely lesser Wise, but Douglas is excellent, and a plethora of intriguing cameos - including ZaSu Pitts, Joan Blondell, and even Chuck Berry - render This Could Be the Night worthwhile.

1:10 PM The Movie Channel
Thunderstruck (2004 AUS): A typically down to earth Aussie comedy, Thunderstruck's plot revolves around four working class pals and their determination to fulfill the last wish of a deceased pal: to be buried next to his idol, original AC/DC vocalist Bon Scott! Taking time off from drug dealing, bagging groceries, and the chicken-in-a-basket club circuit, our heroes set out to bury Ronnie (Sam Worthington), ironically the only member of the group to achieve a modicum of success as a compose of advertising jingles, and the victim of a tragic golfing accident. Bound for Fremantle with the ashes of their pal, our quartet of luckless losers encounter a series of unusual (if predictable) road movie mishaps that lead to a rollicking graveside concert. There are absolutely no surprises here - this is no Last Orders - but those with a penchant for Antipodean comedy (or head-banging) will find much to enjoy here. Also airs at 4:10 PM.

2:00 PM Cinemax
Idiocracy (2006 USA): Mike Judge has rarely had much luck with his theatrical features, and he may have hit bottom with Idiocracy, which grossed less than half a million dollars during its five week cinema ‘release' last autumn. Luke Wilson stars as Joe Bauers, a thoroughly average GI Joe deemed a worthy subject for a long-term, government sponsored hibernation experiment. Awakening 500 years in the future, Joe finds himself an intellectual giant and learns that his 21st century past marked the beginning of mankind's de-evolution, leaving the world of 2500 at the mercy of a population of Fuddruckers-dining simpletons. Though Idiocracy isn't quite the riotous laugh-a-thon that Office Space was, it deserved a far better fate than the one it received from 20th Century Fox, who sat on the film for a year before leaking it, sans promotion, onto a handful of screens. Also airs at 5:00 PM and throughout the month.

5:00 PM Encore Dramatic Stories
American Hardcore (2006 USA): ‘Hardcore' was (and arguably still is) a uniquely American strain of punk rock cooked up in the suburbs of Orange County by working class white kids in love with the simplicity of punk and the aggressive guitar attack of heavy metal. Dispensing with the melody of British punk and the art-school nous of the New York scene (and indeed many of their Greater Los Angeles contemporaries), hardcore bands took the louder fast shorter route to success, and found it in clubs like the Fleetwood and Madame Wongs. The movement then spread across the country during the mid 1980s, achieving particular success in the mid-west and Texas. American Hardcore features plentiful rough and ready concert footage, as well as insightful interviews with pioneers such as the ubiquitous Henry Rollins (Black Flag) and Keith Morris (Circle Jerks), and even if hardcore ain't your thang (yours truly definitely preferred the arty cool of LA bands like BPeople and Human Hands), punk fans of all generations will find plenty to enjoy and celebrate here.

Thursday 09/06/07

6:30 AM Outermax
Cool As Ice (1990 USA): Okay, I don't get this channel, you probably don't get this channel, and your friends, relatives and neighbors probably don't get this channel, but it would be a sad day if TiVoPlex didn't celebrate the return to the airwaves of the mighty Vanilla Ice's one and only feature film, currently ranked as the 28th worst film of all time on IMDb. Ice portrays a rebellious bad boy with a bright yellow motorcycle and a hankering for clever and pretty waitress cum honor student (Kristin Minter), but the small-town local yokels don't take to the hip and happening newcomer and his girly-man earrings. The Washington Post's Richard Harrington aptly described the film as "'Footloose' meets ‘The Mild Ones'". Hopefully Cool As Ice will soon be reappearing on a more widely available channel — can you believe it's still not on DVD??

9:10 PM Encore Action
Passport to Terror (1989 USA): Originally made for television and aired as Dark Holiday, Passport to Terror is basically a remake of Midnight Express, with Lee Remick replacing Brad Davis and antiquities standing in for heroin. If you're a fan of the ‘arrogant westerners getting the crap beaten out of them by tetchy foreigners' sub-genre, this is required viewing. All others need not apply, unless you're particularly fond of Remick.

Friday 09/07/07

8:30 PM The Movie Channel
Edmond (2006 USA): Here's another opportunity for William H. Macy to portray an eccentric everyman, and once again he delivers the goods. This time he plays Edmond Burke, a businessman who finds his life turned inside out and upside down after he stops by to get the word from a storefront fortune-teller. When the seer informs him that he's ‘not where he belongs', Edmond cashes in his chips, gives up his marriage as a lost cause, and goes on a quest to find, er, the place where he DOES belong, I suppose. Based on a one-act play by David Mamet, Edmond steers dangerously close to Falling Down crypto-fascist territory, but Mamet wisely uses the story to point the finger back at the audience and avoids the visceral white power subtext of Joel Schumacher's repulsive film. Ably directed by horror specialist (and, believe it or not, long time Mamet collaborator) Stuart Gordon, Edmond also airs at 11:30 PM.

Sunday 09/09/07

9:20 AM Encore Dramatic Stories
Her Majesty (2001 NZ): It's definitely a right royal week here in the TiVoPlex. Following on the heels of The Queen herself comes this low-key New Zealand drama about a family's preparations for a very special visit from HR. Set during a suitably idyllic 1950s (but it's New Zealand, so things have barely changed since then anyway), Her Majesty (the film) imagines Her Majesty (Queen Elizabeth) planning a trek to the NZ interior to return a Maori spear to its rightful owner. Far-fetched and nostalgic to a tee, Her Majesty is perfect viewing for those who thought Mirren's film took the House of Windsor to task a wee bit too harshly.

7:30 PM HBO
Alive Day Memories: Home From Iraq (2007 USA): Had your fill of Iraq War documentaries yet? Even if you have, I suspect the deluge has only just begun. Here's a brand new HBO doc about ten veterans trying to adjust to new realities at home after receiving grievous wounds in Mesopotamia. Don't know if this a flag-waver or one from the ‘hate America' crowd, so approach with due caution. Also airs at 10:30 PM.

11:00 PM Turner Classic Movies
I Vitelloni (1953 ITA): I'm not a huge Fellini fan, but if you must have Fellini, better his early films such as La Strada (1954) or this semi-autobiographical Academy Award nominee. It features the great Alberto Sordi as one of five middle-class loafers trying - though not very hard - to escape the confines of their stultifying small town existence (the film's title apparently means "big veal" or "overgrown calves"). The group talk big, making plans to move to Milan or Rome, become famous playwrights and fall in love with beautiful women, but in best slacker tradition never follow through on their plans. Beautifully shot on location on the Adriatic coast, I Vitelloni channels Fellini's developing eye for the absurd through the lens of neo-realism, and features a typically lush and romantic Nino Rota score.

Monday 09/10/07

3:40 AM Encore Action
Windprints (1990 SAF): Based on a true story, Windprints features Sean Bean and John Hurt as journalists on the trail of a Namibian killer who's been knocking off fellow members of his tribe. Hurt's character is an old fashioned Britisher with a taste for the old colonial ways, and it's up to young buck TV cameraman Bean to set him straight whilst the two work together to track down the baddy. Shot during the waning days of apartheid, David Wicht's film was banned in South Africa and was buried for many year's in that nation's film archives. Quite why it's getting an airing on Encore is an enigma wrapped within a Krugerrand, but we'll take our blessings where we find them.