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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 11/18/08

5:15 AM Turner Classic Movies
First Comes Courage (1943 USA): This routine Columbia flag-waver earns a mention because it's a rarely seen Merle Oberon feature, and because it was the last film directed by Dorothy Arzner. That's a pretty thin thread on which to hang a recommendation, but Arzner was the ONLY female director working in Golden Age Hollywood, which is pretty odd when you think about it. Arzner doesn't acquit herself particularly well here, but First Comes Courage is certainly no worse than thousands of similar films churned out by Y chromosome filmmakers, and Oberon is gorgeous (if barely credible) as a Norwegian freedom fighter battling Nazis. Brian Aherne lends a helping hand as her British military liaison and Carl Esmond purrs maliciously as an adversary. It's followed at 6:45 AM by 1936's Rhodes of Africa, a salute to British Empire architect Cecil Rhodes, here stoically portrayed by Walter Huston during his brief mid-30s UK sojourn.

7:00 AM Sundance
Summercamp! (2006 USA): Summer camps are a uniquely American rite of passage for children of a certain age, and this enjoyable if shallow documentary takes a look at one such establishment. Focusing on Wisconsin's Swift Nature Camp, the film depicts the adventures of a 90-strong group of youngsters as they suffer through homesickness, insect bites, and uncomfortable bedding over the course of a gruelling three weeks. If you're one who waxes nostalgic about being shipped off to a distant location and placed in the care of strangers, you'll probably love Summercamp! Also airs 11/24 at 4:30 AM.

9:45 AM Turner Classic Movies
The Frozen Limits (1939 GB): It's not too often that British comedy team The Crazy Gang gets American television exposure — in fact, I can't remember it ever happening before. My only previous exposure to the Gang was on British TV, so this morning is a special time indeed, especially if obscure comedy acts are your thing. The gang consisted of six long since forgotten comics, and The Frozen Limits, a surprisingly amusing attempt to mine laughs from the Canadian Gold Rush of 1898, is generally considered their best effort. Much of the humor is topical and most of it understandably aimed at a British audience, but there's enough lunacy (including some rather camp Mounties and a salute to Walt Disney's Snow White) to render this of more than passing interest to American viewers.

Wednesday 11/19/08

7:00 PM Sundance
Pierrepoint (2005 GB): Albert Pierrepoint was Britain's "last" official hangman, and carried out over 400 executions — including those of Ruth Ellis and Lord Haw Haw — before his retirement in 1956. A small man with a vise-like handshake, he lived out his days in my hometown of Southport, Lancashire, where he banked at my father's place of employment, Nat West. This first rate biopic stars the great Timothy Spall as Pierrepoint, and Spall delivers a quietly effective performance as this dedicated public servant, who tackled his job with equanimity and compassion whilst running an Oldham pub on the side. There's also an excellent supporting turn by Eddie Marsan — rapidly acquiring a reputation as one of Britain's finest character actors — as James Corbitt, one of Pierrepoint's satisfied clients. Even if you're an opponent of the death penalty — as I am — you'll be intrigued and enlightened by this fascinating look at one man and his most unusual day job.

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