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10:05 PM HBO Signature
Sangre de mi Sangre (2007 USA-ARG): The grand prize winner at Sundance 2007, this no-holds-barred immigration drama makes its American small screen debut tonight. Written and directed by Christopher Zalla, the film stars Jorge Adrian Espindola as Pedro, a young Mexican who makes a run across the border and ends up in the Big Apple in search of his long-missing father. Pedro knows that Dad once worked in a fancy brasserie back in the day, and with the help of the ever trusty Yellow Pages, he finds him — but the film is really all about the journey, and not the destination. Though Sangre de mi Sangre occasionally leaves one incredulous with certain plot developments, it's very well acted (with particular kudos going to Jesus Ochoa as father Diego), and features noteworthy cinematography by Igor Martinovic.

Friday 01/30/09

2:30 AM HBO
The Trials of Ted Haggard (2009 USA): I haven't seen this HBO original documentary yet, but with a juicy topic like Pastor Ted, how can you go wrong? I'll never forget watching Jesus Camp on the big screen and having my wife lean over and whisper "that man is so gay" during Haggard's appearance. Only a few months later, my wife's gaydar was proven 100% accurate when Ted was outed by a male escort. Presumably this Alexandra Pelosi documentary will re-examine the sordid details of the case, as well as Haggard's attempts to "recover" from his gayness and return to his rightful spot atop the New Life Church in Colorado. With Haggard helping to promote the film on the talk show circuit, don't expect anything too salacious, however. Also airs at 5:30 AM and on 2/1 at 2:15 PM and 5:15 PM.

11:30 PM Turner Classic Movies
Ladies and Gentlemen, the Fabulous Stains (1982 USA): Briefly released into theatres in 1982 and then forgotten until its late 2008 DVD release, Ladies and Gentlemen, the Fabulous Stains makes a very rare television appearance tonight on TCM Underground. It's the story of rocker Corinne Burns (15-year-old Diane Lane), whose titular band is moving from the garage to the big time thanks to a lucky break involving British punk band The Looters (fronted by a young Ray Winstone). Of course, fame is fleeting, and Corinne and her Stains soon fall out of favor, leading to a not terribly believable happy ending. Though considered rosily by the few who had actually seen it over the decades, Ladies and Gentlemen, the Fabulous Stains doesn't quite live up to its reputation, but remains a fascinating time capsule of an era when rockers and punks were arch enemies. It's followed at 1:00 AM by Eddie and the Cruisers (1983), the paint-by-numbers tale of a Jersey bar band who bear a shocking resemblance to Bruce Springsteen and chums. If you'd forgotten about the hilariously named Beaver Brown Band, here's your chance to make their acquaintance again.

Sunday 02/01/09

5:00 AM IFC
Drunken Angel (1948 JAP): I've always been a fan of Akira Kurosawa's "contemporary" films, which delved into the post-war Yakuza underworld with style and intelligence. Here's another of his occasional dalliances with the crime genre, once again featuring Toshiro Mifune, this time playing a gangster dying from tuberculosis. He's being treated by an alcoholic doctor, played brilliantly by screen veteran Takashi Shimura, and the film details the fascinating relationship that develops between the two. High and Low is my favorite Kurosawa film, but I consider this the best of his 1940s efforts.

4:15 PM Showtime
Bratz (2007 USA): The girls have a passion for fashion! Those annoying big-eyed dolls who smacked Barbie upside her head with their colagened lips and oversized purses got their own movie in 2007, and it makes its widescreen television debut this afternoon! Cue mad excitement! Actually, the film is just your standard wretched tweeny rom com — it would have been a lot better if they'd made it with animated Bratz, because they'd display a lot more talent than the, ahem, "actors" featured herein. But isn't it nice that Hollywood's favorite new right-winger, former Vietnam War protester Jon Voight, signed up for Bratz duty? Somehow that just makes a lot of sense. Also airs at 7:15 PM.

Monday 02/02/09

6:00 PM Sundance
Leila Khaled: Hijacker (2006 SWE): I became aware of Leila Khaled when the second Teardrop Explodes album, Wilder, came out in 1981. The song Like Leila Khalid Said is a typically catchy Teardrops number with a sinuous, vaguely Arabic melody line, but I had no idea who or what a Leila Khaled was until many years later. As it turns out, Ms. Khaled was the first woman to hijack an airliner, working on behalf of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine during their 1969 offensive. Haifa-born Leila was one of four revolutionaries who seized control of TWA 840 on August 29 1969 whilst it was en route from Rome to Athens. Ultimately, no one was hurt, though the empty plane was blown up, and Leila would go on to attempt one further 'jacking before the PFLP temporarily renounced the tactic. Her remarkable life is retold in this excellent Swedish documentary, which scooped up several awards on the festival circuit. As for that Teardrop Explodes song, singer Julian Cope later explained it was a love song for a beautiful woman, and nothing more.

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