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10:00 AM Turner Classic Movies
Madame X (1929 USA): Ruth Chatterton earned an Oscar nomination for her performance as the titular bad luck woman in this crude but effective early talkie. Chatterton plays Jacqueline Floriot, a society woman who engages in an unwise adulterous affair, and then must abandon her young son after husband Louis (Lewis Stone) finds out. Fast-forward 20 years, and Jacqueline's luck has gone from bad to worse: after killing hustler Larocque (Ulrich Haupt) in self-defense, she finds herself represented in court by — gasp! — her now adult child Raymond (Raymond Hackett), who, naturellement, has no idea his client is also his mother! This hackneyed plot device was surely already past its sell-by date by 1929, but Chatterton — a perennially underrated and now virtually forgotten actress — gives a performance that is every inch worthy of her nomination.

11:00 PM Turner Classic Movies
The Last Detail (1973 USA): Based on a novel by Daryl Ponicsan (also responsible for the equally-fine Cinderella Liberty), The Last Detail is another gem from director Hal Ashby, and stars Jack Nicholson as an MP who decides to show his stockade-bound prisoner one last good time before delivering him to prison. Robert Towne's screenplay captures the playful nature of the source material perfectly, Nicholson is great as usual, and there's good supporting work by Randy Quaid, Clifton James, and Michael Moriarty. Look for Gilda Radner in a bit part as a cult member.

Thursday 02/19/09

1:10 AM HBO Signature
Cronica de una Fuga (2006 ARG): Also known as Chronicle of an Escape and Guantanamo on the Pampas, this excellent based-on-a-true-story Argentinian drama stars The Motorcycle Diaries' Rodrigo de la Serna as Claudio, a football goalie "disappeared" by paramilitaries during the 1970s. Rendered to a government torture chamber because of the false confessions of Tano (Martin Urruty), an acquaintance desperate to save himself from further police beatings, Claudio meets fellow inmates Gallego, Guillermo, and Vasco, and the quartet promptly begin planning a breakout. Though the film offers plentiful food for thought, its impressive final-act escape sequence is the primary selling point. Directed by Adrian Caetano, Cronica de una Fuga scooped up film awards around the world, including Best Film at the Argentinian Film Critics Association Awards.

4:15 AM Sundance
Third Monday in October (2006 USA): No, it's not a film about the Supreme Court — it's a documentary about middle school student council elections! If you're still feeling bitter about that time you ran for treasurer in 7th grade and lost, here's something guaranteed to soothe your soul: a cinematic reminder that running for office is rarely a good idea, and definitely not one for faint-hearted adolescents. Also airs at 10:00 AM.

Friday 02/20/09

7:00 PM Turner Classic Movies
The Conversation (1974 USA): Film fans remember Francis Ford Coppola for his overrated Godfather trilogy and his masterpiece, Apocalypse Now. In between those Marlon Brando mumble-fests, however, Coppola made this quiet little film that remains one of his personal best, and also one of the finest productions of the decade. Starring Gene Hackman as Harry Caul, a mild-mannered surveillance expert with a nifty assortment of bugging devices, The Conversation anticipated the explosion of spying technology at the end of the 20th century. Harry is hired to stalk a couple apparently engaged in an illicit romantic relationship, but as he gathers and pieces together the evidence, a murder plot begins to emerge, and he has a crisis of conscience: is he aiding and abetting an assassination scheme? More timely now than ever before, The Conversation is a film about complicity, privacy (or the lack thereof), and the amoral world of big business. Frederic Forrest and Cindy "Shirley" Williams are the couple, John Cazale is Hackman's sidekick, Harrison Ford has a small role as a corporate flunky, and TiVoPlex favorite Allen Garfield puts in an appearance. With our government still more than eager to spy on us, this is the perfect time to reacquaint yourself with one of the best and most prophetic films of the 1970s.

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