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Friday 1/22/10

8:30 PM Encore Dramatic Stories
Star 80 (1983 USA): From time to time I've herein sung the praises of actor Eric Roberts, whose career has forever been overshadowed by that of his less talented sibling Julia. Said career arguably reached its apex in 1983's Star 80, in which Roberts delivers a bravura performance as a complete asshole. The orifice in question is Paul Snider, an aspiring talent agent who discovers lovely Dorothy Stratten (Mariel Hemingway) behind the counter of his neighborhood Dairy Queen. Snider immediately kens that she'll make terrific centerfold material and (by extension) will help him fulfil his own dreams and desires for a life of comfort and ease - but it's a long way to the top and a slippery slope besides. Directed by Bob Fosse, Star 80 charts a grim path indeed, as Paul and Dorothy's mutually destructive relationship takes them to places they never intended to go. One of the most downbeat films of the 1980s, Star 80 would have been better received during the cynical ‘70s, but just wasn't welcome in Reagan's Shining City on a Hill. Sunny and optimistic it ain't.

11:15 PM Turner Classic Movies
Superstition (1982 CAN): ‘80' isn't a word, so we're going to count Superstition as our record-breaking sixth one-word title in a row. Can you feel the history happening? A Canadian chiller about a witch who returns from the past to haunt and murderize the present, Superstition is a slowly paced and rather polite affair with a couple of decent shocks and not much else, unless you count Albert Salmi as ‘much else'. It does, however, make its widescreen television debut this evening.

Saturday 1/23/10

3:15 AM Sundance
Noise (2007 AUS): Seven!! Now we're having fun, kids! And unlike Superstition, Noise is actually quite a good film, so I'm not just using it as an excuse to extend the one-word title streak. Written and directed by Aussie Matthew Saville, the film surveys the physical and mental wreckage left in the wake of a suburban murder spree. Brendan Cowell plays McGahan, a tinnitus-plagued Melbourne copper assigned to the case, but not exactly rushing to get to the bottom of things. Will the killer strike again before McGahan tracks him (or her) down? Or will that annoying buzzing sound in McGahan's ears drive him to insanity first? Also airs at 11:45 AM.

Sunday 1/24/10

10:05 AM Encore Dramatic Stories
Paradise Now (2005 PAL-FRA-GER-ISR): It's encouraging to note that, other differences aside, Israel and ‘The Palestinian Territories' can co-produce films together. Case in point: Paradise Now, Palestine's Best Foreign Language Film entrant for the 2006 Oscars and the product of Nazareth-born filmmaker Hany Abu-Assad. Kais Nashef and Ali Suliman star as Said and Khaled, two 30-something mechanics recruited to set off a bomb in Tel Aviv. The film examines their preparations in considerable detail, as the two disguise themselves as Jewish settlers in order to get as close to their target as possible. Things go awry, however, and the pair are separated before completing the task at hand, raising questions about their willingness and ability to see it through to the end. Condemned by some Israelis and westerners as being insufficiently critical of suicide bombers and by some Palestinians as being insufficiently deferential to them, Paradise Now is a brave and powerful attempt to understand and explain the phenomenon.

11:45 AM Turner Classic Movies
Lola Montes (1954 FRA): TCM continues its periodic exploration of Max Ophuls' filmography with Lola Montes, the director's salute to ‘the most scandalous woman in the world'. Born in Ireland in 1821, Montes was a dancer who later became the courtesan of King Ludwig I of Bavaria before succumbing to pneumonia at ago 40 whilst living in New York. The film is set during her time in Central Europe and was, at the time, the most expensive movie ever produced in France. It's not a particular favorite of mine - Martine Carol is pretty awful in the lead role - but is very rarely seen on American television, and features plenty of the visual opulence we associate with Ophuls.

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