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6:00 PM Starz
The Men Who Stare at Goats (2009 USA): The best military-themed comedy since 2001’s Buffalo Soldiers, The Men Who Stare at Goats had the misfortune of being released shortly after the Fort Hood shootings but thankfully didn’t share its predecessor’s unfortunate post-9/11 fate. The film can be appreciated on a number of levels: for its superb ensemble cast (Jeff Bridges, George Clooney, Ewan McGregor, Kevin Spacey, and Robert Patrick), as absurdist comedy, or as a sharply critical indictment of the immorality and stupidity of American foreign policy. If you think the invasion of Iraq was a good idea, you probably won't like this film. If you’ve got doubts, however, prepare yourself for one of the funniest and most intelligently written American films of recent vintage. Also airs at 9:00 PM.

Monday 8/30/10

11:00 AM Fox Movie Channel
The Nickel Ride (1975 USA): Late actor Jason Miller is best remembered (on the rare occasions he IS remembered) for his exemplary performance as Father Karras in William Friedkin’s The Exorcist, but he deserves better. Gritty drama The Nickel Ride features him in perhaps the finest performance of his career as Cooper, a low-level LA hoodlum whose hold on his assigned section of town is being threatened by the arrival of new punk Turner (Bo Hopkins). It’s a surprisingly complex tale of one man’s slow realization that he may no longer be at the top of his game, and features very impressive widescreen cinematography by Jordan Cronenweth. Look for Magnum P.I. regular John Hillerman (you know, the dapper guy with the neat little moustache) as Cooper’s boss.

5:00 PM Sundance
Kassim the Dream (2009 US): Documentaries don’t get much more inspirational than this one. Kassim the Dream focuses on Kassim Ouma, a young Ugandan inducted into frontline child soldier service at the tender age of six. Years later, and after becoming a renowned Ugandan Army boxer, Kassim relocated to the United States where he began working towards becoming World Light Middleweight Champion. Though a bit on the shallow side—the film tends to elide over the nastier stuff in his background—Kassim the Dream is engaging nevertheless, with the youngster’s tense return to his native land particularly riveting stuff.

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