TiVoPlex
By John Seal
March 7, 2011
BoxOfficeProphets.com
Tuesday 03/8/11
Midnight Showtime 2
Sex & Drugs & Rock & Roll (2010 GB): Here’s a reason to be cheerful: this above average biopic about singer Ian Dury, which sadly sank with all hands at the US box-office, makes its American television debut this morning. That it failed should hardly be a surprise: Dury was never more than a brief flash in the pan on the American music charts, where his unique blend of pub rock, disco, and music hall befuddled the Foreigner-worshiping masses. The film — named after the song for which he remains most famous — stars chameleon Andy Serkis as the prickly Harrow boy crippled for life after a childhood bout with polio, Ray Winstone as his tough as nails old man, and Olivia Williams as his first wife. It’s a worthy tribute to one of the finest working-class poets of all time, and naturally features a lot of great music, too. Though Dury died of cancer in 2000, this is, ultimately, an uplifting tale of triumph over adversity.
4:30 AM HBO Signature
Boy Interrupted (2009 USA): And then there’s Boy Interrupted, a heart-wrenching documentary completely bereft of triumphalism. Produced by Hart Perry, the cinematographer who shot Barbara Kopple’s Oscar-winning doc Harlan County, U.S.A., and wife Dana Heinz Perry, the film is a deeply personal examination of the tragic life of their son Evan, who committed suicide at 15 after an all too brief life filled with depression and drug abuse. It’s a hard film to watch — especially if you’re a parent — but worthwhile nonetheless.
11:00 AM Turner Classic Movies
Borderline (1950 USA): A fairly ho-hum, independently produced crime drama, Borderline is primarily of interest due to its impressive cast. Fred MacMurray eschews light comedy as Johnny Macklin, an undercover G-Man in the employ of Pete Ritchie (Raymond Burr), a mobster involved in narcotics smuggling across the Mexican border. Lady cop Madeleine Haley (noir regular Claire Trevor) is also trying to get the goods on the dope ring, but she’s unaware of Macklin’s assignment and assumes he’s truly one of Ritchie’s heavies. Confusion, double dealings, and unlikely coincidences ensue. Also on hand: two guys who never seemed to stop working, Morris Ankrum as Madeleine’s supervisor and Charles Lane as a customs agent.
Wednesday 03/9/11
Midnight Flix
Lovespell (1981 USA): Richard Burton headlines this all but forgotten retelling of the Tristan and Isolde legend, here getting a very rare widescreen airing. Burton is King Mark of Cornwall, who falls for sweet young thing Isolt (Kate Mulgrew) during a holiday trip to Ireland. Unable to get her out of his mind after returning home, Mark sends nephew Tristan (Nicholas Clay) back to the Emerald Isle with instructions to bring Isolt back to the King’s loving Cornish arms. Can you guess what happens next? Yep, it’s love triangle time. Though shot on location in Ireland, Lovespell looks suspiciously like a made-for-TV movie that lucked into a theatrical release: there’s virtually no sex or violence, Burton keeps the profanity to a bare minimum, and there’s some really dated soft-focus scenes that look like they were shot for a very chaste issue of Penthouse. On the plus side, there’s a fine Irish supporting cast, including Geraldine Fitzgerald as Isolt’s handmaiden Bronwyn and Cyril Cusack as nobleman Gormond.
Thursday 03/10/11
12:45 AM Flix
Outrageous! (1977 CAN): And rather outrageous it once was, though such is no longer the case. This north-of-the-border drama stars female impersonator Craig Russell as gay hairdresser Robin, a drag performer hoping to bust out of the cozy confines of Canada and bring his act to the Big Apple. He takes the leap but in the process leaves behind schizophrenic and pregnant Toronto flatmate Liza (Hollis McLaren), whose family is threatening to institutionalize her, and things come to a head whilst Robin is treading the boards. The story is clumsily told and a wee bit predictable, but the leads are both excellent, the sexual politics reasonably progressive for the time, and Russell’s impersonations — of Bette Davis, Tallulah Bankhead, and others — are pretty damn good.
6:15 AM Turner Classic Movies
The Age of Consent (1932 USA): Free love on America’s college campuses is the shocking subject of this creaky drama from director Gregory La Cava, of whom I usually expect a bit more substance. Dorothy Wilson stars as Betty Cameron, a State College co-ed whose relationship with fellow undergrad Michael Harvey (Richard Cromwell) threatens to damage his future career opportunities. It’s impossibly tame stuff, but Wilson brings a bubbly vivacity to her role and you’ll have fun trying to spot the very young Betty Grable, here wandering in the background as one of the young lovers’ fellow students.
4:00 PM Showtime 3
That Evening Sun (2009 USA): I haven’t seen That Evening Sun yet, but in late 2009 there was quite a bit of Oscar buzz surrounding star Hal Holbrook’s performance as an aging Tennessee farmer. That came to naught, but it can’t be denied that the octogenarian actor has been experiencing a bit of a career renaissance of late — he had previously garnered an Oscar nom for his outstanding performance in 2007’s Into the Wild — and all reports indicate he’s great here, too. I’m looking forward to catching up with That Evening Sun, and the good news is it’ll be airing frequently throughout the month — so check your local listings.
Friday 03/11/11
8:30 AM HBO Signature
Un Novio para Mi Mujer (2008 ARG): A man tries to get rid of his wife in unusual fashion in this slight but amusing comedy from Argentina. Adrian Suar plays Tenso, a mild-mannered sort whose wife Tana (Valeria Bertuccelli, not to be confused with Valerie Bertinelli) has the hottest temper south of the Panama Canal. Tenso’s best friend (Benjamin Amadeo) convinces him to hire a professional gigolo (Gabriel Goity) to seduce Tana and hopefully bring about a final break in their relationship, but he soon finds himself consumed with jealousy and not at all happy with his decision. Un Novio para Mi Mujer (A Boyfriend for My Wife) is more wry character study than full-blown rom-com, and Bertuccelli’s fiery performance won her the Best Actress gong at 2008’s Argentinian Academy Awards.
Saturday 03/12/11
7:30 AM Turner Classic Movies
Hot Shots (1956 USA): You know there’s something wrong with the Bowery Boys series when the plot revolves around Sach’s car being stolen. Sach owns a car? Since when? And since when is he capable of driving? Stanley Clements returns as straight man Duke, whilst sci-fi regular Robert Shayne (The Giant Claw, Teenage Cave Man) shows up as a television producer.
10:15 PM Turner Classic Movies
City Streets (1931 USA): Gary Cooper stars as a carny turned wise guy in this forgotten, unavailable on home video should-be-classic directed by the great Rouben Mamoulian. Based on a story by Dashiell Hammett, the film features Coop as The Kid, operator of a sideshow shooting gallery. Gal pal Nan (Sylvia Sidney) urges him to join the mob so he can earn some easy money, but The Kid isn't interested — even though Nan's father (Guy Kibbee, playing against type brilliantly) is a big-time hood who could make life easy for him. When Nan is arrested whilst trying to dispose of a murder weapon, however, The Kid has second thoughts: she'll need a lot of money to pay for an expensive lawyer. What, Dad won't pony up for his own child? The Kid takes the bait, only to find out that Nan liked him better when he was straight. City Streets is visually stunning from start to finish thanks to cinematographer Lee Garmes, and compares favorably to Josef von Sternberg's silent classic Underworld (1927). Mamoulian's next film was the since unsurpassed Fredric March version of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, but this film is even better.
Sunday 03/13/11
11:30 PM Encore Dramatic Stories
I Shot Andy Warhol (1996 USA): Lili Taylor is outstanding as would-be Warhol assassin Valerie Solanas in this excellent drama set during the heady revolutionary days of 1968. In real life, Solanas was a radical feminist who penned the Scum (Society for Cutting Up Men) Manifesto, which modestly proposed the elimination of the male gender. Solanas also wrote a play delightfully entitled Up Your Ass, which she gave to Warhol in hopes that he would help her produce it. Unfortunately, Andy lost the script, causing Valerie in turn to lose her cool and shoot him. After a three-year stint in Bellevue, Solanas died in poverty in 1988 in a San Francisco flophouse — ironically, Up Your Ass was later re-discovered and produced only blocks from her Tenderloin death bed. As for the film, it marked the directorial debut of Mary Harron, whose only other feature-length theatrical releases to date — American Psycho and The Notorious Bettie Page — are also very, very good. Too bad she doesn’t direct more frequently, but at least we have The Moth Diaries to look forward to later this year.
Monday 03/14/11
12:15 AM Turner Classic Movies
The Story of Mankind (1957 USA): One of the most ridiculous films ever made — and I know that’s saying a lot — The Story of Mankind returns to television this morning after a lengthy absence. A clearly exhausted and bewildered Ronald Colman stars as The Spirit of Man, a fellow assigned the difficult task of convincing God — in a courtroom in the clouds, no less — that Planet Earth is worth saving from the horrors of the recently developed "Super H Bomb." His opponent is Old Scratch himself (Vincent Price), who of course argues the opposite and believes mankind should be hoist on its own petard. The two take a trip though history to examine the pros and cons, allowing director Irwin Allen (yeah, the guy behind Lost in Space and The Time Tunnel) to shoehorn in dozens of embarrassing celebrity cameos. Want to see Dennis Hopper as Napoleon? Peter Lorre as Nero? Harpo Marx as Sir Isaac Newton? Virginia Mayo as Cleopatra? They’re all here and much, much more. It’s awful, but car crash awful — you’ll be rubbernecking the whole way.