TiVoPlex
TiVoPlex for Tuesday, June 3, 2008 through Monday, June 9, 2008
By John Seal
June 2, 2008
Friday 06/06/08
12:30 AM Turner Classic Movies
Anna May Wong (2008 USA): I haven't been privy to a screener of this brand new TCM documentary, but judging from its lengthy genesis (ten years in the making!) and the impressive list of talking heads attached to it (Nancy Kwan! Kevin Brownlow! A. C. Lyles, for God's sakes!!), it's going to be worth checking out.
12:45 PM Sundance
Evil (2003 SWE-DEN): A film from Scandinavia entitled Evil? Can we be very far from Ingmar Bergman territory here? Well...yes, we can. Andreas Wilson stars as 1950s schoolboy Erik, whose troublemaking ways have led him to enrolment at Stjarnsberg, a particularly unpleasant boarding school. It's the sort of place where the senior boys ritually abuse the younger lads, and the many manifestations of bullying and corporal punishment get lots of screen time (though surprisingly there's no buggery). Evil was nominated for Best Foreign Film at the 2004 Academy Awards, but apparently all the urination, caning, and vomiting didn't sit well with the voters, who opted instead for Canada's Barbarian Invasions.
7:00 PM Sundance
Kurt Cobain: About a Son (2006 USA): If you've read Michael Azzeraid's excellent Kurt Cobain biography Come As You Are, you'll probably enjoy this rockumentary, which is based on Azzeraid's research and features previously unheard taped interviews with the Nirvana main man. If your interest is only peripheral--or if you just want to see footage of Kurt and the boys in concert--this probably isn't the film for you. That said, About a Son gives Cobain center stage, and is a challenging but very worthy attempt to cast revealing light on this complex, troubled, and extremely talented individual.
11:00 PM Turner Classic Movies
Wicked, Wicked (1973 USA): Shot in Duo-Vision, Wicked Wicked is basically a cheapjack attempt to cash in on the success of Brian de Palma's Sisters, which had been released a year earlier. Whilst de Palma only resorted to using split screen for Sisters' most suspenseful scenes, Wicked Wicked director Richard Bare chose to use the gimmick for his film's entire 95-minute running time. The effect is less than edifying and does little if anything to improve what is essentially a bog-roll proto-slasher flick, but it's still a fascinating if poorly conceived stylistic exercise. Starring Tiffany Bolling as damsel in distress Lisa and poor worn out Scott Brady as police detective Ramsey, as well as Edd 'Kookie' Byrnes and Arthur O'Connell, this MGM rarity makes its widescreen television premiere this evening.
Saturday 06/07/08
11:10 PM Starz
Eagle vs. Shark (2007 NZ): This loopy Kiwi feature relates the story of two nerds trying to fall in love with each other--with minimal success. Loren Horsley and Jermaine Clement star as Lily and Jarrod, two social outcasts who meet cute at an animal costume party (hence the title) and then spend the next 90 minutes exchanging glances and brutal one-liners. Though the down-under setting lends the film an exotic air, the end result is essentially a down-market take on Napoleon Dynamite, with director Taika Cohen failing to display much in the way of development since his 1999 stoner comedy Scarfies. Also airs 6/8 at 2:10 AM.
Monday 06/09/08
6:00 PM HBO
Roman Polanski: Wanted & Desired (2008 USA): Though Roman Polanski's 1977 conviction for statutory rape has generated much media hot air over the years, little real light has been cast on the subject. This new documentary finally gives Polanski's case the careful attention it deserves, and suggests that it may not have been as cut and dried as the popular narrative would suggest. Though the film does not exculpate Polanksi, it does imply he got a raw deal from the judicial system. Also airs at 9:00 PM and on HBO2 at 10:00 PM.
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