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10:30 AM Turner Classic Movies
No, My Darling Daughter (1961 GB): Michael Redgrave stars in this frothy cinematic souffle whipped up by British comedy specialist Ralph Thomas. Sir Michael portrays Sir Matthew, a wealthy businessman trying to keep his out of control daughter (Juliet Mills) under lock and key and away from the son of an American colleague. Redgrave was well past his prime at this point, and the film is maddeningly predictable. However, its obscurity — especially for American viewers — and its cast (which also includes Michael Craig, Roger Livesey, and Carry-On queen Joan Sims) render it a mild buy in the TiVoPlex. It's followed at 12:15 PM by Lock Up Your Daughters! (1969), an 18th century take on the same timeless theme of wild youth run amuck featuring Christopher Plummer, Susannah York, Ian Bannen, Glynis Johns, Roy Kinnear, Roy Dotrice, and a host of other familiar faces. It's based upon Henry Fielding's delightfully titled play, Rape upon Rape, and was shot by Peter Suschitzky!

7:00 PM Sundance
Poison Friends (2006 FRA): The previously unheralded (at least to me) Thibault Vincon takes the lead in this talky but rewarding French drama. Vincon plays Andre Morney, a self-assured college student who seems perfectly at ease in the company of his intellectual elders and is more than happy to share his considerable wisdom with underclassmen. Andre becomes a role model for younger students Eloi and Alexandre (Malik Zidi and Alexandre Steiger), who decide to adopt his philosophy ("people write because they are too weak not to write") and abandon their own aspirations as playwright and novelist. A film primarily about writing and thinking doesn't sound terribly exciting, but director Emmanuel Bourdieu successfully blends dry wit, intellectual rigor, and psychological exploration to good effect. Also airs 3/5 at 1:00 AM and 3/7 at 11:00 PM.

Thursday 03/05/09

7:45 AM Turner Classic Movies
Night Unto Night (1949 USA): There's a passel of Ronald Reagan features airing on TCM today, most of which are frequent fliers, but here's one that doesn't get off the ground too often. Only the second feature to be helmed by director Don Siegel, Night Unto Night stars The Gipper as John Galen, a Chicago scientist stricken with a mysterious and apparently terminal illness that involves epileptic fits and spooky organ music. He heads east to rest and recuperate, and meets Ann Gracy (Viveca Lindfors), who owns a seaside Victorian mansion but can't enter it because she fears her late husband's ghost resides within. Enter bohemian C. L. Shawn (Broderick Crawford), who tries to help our protagonists by talking their ears' off with incessant chatter about spirituality, mysticism, and psychology. Based on a Philip Wylie novel, Night unto Night is, indeed, very talky, but is still worth a look for Peverell Marley's atmospheric cinematography and Franz Waxman's score — not to mention the sight of "The Great Communicator" getting an earful of proto-counterculture navel-gazing from the woefully miscast Crawford.

10:30 AM Showtime 3
Chasing Ghosts: Beyond the Arcade (2007 USA): Did you know that Arnold Schwarzenegger made his fortune by selling drugs and working as a prostitute? That's perhaps the most surprising revelation of this extremely enjoyable documentary about the glory days of the video arcade. Focusing on half a dozen or so men who became temporary celebrities thanks to their prowess at such games as Frogger, Burgertime, Pac Man, and the most manly of them all, Missile Command, Chasing Ghosts features tons of archival footage and plenty of amusing interview segments. Most of these guys would happily be described as nerds, a few of them are totally over the edge, but their passion is undeniable, and who am I to criticize? After all, I spend all MY spare time watching movies - and there's even less reward for that than racking up a record score on Ms. Pac Man.

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