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7:00 Sundance
Good Morning Heartache (2008 ITA): A so-so Italian take on the mockumentary meme, Good Morning Heartache stars Stefano Fresi and Alessandro Averone as filmmakers Giorgio and Eros, who invite themselves into the home of a Roman family struggling to get by on temp work in the near moribund Italian film industry. Wife Lucia (Alba Rohrwacher) promptly falls head over heels for Giorgio, whilst hubby Giovanni (Marco Foschi) simply decides the experiment has gone too far and takes off for points unknown. If you've been paying attention, you'll recognize this as virtually the same plot as that of Albert Brooks' Real Life — highlighted in this very column only a week or two ago — and frankly, Good Morning Heartache really doesn't do much new with it. It's nicely acted and looks good, but that's about the best one can say about it.

7:00 PM Turner Classic Movies
So Long at the Fair (1950 GB): Jean Simmons stars as a woman searching for her lost brother in this enjoyable, well-mounted period piece from Britain's Gainsborough Pictures. Simmons plays Vicky Barton, who's travelled with brother Johnny (David Tomlinson) to the Paris Exhibition of 1896. The siblings check into their hotel, but in the morning, Johnny has disappeared — and no one even remembers having seen him in the first place. Luckily for Vicky, she meets fellow British tourist George Hathaway (Dirk Bogarde), who believes her story and offers assistance in her Johnny quest. If all this sounds familiar, that's probably because the film was remade as an early episode of Alfred Hitchcock Presents, but this is the definitive version. Look for 22-year-old cutie Honor Blackman in the small but critical role of Rhoda O'Donovan, as well as Hammer horror regular Andre Morell as a doctor.

Saturday 04/18/09

12:45 AM Turner Classic Movies
Let the Good Times Roll (1974 USA): The baby boomers were already experiencing the first pangs of nostalgia during the early 1970s, when the post-Summer of Love comedown was calling and the "innocent" 1950s began to appear not so bad after all. With Happy Days a huge hit on television and American Graffiti scoring big at the box office, it was clearly time for documentarians to get into the act — hence, Let the Good Times Roll. Featured herein are contemporaneous performances by Bo Diddley, The Shirelles, Bill Haley, Chuck Berry, Fats Domino, Little Richard, and Chubby Checker, who sadly avoids the mind-melting psychedelic cuts he recorded in the late '60s in favor of doing the Twist again, like he did last summer...and the summer before that...and the summer before that. The film is horribly dated thanks to the horrendous clothing and hairstyles worn by all concerned, but some of the music still has some juice in it. Extra added plus: Let the Good Times Roll was shot in 70mm widescreen, and makes its OAR television debut this morning.

6:00 PM Starz
You Don't Mess with the Zohan (2007 USA): Adam Sandler in the TiVoPlex? Hey, I don't want you kids to think I'm a total film snob. Though You Don't Mess With the Zohan is no classic, it makes an effort to milk some laughs from what seems to be a distinctly unfunny topic (the 60-year long struggle between Israelis and Palestinians) and actually succeeds, at least intermittently. If nothing else, John Turturro is fun to watch as freedom fighter cum fast food magnate The Phantom. Also airs at 9:00 PM.

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