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Thursday 9/23/10

4:45 AM Turner Classic Movies
The Chief (1933 USA): Based on a character created by star Ed Wynn for a long forgotten radio show, The Chief will appeal primarily to admirers of Keenan Wynn’s dad, of whom, presumably, there aren’t too many still alive at this point. However, forgotten pop culture is something we love in the TiVoPlex, so we’ll give The Chief a mention. Wynn plays a milquetoast fireman who lucks into heroism thanks to the misadventures of skirt Dixie Dean (Dorothy Mackaill), and then finds himself a pawn of the local political establishment. If you’re not a Wynn fan, there’s also 13-year-old Mickey Rooney, seen here hurling a firecracker. Is there anyone else like the Mickster, now into his tenth decade of screen work? The man is truly amazing, and celebrates his 90th birthday today!

3:30 PM Turner Classic Movies
He’s a Cockeyed Wonder (1950 USA): And to continue the celebration, consider this obscure Columbia comedy starring Mickey as a migrant farm worker who inherits a fortune and becomes a magician. Really, that’s what the IMDb plot synopsis suggests - I’ve never seen He’s a Cockeyed Wonder, so I’ll have to tune in to assess its accuracy for myself. If Mickey isn’t sufficient enticement, the supporting cast includes William Demarest, Terry Moore, and Mike Mazurki, which sounds like a downright irresistible combination to me.

9:30 PM Showtime Extreme
D.O.A. (Dead On Arrival) (2008 SWE): Between this and the original (and judging from the trailer of the American remake, Let Me In, superior) version of Let the Right One In, there seems to be some sort of minor thriller/horror renaissance going on in Sweden at the moment. Maybe it’s the shock of living with a right-wing government (only the third one since World War II, I believe) that’s inspired the mini-movement or perhaps it’s just coincidence, but regardless of the reason, it’s the cause for some celebration: no one does dark and gloomy as well as the Swedes! Dead on Arrival stars Samir el Alaoui as David, a young man who makes a miraculous recovery after a potentially fatal accident and then falls in love with pretty nurse Maria (Nathalie Soderqvist). All seems well with the world…until the young lovers take a vacation and have an unfortunate encounter with some well-armed thugs. Dead On Arrival is not particularly original, but the cast is uniformly fine, and it’s an impressive accomplishment for director Henric Brandt, who supposedly shot the film for $20,000.

Friday 9/24/10

1:05 PM Showtime Extreme
The Brotherhood (1968 USA): The program guide indicates this will be a letterboxed airing of this Kirk Douglas gangster pic, but even if it turns out to be pan and scan it’s still worth your time. The dimpled one headlines as Frank Ginetta, an old-fashioned gangster running the family firm after the death of his father. When younger brother Vince (Alex Cord) returns from Vietnam, however, relations become strained: Vince wants to modernize and expand the business into areas Frank is uncomfortable with. To make matters worse, Frank also discovers that fellow goombah Dom Bertolo (Luther Adler) was responsible for the patriarch’s death, and a mob war is soon bloodying streets and sidewalks from New York to Palermo. Directed by Martin Ritt and penned by John Lewis Carlino, The Brotherhood brought the gangster film up-to-date and lay the groundwork for the Scorsese and Coppola films that would follow. An excellent supporting cast, including Irene Papas, Susan Strasberg, and Eduardo Ciannelli, and a lively Lalo Schifrin score render The Brotherhood required viewing for mob movie mavens.

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