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Thursday 10/7/10

5:15 PM Sundance
Angel of Mine (2008 FRA): Talented but unknown-outside-France actress Catherine Frot takes the lead in this subtle and intelligent psycho-drama. Frot plays Elsa, a woman currently going through divorce and child custody proceedings and easy prey for the temptations of self-medication. When she meets angelic seven-year-old Lola, a schoolmate of son Thomas, she begins to develop an unhealthy obsession, eventually befriending the child’s mother (Sandrine Bonnaire) and stalking their house in an effort to maintain contact with the girl. Apparently based on a true story, Angel of Mine sounds like one of those bad misogynist thrillers of the ‘80s and ‘90s, but trust me—it’s way better than Basic Instinct or Fatal Attraction. Also airs at 11:15 PM.

9:15 PM Turner Classic Movies
Countdown (1968 USA): Robert Altman makes a space opera! That’s what happened in 1968 with this film, one of many sci-fi efforts from the late ‘60s focusing on the moon landings that were just around the corner. Countdown stars James Caan as Lee Stegler, a civilian astronaut hired by NASA to beat the Russkies in the race to Earth’s satellite. He wins the race, but then finds himself stranded moonside for at least a year whilst a rescue mission is prepared by the guys back home, including Robert Duvall and…Ted Knight?!? Countdown was shot on location at Cape Canaveral, lending the film a veneer of authenticity, but it’s otherwise pretty routine stuff and not at all what you’d expect from Altman, who didn’t find his cinematic voice until his next film, 1970’s M*A*S*H*. Recently added to the Warner Archives Collection, Countdown makes a rare widescreen television appearance this evening.

Friday 10/8/10

3:20 AM Encore Dramatic Stories
12 (2007 RUS): Here's an unlikely but welcome programming choice from Encore Drama: an epic length Russian drama, in Russian and Chechen, about a jury deliberating over the fate of a Chechen teen charged with murder. I haven't seen it yet, but any variant on the 12 Angry Men theme is of interest to me. Writer-director-actor Nikita Mikhailov previously directed the award-winning Burnt by the Sun.

8:30 PM Turner Classic Movies
The Reptile (1966 GB): TCM has their Hammer on this month, including a rare airing of this silly but thoroughly enjoyable thriller about a man who turns into a scaly monster. Ray Barrett stars as Grenadier Guardsman Harry Spalding, new owner of a Cornish dream cottage inherited from his late brother. All seems well for Harry and wife Valerie (Jennifer Daniel)—until locals begin to succumb to fatal snake bites similar to the one that killed brother Charles (David Baron). Has Land’s End been invaded by asps, or is something more sinister and vaguely supernatural afoot? Co-starring Marne Maitland, John Laurie, and (naturally) Michael Ripper, The Reptile has accurately been described as ‘Dracula with snakes’, and plays like a polite pre-echo of Ken Russell’s Lair of the White Worm.

11:15 PM Turner Classic Movies
Let’s Kill Uncle (1966 GB-USA): Here’s a genuine oddity: a feature film shot in Bermuda! Directed by a past his prime William Castle and best remembered today for its ‘shark in a swimming pool’ scenes, Let’s Kill Uncle stars little Pat Cardi as 12-year old Barnaby, who’s just learned he’s heir to a multi-million dollar fortune. Too young, of course, to gain immediate access to the cash, Barnaby is placed in the care of Uncle Kevin (Nigel Green), a British Army intelligence officer who’s next in line for the legacy should anything happen to the tyke. Will Uncle try to kill Barnaby…or should Barnaby make a preemptive strike and kill him first? Though not very good, the film is certainly unique, and the shark definitely falls into the ‘once seen, never forgotten’ category.

Saturday 10/9/10

7:30 AM Turner Classic Movies
Feudin’ Fools (1952 USA): The Bowery Boys journey to Appalachia in this mediocre series entry. This time Sach (Huntz Hall) inherits a remote farm, getting himself and the gang mixed up with the requisite bank robbers (one of whom is played by Lyle Talbot) and a Hatfields and McCoys-style hillbilly feud. The tables are turned on the baddies when Sach convinces his redneck relatives that the robbers belong to the enemy clan. Yee-haw!

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