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From the obscure to the obscurest to the merely overlooked or underappreciated; they all have a home in the TiVoPlex! All times Pacific.

Tuesday 6/7/11

12:45 AM Fox Movie Channel
Emperor of the North (1973 USA): Lee Marvin is 100% more man in this two-fisted tale of hobos riding the rails during the Great Depression. Marvin plays A No. 1, a bohunk who falls in with feisty Cigaret (Keith Carradine) whilst fussin’ and a feudin’ with rail-yard enforcer Shack (Ernest Borgnine). Robert Aldrich’s direction is fine, but is let down by Christopher Knopf’s flaccid and unfocused screenplay, and the film’s ‘70s roots are betrayed by some suspiciously long and bushy hair-don'ts. Nevertheless, the three leads are excellent (and ably supported by Simon Oakland, Elisha Cook Jr., and Sid Haig), Joseph Biroc’s cinematography impressive, and Frank DeVol’s score suitably frisky. Emperor of the North airs this morning in widescreen.

6:50 AM Encore
Hideaway (1995 USA): Jeff Goldblum does that twitchy thing he does so well in this entertaining sci-fi effort based on a Dean Koontz novel. Jeff portrays Hatch Harrison, an accident victim brought back from the dead by a doctor (Alfred Molina) after spending a two-hour sojourn in the afterlife. At first (shades of The Fly) everything seems back to normal for Hatch, but he’s returned from the beyond with something unpleasant (shades of Child’s Play) - the reborn soul of serial killer Vassago (Jeremy Sisto), who’s eager to get back to business. Oopsies! Also on hand: Alicia Silverstone as Hatch’s daughter and Rae Dawn Chong as a spooky seer. Also airs at 9:50 AM.

8:30 PM Encore Mystery
The Addiction (1995 USA): One of the better vampire flicks of the '90s, The Addiction features indie queen Lili Taylor as Kathleen Conklin, a doctoral student who gets bitten by a strange woman (Annabella Sciorra) whilst walking home one night. The bite gets infected and Conklin soon finds herself craving a wee drop of the red stuff from time to time. Needless to say, the craving is a major distraction from Kathleen’s studies, and she starts prowling the streets in need of the occasional fix. Directed by Abel Ferrara (Ms. 45, Bad Lieutenant), The Addiction eschews most of the routine vampire movie conventions, concentrating more on the psychological and physical aspects of "the curse." Taylor is outstanding, and Ferrara regular Christopher Walken co-stars as a fellow bloodsucker trying to 12-step his way out of the problem.

11:15 PM Turner Classic Movies
Uncle Silas (1948 GB): I can’t say enough good things about Uncle Silas in a single paragraph, but trust me: you do NOT want to miss this film! Jean Simmons stars as Caroline Ruthyn, a 17-year-old taking care of her dear, dying daddy (Reginald Tate), and who, after Pop passes on, learns she is now the ward of troublesome Uncle Silas (Derrick de Marney). Silas has previously been cleared of murder charges, but his intentions are less than honorable: he has his eye on the family fortune Caroline will inherit when she comes of age, and with the assistance of the scheming Madame de la Rougierre (the amazing Katina Paxinou), is plotting to make sure it makes its way into his coffers. Based on a story by Sheridan le Fanu, this is a terrific Gothic meller of the old school and will be appreciated by fans of Laura, Dragonwyck, and suchlike.

Wednesday 6/8/11

9:00 AM Showtime 2
Live Forever (2003 GB): Whilst on my annual holiday visit to the old country in 1995, I allowed myself to get caught up in the legendary Blur vs. Oasis chart battle that saw both heavyweight bands releasing a single on the same day (that day also happened to be my birthday). Not since the Beatles and the Stones - who, incidentally, never directly challenged each other in like fashion - had such a battle been waged for the hearts and minds of British pop pickers, and I foolishly anted up for one of each release. Thing was, Blur had the smarter marketing plan, and ended up releasing their single (a since-forgotten jingle entitled Country House) as a two-CD set, both of which counted as separate sales chart-wise.

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