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Friday 11/18/11

4:30 PM Showtime
Four Lions (2009 GB): Set in Sheffield, England, Four Lions introduces us to an amateur terror cell plotting revenge for the British government’s crimes against Islam. There’s hardcore white Muslim Barry (Nigel Lindsay), thoughtful but determined Omar (The Road to Guantanamo’s Riz Ahmed), thick as a brick Waj (Kayvan Novak), nervous nellie Fessal (Adeel Akhtar), and hopeless bourgeois Hassan (Arshan Ali), and though collectively determined to do something - anything - to right the wrongs done to the faith, they’re not quite sure what form "something" should take.

After Omar and Waj return home from a failed attempt to train with the mujahideen in Pakistan, the group busy themselves recording martyrdom videos and experimenting with explosives. There’s still the little question of a target, however, and when zealous convert Barry suggests the local mosque would be suitable (his theory: kill enough Muslims, and the survivors will rise up to overthrow the non-believers), the group balks. When Fessal is accidentally killed during a dry run, however, time becomes of the essence and the four remaining lions settle on a target that (hopefully) won’t kill quite as many of their co-religionists: a charity "fun run" in which they’ll blend in with the crowd before detonating payloads and ascending to heaven. On paper, this all sounds relentlessly grim, but the film maintains a steady flow of low-key absurdities and satirical barbs worthy of an Armando Iannucci film. Strongly recommended. Also airs at 7:30 PM.

Saturday 11/19/11

2:00 AM Turner Classic Movies
Her Name Was Ellie, His Name Was Lyle (1967 USA): Her (Lynne Lipton) disease was syphilis, his (John Pleshette, cousin of Suzanne) disease was stupidity. Here we go again: this sexist film blames the woman for polluting the pristine body of an innocent young man. It all takes place in the Big Apple, that smoldering cauldron of sin, and was directed by a gentleman named Lothar Wolff, who’d worked with Fritz Lang in the ‘30s and even earned a short subject Oscar nom in 1965. Her Name Was Ellie is only half-an-hour long, but you don’t have anything better to do in the middle of the night, do you?

11:30 PM The Movie Channel
The Violent Kind (2010 USA): In the mood for something at the grindhouse end of the spectrum? Look no further than The Violent Kind, a horror flick helmed by the aptly named Butcher Brothers (no, they’re not really brothers). Even better, this is a horror flick where the main characters are bikers, and even even better better, it was all shot in my backyard (well, Petaluma and Cotati, California). This throwback to the video nasty era is the sort of grindhouse demi-classic Quentin Tarantino could only dream about producing. It’s absolutely, positively not for all tastes, but will likely slake the thirst of all but the most sick and twisted gorehounds. Also airs 11/20 at 2:30 AM.

Sunday 11/20/11

11:00 PM Turner Classic Movies
Stolen Kisses (1968 FRA): The fourth of six Antoine Doinel features directed by Francois Truffaut, Stolen Kisses sees our hero (played, as always, by Jean-Pierre Leaud) newly discharged from the Army and ready to rekindle his relationship with gal pal Christine (Claude Jade, who would return in Bed and Board, the next film in the series). Christine is happy to see him, and even sets him up with employment through the good graces of her father (Daniel Ceccaldi) - until a chance to work as a private investigator provides a far more interesting opportunity for Antoine. Your enjoyment of Stolen Kisses will hinge largely on your ability to accept Doinel’s transformation from the mischievous troublemaker of The 400 Blows into a gentler, more whimsical fellow.

Monday 11/21/11

9:00 PM Turner Classic Movies
...and God Created Woman (1957 FRA): Ready for a Brigitte Bardot double feature? No, I’m not talking about her lady lumps, I’m talking about two of her most popular feature films. First up is dirty old Roger Vadim’s ...and God Created Woman, the film that provided the sex symbol her big break back in ‘57. Though not very good, it’s in color, in widescreen, and in Ooh-la-la Vision, too. It’s followed at 11:00 PM by A Very Private Affair (1963), a superior Louis Malle vehicle in which a movie star (Bardot) finds herself engaged in an affair with her mother’s lover (Marcello Mastroianni). Like I said, ooh la la!

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