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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 05/08/07

10:00 AM Showtime 3
Cutter's Way (1981 USA): John Heard and Jeff Bridges play Cutter and Bone, two sad sack amateur detectives on the trail of a killer, in this odd murder mystery from director Ivan Passer (Born to Lose). When Bone (Bridges) spots a man in sunglasses dumping the body of a dead teenager, he ropes in wife Mo (Lisa Eichhorn) and reluctant pal Cutter (Heard)—a one-eyed, one-armed, and one-legged Vietnam vet—into a quixotic quest to bolster his self-esteem by solving the crime. The trio soon begin to suspect local power broker J. J. Cord (Stephen Elliott) is involved—quickly tempering Bone's taste for confrontation—but Cutter has a chip on his shoulder a mile wide, and is determined to see the big shot behind bars and get a measure of revenge for the perceived indignities heaped upon him during the war by the Powers That Be. Passer's film is definitely rooted in the ambiguous character studies of the 1970s, and the lack of an audience-satisfying third act with a tidy resolution no doubt turned off shining-city-on-a-hill Reagan-era moviegoers looking for something a bit more life affirming. It's the sort of cinematic downer I love, however, rendered all the more impressive by cinematographer Jordan Chenoweth's excellent Santa Barbara location work and a flavorful score by the legendary Jack Nitzsche.

1:00 PM Turner Classic Movies
Double Danger (1938 USA): Preston Foster plays stereotypical gentleman thief and amateur novelist Robert Crane in this satisfying RKO second feature helmed by Lew Landers. After canny police inspector David Theron (Samuel S. Hinds) sets a trap for our well-heeled anti-hero, inviting him to his home for a weekend of proximous temptation with the counterfeit Konjer diamonds, the real Konjers end up being stolen from jeweller Gordon Ainsley (Donald Meek) by Crane's competition, thieves Morgan and Taylor (Whitney Bourne and Paul Guilfoyle)—who are then promptly relieved of the diamonds themselves by Crane and his loyal assistant Fentriss (Cecil Kellaway). All four villains then assemble at the inspector's manse for a cat and mouse game of switch and counter-switch. Will Inspector Theron bag all four villains at once—or will one of them get away with the genuine article, leaving the others with a handful of worthless cut glass? A brisk hour of absurd and convoluted melodrama, Double Danger also features future Dagwood Bumstead Arthur Lake as Roy, the feckless suitor of Theron's beautiful daughter Babs (June Johnson).

Wednesday 05/09/07

12:30 PM Turner Classic Movies
Trouble In Store (1953 GB): Any fans of Brit comic Norman Wisdom out there? Didn't think so. For those unfamiliar with the toothy Wisdom, he was a minor film and television star of the 1950s and ‘60s who, on more than a dozen occasions, played an everyman character named, believe it or not, Norman. Amongst Norman's credits as Norman is this low budget comedy about a department store stocker (Norman) anxious to earn promotion to window-dresser. When the ambitious young man discovers some of his co-workers are in cahoots with a gang of robbers, he and fellow employee and girl-of-his-dreams Peggy (Moira Lister) do their best to put a halt to the criminal activity—as well as the five-finger discounts being taken by elderly shoplifter Miss Bacon (Margaret Rutherford). As with all Wisdom features, the comedy is broad, the songs—yes, I'm afraid so—unexceptional, and the romance unconvincing, but if you're looking for some stodgy British comedy comfort food, Trouble In Store has plenty in stock.

2:00 PM Turner Classic Movies
Egypt By Three (1953 USA-EGY): Here's a really obscure anthology featuring bookend narration by dulcet-toned Joseph Cotton. Independently produced and directed by Victor Stoloff, who probably planned his holidays around completion of the film, Egypt By Three tells a trio of tales set in the land of the pyramids. In the first episode, star-crossed lovers Gina and Tony (Ann Stanville and Paul Campbell) encounter love, murder, and intrigue on the banks of the Nile whilst betrayed wife Fleury (Jackie Craven) tries to win back the heart of her man; in episode two, a group of pilgrims on their way to Mecca have a dangerous encounter with bubonic plague and the vagaries of Western civilisation; and in episode three, a pair of American con artists (Charles Mendick and the legendary Eddie Constantine) use the local Coptic Church to unwittingly aid them in their smuggling activities. I'd love to know more about the background of this production, but alas, there's less than no information about it on the net—if you know more, please fill me in!


7:00 PM Sundance
The Syrian Bride (2004 ISR): Shifting the focus from Egypt to the Levant, The Syrian Bride confronts the Kafkaesque absurdities of the contemporary Middle East as seen through the eyes of Mona (Clara Khoury), a Syrian woman hoping to make it to the church on time for her marriage to spouse to be Tallel (Derar Sliman). Their mooted nuptials are of the ‘arranged by dad' variety, but that's not the big problem—Mona lives in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights, and Tallel lives in Syria. Crossing the border is an extremely complicated affair, with both nations claiming the Golan as their own, and once Mona leaves, she won't be able to return, in effect trading the family she knows and loves for a husband she hasn't even met yet. Deftly blending comedy and drama with an un-stated but always present political subtext, The Syrian Bride was a huge hit on the festival circuit, where it took home a boatload of awards. It also airs 5/12 at 2:15 PM.

Friday 05/11/07

12:30 AM IFC
The Motel (2005 USA): The awkward years of tweeny adolescence are explored by writer-director Michael Kang in this indie feature which took home the Humanitas Prize at Sundance 2005. Jeffrey Chyau stars as 13-year-old Ernest, a pudgy boy weary of helping his mother run her seedy motor lodge by night and tired of being bullied at school by day. Enter stage right Sam (Sung Kang), an ostensible but unlikely Big Brother for the fatherless Ernest, and a font of questionable wisdom regarding the rites of passage and the meaning of manhood. Leaked into art-houses only last October, The Motel is a first-rate indie character study that will revive uncomfortable pubescent memories for many viewers, particularly male ones.

5:00 AM Fox Movie Channel
Blue Denim (1959 USA): More teen angst is on tap in this above average Fox weepie about one of the unspoken third rail topics of fifties family life: the unwanted pregnancy. Brandon de Wilde stars as Arthur, a careless 16-year old who forgets to use protection and knock up 15-year old gal pal Janet (Carol Lynley). The two spend long hours agonizing over what to do whilst their parents remain blissfully oblivious. Based on a stage play by James Leo Herlihy and William Noble, director Philip Dunne's screen adaptation watered down the story considerably—the word ‘abortion' is never uttered, though the act is certainly implied—but Blue Denim was one of the films that started to push back against the absurd limitations of the Production Code, and as such is worthy of our attention. I'm still waiting for Fox to unearth a CinemaScope print of this rarity, but for now, the pan and scan format is the only way to see this fascinating if outdated example of social realist cinema.

9:00 PM IFC
Bandits vs. Samurai Squadron (1978 JAP): Surely the best title of the week? Bandits vs. Samurai Squadron—whose original title, Kumokiri Nizaemon, sounds a bit more melodious to my ears, at least—stars Tatsuya Nakadai (Akira Kurosawa's Ran) as a turncoat samurai plotting to plunder the castle of his old master with the help of some local ne'er do wells. Awesome grindhouse-inspired Anglophone title aside, this is neither the most exciting nor well made of samurai films, and at a whopping 163 minutes, is certainly going to test the patience of any one tuning in for a simple cut ‘n' slash swordplay epic. However, as it's never had an official American home video release and is making its premium channel premiere, it's essential TiVoPlex viewing.

Saturday 05/12/07

12:45 AM Turner Classic Movies
Hell Up In Harlem (1973 USA): It can't match the mythic majesty of its predecessor Black Caesar, but Hell Up In Harlem is an above average black action film in its own right. Fred Williamson returns as gangland kingpin Tommy Gibbs, whose apparent demise in Black Caesar turned out to be little more than some rough handling after producer Samuel Arkoff got wind of the box office returns. Briefly retiring from the game in order to lick his deep but non-fatal wounds, Tommy finds himself thrust back into the heart of the action when old flame Helen (Gloria Hendry) turns up dead and corrupt District Attorney DiAngelo threatens to tighten the screws on the Gibbs family business. Refreshed after his r&r, Tommy is determined to put boot into ass from coast to coast, and proceeds to blow away all and sundry who so much as look sideways at him. Energetically directed by Black Caesar helmer Larry Cohen, whose reliance on gritty ambience and hand-held camerawork lend the low-budget feature some much needed authenticity, Hell Up In Harlem will appeal to those who like to see a brother sticking it to the man—and in widescreen, no less.

5:00 PM Encore Westerns
Renegade (2004 FRA-MEX): Originally entitled Blueberry and then burdened with the blandest of Anglophone titles for its American release, Renegade is a stylish revisionist western that harkens back to the glory days of the spaghetti oater. Directed by Dutchman Jan Kounen, the film stars beaky Vincent Cassel as Mike Blueberry, an Old West lawman out to put the cuffs on villainous Wally Blount (Michael Madsen), who killed Blueberry's girlfriend and is now on the lookout for some gold hidden deep in Injun territory. The film follows half-breed Mike's episodic adventures with fellow starpackers Jimmy and Rolling Star (Colm Meaney and Ernest Borgnine), a German prospector (Eddie Izzard) and his assistant (Djimon Hounsou), and a Native American mystic (Temuera Morrison). If you're a fan of the films of Alejandro Jodorowsky or an admirer of the popular Gallic comic book upon which Renegade was based, you'll want to take a look at this metaphysical epic, which took six years to complete—including, of course, the full twelve months Kounen spent studying at the foot of a South American shaman.

Sunday 05/13/07

9:00 PM Turner Classic Movies
Piccadilly (1929 GB): A long-forgotten silent featuring the beautiful Anna May Wong as a London dishwasher-turned-exotic dancer, Piccadilly returns to TCM for an encore appearance this evening. Released on DVD by Kino Video to little fanfare last year, this is a creaky but fascinating drama that provides a wonderful showcase for the Chinese-American Wong, who would have been a star if not for the deeply ingrained racism of mid-20th century Hollywood. Also on hand are Charles Laughton and an uncredited Ray Milland, who makes one of his earliest screen appearances in a nightclub scene. If you want to learn more about Wong, pick up a copy of Graham Russell Gao Hodges very fine biography, still available from better booksellers everywhere.

Monday 05/14/07

12:15 PM Cinemax
Phantasm II (1988 USA): The deadliest piece of cutlery this side of Master of the Flying Guillotine returned to the big screen in this nine years after the fact sequel to Don Coscarelli's 1979 drive-in hit Phantasm. It makes its widescreen television debut this afternoon, and features James LeGros as a grown-up Michael, whose juvenile alter ego was institutionalized at the end of the first film for ‘imagining' that his brother had been killed by the deadly flying orbs of The Tall Man (Angus Scrimm). Michael reconnects with his old ally, ice cream salesman Reggie (proudly bald Reggie Bannister), and the two take off for a remote Oregon town where reports indicate The Tall Man may once again be plying his deadly trade in souls with the help of his evil other-dimensional dwarves. Yes, it's as totally bonkers as it sounds, and the sequel is even more fun than the original. Try and imagine a cross between Night of the Living Dead and Don't Look Now, and you're half way there. Also airs at 3:15 PM.

6:30 PM Turner Classic Movies
Act of Violence (1948 USA): The always underappreciated Van Heflin stars in this Fred Zinnemann drama about angst-ridden post-war America, and the shell-shocked veterans trying to live in it. Heflin plays Frank Enley, a WW II vet trying to put his wartime memories behind him and live a normal life in a normal all-American town. Unfortunately for Frank, fellow G.I. Joe Parkson (Robert Ryan), who shared some terrible experiences with him in a POW camp, drops by one day—and he wants Frank's head on a platter. Without giving too much away, it seems that Frank let the side down in the Stalag, and Joe is determined to make him pay for his improprieties. Janet Leigh co-stars as Frank's loyal wife, and Mary Astor delivers a bravura late-career performance as fading lady of the evening Pat.