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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 07/01/08

1:00 AM HBO2
Ganja Queen (2007 AUS): "You can dance, you can jive, having the time of your life...See that girl, watch that scene, diggin' the Ganja Queen!" I LOVE that song, which was written by Benny, Bjorn, and Stig specifically for this fascinating documentary about an Australian tourist named Schapelle Corby. Corby's 2004 holiday trip to Indonesia was spoiled when customs agents uncovered a ten-pound sack of oregano in her luggage, a transgression worthy of the death penalty in that island nation. Was she the unwitting tool of a nefarious gang of herb smugglers - or was she a canny, pot-pushing monster convinced she could play dumb and fool (or perhaps pay off) the incorruptible Indonesian civil servants? Directed by Janine Hosking, whose excellent Mademoiselle and the Doctor took a look at assisted suicide in Australia, Ganja Queen will have you checking and double-checking the status of your luggage. Has it REALLY been in your possession since you first packed it? Also airs on HBO at 8:30 PM and 11:30 PM and 7/3 at 5:00 PM and 8:00 PM.

3:30 PM Showtime
Raw Deal (1986 USA): This awful Arnold Schwarzenneger vehicle makes its widescreen television debut this afternoon. Arnie stars as Mark Kaminsky, an FBI agent expelled from the agency for rough behavior and now a sheriff in North Rhine-Westphalia - er, North Carolina. Kaminsky gets an opportunity for redemption when Bureau Chief Shannon (Darren McGavin) asks a special favor: if Mark takes out thug Patrovita (Sam Wanamaker), he'll get his badge back. Cue ultra-violence, double crosses, and a completely ridiculous alias (Joseph Brenner, perhaps in honor of the schlock movie distributor who once said ‘if all my movies were as good as my trailers I'd be in good shape'.) A fine supporting cast, including Robert Davi, Victor Argo, and Ed Lauter, improves Raw Deal, but this is still one of the Governator's dumbest outings - which is no mean feat. Also airs at 6:30 PM and 7/6 on Showtime 2 at 1:00 PM.

Wednesday 07/02/08

7:05 PM The Movie Channel
The Wicker Man (1973 GB): I was never much of a Wicker Man fan back in the day, but after that Nicolas Cage remake, it looks a whole lot better now. Christopher Lee stars as Lord Summerisle, the master of a remote Scottish island where pagan traditions still hold sway. He butts heads with thoroughly modern Howie (Edward Woodward), a police sergeant sent from the mainland to investigate the disappearance of a young girl whom the locals now claim never existed. It's all a bit silly, but the two leads are excellent, and Britt Ekland gets to do her infamous naked dance. Also airs at 10:05 PM.

9:00 PM Sundance
Tulse Luper Suitcases (2004 GB): Peter Greenaway's enigmatic Tulse Luper trilogy is being aired on three consecutive Wednesdays this month, commencing, naturally but perhaps unnecessarily, with Part 1. Subtitled The Moab Story, this episode is set during the First World War, when young Luper (J. J. Feild, mooted to portray Heinz Burt in the forthcoming Joe Meek biopic Telstar) embarks on his life's journey by unpacking the first of 92 pieces of baggage. The films are far from straightforward narrative, however, and are actually puzzle boxes filled with information (overload) and the sorts of digressive tricks Laurence Sterne would have loved (yes, I'm still reading Tristram Shandy). Greenaway intended the Tulse Luper films to develop into a new form of media, and indeed there's an online game you can play as part of an ongoing effort to ‘reconstruct his life'. If you're interested in cinema that pushes the envelope, you won't want to miss this audacious endeavor.

Thursday 07/03/08

8:45 AM Sundance
Congorama (2006 BEL-CAN): Your willingness to suspend disbelief and accept contrived circumstances will determine whether or not you enjoy this odd feature. Congorama commences as inventor Michel (Olivier Gourmet) learns from his father (Jean-Pierre Cassel) that he was born in Canada but adopted by a French family. Determined to track down his birth parents, Michel departs for Quebec, only to encounter a series of increasingly hard to believe adventures, including a run-in with the son of an electric car innovator and an emu. An absurdist comedy that moves back and forth in time with gay abandon, Congorama poses subtle but intriguing questions about the nature of identity on our increasingly cosy planet.

9:30 AM Turner Classic Movies
The Whole Truth (1958 GB): Stewart Granger portrays a troubled film producer in this rarely seen thriller helmed by John Guillermin. Granger plays Max Poulton, engaged in an affair with trouble-making lead actress Gina Bertini (Gianna Maria Canale) on the set of their most recent film whilst Mrs. Poulton (Donna Reed) is elsewhere. Riven by guilt, Max begs Gina to end their fling, but she won't play along and threatens to blackmail him if he dumps her. Enter Carliss (George Sanders), a purported policeman who informs Max that Gina has been murdered - and asks him if he has any knowledge regarding her death. That's just the beginning of this inconsequential but thoroughly enjoyable mystery produced by Jack Clayton and shot by the incomparable Wilkie Cooper.

Friday 07/04/08

3:35 AM Sundance
Red Lights (2004 FRA): Based on a story by the legendary Georges Simenon, Red Lights stars Jean-Pierre Darroussin as Antoine, a meek accountant with a drinking problem who rebels against his assertive lawyer wife Helene (Carole Bouquet) whilst on a road trip to pick up their children from summer camp (echoes of Serge Leroy's 1977 thriller Les Passagers). After one argument too many, Helene leaves Antoine at a rest stop and continues the journey by train, whilst her increasingly sozzled hubby keeps the pedal to the metal. Distracted by his personal problems, radio reports of a killer on the loose don't deter him from picking up a grumpy hitchhiker (Vincent Deniard) who, for some reason, won't take his hand out of his pocket. Director Cedric Kahn does an excellent job of ratcheting up the tension and keeps the audience off balance to the end, whilst Darroussin delivers a sweaty tour-de-force as the henpecked Antoine.

Saturday 07/05/08

1:00 AM Encore Action
Legend of the Red Dragon (1994 HK): Dubbed this print may be, but martial arts fans won't want to miss this very enjoyable Jet Li action fest. Jet plays Hung, a kung fu master who returns home from a business trip one day only to find his entire village dead - and artfully suspended from meat hooks. Happily, those responsible for the carnage have overlooked Hung's seven-year-old son Man-Ting (Xie Maio), and soon the two are on the trail of the assassins for some serious father-son ass-kicking. If you enjoyed the (superior) Lone Wolf and Cub series, you'll no doubt get a kick out of Legend of the Red Dragon.

Sunday 07/06/08

5:00 AM IFC
High and Low (1963 JAP): My favorite Kurosawa film has nothing to do with medieval Japan and is, instead, a throwback to the great director's early neo-realist phase (e.g., 1949's Stray Dog). Toshiro Mifune plays a businessman whose son is kidnapped by yakuza, and his frequent film colleague Tatsuya Nakadai appears as the police detective responsible for the case. Shot in brilliant black-and-white Tohoscope, this is simply one of the finest - and most beautiful - crime films you'll ever see.

6:00 PM HBO
The Simpsons Movie (2007 USA): This may be the TiVoPlex - but as a wholly owned subsidiary of One of Us, Inc., we still must bow down and make obeisance before the genius of Matt Groening's timeless creation. So we'll forego the usual backstory and plot outline and simply state: this is The Simpsons Movie. It is making its American television premiere this evening and will air throughout the month and beyond into eternity. Watch it. Memorise it. Worship it.

Monday 07/07/08

1:00 PM Turner Classic Movies
My Brother's Keeper (1948 GB): Now that we've got the Simpsons out of our system, it's time to get back to normal and recommend another all but forgotten film, in this case a British crime drama starring reliable Jack Warner - as a baddie! Warner portrays George Martin, NOT the Beatles producer but a hardened criminal who breaks out of jail handcuffed to naïve young miscreant Willie (George Cole). Martin will go to any lengths to escape the long arm of the law - including murder and the betrayal of poor Willie. One of only two films directed by Alfred Roome - whose great claim to fame was editing over a dozen Carry On comedies - My Brother's Keeper is a predictable melodrama highlighted by a fine, out of character performance by Warner.