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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 09/16/08

1:30 AM Fox Movie Channel
Where Have All the People Gone (1974 USA): One of the more entertaining - and oddly thought-provoking — made for television movies of the 1970s returns to the small screen this morning in the form of Where Have All the People Gone. Peter Graves stars as Steven Anders, one of the few humans left unaffected by unusual solar activity that is turning most folks to a fine ash. It also disables electronic devices, meaning folks can't use their cell phones, iPods, and so forth...oh wait, this was the future as conceived in 1974, so I guess it just meant they couldn't operate their 8-track tape deck. At any rate, Anders must protect his family AND salvage a future for humanity, which is a pretty tall order for anyone, even a veteran of Mission! Impossible. Incidentally, the title of the film does NOT include a question mark, raising the question, Where Has All the Correct Grammar Gone?

9:05 AM IFC
Split: A Divided America (2008 USA): Disproving the theory about ‘two great tastes that go great together', Split examines the stark differences between perceived Red and Blue Americas via a coast-to-coast road trip by freshman director Kelly Nyks, who got his film career off the ground as Arrogant Aaron in 2001's Legally Blonde. Surprisingly, his film avoids the superficial in favor of a genuine dialogue about the political, economic, and cultural differences that divide the United States. It's an honest if all too brief attempt to find some common ground between the various tribes, and airs again 9/22 at 5:30 AM.

8:15 PM Sundance
Fido (2007 CAN): If you're a fan of Peter Jackson's outrageous zombie period piece Dead Alive, you'll also enjoy this well-made horror flick about a living dead household pet. Set during the 1950s and shot impressively in Super 35 widescreen, Fido tells the tale of young Timmy (K'Sun Ray) and his titular zombie pet (Scots comic Billy Connolly), whose craving for flesh is kept under control by an electronic obedience collar. The two bond delightfully — but when Fido ends up eating the neighbors, trouble ensues. One of the most enjoyable gut-munchers of recent vintage, Fido co-stars Carrie-Anne Moss as Timmy's mother Helen and Tim Blake Nelson as creepy gun enthusiast Mr. Theopolis.

Thursday 09/18/08

3:00 PM Turner Classic Movies
A Town Like Alice (1956 GB): Not to be confused with the Australian-made miniseries Alice to Nowhere, A Town Like Alice begins during the early days of World War II and stars Peter Finch as Joe, an Aussie soldier held captive in a Japanese labor camp. Joe meets fellow prisoner Jean (lovely Virginia McKenna), and the two develop a relationship that they hope will continue post-war in Joe's remote hometown of Alice Springs. Based on a novel by Nevil Shute (On the Beach), A Town Like Alice was Britain's box office champ in 1956, and though it might be hard in retrospect to understand how it achieved that feat, remains a well-acted and frequently moving love story.

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