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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 09/01/09

1:15 AM Turner Classic Movies
A Severed Head (1970 GB): No, it's not a horror film, nor was it a source of inspiration for Brad Laner's late ‘70s noise band Severed Head in a Bag. A Severed Head is actually based on a novel and play by Iris Murdoch, and stars Richard Attenborough as Palmer Anderson, a shrink who's cuckolded his wine-snob chum Martin (a not terribly Hobbity-looking Ian Holm). Martin's spouse Antonia (Lee Remick, radiant as ever, but struggling with an English accent) wants to break the news to hubby in a calm and civil manner - but Martin has a bit on the side (Jennie Linden) himself, whilst Palmer is cheating on his mistress with his half-sister Honor (Claire Bloom)! Probably more effective on stage than on screen, A Severed Head is a well-performed rarity unavailable on home video. Those who favor drawing room dramatics will find much to savor here - for everyone else, there's always Stanley Myers' terrific score to enjoy.

5:45 AM Turner Classic Movies
The Whip Hand (1951 USA): One of my favorite cinematic examples of Cold War hysteria returns to television this morning after a very long absence. Produced by rabid anti-Communist Howard Hughes, The Whip Hand stars Mercury Theatre vet Elliott Reid as Matt Corbin, a journalist who stumbles upon a great story during his summer holidays. Whilst fishing in Minnesota, Matt discovers a lake full of dead fish - and a lab full of biological-weapon developing escaped Nazis, who have shucked off one totalitarian ideology in favor of another, Marxism! Who knows how they got to the upper mid-west, but if you can overlook the preposterous plot, you'll enjoy this fast-paced action thriller, directed with style by William Cameron Menzies and co-starring Raymond Burr as an innkeeper.

7:45 PM Sundance
Good Morning Heartache (2008 ITA): A so-so Italian take on the mockumentary meme, Good Morning Heartache stars Stefano Fresi and Alessandro Averone as filmmakers Giorgio and Eros, who invite themselves into the home of a Roman family struggling to get by on temp work in the near moribund Italian film industry. Wife Lucia (Alba Rohrwacher) promptly falls head over heels for Giorgio, whilst hubby Giovanni (Marco Foschi) simply decides the experiment has gone too far and takes off for points unknown. If you've been paying attention, you'll recognize this as virtually the same plot as that of Albert Brooks' Real Life - highlighted in this very column a few months back - and frankly, Good Morning Heartache really doesn't do much new with it. It's nicely acted and looks good, but that's about the best one can say for it.

Wednesday 09/02/09

5:00 PM Sundance
Arranged (2007 USA): Are arranged marriages an outmoded practice of fundamentalist religions - or do they still have a vital role to play in the 21st century? That's the slam-dunk question posed by this worthwhile culture clash drama from co-directors Diane Crespo and Stefan Schaefer. Set in contemporary Brooklyn, the story centers on school teachers Rochel (Zoe Lister-Jones) and Nasira (Francis Benhamou), the former Orthodox Jewish, the latter Muslim. Though of different faiths, the pals have this much in common: they've had their future husbands selected for them, and they're none too pleased about it. Though Arranged feels rather quaint - is anyone really going to be surprised by the conclusions it reaches? - it's an earnest, well-acted little indie with a heart of gold. Also airs 9/3 at 1:30 AM.

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