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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 5/10/11

8:15 AM Showtime
Spoken Word (2009 USA): A recovering addict falls back into bad habits in this solid if unspectacular drama from Ulee’s Gold director Victor Nunez. The man in question is Cruz (Kuno Becker), a San Francisco poet who returns to his native New Mexico to spend time with his dying father (Ruben Blades). Unfortunately, that’s not all that awaits him in the Land of Enchantment: the siren song of booze, pills, and hard living beckons him, and before you know it, Cruz is having a hard time waking up in the morning. This character study may tread familiar ground, but Spoken Word is very well acted and benefits from a fine supporting performance by Persia White as Cruz’s girlfriend back in Babylon by the Bay. Also airs at 11:15 AM.

6:45 PM Turner Classic Movies
The Rocking Horse Winner (1949 GB): Before Equus, there was The Rocking Horse Winner. No, nobody gets naked or stabs any farm animals in the eye, but this Anthony Pelissier-helmed fantasy - based, perhaps unsurprisingly, on a story by D. H. Lawrence - has some deeply disturbing undertones nonetheless. Ten-year-old John Howard Davies plays Paul Grahame, a young lad whose shopaholic mother (Valerie Hobson) gives him a rocking horse for Christmas. A strange gift for a ten-year-old, you might think, but Paul soon puts the toy to good use, and discovers that the act of riding it helps him divine which gee-gees will cross the finish line first at the local racetrack. When servant Bassett (John Mills) discovers his talent, he and Paul begin placing bets - but money can buy neither love nor happiness, and the youngster begins to descend into a state of feverish madness whenever he mounts he steed. If you were considering buying your own child a rocking horse, this eerie fantasy will convince you to stick with a Playstation.

Wednesday 5/11/11

5:00 AM Fox Movie Channel
Destination: Gobi (1953 USA): Let’s all go to the Gobi, let’s all go to the Gobi, let’s all go to the Goooobi, and get ourselves a treat! In this wacky World War II adventure, Richard Widmark plays Sam McHale, a U.S. Navy Petty Officer tasked with commanding a weather station located in the torrid wastes of the Gobi Desert. Sam soon whips the station into shape, but when Mongol warlord Kengtu (Murvyn Vye) drops by and warns them of an impending Japanese attack, it’s time to down windsocks and prepare for war! This thoroughly enjoyable adventure was directed by Robert Wise and co-stars Ross "Alvin & the Chipmunks" Bagdasarian, Martin "Adam-12" Milner, and Daryll "Don’t Call Me Dwayne, he’s my brother" Hickman.

5:00 PM Turner Classic Movies
Scarlet Street (1945 USA): Edward G. Robinson headlines this Fritz Lang noir classic. Eddie plays Christopher Cross, a working-class stiff who shoots to the top of the charts after he pens an MOR hit. I kid, I kid - he’s actually a sad sack cashier whose lack of upward mobility has left his wife (Rosalind Ivan) unsatisfied and put a serious dent in his ego. Whilst ruminating upon his lousy life one lonely evening, Chris saves gorgeous Kitty (Joan Bennett) from a beating at the hands of thuggish boyfriend Johnny (oily Dan Duryea), invites her for a drink, and proceeds to spin a fantasy yarn about his "successful" career as a painter. Kitty and Johnny decide Chris is an easy mark who’ll help them make some quick bucks, and before you know it our hero’s porkies have ensnared him in a web of lies and deceit from which he cannot escape. Robinson is at his best in Scarlet Street, which also features great black and white photography by Academy Award winner Milton Krasner.

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