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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 2/26/13

12:20 PM Starz
Neil Young Journeys (2011 USA): Neil Young. What is there left to say about the man? He’s written some of the greatest rock songs ever (Mr. Soul, Hey Hey My My [Into the Black]), but also shares responsibility for the unforgivable squishy soft rock of Crosby, Stills, Nash, Young, and Annoying Harmony Vocals. He made a great album with Pearl Jam (Mirror Ball), and a terrible movie all by himself (Greendale). The man liked Ronald Reagan and endorsed the PATRIOT Act, then changed his mind. And he was born in Canada and played in a band with Rick James! He’s a mystery wrapped in an enigma encased within a hockey puck! As for Neil Young Journeys, director Jonathan Demme’s rockumentary blends nostalgic road trip footage with some excellent concert material filmed in Toronto’s Massey Hall. Fans of all stripes will be delighted – at least until they get to the point in the film where he gives enthusiastic shout outs to the Presidential kill list and Japanese whaling.

Wednesday 2/27/13

3:15 AM Turner Classic Movies
Stella Dallas (1937 USA): 31 Days of Oscar is almost over, and as always, I won’t miss it much. It’s a great time for youngsters to catch a heaping helping of some of the most highly touted (and even sometimes important!) films of all time, but for grizzled movie vets such as yours truly it can be a bit of a movie desert. Oh, sure, I love some of these films, too...but I’ve seen most of ‘em a million times, and I’m always hungering for another obscure foreign feature, forgotten independent programmer, or previously thought lost but rediscovered in Grandma’s attic silent flick. However, as I mentioned earlier this month when recommending 1951’s Bright Victory, it does provide us the opportunity to reassess some of the more ‘common’ titles that we (I!) haven’t seen in quite some time. Case in point: King Vidor’s Stella Dallas, a showcase for Barbara Stanwyck in which the actress plays a woman of lowly origins who marries into money and lives to regret it. Darn good film, say the memory cells, but what’s this...my (admittedly incomplete) records suggest I haven’t actually watched it since the late 1970s! La Stanwyck earned an Academy Award nomination for her performance as the mother who sacrifices everything, whilst co-star Anne Shirley, playing spoiled daughter Laurel, got a Supporting Actress nod.

5:15 AM Showtime
Roadracers (1994 USA): One of the best of those "Rebel Highway" remakes of AIP "classics" Showtime churned out in the '90s, Roadracers benefits from having an at the top of his game Robert Rodriguez behind the camera. This was Rodriguez’s first film after his breakthrough indie hit El Mariachi and stars David Arquette as Dude, a no-good ‘50s punk who spends his days smoking cigarettes, listening to that horrible jungle music, and wooing the wrong kind of women (such as the Mexican-American lass portrayed herein by Salma Hayek). Oh, and much to the chagrin of local lawman Sarge (William Sadler), he also drives hot rods much too fast. Witty, well-acted, and featuring some great rockabilly tunes, Roadracers is a guaranteed good time for all you hep cats and bobbysoxers. Also airs at 8:15 AM.

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