By John Seal
September 30 - October 6, 2002
Pop the popcorn, dim the lights, and put on your bunny slippers! It's time for another trip to the TiVoPlex! (All times PST.)
Monday 9/30/02
12:45am Black Starz!
Bamboozled (2000 USA): Spike Lee's best film since Do the Right Thing. Actually, I think it's better than Do the Right Thing, as Spike got over his need to cast himself in a cameo role. He also got over his problem with women, a constant negative factor in all his films, dating back to She's Gotta Have It. This is biting satire and a superb film, with good performances by the entire cast, especially Jada Pinkett-Smith and Michael Rapaport.
7:45am Starz!
Back to the Beach (1987 USA): From the sublime to the ridiculous? Maybe so, but I have a real soft spot for this amusing tribute to the beach movies of the '60s. Frankie and Annette are obviously having fun, the script is well written and who can argue with Pee Wee Herman singing Surfin' Bird? Now THAT'S entertainment! Also airs 10/1 at 5:00pm and on Encore Love Stories (!) 10/2 at 1:40am and 12:05am.
Tuesday 10/1/02
1:05am Black Starz!
Yellow Card (2000 ZIM): This cautionary tale from Zimbabwe was funded in part by the UK and US governments and is basically intended to warn Zimbabwean youth of the dangers of unprotected sex. It should be dull and preachy, but benefits from an earnest and attractive cast, especially Kasamba Mkumba and Leroy Gopal as the young star-crossed lovers. Football is only used metaphorically (the yellow card signifying a warning before you're sent off the field) and serves as bait to get the target audience interested. Nothing particularly new, but done extremely well. Also airs at 12:05pm. (Thanks to Bruno Cat for this review)
3:10am Black Starz!
Amazing Grace (1974 USA): It has a pretty bad reputation, but I'll be tuning in nonetheless to catch this comedy rarity. With a cast including Moms Mabley (touted here as "America's Sexiest Female Superstar"), Slappy White, Rosalind Cash, Dolph Sweet, and even Stepin Fetchit and Butterfly McQueen, it's bound to be interesting.
5:00pm Turner Classic Movies
The Tramp and the Dictator (2002 USA): The world premiere of Kevin Brownlow's documentary on the parallels between Charlie Chaplin and Adolph Hitler. Including rare and previously unseen home footage of Chaplin (no similar footage of Adolph is included, however), this will be one of the events of the year for film buffs. If you're not familiar with Kevin Brownlow, he wrote one the essential books on silent cinema, The Parade's Gone By. Also airs at 8:30pm.
9:30pm Encore
Cooley High (1975 USA): Unfairly lumped into the blaxploitation category at the time of its release, Cooley High is actually a very well-acted and interesting drama of teenage growing pains in the 1960s. This film should have made Glynn Turman a star, but the spotlight was probably on Lawrence Hilton-Jacobs, who was currently starring opposite John Travolta in television's Welcome Back, Kotter. Also airs 10/2 at 12:30am.
Wednesday 10/2/02
1:45pm Encore True Stories
Roger and Me (1986 USA): Every time I watch one of Michael Moore's movies or TV shows, I cringe. Not because I dislike them - I love them - but because no one else puts people on the spot in quite the way Michael does. Even when it's a bad guy of monstrous proportions such as GM's Roger Smith, the ostensible star of this documentary about the industrial collapse of Flint, Michigan. And then there was the episode of TV Nation when Michael got the leaders of three recalcitrant Balkan countries to share a pizza while singing the Barney song. (I'm not making this up! Really!) At any rate, you'll laugh, cry and cringe in equal measure during this film. Also airs at 11:15pm.
7:15pm IFC
Gloria (1980 USA): Of all the bad Hollywood remakes over the years, few have been as pointless as the Sharon Stone "re-imagining" of this John Cassavetes classic. Gena Rowlands is terrific as the moll with a heart of gold. Also airs 10/3 at 4:45am and 11:15am.
Thursday 10/3/02
5:00am Sundance
The Last Wave (1980 AUS): I'm actually not a huge fan of this Peter Weir movie - it's a bit too mystical and ponderous for me - but Sundance will be airing a letterboxed print that will surely look gorgeous. Weir was always a filmmaker with a superb visual sense, so I'll overlook the script weaknesses and tune in anyway. Also airs 4:00pm and 10/6 at 9:30am.
6:15am Encore Mystery
Seconds (1966 USA): One of the most claustrophobic and disturbing films of all time, Seconds won't benefit from the pan-and-scan print that Mystery will air, but is an essential film anyway. One of the jewels in the crown of John Frankenheimer's career, the film also features a terrific performance by Rock Hudson, eager to show he could be more than Doris Day's leading man. From Jerry Goldsmith's score to James Wong Howe's cinematography, this tale of plastic surgery and identity will disturb all but the most jaded viewers. Also airs at 1:10pm.
8:05am Encore Westerns
The Spikes Gang (1974 USA): Smilin' Leonard Maltin may not like it, but this is a thoroughly enjoyable and little-known western that features a terrific low-key performance by Lee Marvin and an on-the-cusp-of-stardom turn by Ron Howard.
10:45am HBO Signature
Fever Pitch (1997 GB): Another film destined for the Hollywood remake machine, the original screen adaptation of Nick Hornby's novel is the best on-screen depiction of sports fandom I've ever seen. Colin Firth is terrific and the film is a lot more than just another lightweight British rom-com.
2:00pm Sundance
West Beirut (1998 FRA-BEL-NOR-LEB): This is a fascinating fictional look at the Lebanese civil war of the 1970s and its effect on a group of high school students, as factional and sectarian differences threaten to pull them apart.
10:15pm Starz!
Session 9 (2001 USA): The last time I recommended this film I hadn't seen it. Now that I have, I can wholeheartedly give it a two-thumb salute, as it's one of the best psychological horror films in many years. Director Brad Anderson does a superb job of maintaining a tense, creepy atmosphere, all the time pulling his punches and leaving most of the horror up to the viewer's imagination. Peter Mullan, David Caruso, and Josh Lucas are all excellent as renovation workers who discover some secrets better left undiscovered as they work within an abandoned mental hospital. Also airs 10/4 at 1:15am.
Friday 10/4/02
10:00am Encore True Stories
The Filth and the Fury (2000 GB): Julien Temple's long-gestating Sex Pistols documentary was well worth the wait. There's not enough music on display, but the footage of the Pistols at an orphanage's Christmas party will stick with you. Also airs at 7:00pm.
3:00pm Fox Movie Channel
The Crazy World of Julius Vrooder (1974 USA): I haven't seen this Arthur Hiller film about a Vietnam vet played by Timothy Bottoms, but I'm looking forward to it. Apparently never given much of a video release (if any), this rarely screened film by the former president of the DGA should be worth a look. Also airs 10/5 at 5:00am.
11:00pm Turner Classic Movies
Black Sunday (1960 ITA): Presumably utilizing the terrific DVD print that's now available, TCM reminds us (as if we needed reminding) that they are the best cable channel around. Presaging the Golden Age of Italian '60s horror cinema, Mario Bava's black-and-white witchcraft film still has the power to shock, especially when Barbara Steele's face is on screen. It'll be interesting to see if they show it dubbed or subtitled, but either way this is a superb way to get the Halloween season underway.
Saturday 10/5/02
9:00am Encore Westerns
The Big Gundown (1968 ITA-FRA): This Sergio Solima spaghetti western doesn't have the most original story, but it does have an absolutely stunning Bruno Nicolai score that makes the whole thing worth watching. Also airs at 6:50pm.
10:35am Encore Action
Duel (1971): Steven Spielberg's TV movie really is as good as its reputation, and star Dennis Weaver is at the top of his game in this tale of a man being pursued by a mysterious stranger in a truck. The concept was unashamedly appropriated by John Dahl's Joy Ride (2001). This is presumably the slightly expanded version Spielberg cut for theatrical release outside the US, but either way, it's good.
8:45pm Showtime Extreme
The Education of Sonny Carson (1975 USA): This little-known film recently scored a DVD reissue, which probably explains why it's popping up on TV. I haven't seen it, but the (admittedly small) IMDb voting sample rates it a 9.3 out of 10! This was the first film for Rony Clanton, who has since gone on to bit parts in Malcolm X, The Devil's Advocate, and The Royal Tenenbaums.
10:30pm Encore Mystery
Day of the Dead (1983 USA): The maligned third film in George Romero's Dead trilogy, and while it doesn't pack the punch of the first two, I think it's a fine movie nonetheless. Humanity is now on the run, with the undead ruling the surface of the planet and all hopes focused on underground survivors reaching a scientific understanding of what animates and motivates the corpses to partake of human flesh. Downbeat and grim.
Sunday 10/6/02
9:05am Flix
Face-Off (1971 CAN): This Canadian obscurity is a drama about a hockey player (Art Hindle) who falls for a hippie folk singer (Trudy Young) and how the two cope with a long-distance relationship. I know it doesn't sound very interesting, but I actually found it riveting. In a very quiet, Canadian sort of way.
9:00pm Turner Classic Movies
Eyes of the Mummy (1918 GER): How do the folks at TCM do it? Here's a silent horror film I hadn't even heard of before, directed by soon-to-be-in-Hollywood Ernst Lubitsch and starring two of the great stars of the silent screen, Emil Jannings and Pola Negri.
10:00pm HBO Signature
Don't Look Now (1973 GB): Nicolas Roeg's superb take on the giallo. Donald Sutherland and wife Julie Christie are on vacation in Venice, trying to put the death of their daughter behind them. An encounter with an apparent psychic leads them to question whether or not their daughter is really dead. Watch out for the little fella in the red cape!
