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by Lani
Each
month, I scour the Turner Classic Movies schedule for upcoming films
that I can't miss. The highlights are posted here for your reading and
viewing pleasure! (All listed times are Eastern Standard, check your
local listings or TCM.com for
actual air times in your area. Each day's schedule begins at 6:00 a.m.;
if a film airs between midnight and 6 a.m. it is listed on the previous
day's programming schedule.)
7/7, 8 PM - All the President's Men (1976)
This film is showing as part of a series on Thursday nights: America in the 70s - The Films that Defined a Decade. All the President's Men certainly fits the bill since it deals with the Watergate scandal, one of the defining events of the 70s which led to the first and only time in history that a sitting President resigned from office. The plot follows Washington Post journalists Bob Woodward (Robert Redford) and Carl Bernstein (Dustin Hoffman) as they look into the Watergate break-in and uncover the shocking details -- shocking not only because it went to the highest levels of the executive branch, but also because of the unbelievable stupidity and ineptitude of some of the players. Dramatic and suspenseful, but also surprisingly funny, I think it's pretty close to perfect. The film received Academy Awards for art direction, sound, screenplay, and supporting actor Jason Robards. What beat it out for best picture? Another decade-defining film: Rocky.
7/15: Starring Olivia de Havilland
8 PM - The Snake Pit (1948)
10 PM - The Heiress (1949)
12:15 AM - To Each His Own (1946)
Olivia de Havilland, one of the last surviving stars of the Golden Age of Hollywood, is the Star of the Month for July in honor of her 100th birthday this year. As an ingenue in the 30s, her beauty was undeniable and she was paired with the equally attractive Errol Flynn in nine films. But she wanted to be more than a pretty love interest and desired to gain respect for her acting ability by taking on more challenging roles. Eventually de Havilland received five Oscar nominations, winning Best Actress twice, and three of those performances are featured tonight.
In The Snake Pit, a "social issues" picture about the state of mental hospitals, Olivia plays a young woman who is institutionalized. With greasy hair and no makeup, this character is a far cry from her more glamorous roles, but she does a good job portraying someone whose sense of reality is at odds with the world around her. As the title character in The Heiress, Olivia is once again de-glamorized to play a plain, lonely woman who longs to escape from her overbearing father and falls for a handsome fortune-hunter (as played by Montgomery Clift one can hardly blame the girl). In To Each His Own, our leading lady finally gets to wear some lipstick to play an unwed mother who must give up her son, then encounters him later in life. The combination of her natural beauty, expressive face, and ethereal manner make de Havilland a wonderful screen presence. I'm looking forward to seeing many more of her films on Friday nights this month.
Walter Matthau: Man of Action
7/16, 10 PM - Charley Varrick (1973)
7/21, 8 PM - The Taking of Pelham One Two Three (1974)
Walter Matthau's most familiar roles tend to be in comedies as an irascible slob, seedy fast-talker, or grumpy old man. However, in his long and varied career Matthau was also an unlikely romantic lead several times, as well as the star of several crime/caper films in which he played both the heavy and the hero.
As the title character in Charley Varrick, Matthau is an anti-hero, "the last of the independents." After his gang of small time bank robbers accidentally steals the mob's money, Matthau must use all his wits to outrun a mob hit man (played with hammy glee by Joe Don Baker) and get away clean. Though he won a Best Actor BAFTA (the British Academy Award equivalent) for this role, Matthau was very vocal about not liking the film because he thought it wasn't understandable. There are definitely some twists, but whether you can anticipate the plot or not, it is still a fun ride.
In Pelham, Matthau is on the right side of the law as a NYC transit police lieutenant up against Robert Shaw as the leader of a criminal gang who holds a subway train hostage. As the hilariously over-the-top poster tells us, the gang will kill a passenger a minute until they get the $1 million ransom -- but even if they get the money, how will they possibly get away? This one also has it's share of surprises and sets the bar for clever crime thrillers.
These two picks are great examples of a type of crime film which had a bit of a renaissance in the mid-70s. These films featured intelligent criminals and, though violent, kept the action on a human scale. They are filled with the mundane locations of everyday life - subways, trailer parks, modest apartments - and everyone, from cop to criminal, looks like a regular guy off the street. Just contrast this with a film in the same genre from the 1980s, Die Hard (which is also great, by the way). Instead of the likes of Matthau, Robert Shaw, and Martin Balsam, you have the dapper Alan Rickman and his crew of body builders pulling off a heist in a fancy LA high-rise. It's still a good movie, but one with an entirely different aesthetic which favors spectacle over realism.
by Lani
Each month, I scour the Turner Classic Movies schedule for upcoming films that I can't miss. The highlights are posted here for your reading and viewing pleasure! (All listed times are Eastern Standard, check your local listings or TCM.com for actual air times in your area. Each day's schedule begins at 6:00 a.m.; if a film airs between midnight and 6 a.m. it is listed on the previous day's programming schedule.)
5/8, 8 PM & 11:30 PM - Don't Say No Until I've Finished Talking: The Story of Richard Zanuck (2013)
The latest TCM original documentary takes on producer Richard Zanuck, son of 20th Century Fox studio mogul Darryl F. Zanuck. The younger Zanuck was Fox studio president in the 1960, and well-regarded producer in his own right. Under Richard's tenure the studio produced Best Picture winners The Sound of Music, Patton, and The French Connection; it also turned out legendary flops like Dr. Doolittle and Star!, which led to his being fired...by his father Darryl. Richard was an independent producer from the 1970s until his death in 2012, bringing to the screen Jaws, The Sting, Cocoon, and Driving Miss Daisy. With such a distinguished career to cover, not to mention Zanuck's family legacy in Hollywood, this doc should have some interesting tidbits about "the biz".
5/20: Spy Spoofs
From a 21st century filmgoer's perspective, the early James Bond films can sometimes seem like a parody of 1960s culture all on their own. However, at the time, Bond was definitely more cool than kitsch. Dr. No, starring Sean Connery as Bond, hit theatres in 1963 and almost immediately inspired a new genre of secret agent comedies which served their martinis with a wink and tongue planted firmly in cheek.
8 PM - Our Man Flint (1965) - Probably the best-remembered film in the genre, this one stars James Coburn as American secret agent Derek Flink.
10 PM - The Silencers (1965) - Dean Martin had his own franchise starring as suave super-spy Matt Helm which included this film and Murderer's Row.
11:45 PM - Murderer's Row (1966)
1:45 AM - Carry on Spying (1964) - This entry in the British Carry On... series of B-movies may have contained the first Bond parody.
3:30 AM - Dr. Goldfoot and the Bikini Machine (1965) - The Goldfoot films are mash-ups of three 1960s genres -- beach party movie, spy parody, and horror-comedy -- starring Vincent Price as the super-villain of the title. Frankie Avalon plays Price's secret agent foil in the first film, while Fabian fills the role in the sequel.
5:15 AM - Dr. Goldfoot and the Girl Bombs (1966)
5/22, 12:30 AM - True Confessions (1981)
I'm curious about this neo-noir based on the infamous Black Dahlia murder case. Not because of the mystery -- the Black Dahlia case remains unsolved, after all -- but because it was the first time Robert Duvall and Robert DeNiro shared the screen (The Godfather: Part II doesn't count because they had zero scenes together). Duvall plays a police detective investigating the murder of a prostitute with ties to prominent Los Angeles businessmen, as well as to his own brother, played by DeNiro, a monsignor supervising several generously funded church building projects. Both actors were at the top of their careers -- DeNiro had just won the Best Actor Oscar for Raging Bull and Duvall would soon win for 1983's Tender Mercies -- so why have I never heard of this movie? We'll see...
5/28, 8 PM - Hard Times (1975)
There was only one Jimmy Stewart, but at the same time there was also Henry Fonda and Gary Cooper. There was only one William Powell, too, but then you also had Melvyn Douglas and Don Ameche. Charles Bronson, though, was a singular presence in his era. I can't think of any contemporary who had quite the same quality. He certainly didn't have the look of a leading man, like co-stars Steve McQueen or Yul Brynner. With his round head, exceedingly lined face, and eyes hidden by a perpetual squint, Bronson sort of resembled a compressed Clark Gable. Then there was his athletic body. Sporting the sort of extreme muscle tone that was not yet de rigueur for all male action stars, Bronson often played the heavy or strong-man type. After notable performances in the ensembles of The Great Escape, The Dirty Dozen, and The Magnificent Seven, he achieved worldwide stardom in the 70s with a string of violent, though simplistic, thrillers including The Mechanic and Death Wish. In the midst of those films, however, he got the chance to play a more complex character in Hard Times, the first feature by writer-director Walter Hill. Here Bronson plays a drifter during the Great Depression who gets by as a bare-knuckle boxer. He's surrounded by a strong supporting cast which includes James Coburn, Strother Martin, and Bronson's real-life wife Jill Ireland. TCM is showing the film as part of its Tuesday night spotlight of classic "tough guys" on film and I agree that Bronson deserves his place among other tough guy icons like Robert Mitchum and John Garfield. (Today, an actor who reminds me a bit of Bronson is Daniel Craig in a film like Munich or Defiance; however, it's an indicator of how much times have changed that someone with Bronson-like grit and physicality is now also portraying James Bond. Can you imagine Roger Moore as a street fighter?)
BONUS: 5/14, 3:15 AM - The Taking of Pelham One Two Three (1974)
This thriller set on the NYC subway is scheduled late night after the Tuesday "tough guys" programming in prime time and I think it fits the evening's theme, too. Though I'm not sure who's tougher -- Walter Matthau as a veteran transit officer or Robert Shaw as the leader of a gang of train hijackers.
Friday Night Spotlight: Second Looks
This month-long series programmed by actress & filmmaker Ileana Douglas features movies which weren't enthusiastically received at time of their release, but warrant a revisit for one reason or another. I'm interested to see Top Banana (1954) starring Phil Silvers on 5/17 and The Horn Blows at Midnight (1945) starring Jack Benny on 5/10; Silvers and Benny were two extremely popular comics who conquered just about every other medium -- radio, stage, TV -- but neither had much of a film career despite their talent.
However, the real story here is that A New Leaf is finally being shown on TCM! Sure, Ileana picked it, but I like to think that my consistent mentions of this 1971 film by writer-director Elaine May made a difference, too. Consider this: in a July 2010 post about Walter Matthau's hilarious performance as a spoiled golddigger, I complained that A New Leaf was not available on DVD; then, a mere 2 years and 2 months later, the film came out on DVD (which I celebrated alongside the September 2012 classic movie picks)! Of course, it still hadn't been shown on TCM. And so I began my imaginary letter-writing campaign (it works sort of like The Secret) to get this darkly comic romance into its rightful place in the TCM rotation. Now, seven months after my first victory, I've done it again! So, on 5/31 at 8 PM, I'll be toasting the TCM premiere of A New Leaf!
Cheers!
by Lani
Each month, I scour the Turner Classic Movies Now Playing guide for upcoming films that I can't miss. The highlights are posted here for your reading and viewing pleasure! (All listed times are Eastern Standard, check your local listings or TCM.com for actual air times in your area. Each day's schedule begins at 6:00 a.m.; if a film airs between midnight and 6 a.m. it is listed on the previous day's programming schedule.)
First things first, as of this week the delightfully dark romantic comedy A New Leaf is finally available on DVD! It stars Walter Matthau as a spoiled Manhattanite who can't accept the fact that he's broke. A solution to his money troubles appears in the form of a mousy, but rich, botanist played by Elaine May, who also wrote and directed the film. Their romance is a bit awkward, since Matthau plans to follow marriage with murder; however, the film overall is funny, sweet, and completely unique. If you haven't seen this film, and don't mind taking a risk, buy this now (or at least rent it)!
9/2: Give 'em a hand
8 PM - Hands of a Stranger (1962)
9:45 PM - The Beast with Five Fingers (1946)
11:30 PM - Mad Love (1935)
12:45 AM - The Hands of Orlac (1925)
In an interesting bit of programming, tonight the TCM elves have given us 3 versions of the same tale - The Hands of Orlac, Mad Love, and Hands of a Stranger - in which an experimental operation gives a concert pianist the hands of a murderer, hands which are not necessarily under his control. Then, in a twist, the elves have thrown in a film with an almost opposite story: In The Beast with Five Fingers a concert pianist's hand is severed, and the hand goes on to become a murderer itself!
9/3, 10:45 AM - The Dot and the Line (1965)
This Academy Award-winning animated short by Chuck Jones is simply delightful. Simple - in that the characters are a dot and a line; delightful - because it succeeds in giving these shapes personalities. A romance for the ages alongside Elizabeth Bennet and Mr. Darcy, Scarlet and Rhett, or Harry and Sally.
9/10: Choreo by Jack Cole
8 PM - Tonight and Every Night (1945)
10 PM - On the Riviera (1951)
11:45 PM - Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (1953)
1:30 AM - Les Girls (1957)
3:30 AM - River of No Return (1954)
As a huge fan of movie musicals, I've certainly seen the work of Jack Cole; however, I was completely unaware of it. So I'm grateful for TCM's tribute to Cole this month and looking forward to learning more about this extremely influential, but little known choreographer. Plus, tonight's line-up gives me a chance to see some of my favorite musical stars - Rita Hayworth, Danny Kaye, and Gene Kelly - in films that aren't shown very often on TCM.
9/16: Around the World with Maggie Smith!
8 PM - Travels with My Aunt (1972)
10 PM - Love, and Pain and the Whole Damn Thing (1973)
It may come as a surprise to some younger viewers, but Dame Maggie Smith, recognizable today as proper schoolmarm Professor McGonagall in the Harry Potter series and Downtown Abbey's Dowager Countess (the Edwardian version of the sassy grandma), was young once. But even as a young woman, like Angela Lansbury before her, Smith often played above her age. Never so much as in Travels with My Aunt, which casts the not-yet-forty Smith as a septuagenarian. The role was originally meant for Katharine Hepburn, but Smith was able to make it her own, earning a Best Actress nomination. In Love... Maggie is once again cast as the older woman opposite a younger leading man. However, she's playing much closer to her own age as a 40 year old "spinster" who has a love affair with an 18 year old college dropout (Timothy Bottoms) on a bus trip through Spain.
By Agatha Christie
9/23, 8 PM - Ten Little Indians (1966)
9/26, 2:15 AM - Murder on the Orient Express (1974)
I love mysteries and I'm on a bit of a Christie kick lately, so I'm looking forward to these adaptations of two of her most popular stories. Ten Little Indians diverges a bit from the original story, but retains the main plot of 10 strangers trapped in a remote location and bumped off one-by-one. Murder on the Orient Express hews much closer to Christie's book and features a formidable cast of stars including Albert Finney as detective Hercule Poirot. This film along with two other all-star adaptations of Poirot stories, Death on the Nile (1978) and Evil Under the Sun (1982), offer a great introduction to Christie's work.
Thursdays in September: Mack Sennett
Producer and director Mack Sennett was a comedy pioneer who worked with many of the great talents of the silent era including Charlie Chaplin, Fatty Arbuckle, the Keystone Cops, and Mabel Normand. TCM is showing 83 shorts and 4 feature-length films by Sennett every Thursday this month in primetime.
An actor’s image is so often synonymous with his most famous roles. When you think of Harrison Ford, you see Indiana Jones or Han Solo. Clark Gable is forever Rhett Butler. But just as often, you may love an actor’s performance in a movie that no one else remembers. 
For example, sometimes I forget that not everyone thinks of Anthony Perkins as the cute college boy from Tall Story; they’re more likely thinking of troubled, creepy Norman Bates from Psycho. So, if I admit I have a little crush on Tony…well, some people just won’t get it. But seriously, watch Tall Story (1960), a sweet romantic comedy about a co-ed (Jane Fonda) who is determined to marry her college sweetheart (Perkins), and you’ll see that he’s capable of being completely endearing. Perkins even brought glimpses of charm to his portrayal of Norman Bates, but people usually just remember the "stabbier" aspects of that character. Psycho came out the same year as Tall Story…but we all know which one ultimately cast the longer shadow. Tall Story is not currently available on DVD, but it occasionally airs on TCM. If you are interested in the kinder, gentler Tony, you should also check out his Oscar-nominated performance as a young Quaker in Friendly Persuasion (1956); this one is available on DVD.
Sterling Hayden’s most memorable roles are tough, macho characters like The Asphalt Jungle’s (1950) career criminal Dix Handley, insane Brigadier General Jack D. 
Ripper in Dr. Strangelove... (1964), and crooked police captain McCluskey in The Godfather (1972). But I first saw Hayden in The Star (1952) opposite Bette Davis. Here, his character – a former actor who works in a shipyard – is still masculine and tough; however, he’s also nurturing and kind. His down-to-earth presence offers a perfect contrast to Davis’s deluded and desperate “faded star.” The Star is available on DVD as part of the Bette Davis Collection, Vol. 1, alongside Davis classics Dark Victory, The Letter, Mr. Skeffington, and Now, Voyager.
Walter Matthau played his share of slobs, hucksters, and grumps, and brilliantly so, in comedies like The Odd Couple (1968) and The Bad News Bears (1976). But I think it was while watching A New Leaf (1971) when I began to appreciate Walter Matthau as a comedian. His character is spoiled, selfish, irresponsible, arrogant, and homicidal – in short, completely reprehensible. But Matthau is so hilarious, somehow I can’t hate him. Of course, I don’t want him to hurt sweet, hapless co-star Elaine May, either. (May also wrote and directed this film, proving herself to be a triple-threat filmmaker.) Unfortunately, A New Leaf is not available on video and as far as I know it hasn’t been shown on TCM either. (But you can vote on the TCM website for it to be released on DVD!)Now that I've mentioned three actors, I feel the need to say that this applies to actresses, too! I guess I need to write a "You may know her from" list next...
