TCM
TiVo ALERT
For
October
15–October 22
DAVID’S
BEST BETS:
BONNIE
AND CLYDE (October
16, 10:15 pm): A groundbreaking film in terms of style, content and
graphic violence from 1967, which I consider to be among the two or
three finest year in cinematic history. The leads – Warren
Beatty and Faye Dunaway – are outstanding in their roles as
the famed outlaw duo oozing passion, raw sexuality, violence,
charisma and charm at every turn. The supporting cast –
notably Gene Hackman and Estelle Parsons – are equally strong. The
movie's violence goes from almost comic to intensely graphic. The
final scene in which the two are shot dozens of times is outstanding,
particularly the quick looks of horror Beatty and Dunaway give each
other when they realize they're about to die a very brutal death. It
conveys more emotion and intensity than almost anything you'll seen
in film.
WUTHERING
HEIGHTS (October
22, 12:15 pm): It's always challenging to adapt a classic book into a
movie, and this 1939 film uses less than half of Emily Bronte's 34
chapters (eliminating the second generation of characters) in the
book. But it's still a stunning film directed by one of the true
masters, William Wyler. Laurence Olivier gives an unforgettable
performance as Heathcliff, showing a wide range of emotions in a
complicated role. Heathcliff is bitter, vengeful, conflicted and
passionately in love. I doubt anyone else could do justice to the
role. Merle Oberon as Cathy is also wonderful as are many members of
the cast including David Niven, Geraldine Fitzgerald and Hugh
Williams.
ED’S
BEST BETS:
THE
BRIDES OF DRACULA (October 15, 9:45 pm): The first
sequel to Horror of Dracula, but without Christopher Lee,
who refused to be in it (he wanted to avoid typecasting) although
some say that Hammer believed Cushing was the star and simply omitted
Lee from the film. Jimmy Sangster’s original screenplay was
rewritten to excIse Dracula and replace him with a vampire
named Baron Meinster while Peter Cushing’s character of Van Helsing
was retained. The script is more Freudian, with necromancy,
necrophilia, incest and homoeroticism on the menu, with David Peel
stepping into the vampire role as a decidedly fey, but extremely
feral vampire, able to get young ladies to remove their bodices
through charm alone. It’s a different kind of vampire film and one
worth seeing.
EYES
WITHOUT A FACE (October 22, 2:00 am): One of the most
disquieting horror films of the 1950s and a film many consider a
classic of the genre. Pierre Brasseur is a famous surgeon and
researcher who kidnaps young women in an attempt to graft their faces
onto that of his disfigured daughter (Edith Scob), whose face was
disfigured in a car accident. Those I know who have seen it will
forever remember the surgery sequence. Modern horror films may be far
more grotesque and graphic, but this film will really unnerve you
because of the quality with which it was made. Definitely not for the
squeamish.
WE
DISAGREE ON ... SEVEN BRIDES FOR SEVEN BROTHERS (October 15,
2:00 pm)
ED: A. MGM
was on a roll in the early ‘50s with its Musicals Unit, cranking
out classic after classic. And this film is no exception. In fact,
it’s one of the few musicals that weaves the music, dancing and
story together flawlessly and is totally entertaining from start to
finish. If I were to expound on the virtues of Cinemascope, I would
use this film as one of the prime examples, for although it was one
of the earliest Cinemascope films for MGM, it’s technical
virtuosity is astounding, as we have up to 14 characters (the seven
brothers and seven brides) interacting on the screen at the same time
in the musical numbers. For such a huge undertaking, the film works
in almost every way, with outstanding performances from Jane Powell
and Russ Tamblyn (whose acrobatic dancing is still a marvel to behold
today), as well as a beautiful newcomer, Julie Newmeyer. She would
later shorten her name to “Julie Newmar,” gaining everlasting
fame as the original Catwoman on the Batman television
series in 1966. For those who like musicals, this is an Essential,
and for those interested in film history, this is an Essential. Heck,
if you’re a film buff of any sort, this is an Essential.
DAVID:
C-. I'm not much of a musical movie fan. Ed, who is a
huge fan of the genre, tends to give a pass to the plots of musicals
because the singing – and in many cases, the dancing –
is the main draw for these films. I disagree. Great musicals can have
good plots with solid dialogue that add to the film. The plot
of Seven Brides for Seven Brothers is among the most
ridiculous in cinematic history. A woodsman comes into town looking
for a wife and finds a woman who barely knows him but marries him.
They return home and to her surprise, he's got six brothers who live
with him. She teaches them manners and dancing – they pick up
the latter a lot quicker than the former – so they can also find
women to marry. They find women-folk and eventually kidnap them when
things don't go well. Of course women in that situation not only fall
in love with their captors, but dance with them. The acting is wooden
at best, and the singing isn't memorable. I can't recall any songs
from this movie and after looking up the titles, I don't remember the
melody or lyrics to even one, and I saw this movie in the last year.
The only reason this film doesn't get a D grade is because it is
beautifully filmed, I was impressed with how they were able to get
all 14 of them into single shots and the dancing is good.
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