TCM TiVo Alert for February 8-14

TCM TiVo ALERT

For

February 8–February 14

DAVID’S BEST BETS:

JULIUS CAESAR (February 10, 10:15 pm): This 1953 film is among my two favorite cinematic adaptions of William Shakespeare along with Laurence Olivier's Hamlet (which is on June 29 at 10:00 pm). Marlon Brando at his method acting mumbling peak is brilliant as Mark Antony. Brando more than holds his own in a film that features an all-star cast of Shakespearean veterans such as James Mason, John Gielgud and John Hoyt as well as other talented actors including Louis Calhern (as Caesar), Edmond O'Brien, George Macready, Greer Garson and Deborah Kerr. That it came from MGM, known for its slick production values, and was directed by Joseph L. Mankiewicz, who made numerous fine films but nothing even remotely close to Shakespeare, are pleasant surprises.

THE TREASURE OF THE SIERRA MADRE (February 12, 1:45 am): More than any film made after Casablanca, this 1948 classic showed Humphrey Bogart's versatility at a time when he could have played the tough guy with a heart of gold for the rest of his career. In this film, he is down on his luck and desperate enough to do anything. He meets another guy (Tim Holt) in a similar situation. They meet an old kooky prospector (Walter Huston in one of his finest roles) and the three decide to search for gold. Huston's son, John, wrote and directed this movie. Things go well, but Bogart's character becomes consumed with paranoia and convinced the others are trying to cheat him. While Holt holds his own, this is Bogart and Walter Huston's film. It's an excellent morality tale with an ironic ending. 

ED’S BEST BETS:

THE BIG HOUSE (February 8, 2:00 pm): Technically, it wasn’t the first prison drama to come from Hollywood, but it was the first one that talked, and it was certainly one of the most powerful, setting the template for years to come. They’re all here, the prison characters that have become clichéd over the years: the innocent (Robert Montgomery), jailed for vehicular manslaughter and thrown into a cell with two of the hardest convicts ever to break a rock: forger and thief Chester Morris, and the totally uncouth and murderous Wallace Beery, aptly nicknamed “Machine Gun” for his antics outside the walls. Lewis Stone is the warden, trying hard to keep a kid on this simmering pot that could explode at any minute. Directed with innovation by George William Hill and written by his wife, Frances Marion, who toured San Quentin with notebook in hand to record observations of prison life and conversations with convicts ad officials alike. The best thing about this film is, except for an unnecessary romantic subplot, it still packs quite a punch when seen today, which is quite a compliment.

CABARET (February 12, 8:00 pm): Bob Fosse directed this musical adaptation of Christopher Isherwood’s Berlin Stories, in particular his short story “Sally Bowles,” about the lives of three people in early ‘30s decadent Berlin before the even more decadent Nazis came to power. Although the film fans to completely capture the magic of the stories, it does weave a magic of its own, especially with its tour of Berlin nightlife. Lisa Minelli has never been better than as Sally Bowles, an amoral singer of some talent who leads a completely disorganized life. Correction, Minelli has never been as good as she was as Sally Bowles. But it’s Joel Grey as the enigmatic emcee who steals the movie as the film cuts to his sketches frequently. One of the highlights of the film is the young storm trooper leading a gathering n a rendition of “Tomorrow Belongs to Me,” a song supposed by many to be a genuine Nazi anthem, but in actuality was written for the stage musical. It’s too good to be a Nazi anthem. Listen to the Nazi anthems of the time and you’ll quickly agree, as they’re a collection of bad tunes and nonsensical, violent words. The film won 5 Oscars. It should have taken home 7, including those for Director and Best Picture.

WE DISAGREE ON ... LILI (February 14, 12:30 pm)

ED: A. I wouldn’t exactly describe Lili as a musical; for me, it’s more on the side of a romantic adult fairy tale, with a strong emphasis on the word “adult.” Believe it not, the film was inspired by a 1950 story by Paul Gallico entitled, “The Man Who Hated People,” about an anti-social puppeteer who had his own television show. Gallico, in turn, was inspired by the television puppet show Kukla, Fran and Ollie. Set in Postwar France, it’s the story of Lili Daurier (Leslie Caron in a beautifully spun and heart rendering performance); a 16-year old orphan who arrives at a small French village, only to discover the family friend she is looking for has died. With no friends or family, she begs a local merchant for a job. He takes her desperation as opportunity and tries to rape her. She is saved in the nick of time by Marc (Jean-Pierre Aumont) a magician in a traveling carnival. She falls in love with Marc, but he is married to his glamorous assistant (Zsa Zsa Gabor in a restrained performance). She joins the carnival, but fails in her job as a waitress in the carnival café.  Now lonely and depressed, she attempts to kill herself, but is saved once more – this time by the lame puppeteer Paul (Mel Ferrer in a brilliant performance as a disabled war veteran who had aspersions of becoming a dancer). He speaks to her through his four puppets: the kindly, helpful Carrot Top, the self-absorbed Marguerite, the wily thief Reynaldo the Fox and cowardly giant Golo, who only wants to be loved. Paul is filled with resentment about his situation, but takes pity on Lili. She, in turn, is so charmed by the puppets that she forgets his presence and comes to view the puppets as real people. The film focuses on their relationship as Lili’s interaction with the puppets brings in throngs of paying customers and makes her the star of the carnival. Through the “love” of the puppets, Lili begins to blossom from waif into a beautiful young woman, and Paul begins to realize his own love for her while she continues her infatuation with Marc. The film climaxes in a fantastic dream ballet, where Lili begins to sort out her feelings. The film was nominated for six Oscars, with a typical Hollywood turn. “Hi Lili, Hi Lo,” for which the film is best known today, was not nominated for Best Song, but composer Bronislau Kaper won for Best Score. But what really amazes me is how they got away with this thinly veiled Freudian story in ‘50s Hollywood.

DAVID: C-. There's nothing adorable about this "coming of age" movie. It's actually rather creepy. Lili (Leslie Caron) is a 16-year-old orphan from the sticks who is rescued by a carnival magician from a rape attempt by a shopkeeper. She falls in love with "Marcus the Magician," who happens to be about twice her age, oh, and he's also married to his assistant, Rosalie (Zsa Zsa Gabor). As she considers killing herself, Lili is saved by puppets. Yes, she is saved by puppets. She talks to the puppets as if they are real which begs the question: is Lili an incredibly immature 16-year-old or is she mentally challenged? The puppets are controlled by Paul (Mel Ferrer), who used to be a great dancer but is lame after a war injury. He is now working the puppets to make a buck. Like Marcus, he's also a lot older than Lili, and in love with the underage girl, but too shy to tell her. It's either that or he's concerned about being charged with statutory. He also gives her a nice slap across the face for still loving Marc after it's revealed Rosalie is his wife. Meanwhile, the Lili-puppet "act" – I use quotation marks because the audience is let to believe Lili thinks the puppets are real – draws crowds to the carnival. After realizing that she needs to wake up from her childlike dream, she decides to leave the carnival. But Lili apparently still lives in a dream world. As she's walking away, she imagines she's dancing with Paul's puppets, only they are life-size and they all turn into their puppeteer. Lili then runs back to Paul and he passionately kisses the 16-year-old girl with the puppets applauding. When you look at it that way, it's not a charming film. It's only 81 minutes long so it's not like viewers are wasting a lot of time on the movie. But there are plenty of better things to do with your time than watch this.

For the complete list of films on the TCM TiVo Alert, click here.