TCM TiVo Alert for October 8-14

TCM TiVo ALERT

For

October 8–October 14

DAVID’S BEST BETS:

SINGIN' IN THE RAIN (October 9, 12:00 am): I'm not a fan of musicals so when I recommend one, watch it. Singin' in the Rain is the greatest musical ever made. It's funny, it's charming, the singing is great and the dancing is unbelievable. While Gene Kelly's numbers are spectacular, Donald O'Connor's performance of "Make 'Em Laugh" is the best in the film. O'Connor had a unique physical style of dance that included him taking a number of pratfalls and other things that didn't do anything good to his body. While the plot isn't exceptionally strong, it's clever – spoofing Hollywood's transition from silent films to talkies.

KEY LARGO (October 12, 2:15 pm): This is one of the 10 greatest films and the most incredible ensemble cast you'll find in a movie. It stars three of my favorite actors: Humphrey Bogart, Edward G. Robinson and Lionel Barrymore. Bogart is a former military man who checks into the Hotel Largo in Key Largo, Florida, in the middle of hurricane season. The real storm hits when we see gangster Johnny Rocco (Eddie G) walk down the hotel steps. Bogart had top billing, but it's Robinson who you can't stop watching. The action in this film is intense, and the acting is incredibly strong (also including Claire Trevor as Rocco's neglected gangster moll, a role that won her a Best Supporting Actress Oscar, and Lauren Bacall as Barrymore's daughter and, of course, Bogart's love interest). Legendary director John Huston could not have done a better job, and the use of the storm to parallel what's happening to the film's characters is perfect.

ED’S BEST BETS:

SATURDAY NIGHT AND SUNDAY MORNING (October 8, 4:15 pm): During the late ‘50s and into the ‘60s, Britain made a series of what became to be known as “Angry Young Man” films. This is one of the best. It’s centered on Arthur Seaton (Albert Finney), a Nottingham factory worker who combines a hatred of authority with his anger at his co-workers’ acceptance of it. The anger constantly eats at him, even during off work hours making pub tours with his mates. But though he is a rebel with a cause, he has no plan of how to escape the oppressive conformity that’s crushing his soul. To assuage himself, he adopts the motto of “What I want is a good time. The remainder is all propaganda.” In other words, live for the moment and see that tomorrow may bring and deal with it then. He channels his anger into drinking bouts and an affair with his best friend’s wife, Brenda (Rachel rebuts), whom he ends up impregnating. At the same time he’s head over heels for Doreen (Shirley Anne Field), a young woman whose extraordinary beauty masks her shallowness and desire for conformist respectability. Directed by Karel Reisz from a script from Alan Sillitoe based on his autobiographical novel.

CAT PEOPLE (October 10, 8:00 pm): Producer Val Lewton’s first horror hit, this tale of a strange, shy woman (Simone Simon) and her fear of an ancient curse within her and the man (Kent Smith) who fells in love with her depends more on shadows and suggestion than actual visual horror. Lawton creates an eerie atmosphere of mood and style that draws us in, and once it has us, builds relentlessly until the finale. Tom Conway and Jane Randolph give wonderful supporting performances. Watch for the swimming pool scene. Lewton’s first film and the harbinger of more wonderful horror to come.

WE AGREE ON ... DETOUR (October 8, 8:30 am)

ED: A+. When this noir opened in 1945, it was quickly forgotten. But in 1950 it began an amazing renaissance when it played in France. French critics, not realizing that one is supposed to dislike any film from a Poverty Row outfit like PRC, simply judged the film on its merits alone. And they hailed it as a masterpiece of noir. Slowly it began to catch on with a whole new generation of critics in the USA and reached cult status. This is, indeed, a wonderful film and a tribute to the art of low budget filmmaking. For instance, New York City is represented by fog and a lamppost. Los Angeles is simply a backdrop. Much of the film takes place in a car with lots of terrible rear projection. And yet, it not only works, but makes for a compelling movie. Tom Neal is a man caught by circumstance to be in the company of the vicious Vera (Ann Savage) while simply hitching his way out to LA to be with his girlfriend. Like any noir, the protagonist blames fate for a situation he could have extracted himself from with free choice. The film depends on solid performances from its leads, which it gets in spades. While Neal is the perfect noir victim, it's Savage who makes this film unforgettable. Her Vera is cold, calculating and venomous: a gift from Hell. Savage does a great job with pulp dialogue such as "What did you do . . . kiss him with a wrench?" She makes it sound natural and totally believable. The film's director, Edgar G. Ulmer, was famous for taking lemons and making lemonade, and he does it here, with only a minuscule budget, three sets and a week to film. Ulmer proves his reputation as a film magician. 

DAVID: A+. For Al Roberts (Tom Neal), his life can be summarized by a line in the song, "Born Under a Bad Sign": "If it wasn't for bad luck, I wouldn't have no luck at all." He's a pianist at a dive nightclub in New York City and his girl Sue (Claudia Drake) decides one day that she's moving to Hollywood to make it big there – even though she hasn't made it big as a singer working with Al. Alone and miserable – "So when this drunk handed me a 10 spot after a request, I couldn't get very excited. What was it I asked myself? A piece of paper crawling with germs. Couldn't buy anything I wanted." – Al decides to hitchhike to California to reunite with Sue. His luck turns(?) when Charles Haskell Jr. (Edmund MacDonald), a gambler heading to L.A. to place a bet on a horse, picks him up and offers to take him to his girlfriend. But Haskell drops dead and that's when things get real interesting. Al assumes Haskell's identity believing police won't buy his story that the gambler died and wasn't murdered. He later foolishly gives Vera (Ann Savage) a ride and it turns out she was a previous passenger of the real Haskell. She's now got Al in the palm of her hands, blackmailing him and making his life hell. The dialogue is excellent such as Vera to Al: " If you act wise, well, mister, you'll pop into jail so fast it'll give you the bends." While the scenery and props look like they cost about $25, the film is full of suspense and excitement. It's definitely one of the best B-movies I've ever seen and an excellent film noir. And at only 68 minutes in length, it flies by and is a lot of fun to watch. 

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