TCM TiVo Alert for May 8-14

TCM TiVo ALERT

For

May 8–May 14

DAVID’S BEST BETS:

THE DEVIL-DOLL (May 11, 5:15 pm): Because Lionel Barrymore was so wonderful as a curmudgeon in nearly every role he played, it's somewhat difficult to imagine him playing a vengeful criminal (wrongfully convicted, of course). His character in The Devil-Doll escapes Devil's Island and plots his revenge against those who framed him in this 1936 film directed by Tod Browning, who co-wrote it. Oh, and he dresses like an old woman at times – and actually pulls it off. Barrymore was such a pro that he handles himself exceptionally well in this horror classic in which he shrinks people to one-sixth their size. The special effects are impressive for a film this old. Maureen O'Sullivan is great as his daughter and Rafaela Ottiano is amazing as his partner in crime who takes evil to a new level.

THE FORTUNE COOKIE (May 12, 8:00 pm): While they weren't a comedic team, Jack Lemmon and Walter Matthau made several excellent movies together, including The Odd Couple, The Front Page and Grumpy Old Men. The Fortune Cookie was their first film together and is the best and funniest. Lemmon plays Harry Hinkle, a TV cameraman who gets hurt filming a football game when he is run over by a player. The injuries are minor, but Hinkle's brother-in-law, Whiplash Willie Gingrich (played by Matthau), is an ambulance-chasing lawyer who convinces him to fake a more serious injury to make money from the insurance company. Billy Wilder directs this film and he is among a handful of the best comedic directors in movie history. The plot is nothing new, but the work done by Wilder, Lemmon and Matthau elevate this film to the level of a classic. It's a very entertaining, funny movie that probably best highlights the special chemistry these two extraordinary actors had.

ED’S BEST BETS:

TARZAN AND HIS MATE (May 8, 10:00 pm); A case where the sequel is as good as the original, the film picks up where the last one left off, with Tarzan and Jane having taken up residence at the tree house in the jungle. Jane’s jilted finance, Harry Holt (Neil Hamilton), returns with Martin Arlington (Paul Cavanagh), a greedy ivory poacher. They attempt to get Tarzan to lead them to the elephant’s graveyard, but without much success. Holt also intends to convince Jane to leave the jungle and come back to "civilization" with him, but she's having too much fun swinging with Tarzan. And Tarzan, with his guard up, will later oppose Holt’s expedition from plundering ivory from the sacred elephant burial grounds. While doing this, he confronts all sorts of process shots of wild animals. Interestingly, MGM’s famed art director, Cedric Gibbons, co-directed (with Jack Conway) this action-filled entry, notable among Pre-Code fans for its sexual candor and obvious lack of clothing.

SHANGHAI EXPRESS (May 10, Midnight): Marlene Dietrich is at her best playing – what else? – a temptress. Dietrich is Shanghai Lily, a  first-class rail passenger aboard the Shanghai Express fleeing the raging civil war in China. Shanghai Lily is the notorious "Chinese coaster and white flower of China,” in other words, a highly-paid courtesan who has lived in China for the last eight years. Over the years her charms have driven many men, who became obsessed with her, insane. Also aboard the train is her old flame, surgeon Captain Donald 'Doc' Harvey (Clive Brook). He’s a stiff-upper-lipped Englishman rushing to Shanghai to perform an emergency blood clot operation on the British Governor General. He left Lily out of jealousy, but still carries the torch. She still loves him, but that was many men ago. Also aboard the train is warlord Chang (Warner Oland). When Chang threatens to blind Harvey, Lily offers herself to Chang to save him. With Anna May Wong in a delightful turn as Lily’s traveling companion, Hui Fei. The most striking aspect of the film is the memorable photography by Lee Garmes, who won the Oscar for his work. Best line: When asked why she changed her name from Magdalen, she replies that it took more than one man to change my name to Shanghai Lily.

WE DISAGREE ON ... GREY GARDENS (May 12, 4:00 am)

ED: A+. This is the film that brought the Maysles Brothers to the attention of the American filmgoing public, and ranks as one of my favorite films. Although many believe the film was inspired by the famous New York Magazine portrait of the Beales and Grey Gardens by Gail Sheehy, the truth is that the Maysles brothers met the Beales after being hired by Lee Radziwill to make a film about her childhood in East Hampton, N.Y. She brought them to Grey Gardens, where they met the Beales. When they suggested to Radziwill that the focus of the film should be the Beales, she withdrew their funding and confiscated the film they had shot. Grey Gardens is an amazing film, thanks to the Beales, a mother and daughter who put the “eccentric” in eccentricity. The Maysles use their “direct cinema” system to show us the Beales in all their glory and squalor, though they take the direct cinema method one step further by interacting with their hosts, accepting drinks and hors d’oeuvres. The film is also unusual in that it’s not really interested in how the Beales came to live in such squalor, despite their background and social connections. The film is more interested in bringing us deeper and deeper into the Beales’ world. One critic noted quite perceptibly that the mansion is like the Overlook Hotel in The Shining in that it has an almost supernatural hold over its inhabitants and prohibits them from leaving. In an ironic way, the Beales are not only confined to their home, but are confined by their home. In the end we are left with more questions than answers. Why did the Beales, a pair of shut-ins, allow the camera to display their madness, their loneliness and a desperate co-dependent relationship? Why do they constantly talk of propriety, the way things should and must be done, and yet allow themselves to be seen in a state of squalor? Does it have something to do with exhibitionism, with a past where they were the centers of attention by adoring men? Again these questions are never answered, but we don’t mind in the least, for once we walk past the front door and into the mansion, we become besotted with the Beales and their world. We are both repulsed and hopelessly drawn in, anxiously awaiting the next argument between the two in a series that almost seems rehearsed, as if they’re performing for the camera. This is an amazing and addictive documentary about a time long ago and post to history. In its bizarreness, it’s almost akin to an explorer discovering a lost tribe shut off from the rest of the world and living in a world of its own. That’s what makes this so attractive. In a 2014 poll of the best documentaries ever made by Sight and Sound, film critics voted this in a tie for ninth on the list. Considering the other films on the list, that’s quite an honor.

DAVID: B. Ed did an excellent job of passionately articulating his arguments for why this is one of his favorite films. I'm a fan of this documentary, as noted by the solid B grade I gave it, and also believe the Maysles were excellent filmmakers. I prefer two of the Maysles brothers' earlier films, Gimme Shelter and Salesman, to Grey Gardens. But I was still concerned about my grade after reading Ed's glowing praise of the film. So what did I do? I watched it again – closely. There is no doubt it's a good film, and the Maysles brothers had a fascinating style of shooting documentaries, but there are flaws that made me comfortable with my B grade. First, the film doesn't properly inform you about "Big Edie" and her daughter, "Little Edie" Beale so it's difficult at times to understand what's going on. In a brief scene, there are a handful of newspaper clippings about the mother and daughter. The articles let viewers know that they are the aunt and cousin of Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, they used to be rich and own Grey Gardens – a rundown mansion in wealthy East Hampton, N.Y. – that Onassis and her sister, Lee Radziwill, agreed to restore the structure after its poor condition attracted the media's attention, and that the Maysles are doing a documentary on the pair. Despite the work done at the expense of Onassis and Radziwill, the house is in terrible disrepair again and the two Beales are suffering from mental ailments. Big Edie is elderly (80 when the film came out and dead two years later) and likely senile while Little Edie, a former socialite and model, is only about 58 years old, but seems much older and is living in the past having lost touch with reality. She is vain even though her looks are gone, and is prone to fits of anger. The two of them talk over each other as the Maysles prompt them to discuss their lives. They are willing to do so, but it just brings on pain and a lot of random singing of old songs. The film sometimes is exploitative as the Maysles know there's several things wrong with the Beales, but they keep shooting. Little Edie whispers bizarre conspiracy theories, is resentful of her mother, does a dance with an American flag, and parades around in skimpy outfits even though she seems disgusted with her looks, particularly when she steps on a scale and uses binoculars to see she's 145 pounds. Also, the brothers just allow the Beales to keep talking even though a lot of what they say makes no sense. If the idea was to capture two former rich people living lives of delusion then the goal was achieved. But if the goal was to keep the viewer engaged and interested, it's a mixed bag.

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