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TCM’s 31 Days of Oscar
Previously in this space, I have extolled the virtues of Turner Classic Movies, which is not only the best movie channel on TV but the best channel of any sort.
Well, there’s no better time to watch TCM than February, when it features its “31 Days of Oscar” festival. Each day, going through early March, TCM plays a slew of movies that were at least nominated for an Oscar of some sort. Also, every programming day is devoted to winners/nominees in a particular category.
With such an abundance of great movies, it’s awfully hard to go wrong no matter when you watch. But I’d like to help guide you along, pointing out some of my personal favorites, movies I haven’t seen yet with great reputations, or maybe even movies that didn’t deserve the golden guy - “Around the World in 80 Days,” anyone?
So that prefaced, off we go:
TODAY: BEST DIRECTOR
1:30 p.m- La Dolce Vita: I’ve always thought this Fellini film was somewhat overrated, but there’s no denying the power of the imagery, particularly Anita Ekberg in that fountain.
6 p.m. — The African Queen: John Huston was a genius, but often a bit of a nutter as he embarked on risky projects. Here, he took Bogie and the great Kate through the jungles of Africa. The shoot was a trial, but what’s onscreen is a joy.
4:15 a.m. — Interiors: Woody Allen’s follow-up to his Best Picture winner “Annie Hall” was his first drama, indicating he had a lot more on his mind than neurotic love or one-liners.
FRIDAY: BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
9:45 a.m. — The Third Man: The black and white photography of this peerless British thriller gleams, even when it’s in the sewers.
5 p.m. — Judgment at Nuremberg: Stanley Kramer’s movies haven’t always aged well, but his 1961 film about the Nazi war criminal trials is one of his best.
8 p.m. — Cover Girl: See Gene Kelly dance with himself years before Billy Idol sang about doing it. Rita Hayworth is his flesh and blood partner.
10 p.m. — Funny Face: It’s Fred Astaire and Audrey Hepburn. What else do you need? This is Audrey’s best musical, far exceeding the bloated “My Fair Lady.”
Midnight — To Catch a Thief: Deserved its win just for photographing Grace Kelly to perfection. No woman has ever looked better onscreen than in this movie. Period.
2 a.m. — Black Narcissus: Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger’s drama about nuns in the Himalayas absolutely deserved its cinematography award. However, their follow-up, “The Red Shoes,” the most ravishing color movie of all time, wasn’t even nominated for its photography. Criminal.
Permalink | Comments (8) | Categories: Movies on TV, Movies on TV, Oscars Sunday Night
Comments
By SRCputt
February 2, 2007 3:30 PM | Link to this
The set design? Really? Some of those sets look like they are made of cardboard.By Kim Scampone
February 2, 2007 3:05 PM | Link to this
MFL is the only Audrey movie that I cannot stand to watch. FF, on the other hand, I own. I agree that it’s dated and at times a bit saccharine, but MFL gives a new meaning to over-the-top. Or maybe I just can’t get past the accents in the beginning. Audrey is my favorite actress of all time and my favorite film of all time is BAT, but I find MFL completely intolerable.By Rich
February 2, 2007 2:07 PM | Link to this
A final word from me(?) — I don’t think MFL is “the perfect musical”, and I do like FF. I agree with an earlier comment by SRCputt — South Pacific may be the worst major movie musical ever. Almost unwatchable, with an incredibly miscast Mitzi Gaynor. Quite a few of Fox’s Rodgers & Hammerstein musicals were, shall we say, not what they should have been. (In fact, some of the vitriol poured on MFL here actually seems far more appropriate for that favorite musical of the masses: The Sound of Music — imho, a truly static and unimaginative picture.)By Rich
February 2, 2007 1:17 PM | Link to this
Seems to me you’re more critical of the fact Audrey Hepburn was cast as Eliza (and then was dubbed) than of the far more creaky plot, exposition and production of Funny Face. She was adequate, nothing more, in FF (except for her dancing, which is far below almost any other Astaire partner). As for MFL, Audrey pulled that off magnificently in spite of not singing for herself. The matching of lip-syncing is hardly HER fault, and it wasn’t her decision to use Marni Nixon. Are you suggesting she should have echoed what Cary Grant said — that not only would he NOT portray Henry Higgins, he wouldn’t even go to see the movie if Rex Harrison didn’t play him? I’d love to have seen Julie Andrews in the role too, opposite Rex, but Audrey did a fine job, all things considered. Good grief, just look at the set design, costumes — the entire production! Far above FF, good as it was. And try listening to the soundtrack of FF and compare it to MFL. Hard to imagine anyone preferring the former over the latter!By Sir Critic
February 2, 2007 12:35 PM | Link to this
As it turns out, Rich, I am not the only one who finds “My Fair Lady” massively overrated. You ask to “Name one song or scene in MFL that isn’t perfect.” How about any number with Audrey Hepburn, uh, I mean Marni Nixon? Hepburn’s face and Nixon’s voice just don’t match, not to mention that as wonderful as Audrey is, she doesn’t make a convincing gutter rat. I will allow that the beatnik scenes in “Funny Face” are dated, but the movie as a whole is much more entertaining, plus it’s charming to hear Audrey doing her OWN singing. Then there’s the opinion of Michael Gebert, the author of “The Encylcopedia of Movie Awards.” He likens MFL to “an embalming job” to the point that the movie feels like a years-later national tour, “when everybody would be too old and bored for their parts.”By SRCputt
February 2, 2007 11:52 AM | Link to this
My Fair Lady is dull and lifeless in its film version. I’d call it the worst botch in stage to screen adaptions, but I’ve seen South Pacific.By Rich
February 2, 2007 10:04 AM | Link to this
Um, Funny Face is better than the “bloated” My Fair Lady? Wow — that’s one of the more astonishing opinions I’ve ever read. Name one song or scene in MFL that isn’t perfect (or nearly so); by comparison, it’s easy to point out painful and unnecessary songs & scenes in Funny Face. For example, the whole beatnik subplot & the horrendous “Clap Yo Hands” — when THIS comes on screen, I hit the fast forward button! Excruciating (and I LOVE both Gershwin and Fred Astaire!). And the peerless sound recording in MFL (with the exception of Wilfrid Hyde-White) far exceeds Funny Face.By SRCputt
February 1, 2007 1:21 PM | Link to this
Any festival of underserving winners would have to lead off with “The Greatest Show on Earth.” Much rather watch “Around the World in 80 Days” again than that.