Thursday July 28
LOU PUCCI
Thumbsucker [e.tv.22.25]
Friday July 29
Schuks Tshabalala’s Survival Guide to South Africa [M-Net.21.30]
Felicity: An American Girl Adventure [SABC3.01.35]
Stormy Weathers [e.tv.20.30]
Saturday July 30
Repo Man [M-Net.20.00]
Bring It On: In It To Win It [SABC3.19.30]
Napoleon Dynamite [e.tv.14.00]
Jasper, Texas [e.tv.23.55]
Sunday July 31
EDGE OF DARKNESS
Edge of Darkness [M-Net.20.30]
Smokin’ Aces [SABC1.20.00]
Samantha: An American Girl Holiday [SABC3.14.00]
Bring It On: All or Nothing [SABC3.19.30]
Napoleon Dynamite [e.tv.13.00]
House of Flying Daggers [e.tv.20.00]
MORGAN FREEMAN
Amistad [e.tv.22.25]
Monday August 1
Bright Star [M-Net.22.30]
Sybil [SABC2.22.00]
Tuesday August 2
Year One [M-Net.09.30]
Repo Man [M-Net.23.00]
Resurrecting the Champ [M-Net.03.00]
Wednesday August 3
Edge of Darkness [M-Net.22.30]
STATE 51
Someone once said that South Africa is the 51st State of The United States; often looking at the lineup of movies on TV, I can but agree. This week is no exception; we have films about American History, American Law, American Sport, American Crime, American Comedy, American TV Shows, American Adolescence and even American Dolls.
ANTHONY HOPKINS AS JOHN QUINCY ADAMS
Amistad [e.tv.Sunday.22.25], made by Stephen Spielberg, is based on an almost forgotten incident involving American History and Law. It is a sprawling piece of Americana, with Anthony Hopkins playing John Quincy Adams, the 6th President of the US, Morgan Freeman as an elderly freed slave, and Djimon Hounsou, brilliant, as the leader of a slave revolt on board the slave ship La Amistad.
DJIMON HOUNSOU
The supporting cast is impressive and includes Nigel Hawthorne, Matthew McConaughey and Anna Paquin. You don’t have to be a history buff to enjoy this movie, there is action and drama aplenty, and Spielberg keeps interest levels peaked; but, be warned, the film is a whopping 152 minutes long.
IT LOOKS PRETTY NORMAL, DOESN'T IT?
A film that resonates locally is the made-for-TV, Jasper Texas [e.tv.Saturday.22.25], starring Jon Voight and Lou Gossett; in a movie about a recent episode in American’s violent and bloody racial history. The movie is well told and horribly familiar, a black man died in appalling circumstances; three white men were responsible.Suffice to say that two of the perpetrators are awaiting execution on Death Row. This is powerful stuff but not for the squeamish.
JACKSON-HERE WITH JOSH HARTNETT
Sam Jackson gives a deeply moving performance in Resurrecting the Champ [M-Net.Tuesday.03.00], ostensibly a film about American boxing, but really a story about how cruel and unrelenting life can be. Or is it?
A LITTLE GOES A LONG, LONG WAY
Bring it On, made in 2000, and starring Kirsten Dunst was a snappy movie about Cheerleading; that essential part of the American Dream. It spawned three or four yawny straight to DVD sequels, two of which are on at prime time viewing times this week Bring It On: In It to Win [SABC3.Saturday.19.30] and Bring It On: All Or Nothing [SABC3.Sunday.19.30]. Why? Your guess is as good as mine.
THE TURN OF A CARD
Most South Africans know more about ‘The Mob’ than they do about their own grandmothers. Smokin’ Aces [SABC1.Sunday.20.00] finds Jeremy Piven and Ryan Reynolds participating in a bout of organized crime that is both silly and violent, not necessarily in that order.
THEY ALL LOOK THE SAME TO ME
Like Barbie, 'American Girl' dolls have spawned several gentle little movies about young American women; each one a tableau of American History. This week we have Felicity: An American Girl Adventure [SABC3. Friday.01.35], set just before The American Revolution and Samantha: An American Girl Holiday [SABC3.Thursday.0135 and Sunday.14.00], an escapade set during the early 20th Century.
UNLIKE JULIA ROBERTS, WHO DOESN'T (LOOK THE SAME)
The most noteworthy thing about these movies is that Julia Roberts had a hand in production. What interesting time slots too; especially for preteens with insomnia perhaps?
JON HEDER
Napoleon Dynamite [e.tv.Saturday.14.00 and Sunday.13.00] is yet another look at American adolescence, pretty funny in an unconventional way; even better is Thumbsucker [e.tv.Thursday.22.25], based on a novel by Walter Kirn, with an excellent directing debut by Mike Mills and a gripping performance from Lou Pucci.
THE BOOK CAUSED QUITE A STIR
Another novel, this time by Flora Rheta Schreiber, provided the source material for Sybil, made for American television in the mid 70s; it was the first film to realistically deal with dissociate identity disorder, or multiple personality disorder, as the condition is sometimes better known. Not to be confused with schizophrenia, which is a completely different mental condition.
SALLY FIELD IN A CAREER CHANGING PERFORMANCE
The movie, which starred Sally Field and Joanne Woodward, had such an impact that it was released cinematically a few years later. I can’t really see the need to remake it; but of course it has been [SABC2.Monday.22.00] starring Tammy Blanchard and Jessica Lange in the Field and Woodward roles.
PATIENT AND PSYCHIATRIST IN THE REMAKE
If you have never seen the original, the story remains powerful, if a little glib and far too pat. The originals of mental illness are never that easy to explain; the truth is that no one, not even the psychiatrists, really know. After all, the human mind is surely the most complex conundrum ever created.
CYBILL SHEPHERD-BEST REMEMBERED FOR MOONLIGHTING
Stormy Weathers [e.tv.Friday.20.30] is much lighter—this made for TV detective story stars the ever likeable Cybill Shepherd who has had a much more successful career on television than she ever had on film.
A SCARY GLIMPSE INTO THE FUTURE
For the rest there is an odd mix of the Future, the Past, Chinese Takeaways, Mel Gibson, Antiquity and a dose of Local is Lekker. Repo Man [M-Net.Saturday.20.00 and Tuesday.23.00] is set in the future, but only just. Jude Law heads an excellent cast that includes Forest Whitaker, Alice Braga and Liev Schreiber.
READ IT
Eric Garcia helped to script his novel The Repossession Mumbo, which tells a tale already coming true. A need is there, for human organs, at any price. The story about organs, like cars and furniture, being repossessed is straight out of next week’s headline and makes for scintillating viewing.
JOHN KEATS
Romantic poet, John Keats, was only 25 when he died; by that age he had produced some of the best loved poetry ever written in English
Still, still to hear her tender-taken breath,
And so live ever—or else swoon to death.
WHISHAW AND ABBIE CORNISH
Jane Campion has made a very lovely movie, Bright Star [M-Net.Monday.22.30] about Keats and his love for his mistress/muse Fanny Brawne. Abbie Cornish stars as Fanny while Ben Whishaw plays the consumptive poet.
KEATS WROTE BEAUTIFUL LETTERS
With all the news this week about the so called 27 Club, it is interesting to note that longevity was not notable among 19th century Romantic Poets, who were after all, the Rock and Movie stars of their day. Shelley was 30 and Byron 36 when they died, which goes to show that there is really nothing new under the sun.
SAME OLD, SAME OLD...
House of Flying Daggers [e.tv.Sunday.20.00] proves this point yet again, set in China in AD 859, this Hong Kong/ Chinese collaboration proves that the cotton may be new but the thread is as old as time. Or to put this another way; Chop Socky rules supreme.
MEL GIBSON AT THE BEGINNING OF HIS CAREER
Mel Colm Cille Gerard Gibson is one of those stars that went from hero to zero in about ten minutes. He and about the twelve fans he has left were/are hoping that Edge of Darkness [M-Net.Sunday.20.30 and Wednesday.22.30] will give his faltering career a much needed shot in the arm. Well, yes and no just about sums it up.
...AND IN EDGE OF DARKNESS
The movie is a good one, corruption and conspiracy, with lots of fast moving action, spoilt a little by an ending straight out of Hollywood, USA, 1932. Yes, Norma Shearer does spring to mind. Gibson is and always has been a strong cinematic actor; but I fear that his off screen nastiness has seeped into his onscreen presence.
NOT A GOOD IDEA
I normally enjoy both Jack Black and Peter Cera, but Year One [M-Net. Tuesday.09.30] just doesn’t work; on any level at all. It can’t even be classed as toilet humour, there weren’t any toilets as such, back then.
HA HA, I THINK
If you love Leon Schuster and judging by box office returns, many people do, you will love Schuks Tshabalala’s Survival Guide to South Africa [M-Net.Friday.21.30], if not, you won’t; so don’t waste your time.
BRIGHT STARS
Strangely, in a rather mediocre week, movie wise, I have two picks, Bright Star [M-Net.Monday.22.30] because I love the sheer beauty of Keats' poetry and Amistad [e.tv.Sunday.22.25] because I love the sheer drama and audacity of America’s history.
LA AMISTAD