Thursday November 17
The Pianist [SABC3.01.00]
The Mexican [e.tv.20.30]
Single White Female [e.tv.01.55]
Friday November 18
Psycho II [SABC1.22.00]
Alex Rider: Operation Stormbreaker [e.tv.14.30]
American Ninja [e.tv.02.50]
Saturday November 19
Christmas Cottage [M-Net.07.00]
LEAVING ON A JET PLANE
Going the Distance [M-Net.21.00]
I Am Number Four [M-Net.00.45]
Ratatouille [SABC3.19.30]
Alex Rider Operation Stormbreaker [e.tv.14.00]
Ninja III: The Domination [e.tv.23.45]
Sunday November 20
Ramona and Beezus [M-Net.10.00]
ZACH GALIFIANAKIS
Dinner for Schmucks [M-Net.20.05]
Ninja [M-Net.23.00]
The Incredibles [SABC3.19.30]
Monday November 21
Agora [M-Net.22.30]
Tuesday November 22
Going the Distance [M-Net.00.30]
Wednesday November 23
WHATEVER
Ramona and Beezus [M-Net.09.30]
Dinner for Schmucks [M-Net.22.30]
Psycho II [SABC3.01.00]
Bob’s Weekend [e.tv.00.10]
***
ROMAN POLANSKI'S KNIFE IN THE WATER
Roman Polanski has been directing films since the 1960s. His first major work, Knife in the Water, made in Poland in 1962, was a study in stark brilliance and set the tone for his future career. Overall, Polanski’s output has been small but extremely significant. In 2002, he directed The Pianist [SABC3.Thursday.01.00] a memoir written by Wladyslaw Szpilman, a pianist who survived the Nazi occupation of Poland.
ADRIEN BRODY AS SZPILMAN
In many ways, the almost unbelievable story echoes Polanski’s own troubled boyhood. Polanski’s direction is faultless, as is the screenplay by South African born writer Ronald Harwood; both men won Academy Awards; a third was won by Adrien Brody who is neatly cast in the role of Szpilman.
THE WARTIME WIRELESS
The Pianist is a superb piece of cinema, dealing with human action and emotion; rather than just dwelling on the cruel, almost careless crudity of the occupation.
AN EMOTIVE SCENE FROM TESS
Polanski is not only a tremendous craftsman; he also chooses his vehicles with great care, and has dealt chillingly with taboo subjects like incest (Chinatown) and the occult (Rosemary’s Baby.) He is versatile too, ranging from black comedy (The Fearless Vampire Killers), to work inspired by Shakespeare (Mc Beth) and Thomas Hardy (Tess.)
JASON LEIGH AND FONDA
Polanski’s 1963 cult classic, Repulsion, obviously had a deep impact on Barbet Schroeder who made Single White Female [e.tv.Thursday.01.55], an adaptation of John Lutz’s novel, SWF Seeks Same.
LOOKALIKES IN SINGLE WHITE FEMALE
The film has truly frightening moments, as Jennifer Jason Leigh undergoes a violent mental malfunction, while Bridget Fonda struggles to understand her flatmate’s seemingly inexplicable personality meltdown.
THE SHOWER SCENCE FROM THE ORIGINAL MOVIE
Talking of finely honed horror, when Alfred Hitchcock came to make a movie loosely based on the doings of a man named Ed Gein; the master of the macabre chose a nervous young actor with a glowing reputation to play his deadly, disturbed protagonist, now named Norman Bates.
... I WOULDN'T HURT A FLY...
Perkins was perfect for the role…too perfect; for the remainder of his career, when audiences saw Tony Perkins, they saw Norman Bates. The film, of course, was Psycho.
TONY/NORMAN IN LATER YEARS
23 years after Psycho, Perkins capitulated and agreed to play Bates in a sequel. Psycho II [SABC1.Friday.22.00 and Wednesday.01.00] is not that bad, certainly much better than the horrible 1998 remake that starred of all people, Vince Vaughn and Anne Heche.
THE BATES MOTEL IN THE BACKGROUND
Two vital factors fail Psycho II’s structure and continuity, Hitchcock was not behind the camera and more importantly; who the devil let Norman out of his padded cell in the first place?
RACHEL WEISZ AS HYPATHIA
Agora [M-Net.Monday.22,30] stars Rachel Weisz and tells the story of 4th century mathematician Hypathia who just by breathing posed a triple threat; she was a scientist, a pagan and a woman. The movie, based on a character from ancient history, is wordy and overblown; with the early Christians coming across as both brutal and pitiless.
SOME GOOD ONES ON THE MENU
Well, Christmas comes but once a year, so brace yourselves for snow, romance, comedy and a goodly few indifferent movies...Oh yes, and reruns… Pixar is doing yet another lap of honour in November. Fortunately for us, their films are pretty damn good; this week: The Incredibles [SABC3.Sunday.19.30] and the award winning Ratatouille [SABC3.Saturday.19.30].
O'TOOLE IS THE VOICE OF ANTON EGO
One of my favorite actors, Peter O’Toole is the voice of Anton Ego in Ratatouille; when fellow Irishman, Richard Harris died in 2002, O’Toole was tipped to replace him as Dumbledore. Except O’Toole couldn’t get insurance, no one believed his liver wouldn’t last the protracted, sequel enriched shooting schedule.
CLASSIC KINKCADE
Happily, O’ Toole is still going strong and is in the made for TV, Christmas Cottage [M-Net.Saturday.07.00]; with Marcia Gay Harden and Jared Padalecki as Thomas Kinkcade, the Vladimir Tretchikoff of North America. This chunky tear jerker tells just how and why Kinkcade came to paint Christmas Cottage. The experience is akin to being force fed several large snow balls.
THE PISTOL
The Mexican [e.tv.Thursday.20.30], starring Julia Roberts and Brad Pitt is not really a romance as such, although the inanimate costar is one of the most durable of all phallic symbols, an antique pistol.
BRAD AND JULIA
Brad and Julia were top of the heap back in 2001, he fresh from The Fight Club and The Snatch and she glowing in the wake of her Oscar winning Erin Brockovich. They both look very beautiful and there is a fair amount of alchemy between them; but the plot takes an awfully long time to fire.
WITH A PADDLE IN GOING THE DISTANCE
Drew Barrymore can do rom com in her sleep, she is always frothy and light and often very funny. In Going the Distance [M-Net.Saturday.21.00 and Tuesday.00.30], she and Jason Long try to keep a long distance romance on the boil; not much originality, but the dialogue does have a little flair and fizz.
THE FRENCH ORIGINAL WAS CALLED THE DINNER GAME
A sweetly amusing movie with an unwieldy title is Dinner for Smucks [M-Net.Sunday.20.05 and Wednesday.22.30], which reunites the winning team of Paul Rudd and Steve Carell.
Schmucks is geared around winners disguised as losers, mouse dioramas and some major scene stealing by Zack Galifianakis. Easily enjoyed; and just as easily forgotten.
STEVE CARELL
Real Smuck..
...BRUCE JONES HAS THE DISTINCTION OF BEING FIRED FROM CORONATION STREET
Bob’s Weekend [e.tv.Wednesday.00.10] is British and gritty without being too banal or that gross. Many well known stars from British television appear; Bruce Jones and the late Brian Glover, to name but two.
PRETTY BOY ALEX PETTYFER
And now: Teen Time- Alex Rider: Operation Stormbreaker [e.tv.Frioday.14.30 and Saturday.14.00] is also studded with British stars…Bill Nighy, Robbie Coltrane, Stephen Fry, Ewan McGregor and just for a touch of international flavour, Mickey Rourke. Alex Pettyfer stars as a sub-standard junior James Bond based on the book by Anthony Horowitz.
A HERO CREATED BY PITTACUS LORE
Pettifer is also in one of those ‘wrong time, wrong place, wrong planet’ epics called I Am Number Four [M-Net.Saturday.00.45], written in part by well known literary pilferer James Frey, writing here as Pittacus Lore! The plot is complicated and heavy handed, in spite of direction by D. J Caruso and production by Michael Bay.
SUGAR AND SPICE
Romana and Beejus [M-Net.Sunday.10.00 and Wednesday.09.30] is based on the teen novels by Susan Cleary, Selena Gomez gets to sing Live Like There’s No Tomorrow while little Joey King simpers and smirks; spot on for the holiday market.
NINJA # 1
More than you have ever wanted to know about Ninjas will be revealed this week; there are no fewer than three on show. American Ninja [e.tv.Friday.02.50] dates from 1985, Ninja III: The Domination [e.tv.Saturday.23.45] from 1984 and Ninja [M-Net.Sunday.23.00] from 2009.
NINJA # 2
Surfice for me to say that Ninja means ‘a mercenary of feudal Japan specializing in unorthodox arts of war’
THOMAS KRETSCHMANN AS THE NAZI OFFICER
My pick is The Pianist [SABC3.Thursday.01.00].