TCM Premieres....

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MON., 1-8

TCM Imports...

(times ET)

4:00
am

Insomnia (1997)
1h 39m | Crime

Norwegian thriller film about a police detective investigating a murder in a town located above the Arctic Circle. The investigation goes horribly wrong when he mistakenly shoots his partner and subsequently attempts to cover it up. The title of the film refers to his inability to sleep, the result of his guilt .....

"The film has been widely praised as a psychological study and "semi-noir".[1]
Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times compared it to the Fyodor Dostoyevsky novel Crime and Punishment.[2]
For the New York Times, Janet Maslin praised the principal performance by Skarsgård and added that "Mr. Skjoldbjærg's understated, elliptical direction keeps the material dangerous and volatile,...."
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Insomnia_(1997_film)

Director
Erik Skjoldbjµrg
Cast
Stellan Skarsgård, Sverre Anker Ousdal, Bjørn Fl...


WORLD PREMIERE RESTORATIONS...

8:00
pm

The Johnstown Flood (1926)

American silent epic drama film directed by Irving Cummings, that addresses the Great Flood of 1889 in Johnstown, Pennsylvania.
The film stars George O'Brien, Florence Gilbert, and Janet Gaynor.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Johns ... 1926_film)


9:15
pm

Annie Laurie (1927)
1h 40m | Silent | TV-PG

The story of the famous battle between the Scots clans of Macdonald and Campbell, and the young woman who comes between them, Annie Laurie.
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0017632/
Director
John S. Robertson
Cast
Lillian Gish, Norman Kerry, Creighton Hale
=================================================
11:00
pm
(PREMIERE ?)
Film: The Living Record of Our Memory (2021)
TV-PG

highlights the unique challenges of maintaining film, the cultural and political barriers to preservation, and the surprising risks of digital preservation. This work is critical because, as the film explains, so much of this heritage has already been lost forever.

https://filmthelivingrecordofourmemory.com/


Director
Inés Toharia Terán

[cmovieviewer]

=================================================
11:00
pm
(PREMIERE ?)
Film: The Living Record of Our Memory (2021)
TV-PG

highlights the unique challenges of maintaining film, the cultural and political barriers to preservation, and the surprising risks of digital preservation. This work is critical because, as the film explains, so much of this heritage has already been lost forever.

https://filmthelivingrecordofourmemory.com/


Director
Inés Toharia Terán

Film: The Living Record of Our Memory (2021) had its TCM premiere on June 7, 2023. (See page 5 of this thread.)

It has only been shown the one time before so it is nice that TCM is running it again.

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late FRI., early SAT. 1-13


12:00
am

The Tale of Zatoichi (1962)
1h 35m | Action

"Zatoichi (Shintaro Katsu) is a blind samurai who becomes the masseur for a Yakuza boss, who hires him anticipating a battle with a rival gang. Zatoichi has few equals on the battlefield or in the gambling den. But the rival gang hires Miki Hirate (Shigeru Amachi), an equally skilled swordsman for whom Zatoichi has great respect. When the gang war begins, Zatoichi is reluctant to battle his counterpart. But Hirate, who has discovered he is terminally ill, craves one final showdown.....

Director
Kenji Misumi
Cast
Shintaro Katsu, Masayo Banri, Ryuzo Shimada

"The film received positive reviews earning 100% from review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes according to 7 reviews. The film summoned the most sequels of a samurai film and has also spawned a remake in 2003....
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Tale_of_Zatoichi

[Swithin]

A friend just shared this with me:

https://deadline.com/2024/01/tcm-unveil ... 235729936/

[cmovieviewer]

Here is a similar posting on wbd.com with some additional details of things coming up on TCM this year:

https://press.wbd.com/us/media-release/ ... ration-its

It sounds like they have selected 3 actors for Star of the Month in honor of their centennial birthdays - Marlon Brando in April, Eva Marie Saint in July, and Lauren Bacall in September.

April will be filled with special programming for MGM's 100th anniversary and TCM's 30th anniversary.

[CinemaInternational]

Other stars featured throughout the year include Debbie Reynolds, Bela Lugosi, Ruth Roman and Gregory Peck. In addition, TCM will spotlight special Fox stars including Marilyn Monroe, Tyrone Power and Victor Mature.

Special themes that TCM will explore this year include: comparing pre- and post-code films in commemoration of the 90th anniversary of the Hays Code; extensive programming devoted to great film composers; a look at how women in the workforce have been portrayed throughout the years; the 80th anniversary of D-Day, including a rare showing of Saving Private Ryan; an in-depth discussion about ageism in film; a special month of Kid Fans, with children co-hosting a favorite classic movie; and key cultural celebrations, including Black History Month, Asian-American and Pacific Islander Month, Pride Month and Hispanic Heritage Month

About time they did a tribute to Fox stars....

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MON., 1-15


8:00
pm (ET)

King: A Filmed Record ... Montgomery to Memphis (1970)
2h 33m | Documentary

"The film covers the public life and contribution to the civil rights movement of Martin Luther King, Jr., beginning with King's successful bus boycott in Montgomery, Alabama, in 1955-56. He is shown with the freedom riders in the early 1960's; delivering the famous "I Have a Dream" speech at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D. C., in 1963; and as a protagonist during the brutal confrontations in Birmingham, Alabama, and in St. Augustine, Florida. Other aspects of King's involvement included ....

https://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title/503734/ ... s#synopsis

directed by Sidney Lumet
Cast
The original newsreel segments are framed by celebrity narrators Harry Belafonte, Ruby Dee, Ben Gazzara, Charlton Heston, James Earl Jones, Burt Lancaster, Paul Newman, Anthony Quinn, Clarence Williams III, and Joanne Woodward...
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/King:_A_F ... to_Memphis


***sched. NOT showing "I AM NOT YOUR NEGRO'' (2016)


"I Am Not Your Negro envisions the book James Baldwin never finished, a radical narration about race in America, using the writer’s original words, as read by actor Samuel L. Jackson. Alongside a flood of rich archival material, the film draws upon Baldwin’s notes on the lives and assassinations of Medgar Evers, Malcolm X, and Martin Luther King Jr. to explore and bring a fresh and radical perspective to the current racial narrative in America.

Raoul Peck’s Oscar-nominated documentary is a journey into black history that connects the past of the Civil Rights movement to the present of #BlackLivesMatter. It is a film that questions black representation in Hollywood and beyond....
https://www.pbs.org/independentlens/doc ... our-negro/

"...Narrated by actor Samuel L. Jackson, the film explores the history of racism in the United States through Baldwin's recollections of civil rights leaders Medgar Evers, Malcolm X and Martin Luther King Jr., as well as his personal observations of American history.[4]
It was nominated for Best Documentary Feature at the 89th Academy Awards and won the BAFTA Award for Best Documentary....
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/I_Am_Not_Your_Negro

(shows run time as 95 min.)

[cmovieviewer]

TCM has added 3 films to the schedule on January 27 as part of a theme honoring Holocaust Remembrance Day. These documentary films are all TCM premieres:

- Shoah (1985)
- Filmmakers for the Prosecution (2021)
- Nuremberg (1948)

Additional details are provided at my schedule information page:

http://escapepress.com/tcmsched/tcm_overview.html

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THURS., 1-18

(times ET)

8:00
pm
The Power of Film - Part 3: Character Relationships (2023)
TV-PG

"There\'s no such thing as an interesting character; there are only interesting character relationships. But, as is true for religions, myths, and the longest-lasting dramas, the structure of most memorable dramatic plots centers on a single individual, around whom all the most important action and the other characters revolve....

Director
Doug Pray, Laura Gabbert
Cast
Howard Suber, Laura Gabbert, Doug Pray


9:00
pm

The Big Lebowski (1998)
1h 57m | Comedy

"Jeff `The Dude' Leboswki is mistaken for Jeffrey Lebowski, who is The Big Lebowski. Which explains why he's roughed up and has his precious rug peed on. In search of recompense, The Dude tracks down his namesake, who offers him a job. ...

Director
Joel Coen
Cast
Jeff Bridges as Jeffrey "The Dude" Lebowski
John Goodman as Walter Sobchak
Julianne Moore as Maude Lebowski
Steve Buscemi as Theodore Donald "Donny" Kerabatsos
David Huddleston as Jeffrey "The Big" Lebowski
Philip Seymour Hoffman as Brandt.......

"...The film is loosely inspired by the work of Raymond Chandler. Joel Coen stated, "We wanted to do a Chandler kind of story – how it moves episodically, and deals with the characters trying to unravel a mystery, as well as having a hopelessly complex plot that's ultimately unimportant".[6] The original score was composed by Carter Burwell, a longtime collaborator of the Coen brothers.

The Big Lebowski received mixed reviews at the time of its release. Reviews have since become largely positive, and the film has become a cult favorite, noted for its eccentric characters, comedic dream sequences, idiosyncratic dialogue, and eclectic soundtrack......

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Big_Lebowski

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late FR I., 1-19, early Sat.


1:00
am (ET)

The Black Marble (1980)
1h 53m | Comedy

Alcoholic police sergeant A.M. Valnikov is transferred from a homicide case to a burglary detail. Valnikov and his new partner Natalie are opposites, and initially do not get along. But as they overcome their differences to help solve the case, they find that they are attracted to each other.
...Together they investigate the kidnapping of a Beverly Hills socialite's valuable pet dog. It was carried out by sleazy gambler Philo Skinner, who runs a beauty parlor for pets and is desperately in need of cash to cancel his debts....

Director
Harold Becker
Cast
Robert Foxworth, Paula Prentiss, James Woods,

"....It is based on the 1978 novel by Joseph Wambaugh.
....Roger Ebert described it as an "unusual and distinctive comedy," and concluded: "This isn't a seamless piece of work, but it's infectious and charming."

Although The Black Marble was not a commercial hit, it won the Edgar Allan Poe Award for film given by the association Mystery Writers of America. ....
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Black_Marble

[CinemaInternational]

late FR I., 1-19, early Sat.


1:00
am (ET)

The Black Marble (1980)
1h 53m | Comedy

Alcoholic police sergeant A.M. Valnikov is transferred from a homicide case to a burglary detail. Valnikov and his new partner Natalie are opposites, and initially do not get along. But as they overcome their differences to help solve the case, they find that they are attracted to each other.
...Together they investigate the kidnapping of a Beverly Hills socialite's valuable pet dog. It was carried out by sleazy gambler Philo Skinner, who runs a beauty parlor for pets and is desperately in need of cash to cancel his debts....

Director
Harold Becker
Cast
Robert Foxworth, Paula Prentiss, James Woods,

"....It is based on the 1978 novel by Joseph Wambaugh.
....Roger Ebert described it as an "unusual and distinctive comedy," and concluded: "This isn't a seamless piece of work, but it's infectious and charming."

Although The Black Marble was not a commercial hit, it won the Edgar Allan Poe Award for film given by the association Mystery Writers of America. ....
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Black_Marble

I saw it quite recently. It's OK; the mood shifts are drastic at times. The best element is a typically strong performance from Paula Prentice in what was to be her last leading role. Also interesting to see Robert Foxworth in something other than Falcon Crest....

[cmovieviewer]

TCM is listing the Noir Alley showing of Woman in Hiding (1950) on the weekend of January 27 as a premiere, but all indications are that it was scheduled once before at 8 PM ET on Friday, June 29, 2012. Together with Julie (1956) and The Two Mrs. Carrolls (1947), it was part of a ‘Women in Danger’ theme that evening.

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SUN., 1-28


9:30
pm (ET)
The Scarlet Letter (1934)
1h 10m | Drama

Hester Prynne has a child out of wedlock and refuses to name the father (who is a respected citizen). For this, she is sentenced to wear a red letter "A" (for adultery)....based on the 1850 novel of the same name by Nathaniel Hawthorne.

Director
Robert G. Vignola
Cast
Colleen Moore, Hardie Albright, Henry B. Walthall

"National Board of Review gave a negative review, criticizing the script and "Vignola's static, uninspired direction", but appreciated Moore's performance, considering it "the only good thing in the picture"

".... The story is compacted, of course, but the essential elements are there.

The only real let-down is the inclusion of strange, slapstick comic characters who show up every ten minutes, like clockwork, to perform some unfunny bit of business. A perverse part of me kinda liked them, maybe because they were so crass, and such an obvious attempt to lighten the mood. I also got a strange joy out of seeing some totally inappropriate costumes among the villagers, including what appeared to be a group of Conquistadors (!) loitering in the background.

It's amazing that, despite these horribly incongruous elements, the film works pretty well."

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0025747/reviews

[CinemaInternational]

Doesn't sound too great, but better than the sounds of that extremely altered version with Demi Moore in the 1990s....