TCM - Sat. 9/28 - Marcello Mastroianni birthday salute, political films, Night of the Living Dead

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Last edited Wed Sep 25, 2024, 06:18 PM - Edit history (4)

Marcello Vincenzo Domenico Mastroianni[a] Cavaliere di Gran Croce OMRI (28 September 1924 – 19 December 1996) was an Italian film actor and one of the country's most iconic male performers of the 20th century. He played leading roles for many of Italy's top directors in a career spanning 147 films between 1939 and 1996, and garnered many international honors including two BAFTA Awards, two Best Actor awards at the Venice and Cannes film festivals, two Golden Globes, and three Academy Award nominations.

Born in the province of Frosinone and raised in Turin and Rome, Mastroianni made his film debut in 1939 at the age of 14, but did not seriously pursue acting until the 1950s, when he made his critical and commercial breakthrough in the caper comedy Big Deal on Madonna Street (1959). He became an international celebrity through his collaborations with director Federico Fellini, first as a disillusioned tabloid columnist in La Dolce Vita (1960), then as a creatively-stifled filmmaker in 8½ (1963). Excelling in both dramatic and comedic roles,[4] he formed a notable on-screen duo with actress and sex symbol Sophia Loren, co-starring with her in eight films between 1954 and 1994.

Despite international acclaim, Mastroianni largely shunned Hollywood, and remained a quintessentially Italian thespian for the majority of his career. Nonetheless, he was the first actor to receive an Academy Award nomination for a non-English language performance, and was nominated for Best Actor three times – Divorce Italian Style (1961), A Special Day (1977), and Dark Eyes (1987). He was one of only three actors, the others being Jack Lemmon and Dean Stockwell, to win the prestigious Cannes Film Festival Award for Best Actor twice. Mastroianni's contributions to Italian art and culture saw him receive multiple civil honours, including the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic, the highest-ranking knighthood of the country.

Saturday Sept. 28 At a Glance

MAKING CHANGE - POLITICAL FILMS
Passion of Joan of Arc, The (1927)
Last Hurrah, The (1958)
Night of the Living Dead (1968)
Tin Drum, The (1979)
- TCM DAYTIME
WEEKEND FEATURES
Popeye: Gym Jam (1950) (8 am ET)
Fabulous Fraud, The (1948) (short)
How to Train a Dog (1936) (short)
Peach-O-Reno (1932)
Directors Playhouse: Markheim (1956)
Popeye: Protek the Weakerist (1937)
Tarzan's Revenge (1938)
Pony Express Days (1940) (short)
Melody Cruise (1933) (Musical Matinee)
Colorado Territory (1949)
Where Eagles Dare (1968)
Murder, My Sweet (1944)
- TCM PRIMETIME
100TH BIRTHDAY: MARCELLO MASTROIANNI
8 1/2 (1963)
Special Day, A (1977)
- NOIR ALLEY
High Wall (1947)
- TCM LATE NIGHT: MARCELLO MASTROIANNI
La notte (1961)
Le Notti Bianche (1957)

Sept. 28 - Full Day's Schedule

MAKING CHANGE - POLITICAL FILMS
12:00 AM The Passion of Joan of Arc (1927)

The Passion of Joan of Arc (French: La Passion de Jeanne d'Arc) is a 1928 French silent historical film based on the actual record of the trial of Joan of Arc. The film was directed by Carl Theodor Dreyer and stars Renée Jeanne Falconetti as Joan. It is widely regarded as a landmark of cinema, especially for its production, Dreyer's direction and Falconetti's performance, which is often listed as one of the finest in cinema history. The film summarizes the time that Joan of Arc was a captive of England, depicting her trial and execution.

Danish director Dreyer was invited to make a film in France by the Société Générale des Films and chose to make a film about Joan of Arc due to her renewed popularity in France. Dreyer spent over a year researching Joan of Arc and the transcripts of her trial before writing the script. Dreyer cast stage actress Falconetti as Joan in her only major film role. Falconetti's performance and devotion to the role during filming have become legendary among film scholars.

The film was shot on one huge concrete set modeled on medieval architecture in order to realistically portray the Rouen prison. The film is known for its cinematography and use of close-ups. Dreyer did not allow the actors to wear make-up and used lighting designs that made the actors look more grotesque. Prior to its release, the film was controversial due to French nationalists' skepticism about whether a Dane could direct a film about one of France's most revered historical icons. Dreyer's final version of the film was cut down due to pressure from the Archbishop of Paris and government censors. For several decades, it was released and viewed in various re-edited versions that attempted to restore Dreyer's final cut. In 1981, a print of Dreyer's final cut was discovered in Dikemark Hospital, a mental institution just outside Oslo, Norway, and re-released.

Despite the objections and cutting of the film by clerical and government authorities, it was a major critical success when first released and has consistently been considered one of the greatest films ever made. It has been praised and referenced by many film directors and musicians. In 1958, the film was voted number 4 on the prestigious Brussels 12 list at the 1958 World Expo.

As a work published in 1928, the film entered the public domain in the United States in 2024.
Dir: Carl Th. Dreyer Cast: Maria Falconetti, Eugene Silvain, Antonin Artaud
Runtime: 98 mins Genre: Silent Rating: TV-PG CC: N

Trivia: After completing the original cut of the film, director Carl Theodor Dreyer learned that the entire master print had been destroyed accidentally. With no ability to reshoot, Dreyer re-edited the entire film from footage he had originally rejected.

Trivia: None of the actors wear any makeup, which was unheard of in the silent era. Carl Theodor Dreyer thought this lent strength to the characters' faces.


1:30 AM The Last Hurrah (1958)

A political boss faces changing times as he runs for re-election.
Dir: John Ford Cast: Spencer Tracy, Jeffrey Hunter, Dianne Foster
Runtime: 121 mins Genre: Drama Rating: TV-PG CC: Y

Trivia: Orson Welles was John Ford's original choice to play Frank Skeffington, but Welles either lost or refused the part after Ward Bond, a Ford friend and an ultra-conservative Republican, publicly questioned Welles' loyalty to the U.S., as Welles was well known as a progressive Democrat. Ford was furious with Bond, since Welles and Ford were fans of each other's work.

3:45 AM Night of the Living Dead (1968)

Night of the Living Dead is a 1968 American independent horror film directed, photographed, and edited by George A. Romero, written by Romero and John Russo, produced by Russell Streiner and Karl Hardman, and starring Duane Jones and Judith O'Dea. The story follows seven people trapped in a farmhouse in rural Pennsylvania, under assault by reanimated corpses. Although the flesh-eating monsters that appear in the film are referred to as "ghouls", they are credited with popularizing the modern portrayal of zombies in popular culture.

Having gained experience creating television commercials, industrial films, and Mister Rogers' Neighborhood segments through their production company The Latent Image, Romero, Russo, and Streiner decided to make a horror film to capitalize on interest in the genre. Their script primarily drew inspiration from Richard Matheson's 1954 novel I Am Legend. Principal photography took place between July 1967 and January 1968, mainly on location in Evans City, Pennsylvania, with Romero using guerrilla filmmaking techniques he had honed in his commercial and industrial work to complete the film on a budget of approximately US$100,000. Unable to procure a proper set, the crew rented a condemned farmhouse to destroy during the course of filming.

Night of the Living Dead premiered in Pittsburgh on October 1, 1968. It grossed US$12 million domestically and US$18 million internationally, earning more than 250 times its budget and making it one of the most profitable film productions ever made at the time. Released shortly before the adoption of the Motion Picture Association of America rating system, the film's explicit violence and gore were considered groundbreaking, leading to controversy and negative reviews. It eventually garnered a cult following and critical acclaim and has appeared on lists of the greatest and most influential films by such outlets as Empire, The New York Times and Total Film. Frequently identified as a touchstone in the development of the horror genre, retrospective scholarly analysis has focused on its reflection of the social and cultural changes in the United States during the 1960s, with particular attention towards the casting of Jones, an African-American, in the leading role.[5] In 1999, the film was deemed "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant" by the Library of Congress and selected for preservation in the National Film Registry.[6][7][8]

Night of the Living Dead created a successful franchise that includes five sequels released between 1978 and 2009, all directed by Romero. Due to an error when titling the original film, it entered the public domain upon release,[9] resulting in numerous adaptations, remakes, and a lasting legacy in the horror genre. An official remake, written by Romero and directed by Tom Savini, was released in 1990.

Dir: George A. Romero Cast: Judith O'Dea, Russell Streiner, Duane Jones
Runtime: 96 mins Genre: Horror/Science-Fiction Rating: TV-MA CC: Y

Trivia: This is one of the most profitable independent movies ever made. Made for $114,000 (equivalent to $941,800 in 2022), it grossed approximately $30 million (equivalent to $247.8 million in 2022) - over 263 times its budget.


5:30 AM The Tin Drum (1979)

Three-year-old Oskar Matzerath decides to stop growing. He then finds playing a tin drum helps tune out things that annoy him, even the advent of war.
Dir: Volker Schlöndorff Cast: David Bennent, Mario Adorf, Angela Winkler
Runtime: 142 mins Genre: Drama Rating: TV-MA CC: N

Oscar nominations (one win):
(*WINNER*) FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM -- Federal Republic of Germany

Trivia: In June 1997, at the urging of a Christian fundamentalist group, and after viewing a few isolated scenes, an Oklahoma County District Court judge ruled that the film contained child pornography, as defined by Oklahoma's obscenity laws, and was therefore illegal. Oklahoma City police confiscated all copies of the film from libraries and rental outlets, without obtaining the necessary search warrants or court orders. They intimidated video store managers into giving them the addresses of customers with rental copies, went to those homes, and confiscated the movies. The local District Attorney announced that anyone possessing a copy of the movie would be arrested. The D.A. was forced to back down within weeks, and most of the seized videos had been returned by December. By October 1998, after several related lawsuits, U.S. federal courts ruled that the movie did not violate Oklahoma obscenity laws, and the seizure of the videotapes had been unconstitutional. The U.S. Court of Appeals closed the final case in May 2001, and the movie is once again available in Oklahoma County.

8:00 AM Cartoon: Gym Jam (1950)
Popeye has a rough time of it when it's Ladies Day at the gym.
Dir: Izzy Sparber, Thomas Johnson Cast: Jackson Beck, Jack Mercer, Mae Questel
Runtime: 6 mins Genre: Animation Rating: TV-PG CC: Y


8:07 AM Short: The Fabulous Fraud (1948)
This short film focuses on Dr. Anton Mesmer, the man who discovered hypnotism.
Dir: Edward L. Cahn Cast: Phyllis Morris, John Baragrey, Morris Ankrum
Runtime: 11 mins Genre: Short Rating: TV-G CC: N


8:18 AM Short: How to Train a Dog (1936)
This comedic short provides a lesson in how to train a dog . . . or not.
Dir: Arthur Ripley Cast: Robert Benchley, Mitzi Cummings, Felix E. Feist
Runtime: 8 mins Genre: Short Rating: TV-G CC: N


8:26 AM Peach-O-Reno (1932)

Two divorce lawyers run a gambling joint by night.
Dir: William A. Seiter Cast: Bert Wheeler, Robert Woolsey, Dorothy Lee
Runtime: 63 mins Genre: Comedy Rating: TV-G CC: N

Trivia: A mild success at the box office, "RKO" made a profit of $90,000 (about $1.57M in 2021) on this film, according to studio records.

9:30 AM Short: Markheim (1956)
Late on Christmas Day, a man coaxes an antiques shopkeeper to let him in under the pretense of needing a gift for his fiancée, but it is soon clear he wants something else, in this episode of the Screen Directors Playhouse television series.
Dir: Fred Zinneman Cast: Ray Milland, Rod Steiger, Jay Novello
Runtime: 26 mins Genre: Drama Rating: TV-PG CC: Y


10:00 AM Cartoon: Protek the Weakerist (1937)
While taking Olive Oyl's puppy for a walk, Popeye gets into a fight with Bluto and his bulldog. Popeye and the pup are getting the worst of it until the sailor manages to get hold of a can of spinach. The puppy even becomes invigorated by eating Popeye's spinach and whips Bluto's bulldog.
Dir: Dave Fleischer, Seymour Kneitel Cast: Jack Mercer, Mae Questel, Gus Wicke
Runtime: 7 mins Genre: Animation Rating: TV-PG CC: Y


10:08 AM Tarzan's Revenge (1938)

Tarzan saves Eleanor from the evil grip of ruler Ben Alleu Bey.
Dir: D. Ross Lederman Cast: Glenn Morris, Eleanor Holm, George Barbier
Runtime: 70 mins Genre: Adventure Rating: TV-PG CC: Y

Trivia: Producer Sol Lesser considered casting New York Yankees baseball great Lou Gehrig as Tarzan, but changed his mind after seeing his legs, which were "more functional than decorative."


11:30 AM Short: Pony Express Days (1940)
Buffalo Bill Cody attempts to help the Pony Express.
Dir: B. Reeves Eason Cast: George Reeves, David Bruce, Frank Wilcox
Runtime: 20 mins Genre: Western Rating: TV-PG CC: N

12:00 PM Melody Cruise (1933)

A playboy finds true love during an ocean cruise.
Dir: Mark Sandrich Cast: Charles Ruggles, Phil Harris, Helen Mack
Runtime: 76 mins Genre: Musical Rating: TV-G CC: Y

Trivia: Phil Harris' first starring film role.

Trivia: At 0:31:00 the blonde stewardess is an uncredited Betty Grable.

1:30 PM Colorado Territory (1949)

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An outlaw just released from prison is sucked back into a life of crime in this remake of High Sierra.
Dir: Raoul Walsh Cast: Joel McCrea, Virginia Mayo, Dorothy Malone
Runtime: 94 mins Genre: Western Rating: TV-G CC: Y

Trivia: The first American movie to be banned in West Germany, due to being 'an example of gangster films which glorify anti-social elements'.

3:15 PM Where Eagles Dare (1968)

A team of Allied Forces specialists is sent on a mission to Bavaria to rescue a kidnapped American General from the Germans during World War II.
Dir: Brian G. Hutton Cast: Richard Burton, Clint Eastwood, Mary Ure
Runtime: 158 mins Genre: War Rating: TV-14 CC: Y

Trivia: In the scenes where Richard Burton and Clint Eastwood climb the steep fortress walls, Burton moves with ease, while Eastwood is clearly working hard physically. This was due to the fact that Burton, who was a hard-drinker, a chain smoker, and out-of-shape by that point, chose to ride a crane (made invisible by special effects) up the wall, whereas the health-conscious Eastwood was actually climbing the wall. Burton had already been diagnosed with bursitis, possibly aggravated by faulty treatment, arthritis and dermatitis.

6:15 PM Murder, My Sweet (1944)

Detective Philip Marlowe's search for a two-timing woman leads him to blackmail and murder.
Dir: Edward Dmytryk Cast: Dick Powell, Claire Trevor, Anne Shirley
Runtime: 95 mins Genre: Suspense/Mystery Rating: TV-PG CC: Y

Trivia: In a 1946 "Saturday Evening Post" article, Dick Powell wrote that the film was the result of his ten-year effort to escape musicals. Powell said that when he asked Charles Koerner for a "solid tough guy" character to portray, Koerner offered him the role of Philip Marlowe.

100TH BIRTHDAY: MARCELLO MASTROIANNI

8:00 PM 8 1/2 (1963)

8½ (Italian: Otto e mezzo) is a 1963 comedy drama film co-written and directed by Federico Fellini. The metafictional narrative centers on Guido Anselmi (Marcello Mastroianni), a famous Italian film director who suffers from stifled creativity as he attempts to direct an epic science fiction film. Claudia Cardinale, Anouk Aimée, Sandra Milo, Rossella Falk, Barbara Steele, and Eddra Gale portray the various women in Guido's life. The film was shot in black and white by cinematographer Gianni Di Venanzo and features a score by Nino Rota, with costume and set designs by Piero Gherardi.

8½ was critically acclaimed and won the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film and Best Costume Design (black-and-white). It is acknowledged as an avant-garde film and a highly influential classic. It was ranked 10th on the British Film Institute's The Sight & Sound Greatest Films of All Time 2012 critics' poll and 4th by directors. It is listed on the Vatican's compilation of the 45 best films made before 1995, the 100th anniversary of cinema. The film ranked 7th in BBC's 2018 list of The 100 Greatest Foreign Language Films voted by 209 film critics from 43 countries around the world.

It was included on the Italian Ministry of Cultural Heritage's 100 Italian films to be saved, a list of 100 films that "have changed the collective memory of the country between 1942 and 1978". It is considered to be one of the greatest and most influential films of all time.

Dir: Federico Fellini Cast: Marcello Mastroianni, Anouk Aimée, Claudia Cardinale
Runtime: 138 mins Genre: Drama Rating: TV-PG CC: N

Oscar nominations (two wins):]
ART DIRECTION (Black-and-White) -- Piero Gherardi
(*WINNER*) COSTUME DESIGN (Black-and-White) -- Piero Gherardi
DIRECTING -- Federico Fellini
(*WINNER*) FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM -- Italy
WRITING (Story and Screenplay--written directly for the screen) -- Federico Fellini, Ennio Flaiano, Tullio Pinelli, Brunello Rondi

Trivia: 8½ (1963) was shot, like almost all Italian movies at the time, completely without sound recording on set. All dialogue was dubbed during post production. Federico Fellini was known for shouting direction at his actors during shooting, and for rewriting dialogue afterwards, making a lot of the dialogue in the movie appear out-of-sync. (Source: High-def Digest)

10:30 PM A Special Day (1977)

Drama unfolds in a chance meeting between two social outsiders.
Dir: Ettore Scola Cast: Sophia Loren, Marcello Mastroianni, John Vernon
Runtime: 103 mins Genre: Drama Rating: TV-14 CC: N

Oscar nominations (no wins);
ACTOR IN A LEADING ROLE -- Marcello Mastroianni {"Gabriele"}
FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM -- Italy

Trivia: Sophia Loren's younger sister Maria Scicolone was married to Benito Mussolini's son Romano Mussolini from 1962 to 1971. Maria and Romano's daughter Alessandra Mussolini plays Maria Luisa, one of the daughters of her real life aunt Sophia Loren's character Antonietta.

NOIR ALLEY
12:30 AM High Wall (1947)

Psychiatry provides the key to proving a veteran flyer innocent of his wife's murder.
Dir: Curtis Bernhardt Cast: Robert Taylor, Audrey Totter, Herbert Marshall
Runtime: 99 mins Genre: Suspense/Mystery Rating: TV-PG CC: Y

Trivia: Both Audrey Totter and Robert Taylor relished making this film - Totter, because she got to play a professional woman as she did in Lady in the Lake (1946), and Taylor, because he got to act and not just be a "pretty boy".

LATE NIGHT: MARCELLO MASTROIANNI
2:30 AM La notte (1961)

La Notte ([la ˈnɔtte]; English: "The Night&quot is a 1961 drama film co-written and directed by Michelangelo Antonioni and starring Marcello Mastroianni, Jeanne Moreau and Monica Vitti. Filmed on location in Milan, the film depicts a single day and night in the lives of a disillusioned novelist (Mastroianni) and his alienated wife (Moreau) as they move through various social circles. The film continues Antonioni's tradition of abandoning traditional storytelling in favor of visual composition, atmosphere, and mood.

Grossing 470 million lire and receiving acclaim for its exploration of modernist themes of isolation, La Notte received the Golden Bear at the 11th Berlin International Film Festival. The film also earned Antonioni the 1961 David di Donatello Award for Best Director. Although selected as the Italian entry for Best Foreign Language Film at the 34th Academy Awards, it was not nominated. La Notte is considered the central film of a trilogy beginning with L'Avventura (1960) and ending with L'Eclisse (1962).[1][2][3] It was one of Stanley Kubrick's 10 favorite films and received 4 votes from critics and 6 votes from directors in the 2012 Sight & Sound greatest films poll.

Dir: Michelangelo Antonioni Cast: Jeanne Moreau, Marcello Mastroianni, Monica Vitti
Runtime: 122 mins Genre: Drama Rating: TV-14 CC: N

Trivia: La Notte (1961) is considered the central film of a trilogy of alienation or unofficial "Incommunicability Trilogy" beginning with L'Avventura (1960) and ending with L'Eclisse (1962).


4:45 AM Le Notti Bianche (1957)

A man of modest means meets a mysterious girl, depressed because she awaits the arrival of her lover from afar. In the meantime, the poor man starts to fall in love with her.
Dir: Luchino Visconti Cast: Maria Schell, Marcello Mastroianni, Jean Marais
Runtime: 102 mins Genre: Drama Rating: TV-PG CC: N

Trivia: Austrian actress Maria Schell learnt the script in Italian and spoke all her lines in Italian during the shooting, which won her the admiration of the Italian cast and crew. It was subsequently decided not to dub her voice by an Italian actress, which was the usual practice at the time.