A Flickchart Guide to TCM in November
TCM Spotlight: Hollywood Blacklist
“Are you now or have you ever been…” The Cold War had a major effect on Hollywood in the 1950s both on and offscreen, through the Communist witchhunts led by Senator Joe McCarthy and House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC), which investigated many Hollywood actors, directors, screenwriters, and more for Communist ties or sympathies. This led to a blacklisting of several left-leaning creatives, notably the Hollywood Ten who were cited for contempt of Congress for refusing to testify and either were unable to work, had to work under pseudonyms, or fled the country for many years. Other celebrities cooperated with the HUAC hearings, naming names of people known or thought to be Communist sympathizers, a decision now considered by many to be a black mark on these informers’ reputations. The time was turbulent and uncertain, and TCM covers it with a 1976 documentary kicking off the series and several themed evenings devoted to films related to the blacklist.
Before the Blacklist: The Hollywood Ten
Hollywood on Trial (1976; ranked #32706 by 1 user) – Playing 11/6 at 8:00pm
Our Vines Have Tender Grapes (1945; ranked #11207 by 19 users) – Playing 11/6 at 10:00pm
Tender Comrade (1943; ranked #18109 by 8 users) – Playing 11/6 at 12:00M
Crossfire (1947; ranked #3142 by 189 users) – Playing 11/7 at 2:00am
One Man’s Journey (1933; ranked #13245 by 13 users) – Playing 11/7 at 3:45am
Before the Blacklist: The Hollywood Ten, Part 2
Objective, Burma! (1945; ranked #5432 by 122 users) – Playing 11/7 at 8:00pm
The Master Race (1944; ranked #22045 by 1 users) – Playing 11/7 at 10:30pm
Woman of the Year (1942; ranked #1936 by 340 users) – Playing 11/8 at 12:15am
Counter-Attack (1945; ranked #24112 by 3 users) – Playing 11/8 at 2:30am
Pride of the Marines (1945; ranked #17419 by 9 users) – Playing 11/8 at 4:15am
Before the Blacklist: Other Blacklisted Writers and Directors
Force of Evil (1948; ranked #3254 by 192 users) – Playing 11/13 at 8:00pm
The Man I Married (1940; unranked by 0 users) – Playing 11/13 at 9:45pm
The Racket (1951; ranked #8385 by 52 users) – Playing 11/13 at 11:15pm
Here Comes Mr. Jordan (1941; ranked #3003 by 165 users) – Playing 11/14 at 1:00am
The Naked City (1948; ranked #1404 by 413 users) – Playing 11/14 at 3:00am
Before the Blacklist: Other Blacklisted Actors
He Ran All the Way (1951; ranked #11851 by 21 users) – Playing 11/14 at 8:00pm
Anthony Adverse (1936; ranked #9766 by 55 users) – Playing 11/14 at 9:30pm
Scarface (1932; ranked #796 by 1644 users) – Playing 11/14 at 12:00M
A Letter for Evie (1946; unranked by 0 users) – Playing 11/15 at 2:00am
A Streetcar Named Desire (1951; ranked #290 by 5901 users) – Playing 11/14 at 3:45am
During the Blacklist: Working Abroad and Pseudonyms
Salt of the Earth (1954; ranked #7593 by 64 users) – Playing 11/20 at 8:00pm
The Brave One (1956; ranked #23159 by 12 users) – Playing 11/20 at 10:00pm
Cry the Beloved Country (1952; ranked #15188 by 20 users) – Playing 11/20 at 12:00N
Rififi (1955; ranked #185 by 808 users) – Playing 11/21 at 2:00am
The Big Night (1951; ranked #25367 by 5 users) – Playing 11/21 at 4:15am
During the Blacklist: Working Abroad and Pseudonyms, Part 2
Friendly Persuasion (1956; ranked #4397 by 152 users) – Playing 11/21 at 8:00pm
The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957; ranked #189 by 15233 users) – Playing 11/21 at 10:30pm
Odds Against Tomorrow (1959; ranked #7365 by 57 users) – Playing 11/22 at 1:30am
The Law vs Billy the Kid (1954; ranked #24950 by 3 users) – Playing 11/22 at 3:30am
Robinson Crusoe (1954; ranked #8344 by 93 users) – Playing 11/22 at 5:00am
After the Blacklist: Comebacks
Exodus (1960; ranked #4030 by 230 users) – Playing 11/27 at 8:00pm
Tell Them Willie Boy is Here (1969; ranked #11677 by 45 users) – Playing 11/27 at 11:45pm
The Cincinnati Kid (1965; ranked #2040 by 444 users) – Playing 11/28 at 1:45am
Edge of the City (1957; ranked #10053 by 35 users) – Playing 11/28 at 3:45am
After the Blacklist: Comebacks
The Front (1976; ranked #1914 by 401 users) – Playing 11/28 at 8:00pm
The Landlord (1970; ranked #5512 by 76 users) – Playing 11/28 at 10:00pm
David and Lisa (1962; ranked #10575 by 32 users) – Playing 11/28 at 12:00M
The Loved One (1965; ranked #8574 by 58 users) – Playing 11/29 at 2:00am
Mademoiselle (1966; ranked #14952 by 17 users) – Playing 11/29 at 4:15am
Star of the Month: James Stewart
Of all the classic movie actors, James Stewart is one of a handful that needs absolutely no introduction, and whose popularity has barely waned over the decades. Check out our Actor Spotlight for more, and then watch TCM’s nearly exhaustive coverage of his very long career. They’re playing them roughly chronologically, with some exceptions for thematic purposes and so that they get big popular ones during prime-time, but you’ll note from this list of films ordered by Flickchart rank that though Stewart is immensely popular and many of his films remain very widely seen, there are plenty of obscurities, too, and TCM is hitting them all – even some that have been ranked by fewer than 20 people!
Rear Window (1954; ranked #11 by 33114 users) – Playing 11/23 at 2:15am
Vertigo (1958; ranked #48 by 29446 users) – Playing 11/15 at 8:00pm
The Philadelphia Story (1940; ranked #94 by 3098 users) – Playing 11/8 at 12:00M
The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962; ranked #109 by 2295 users) – Playing 11/29 at 5:45pm
Rope (1948; ranked #127 by 5373 users) – Playing 11/15 at 6:00pm
Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939; ranked #132 by 5892 users) – Playing 11/1 at 8:00pm
Anatomy of a Murder (1959; ranked #148 by 1942 users) – Playing 11/15 at 10:30pm
Harvey (1950; ranked #267 by 2814 users) – Playing 11/22 at 10:15pm
The Shop Around the Corner (1940; ranked #287 by 1040 users) – Playing 11/8 at 8:00pm
The Man Who Knew Too Much (1956; ranked #472 by 3050 users) – Playing 11/23 at 4:15am
You Can’t Take It With You (1938; ranked #626 by 735 users) – Playing 11/8 at 5:30pm
Winchester ’73 (1950; ranked #809 by 535 users) – Playing 11/29 at 8:00pm
After the Thin Man (1936; ranked #1216 by 438 users) – Playing 11/2 at 2:00am
Destry Rides Again (1939; ranked #1253 by 381 users) – Playing 11/2 at 12:15am
The Naked Spur (1953; ranked #1872 by 336 users) – Playing 11/30 at 1:30am
How the West Was Won (1962; ranked #2002 by 835 users) – Playing 11/29 at 2:45pm
Call Northside 777 (1948; ranked #2475 by 282 users) – Playing 11/9 at 2:00am
The Glenn Miller Story (1954; ranked #3212 by 348 users) – Playing 11/22 at 8:00pm
Bend of the River (1952; ranked #3252 by 174 users) – Playing 11/29 at 9:45pm
The Spirit of St. Louis (1957; ranked #3392 by 279 users) – Playing 11/16 at 1:30am
Bell Book and Candle (1958; ranked #4017 by 249 users) – Playing 11/23 at 12:15am
The Mortal Storm (1940; ranked #4246 by 90 users) – Playing 11/8 at 10:00pm
Shenandoah (1965; ranked #4338 by 185 users) – Playing 11/22 at 6:00pm
The Far Country (1954; ranked #4377 by 161 users) – Playing 11/29 at 11:30pm
The Cheyenne Social Club (1970; ranked #5132 by 167 users) – Playing 11/29 at 1:00pm
The Stratton Story (1949; ranked #5298 by 109 users) – Playing 11/9 at 4:00am
Vivacious Lady (1938; ranked #5642 by 65 users) – Playing 11/2 at 4:00am
Made for Each Other (1939; ranked #7782 by 81 users) – Playing 11/1 at 6:00pm
Wife vs Secretary (1936; ranked #7799 by 55 users) – Playing 11/1 at 9:15am
Two Rode Together (1961; ranked #8341 by 61 users) – Playing 11/30 at 3:30am
Cheyenne Autumn (1964; ranked #8665 by 97 users) – Playing 11/29 at 8:00am
The F.B.I. Story (1959; ranked #8827 by 78 users) – Playing 11/22 at 1:15pm
Ziegfeld Girl (1941; ranked #10219 by 40 users) – Playing 11/15 at 1:45pm
No Highway in the Sky (1951; ranked #10433 by 54 users) – Playing 11/16 at 4:00am
Firecreek (1968; ranked #11876 by 48 users) – Playing 11/29 at 11:00am
Carbine Williams (1952; ranked #12210 by 42 users) – Playing 11/22 at 4:00pm
The Murder Man (1935; ranked #12309 by 10 users) – Playing 11/1 at 6:00am
Pot O Gold (1941; ranked #12405 by 47 users) – Playing 11/15 at 10:00am
Rose Marie (1936; ranked #13654 by 21 users) – Playing 11/1 at 1:00pm
The Last Gangster (1937; ranked #14218 by 11 users) – Playing 11/1 at 7:30am
Thunder Bay (1953; ranked #15329 by 36 users) – Playing 11/22 at 9:15am
Born to Dance (1936; ranked #15855 by 26 users) – Playing 11/8 at 8:15am
The Gorgeous Hussy (1936; ranked #16249 by 13 users) – Playing 11/1 at 11:00am
No Time for Comedy (1940; ranked #16832 by 13 users) – Playing 11/15 at 11:45am
Speed (1936; ranked #17099 by 13 users) – Playing 11/1 at 3:00pm
The Ice Follies of 1939 (1939; ranked #17107 by 11 users) – Playing 11/1 at 4:30pm
The Mountain Road (1960; ranked #18756 by 6 users) – Playing 11/22 at 11:15am
Malaya (1949; ranked #19069 by 21 users) – Playing 11/15 at 4:15pm
Small Town Girl (1936; ranked #19924 by 2 users) – Playing 11/8 at 10:15am
Fools’ Parade (1971; ranked #23502 by 12 users) – Playing 11/29 at 6:00am
If You Have Kids…
A few films hand-picked from this month’s schedule that make particularly good kid viewing. Some of them are better for older kids, so use your discretion.
Bringing Up Baby (1938; ranked #136 by 3787 users) – Playing 11/20 at 6:00pm
Arsenic and Old Lace (1944; ranked #213 by 4280 users) – Playing 11/20 at 2:00pm
Harvey (1950; ranked #267 by 2814 users) – Playing 11/22 at 10:15pm
Forbidden Planet (1956; ranked #487 by 2593 users) – Playing 11/4 at 1:30pm and 11/19 at 8:00pm
The Red Balloon (1956; ranked #1180 by 702 users) – Playing 11/12 at 6:30am
On the Town (1949; ranked #1426 by 506 users) – Playing 11/13 at 8:00am
Road to Morocco (1942; ranked #2491 by 347 users) – Playing 11/24 at 6:00am
Little Women (1933; ranked #3155 by 241 users) – Playing 11/23 at 6:30am
National Velvet (1944; ranked #3779 by 310 users) – Playing 11/12 at 11:30am and 11/23 at 5:45pm
Yours, Mine and Ours (1968; ranked #4648 by 383 users) – Playing 11/23 at 9:45pm
Sounder (1972; ranked #4851 by 182 users) – Playing 11/19 at 4:00pm
Life with Father (1947; ranked #4854 by 129 users) – Playing 11/23 at 11:45pm
Anna and the King of Siam (1946; ranked #5353 by 121 users) – Playing 11/9 at 8:00pm
Show Boat (1951; ranked #5731 by 201 users) – Playing 11/19 at 12:00N
Cheaper by the Dozen (1950; ranked #7580 by 337 users) – Playing 11/23 at 8:00pm
Love Finds Andy Hardy (1938; ranked #7691 by 57 users) – Playing 11/24 at 4:15am
The Courtship of Eddie’s Father (1963; ranked #10430 by 60 users) – Playing 11/24 at 2:00am
Movies to See Before You Die
We have a feature on the Flickchart blog called Movies to See Before You Die, that is, films that rank in the Flickchart Top 1000. These films playing on TCM in November all fit that description, so time to set that DVR for anything you’ve missed!
Rear Window (1954; ranked #11 by 33113 users) – Playing 11/18 at 8:00pm and 11/23 at 2:15am
Casablanca (1942; ranked #15 by 43485 users) – Playing 11/12 at 3:45pm
Citizen Kane (1941; ranked #27 by 36181 users) – Playing 11/15 at 6:00am
Vertigo (1958; ranked #48 by 29446 users) – Playing 11/15 at 8:00pm
Strangers on a Train (1951; ranked #84 by 5375 users) – Playing 11/26 at 10:00am
2001: A Space Odyssey (1968; ranked #86 by 61181 users) – Playing 11/4 at 3:15pm
Passion of Joan of Arc (1928; ranked #92 by 1343 users) – Playing 11/18 at 4:45am
Network (1976; ranked #93 by 7081 users) – Playing 11/25 at 1:15am
The Philadelphia Story (1940; ranked #94 by 3098 users) – Playing 11/8 at 12:00M
Cool Hand Luke (1967; ranked #96 by 10557 users) – Playing 11/24 at 10:45pm
Grand Illusion (1937; ranked #106 by 1130 users) – Playing 11/25 at 3:30am
The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962; ranked #109 by 2295 users) – Playing 11/29 at 5:45pm
The Big Sleep (1946; ranked #113 by 4321 users) – Playing 11/4 at 8:00pm
Rope (1948; ranked #127 by 5373 users) – Playing 11/15 at 6:00pm
Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939; ranked #132 by 5892 users) – Playing 11/1 at 8:00pm
Bringing Up Baby (1938; ranked #136 by 3787 users) – Playing 11/20 at 6:00pm
Anatomy of a Murder (1959; ranked #148 by 1942 users) – Playing 11/15 at 10:30pm
Sullivan’s Travels (1941; ranked #169 by 1257 users) – Playing 11/24 at 7:30am
Rififi (1955; ranked #185 by 808 users) – Playing 11/21 at 2:00am
The Best Years of Our Lives (1946; ranked #186 by 1884 users) – Playing 11/11 at 5:00pm
The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957; ranked #189 by 15233 users) – Playing 11/21 at 10:30pm
Bonnie and Clyde (1967; ranked #212 by 9679 users) – Playing 11/4 at 6:00pm
Arsenic and Old Lace (1944; ranked #213 by 4280 users) – Playing 11/20 at 2:00pm
Mean Streets (1973; ranked #237 by 5321 users) – Playing 11/18 at 12:15am
Harvey (1950; ranked #267 by 2814 users) – Playing 11/22 at 10:15pm
McCabe and Mrs. Miller (1971; ranked #271 by 1243 users) – Playing 11/18 at 2:30am
Being There (1979; ranked #280 by 3504 users) – Playing 11/17 at 9:45pm
Hannah and Her Sisters (1986; ranked #282 by 3325 users) – Playing 11/19 at 6:00pm
The Shop Around the Corner (1940; ranked #287 by 1040 users) – Playing 11/8 at 8:00pm
A Streetcar Named Desire (1951; ranked #290 by 5901 users) – Playing 11/14 at 3:45am
The Lady Eve (1941; ranked #314 by 942 users) – Playing 11/25 at 8:00pm
Jules and Jim (1962; ranked #323 by 1200 users) – Playing 11/10 at 3:15pm
The Dirty Dozen (1967; ranked #342 by 4048 users) – Playing 11/9 at 10:45am and 11/24 at 8:00pm
Lolita (1962; ranked #422 by 4725 users) – Playing 11/10 at 5:15pm
Cinema Paradiso (1989; ranked #430 by 5280 users) – Playing 11/10 at 8:00pm
The Man Who Knew Too Much (1956; ranked #472 by 3050 users) – Playing 11/23 at 4:15am
The Quiet Man (1952; ranked #479 by 1637 users) – Playing 11/24 at 12:45pm
Forbidden Planet (1968; ranked #487 by 2593 users) – Playing 11/4 at 1:30pm and 11/19 at 8:00pm
Bullitt (1968; ranked #488 by 3521 users) – Playing 11/12 at 5:45pm
My Fair Lady (1964; ranked #566 by 6917 users) – Playing 11/24 at 5:00pm
You Can’t Take It With You (1938; ranked #626 by 735 users) – Playing 11/8 at 5:30pm
Adam’s Rib (1949; ranked #782 by 963 users) – Playing 11/18 at 10:00am
Scarface (1932; ranked #796 by 1644 users) – Playing 11/14 at 12:00M
Murder, My Sweet (1944; ranked #964 by 407 users) – Playing 11/14 at 6:15pm
An Affair to Remember (1957; ranked #994 by 1134 users) – Playing 11/13 at 12:30pm
Day by Day
Note: Even though this post is dropping late, I have opted to include the days that have already past because most if not all of these films are available via Watch TCM for a week after airing, so you can still catch many of them.
Wednesday, November 1
Top Ranked: Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939; ranked #132 by 5892 users) – Playing 11/1 at 8:00pm
Don’t Miss: Destry Rides Again (1939; ranked #1253 by 381 users) – James Stewart is well-known for his cycle of 1950s westerns with Anthony Mann, but this more comic western came much earlier, offering a young Stewart a chance to play cowboy against sultry saloon singer Marlene Dietrich. Playing 11/2 at 12:15am
Wild Card: Wife vs Secretary (1936; ranked #7799 by 55 users) – The suggested love triangle of the title actually concerns Clark Gable, Jean Harlow, and Myrna Loy, but James Stewart has an early supporting role as a competing suitor. Playing 11/1 at 9:15am
Thursday, November 2
A double feature of Sophia Loren Italian films are the main attraction tonight.
Top Ranked: Two Women (1961; ranked #3945 by 128 users) – Playing 11/3 at 12:15am
Wild Card: Marriage – Italian Style (1964; ranked #6373 by 79 users) – Playing 11/2 at 8:00pm
Friday, November 3
Top Ranked: Frenzy (1972; ranked #1016 by 1518 users) – Hitchcock as his nastiest, taking full advantage of the relaxed mores after the Production Code era. Playing 11/4 at 4:00am
Don’t Miss: The China Syndrome (1979; ranked #1249 by 1221 users) – Playing 11/3 at 8:00pm
Wild Card: Million Dollar Mermaid (1952; ranked #17061 by 18 users) – Swimming superstar Esther Williams plays real-life swimming superstar Annette Kellerman. Playing 11/3 at 4:30pm
Saturday, November 4
Top Ranked: 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968; ranked #86 by 61181 users) – Playing 11/4 at 3:15pm
Don’t Miss: Bonnie and Clyde (1967; ranked #212 by 9679 users) – Playing 11/4 at 6:00pm
The Big Sleep (1946; ranked #113 by 4321 users) – Playing 11/4 at 8:00pm
Wild Card: The Little Foxes (1941; ranked #3429 by 148 users) – Bette Davis made a career playing uncompromising women, but none have been quite so vicious as matriarch Regina Giddens. Playing 11/4 at 10:15pm
Sunday, November 5
Top Ranked: Dodsworth (1936; ranked #1797 by 187 users) – One of director William Wyler’s most highly-regarded films, about a crisis of marriage experienced by a retired auto magnate and his wife as they travel Europe. Playing 11/5 at 8:00pm
Don’t Miss: Rocco and His Brothers (1960; ranked #2242 by 222 users) – Playing 11/6 at 2:45am
Wild Card: The Kid Brother (1927; ranked #3420 by 139 users) – Playing 11/6 at 12:45am
Monday, November 6
Top Ranked: Crossfire (1947; ranked #3142 by 189 users) – When a Jewish man is killed, a group of soldiers comes under suspicion. 1947 was a big year for films about anti-Semitism, with Gentleman’s Agreement on the same topic taking home the Best Picture Oscar that year, but Crossfire plays much better today. Interestingly, Crossfire’s director Edward Dmytryk and producer Adrian Scott were both part of the Hollywood Ten, blacklisted for refusing to testify before the HUAC, while Gentleman’s Agreement’s director Elia Kazan was one of the most notable Hollywood people who DID testify and name names, a move which cost him many friends in the industry. Playing 11/7 at 2:00am
Don’t Miss: Hollywood on Trial (1976; ranked #32706 by 1 user) – This documentary should be a good introduction to the blacklist period, and was itself made relatively close to the period in question, when many of the key players were still around. Playing 11/6 at 8:00pm
Wild Card: Tender Comrade (1943; ranked #18109 by 8 users) – Writer Dalton Trumbo is one of the best-known members of the Hollywood Ten, and this film is one that was as evidence against him, as it concerns a group of military wives who live communally (i.e., communistically) while their husbands are away. Playing 11/6 at 12:00M
Tuesday, November 7
Top Ranked: Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1931; ranked #1463 by 451 users) – Fredric March won a Best Actor Oscar for his portrayal of the titular pair, one of the few horror films to receive such an honor. March’s transformation from Jekyll to Hyde was aided significantly by makeup worthy of the great Lon Chaney, but he does also do a great job of playing both characters, and the film remains (despite the existence of many other versions) probably the definitive cinematic take on the famous story. Playing 11/7 at 6:00am
Don’t Miss: Woman of the Year (1942; ranked #1936 by 340 users) – The first pairing of Spencer Tracy and Katharine Hepburn launched a legendary pairing both on and offscreen, and sets up the interpersonal dynamic that would become their trademark throughout seven additional films. Playing 11/8 at 12:15am
Wild Card: The Stranger’s Return (1933; ranked #16566 by 5 users) – This is a real obscurity (only 5 rankers!) that I plug every chance I get, because Lionel Barrymore is so danged charming in it as a lovable but crotchety patriarch welcoming home Miriam Hopkins from the big city. Hopkins is no slouch herself, and manages to hold her own against Barrymore’s notorious scene-stealing. Playing 11/7 at 7:45am
Wednesday, November 8
Top Ranked: The Philadelphia Story (1940; ranked #94 by 3098 users) – Playing 11/8 at 12:00M
Don’t Miss: The Shop Around the Corner (1940; ranked #287 by 1040 users) – A simple and heartwarming film from director Ernst Lubitsch, who’s less interested in pushing the envelope here than he is in just telling a great little relationship story. Despite not having the scandalous side that marks his Pre-Code films, this film bears the famed Lubitsch Touch in spades, as one of the lightest and yet most moving romantic drama/comedies ever made. Playing 11/8 at 8:00pm
Wild Card: The Mortal Storm (1940; ranked #4246 by 90 users) – A trenchant film made just before the US entered World War II, about the rise of Naziism and how it affects one German family who are drawn in as their country becomes fascist. Playing 11/8 at 10:00pm
Thursday, November 9
Top Ranked: The Dirty Dozen (1967; ranked #342 by 4048 users) – Playing 11/9 at 10:45am
Don’t Miss: The Big Parade (1925; ranked #1674 by 208 users) – All Quiet on the Western Front and Wings get much of the WWI film acclaim, likely thanks to them both winning Best Picture Oscars, but they’re both treading ground that The Big Parade really got to first, only it got there before the Oscars existed, or maybe it would be the film that remains most prominent in the public imagination. Because this film is amazing, and if you’re a war film fan, a silent film fan, or a WWI enthusiast, you cannot, must not miss this. Playing 11/9 at 6:00am
Wild Card: Chimes at Midnight (1965; ranked #1546 by 265 users) – This is actually slightly higher ranked than The Big Parade but feels like a riskier recommendation, as Orson Welles’ late-career idiosyncratic take on the Falstaff stories of Shakespeare (he combines elements from several plays) isn’t for everyone, but for those who think that sounds great, you’re right. Some meandering early on gives way to some brutally moving and devastating scenes as Falstaff is abandoned by his constant companion Prince Hal after he becomes King Henry V, and some simply magnificent cinematography and composition only reinforces the sense that this may be, in some perverse way, Welles’ masterpiece. Playing 11/9 at 8:45am
Friday, November 10
Top Ranked: Jules and Jim (1962; ranked #323 by 1200 users) – Francois Truffaut kicked off the Nouvelle Vague with 1959’s The 400 Blows, but in many ways, this feels like the most “New Wave-y” film he made, with two friends split apart by a woman, Catherine (Jeanne Moreau), who loves first one and then the other, while both continue to love her. Catherine is an enigma in the film, a force of nature that they can only try to survive in this moody exploration of friendship, love, loss, pain, and life. Playing 11/10 at 3:15pm
Don’t Miss: Cinema Paradiso (1989; ranked #430 by 5280 users) – Playing 11/10 at 8:00pm
Wild Card: Lonely are the Brave (1962; ranked #3494 by 119 users) – A notable example in the subgenre of westerns about the shifting of the west into the modern age, with Kirk Douglas (in his favorite of his own films) playing a cowboy who can’t manage to transition into modernity. Playing 11/10 at 10:30pm
Saturday, November 11
Most of the day is devoted to films related to the military (specifically sergeants this time) in honor of Veteran’s Day.
Top Ranked: The Best Years of Our Lives (1946; ranked #186 by 1884 users) – Playing 11/11 at 5:00pm
Don’t Miss: Sergeant York (1941; ranked #1343 by 524 users) – Playing 11/12 at 12:15am
and other Veteran’s Day films
Wild Card: Strategic Air Command (1955; ranked #10191 by 87 users) – Playing 11/11 at 9:00am
Sunday, November 12
Top Ranked: Casablanca (1942; ranked #15 by 43485 users) – Playing 11/12 at 3:45pm
Don’t Miss: Bullitt (1968; ranked #488 by 3521 users) – Playing 11/12 at 5:45pm
Wild Card: National Velvet (1944; ranked #3779 by 310 users) – A must-see if you’ve got a horse-loving daughter (or, um, are a horse-loving girl yourself), as a very young Elizabeth Taylor plays Velvet Brown, who believes her horse the Pie can win England’s greatest steeplechase, the Grand National. Lots of heart. Playing 11/12 at 11:30am
Monday, November 13
Top Ranked: An Affair to Remember (1957; ranked #994 by 1134 users) – One of Hollywood’s most enduring weepies, with Cary Grant and Deborah Kerr meeting on a cruise ship, falling madly in love, and promising to meet at the Empire State Building in a year after they extricate themselves from their current romantic entanglements – but tragedy threatens to intervene. Playing 11/13 at 12:30pm
Don’t Miss: On the Town (1949; ranked #1426 by 506 users) – Playing 11/13 at 8:00am
Wild Card: Here Comes Mr. Jordan (1941; ranked #3003 by 165 users) – A boxer is accidentally taken to heaven before his time, and he’s given a second chance on earth, but he’s got to take over another recently deceased body to do so. Remade in the ‘70s as Heaven Can Wait. Playing 11/14 at 1:00am
Tuesday, November 14
Top Ranked: A Streetcar Named Desire (1951; ranked #290 by 5901 users) – Playing 11/14 at 3:45am
Don’t Miss: The Bad and the Beautiful (1952; ranked #1256 by 470 users) – Kirk Douglas plays a movie producer ready for a comeback, but none of his former crew – director, screenwriter, actress – want to work with him ever again, and in flashback, they explain why. One of the greatest “Hollywood sleaze” films ever. Playing 11/14 at 4:00pm
Wild Card: He Ran All the Way (1951; ranked #11851 by 21 users) – If you listen to me about only one film you’ve never heard of this month, make it this one. Part of the Blacklist programming, as this was actor John Garfield’s final film before he was blacklisted due to his refusal to name names before the HUAC. He died the following year. This film is a fitting and shockingly little known swan song for the intense actor, as a small-time petty thief who takes a family hostage in their home after a heist gone wrong. Playing 11/14 at 8:00pm
Wednesday, November 15
Top Ranked: Citizen Kane (1941; ranked #27 by 36181 users) – Playing 11/15 at 6:00am
Don’t Miss: Anatomy of a Murder (1959; ranked #148 by 1942 users) – Playing 11/15 at 10:30pm
(and other big-name Stewart films, incl Hitchcocks)
Wild Card: No Highway in the Sky (1951; ranked #10433 by 54 users) – An aviation film starring James Stewart as an engineer proposing metal fatigue as a potential accident-causing issue, but few believe him. Also starring Marlene Dietrich. Not well known, but fairly compelling little vehicle for Stewart. Playing 11/16 at 4:00am
Thursday, November 16
Top Ranked: The Goodbye Girl (1977; ranked #1488 by 664 users) – Playing 11/16 at 10:15pm
Don’t Miss: Dinner at Eight (1933; ranked #2570 by 330 users) – A combination of MGM’s star-studded ensemble picture with a somewhat Pre-Code story, gathering a lot of disparate folks together for a dinner party that simply won’t go off as planned. One of the first signs of Jean Harlow’s flair for comedy, which she turned out to have in spades. Playing 11/16 at 4:15pm
Wild Card: Audrey Rose (1977; ranked #5802 by 256 users) – A psychological horror film, with a man (Anthony Hopkins) convinced that a little girl is his dead daughter reincarnated. Playing 11/17 at 2:15am
Friday, November 17
Top Ranked: Passion of Joan of Arc (1928; ranked #92 by 1343 users) – Playing 11/18 at 4:45am
Don’t Miss: Mean Streets (1973; ranked #237 by 5321 users) – Playing 11/18 at 12:15am
McCabe and Mrs. Miller (1971; ranked #271 by 1243 users) – Playing 11/18 at 2:30am
Wild Card: Thirteen Women (1932; ranked #13664 by 14 users) – Before Myrna Loy became famous for playing ideal wives and mothers, she was actually typecast as an exotic, often playing evil oriental women, and this is perhaps the best example of it, as she uses a clairvoyant to plot and manipulate thirteen of her former sorority sisters (who snubbed her at school) into killing themselves or each other in this Pre-Code psycho-thriler. Playing 11/17 at 11:00am
Saturday, November 18
Top Ranked: Rear Window (1954; ranked #11 by 33113 users) – Playing 11/18 at 8:00pm
Don’t Miss: Adam’s Rib (1949; ranked #782 by 963 users) – When married lawyers played by Katharine Hepburn and Spencer Tracy wind up on opposite sides of a domestic violence case, you know sparks are going to fly, and they certainly do, in what is pretty easily their finest pairing. Playing 11/18 at 10:00am
Wild Card: High Society (1956; ranked #2252 by 405 users) – Playing 11/18 at 10:15pm
Sunday, November 19
Top Ranked: Hannah and Her Sisters (1986; ranked #282 by 3325 users) – Doesn’t hit the reputation heights of Annie Hall or Manhattan, but this relatively simple ensemble relationship story is one of Woody Allen’s finest films. Playing 11/19 at 6:00pm
Don’t Miss: Forbidden Planet (1956; ranked #487 by 2598 users) – Playing 11/19 at 8:00pm
Wild Card: Marketa Lazarova (1967; ranked #3036 by 97 users) – If you’re ready for something a little bit different, try out this medieval-set Czech film about a feudal princess kidnapped by robber knights. It’s long and it’s opaque, but it’s unique and plays very well for the right kind of people. Playing 11/20 at 2:15am
Monday, November 20
Top Ranked: Bringing Up Baby (1938; ranked #136 by 3787 users) – Playing 11/20 at 6:00pm
Don’t Miss: Arsenic and Old Lace (1944; ranked #213 by 4280 users) – Playing 11/20 at 2:00pm
Rififi (1955; ranked #185 by 808 users) – Playing 11/21 at 2:00am
Wild Card: Bachelor Mother (1939; ranked #5238 by 92 users) – Simply delightful film of shopgirl Ginger Rogers picking up a crying abandoned baby on the steps of an orphanage, leading everyone to believe the baby is hers; she takes it but has no idea what to do with a baby, especially when the boss’s handsome son takes a personal interest. This is Ginger at her best, in a vehicle that’s obviously made just for her. Playing 11/20 at 10:45am
Tuesday, November 21
Top Ranked: The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957; ranked #189 by 15233 users) – Playing 11/21 at 10:30pm
Don’t Miss: Jeopardy (1953; ranked #11577 by 27 users) – An unusual noir that plays mostly like a straight-up thriller, with Barbara Stanwyck desperate to rescue her husband caught under a decaying pier as the tide rises in a remote location. The only help she can find is a criminal (Ralph Meeker) who has other things on his agenda. Taut and a tour de force for Stanwyck. Playing 11/21 at 12:45pm
Wild Card: Robinson Crusoe (1954; ranked #8344 by 93 users) – There isn’t really a definitive version of Daniel Defoe’s classic shipwreck story, but a Mexican version directed by Luis Bunuel has to take the cake for most intriguing, at any rate. Playing 11/22 at 5:00am
Wednesday, November 22
Top Ranked: Rear Window (1954; ranked #11 by 33114 users) – Playing 11/23 at 2:15am
Don’t Miss: Shenandoah (1965; ranked #4338 by 185 users) – James Stewart is a Virginia patriarch trying to keep his family out of the Civil War, but it proves easier said than done. Playing 11/22 at 6:00pm
Wild Card: Bell Book and Candle (1958; ranked #4017 by 249 users) – The same year as Vertigo has James Stewart and Kim Novak as lovers driven apart by obsession and madness, the pair also played opposite each other in this magical farce about witches and warlocks among us. It’s silly, but it’s perhaps a welcome double feature with the darker film! Playing 11/23 at 12:15am
Thursday, November 23
Top Ranked: Mrs. Miniver (1942; ranked #1455 by 448 users) – One of the greatest WWII homefront films of all time, with the Minivers holding down the fort against the Blitz in 1940. Playing 11/23 at 8:30am
Don’t Miss: A Tree Grows in Brooklyn (1945; ranked #4247 by 105 users) – An episodic slice of life of a poor Brooklyn family trying to scrape by in the early years of the 20th century, bolstered by a practical mother and an idealistic father and seen through the eyes of the equally idealistic older daughter. Genuine and heartwarming. Playing 11/23 at 3:30pm
Wild Card: Love Finds Andy Hardy (1938; ranked #7691 by 57 users) – Mickey Rooney made a dozen or more of these Andy Hardy movies, and this is pretty easy the best, thanks in no small part to a peppy turn from a young Judy Garland and a very early role for Lana Turner. Playing 11/24 at 4:15am
Friday, November 24
Top Ranked: Cool Hand Luke (1967; ranked #96 by 10557 users) – Playing 11/24 at 10:45pm
Don’t Miss: Grand Illusion (1937; ranked #106 by 1130 users) – Playing 11/25 at 3:30am
Sullivan’s Travels (1941; ranked #169 by 1257 users) – Playing 11/24 at 7:30am
Network (1976; ranked #93 by 7081 users) – Playing 11/25 at 1:15am
Wild Card: The Major and the Minor (1942; ranked #2637 by 189 users) – Billy Wilder’s directorial debut doesn’t pack the punch of his later films, perhaps, but is an extremely charming comedy about a young woman (Ginger Rogers) who pretends to be a minor for a half-price train ticket, but is assumed to be an actual child by Major Ray Milland, who takes her under his wing. Playing 11/24 at 9:15am
Saturday, November 25
Top Ranked: The Lady Eve (1941; ranked #314 by 942 users) – Playing 11/25 at 8:00pm
Don’t Miss: Around the World in 80 Days (1956; ranked #3087 by 1318 users) – Playing 11/25 at 2:30pm
Wild Card: The Bad Seed (1956; ranked #1635 by 423 users) – Evil kid movies are a venerable subset of horror, and here the lines are blurred between horror, thriller, and noir, as a young girl may in fact be responsible for a series of unfortunate deaths. Playing 11/25 at 10:00am
Sunday, November 26
Top Ranked: Strangers on a Train (1951; ranked #84 by 5375 users) – Playing 11/26 at 10:00am
Don’t Miss: Two for the Road (1967; ranked #2119 by 194 users) – In this criminally underrated film, Audrey Hepburn and Albert Finney play a married couple considering divorce, and we see their relationship play out through various flashbacks and forwards to different road trips they’ve taken in their time together. The actors are great, but the real star is the structure, which serves to flatten time in a very unique and enlightening way. Playing 11/26 at 8:00pm
The Petrified Forest (1936; ranked #1998 by 276 users) – A star-making turn from Humphrey Bogart anchors this film, playing gangster Duke Mantee, an unhinged gangster holding a group hostage – the group includes Bette Davis, who holds her own against Bogart’s unfurled magnetism, and supposed leading man Leslie Howard, who decidedly does not. Playing 11/26 at 1:30pm
Wild Card: Rafter Romance (1933; ranked #15589 by 8 users) – This Pre-Code starring Ginger Rogers was a hot ticket at this year’s TCM Fest and scheduling prevented me from seeing it, but it’s pretty much top of my DVR list this month! Playing 11/26 at 6:00am
Monday, November 27
Top Ranked: Dark Passage (1947; ranked #1370 by 485 users) – Playing 11/27 at 1:45pm
Don’t Miss: The Cincinnati Kid (1965; ranked #2040 by 444 users) – Playing 11/28 at 1:45am
Wild Card: Exodus (1960; ranked #4030 by 230 users) – After several years on the Blacklist, screenwriter Dalton Trumbo came back in 1960 with a pair of epic credits – Stanley Kubrick’s Spartacus and this film that sounds like a sword and sandal Biblical epic but is actually about the founding of modern-day Israel. Playing 11/27 at 8:00pm
Tuesday, November 28
Top Ranked: The Front (1976; ranked #1914 by 401 users) – Capping off TCM’s Blacklist series is a 1970s comedy about the Blacklist itself – created by several people who had, in fact, been blacklisted. Gives a rare starring role to Woody Allen in a film he didn’t direct. Playing 11/28 at 8:00pm
Don’t Miss: Topper (1937; ranked #1968 by 303 users) – Cosmo Topper (Roland Young) needs to loosen up and learn how to live a little, and who better to teach him than the recently deceased George and Marion Kerby (Cary Grant and Constance Bennett), who died by living a little too much. Wacky supernatural screwball hijinks ensue, and it’s all a great time. Playing 11/28 at 9:30am
Wild Card: David and Lisa (1962; ranked #10575 by 32 users) – A fairly obscure film that provides a pretty early serious look at mental illness, featuring a young man with a mental illness that, among other things, has made him afraid to be touched, and a young woman with multiple personality disorder and their tentative relationship. Playing 11/28 at 12:00M
Wednesday, November 29
If you’re into James Stewart westerns, this is your day, as TCM is playing most of his films with Anthony Mann as well as a bunch with other directors.
Top Ranked: The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962; ranked #109 by 2295 users) – Playing 11/29 at 5:45pm
Don’t Miss: Winchester ’73 (1950; ranked #809 by 535 users) – Playing 11/29 at 8:00pm
Wild Card: How the West Was Won (1962; ranked #2002 by 835 users) – Playing 11/29 at 2:45pm
Thursday, November 30
Top Ranked: Local Hero (1983; ranked #1319 by 664 users) – Playing 12/1 at 3:45am
Don’t Miss: Brigadoon (1954; ranked #3289 by 338 users) – Okay, Brigadoon is often derided even among classic film fans, but I love it and you can’t stop me. Playing 12/1 at 1:45am
Wild Card: The Master of Ballantrae (1953; ranked #14870 by 21 users) – Based on a Robert Louis Stevenson novel about feuding sons of a laird in 18th century Scotland, this is director William Keighley’s final film, and he reunites with his Adventures of Robin Hood star, Errol Flynn. Playing 11/30 at 12:00M