The schedule has dropped for the TCM Classic Film Festival (TCMFF) April 18–21, 2024. As usual, I'll be doing my picks in NCAA tournament format brackets. Once again, my daughter, now 24, will not be attending this year. She is working full time and in college part-time.
At first glance, the schedule seemed fairly simple, but once I started reading the descriptions of the titles I wasn't familiar with, it got a lot more complicated. For the most part, I only list films (not Club TCM programs etc.), but I may throw in one or two if merited. So without any further adieu, let's look at the matchups.
Thursday
Early Evening
Thursday early evening, my first choice would be Pulp Fiction of course, but that is not included with my Media pass which equates to Classic, so that is off the table. That leaves in the top bracket, Send Me No Flowers up against Made in England: The Films of Powell and Pressburger. Now, I love Doris Day/Rock Hudson movies, but Send Me No Flowers is my least favorite pairing of the three they made together. I do still like it well enough to send it forward. In lower bracket, I'm going to drop off Clue right away. Because I would have to leave early to catch anything in the later block, and what would be the point of watching Clue without watching the ending or endings. Only Yesterday is not blowing my dress up, so White Heat advances easily. Between Send Me No Flowers and White Heat, I think I'm going to let the venue do the talking here. White Heat is in the Egyptian Theater, so I'm going to go for that. Still, I may change my mind and see Rock and Doris anyway, because I do love them.
Late Evening
At a glance, this slot looks like In Cold Blood all the way, but let's go through the motions anyway. Grand Hotel is one of those great movies, that I have never thought was all that great. Reading the description, The Small Back Room looks pretty cool, so it takes out perennial favorite, Grand Hotel. In the lower bracket, In Cold Blood is a heavy favorite. Gambit, I wasn't familiar with at first. It's a light romantic heist movie in the vein of Charade, but like most light romantic heist movies in the vein of Charade, it doesn't hold up to Charade, and yes, I know Charade isn't really a heist movie. In Cold Blood was kind of a given. Plus, it's being introduced by Michael Uslan, a comic-book guy who curated the Elcelsior! The Life and Legacy of Stan Lee exhibit at the Comic-Con Museum, so it seems only natural to come out and support him.
Friday
Morning
Normally, this block would come down to The Caine Mutiny and Vitaphone with the edge going to The Caine Mutiny, but One Hundred and One Dalmatians with Floyd Norman and Mario Cantone introducing at the El Capitan, that blows everything else out of the water. The only real problem here is the end time makes the transition to the Mid-Day screening really tight (15 minutes to get across Hollywood Blvd to the Multiplex). The plan is to sit on an aisle in the back and be one of the first out of the theater. I might even bring my skateboard. You think I'm kidding. I am not. The only thing I can see that might change this would be the Jodie Foster Hand and Footprint Ceremony. I've never done one of these, and it would solve my Mid-Day timing issue.
Mid-Day
The Little Foxes is a great film, but the start time, there's no way I make it. Them! with a Craig Barron and Ben Burtt presentation beforehand is a must-see for me. That said, reading the description, The Model and the Marriage Broker with Thelma Ritter sounds awesome. If I missed Them! and had to go with Thema Ritter, I wouldn't be too heart broken.
Afternoon
In the top bracket, I'm going to drop That's Entertainment! mostly because it's sort of a clip show of the classic film world. The Silence of the Lambs is such an intense film, but it's a bit of a hard watch for me. Besides, I could never make the start time with the way the previous block ends. In the bottom block, it's Gladys Glover and It Should Happen to You all the way The only thing that could change that would be if I was overwhelmed with hunger and decided go for one of Dad's Choice or Paths to Paradise, but probably not both to get some food.
Early Evening
This block all comes down to Close Encounters of the Third Kind and Rear Window. To be honest, I am a much bigger fan of Rear Window, but Steven Spielberg and Howard Suber, that I can't miss.
Late Evening
Even though I would miss the first half of the movie, I'm going with Gidget in the top bracket, just because I'm not a huge fan of The Bellboy or Jailhouse Rock. In the lower bracket, definitely, going with It Happened One Night, though I may skip this block entirely to get a real meal.
Midnight
Midnight movies are tough sell at TCMFF, but The Road to Ruin has something that most midnight movies don't, a 62 minute running time. That might be enough to sway me.
Saturday
Morning
Here, it's really a toss up between, Night Has a Thousand Eyes and Dirty Harry, but if I have to make a call, I'm going to say, Make my day, and go with San Francisco Police Inspector Harry Callahan.
Mid-Day
A Little Romance, because Diane Lane. Still, when it comes down to it, I really do like The Big Heat better.
Afternoon
When I did the math on my favorite Hitchcock movies, North by Northwest topped the list. In the lower bracket, it's a much tougher call. The Phenix City Story is great, but Méliès 3D Discoveries, that's got to take it. Ultimately, I'm going with North by Northwest, but I am waffling pretty hard here. I might switch at the last minute to Méliès.
Early Evening
This block at first glance seems like a no brainer. The Shawshank Redemption with Morgan Freeman and Tim Robbins, right? Then I read the description on Back from the Ink and the fact that it is introduced by Seth MacFarlane (Family Guy, Ted). He always is funny. How can you pass that up? Well, maybe with the Lubitsch touch and Shop Around the Corner. I will probably go Shawshank, but I could switch gears and go with either of the other two I mentioned.
Late Evening
To be honest, this is probably my least favorite block of the whole Festival. I'm kind of embarrassed to say I have never seen La Strada, so that will probably be my choice. That said, subtitles late in the day can be tough. If I see that I'm nodding off in the screening before this, I will probably switch gears and go with the second choice. Either that, or maybe get some real food.
Midnight
Tough call, but I know me. I'm probably not going to make it. I'll probably end up at the Roosevelt drinking.
Sunday
Let me start by saying that at the time I wrote this, the online schedule did not indicate which blocks were To Be Announced (TBA) slots. All of the TBAs are guesses based on time gaps in the schedule. The TBAs are almost always repeats of films that had to turn away people on the first screening.
Morning
Double Indemnity is my absolute favorite film noir. When I saw it the first time in a film class in college, it sort of broke me, in the best possible way. Having grown up with Fred MacMurray as the perfect American dad on My Three Sons and Barbara Stanwyck as the matriarch on The Big Valley, seeing them 20 years younger and hot and plotting murder for the insurance money, that was the coolest thing ever. There really is only one choice here, Double Indemnity all the way.
Mid-Day
I'm not familiar with either of the titles in the top bracket, but I think I think I would go with the African-American baseball saga, but putting that up against Sabrina, one of my favorite Billy Wilder movies, I have to go with Sabrina. That said, the right TBA could pull me away here or possibly in the next block.
Afternoon
I have to say that I am not a huge fan of Westerns, but there are some that I really love. The Searchers is one of them, and at the Egyptian Theatre, new restoration in 70 mm, that is the only choice here. The fact that the Egyptian is close to my motel and will allow me to change into dressy clothes for the closing party, before or after the screening, that doesn't hurt either.
Evening
In most circumstances, this would be an insanely tough call. All are great films. In the lower bracket, I'm going with Sherlock, Jr., because Buster Keaton with a live orchestra would be awesome. Ultimately though, Mel Brooks and Spaceballs, there really is just one choice here.
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Thanks for bearing with my silliness. I look forward to seeing you all soon.
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