August 1st started TCM's month long series. Every day a new star. Below are 5 must see films to watch during the month (according to me, at least) along with the full schedule. What are you planning on watching?
The Long Long Trailer - Lucille Ball - August 3rd, 12am EST
Critically slammed but loved by movie watchers, this 1953 film stars Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz at the height of their TV fame. Now an iconic film in the screwball comedy genre, the film chronicles a couple who buy a trailer and travel around the country, with their family, for a year. A companion to I Love Lucy, in a sense, the NYT original review states "It is an hour and a half of the sort of nonsense you might get in one good, fast "Lucy" show."
Suddenly Last Summer - Montgomery Clift - August 6th, 11:45am EST
Filled with subtext upon subtext, this 1960 Tennessee Williams adaptation stars Clift, Katherine Hepburn, Elizabeth Taylor and Mercedes McCambridge. Officially billed as a drama centering around homosexuality, cannibalism & psychology (touchy considering Clift's personal life), the film has been lauded for its performances and nuance. What is lacks in plot, it makes up for in depth. Hepburn & Taylor earned Oscar nominations, while Clift was snubbed, honestly.
Dead Ringer - Bette Davis - August 21st, 2:15am EST
TCM is showing a lot of her classics on this day: Whatever Happened to Baby Jane, Now Voyager, The Letter, and many more, but this 1964 film is forgotten classic. Not to be confused with the 80s Cronenberg film, this stars Davis as a twin: one good and one evil. Often overlooked, this is one of Davis' best performances (and messiest, let's be real). While a lot of this film may have been a bit stale, her performance pushes it over the edge.
Contempt- Brigitte Bardot - August 23rd, 4:00am EST
While they are showing the more iconic
And God Created Woman earlier in the day, Contempt is far more interesting. This 1963 Godard film is often said to parallel The Odyssey, but can also be a fictional representation of Godard's own life. Roger Ebert's review for the film puts it perfectly: "It is interesting to see, and has moments of brilliance (the marital argument, the use of the villa steps), but its real importance is as a failed experiment. "Contempt'' taught Godard he could not make films like this, and so he included himself out, and went on to make the films he could make."
The Black Cat - Boris Karloff - August 26th, 12:30am EST
Official description: "American honeymooners in Hungary become trapped in the home of a Satan-worshiping priest when the bride is taken there for medical help following a road accident." And there's not much more to be said. You know what to expect from Karloff/Legosi film based on an Edgar Allan Poe story.
Full schedule:
August 1 - Edward G. Robinson
August 2 - Lucille Ball
August 3 - Bing Crosby
August 4 - Fay Wray
August 5 - Karl Malden
August 6 - Montgomery Clift
August 7 - Jean Harlow
August 8 - Esther Williams
August 9 - Tim Holt
August 10 - Hedy Lamarr
August 11 - Spencer Tracy
August 12 - Janet Gaynor
August 13 - Ralph Richardson
August 14 - Cyd Charisse
August 15 - Roddy McDowall
August 16 - Anne Baxter
August 17 - James Edwards
August 18 - Angie Dickinson
August 19 - Ruby Keeler
August 20 - Humphrey Bogart
August 21 - Bette Davis
August 22 - Robert Montgomery
August 23 - Brigitte Bardot
August 24 - Constance Cummings
August 25 - Van Johnson
August 26 - Boris Karloff
August 27 - James Garner
August 28 - Jean Arthur
August 29 - Charles Boyer
August 30 - Jean Simmons
August 31 - Dean Martin
source & full schedule234apparently you can livestream tcm on their website (*if you have the appropriate cable package)
here