So here we are, the end of the month and thus, sadly, the end of this year’s TCM 31 Days of Oscar festival. Here are some final suggestions for the rest of the month. I hope you all have a chance to check out some of the fantastic movies.

Monday February 25, 1:45 PM: White Heat (1949)
James Cagney stars in one of his craziest roles. He plays a gangster fixated on his mother, who leads his gang down the road to one of the most explosive endings in film history. After watching this one, you’ll know what “Top of the world, Ma!” really means.

Tuesday February 26, 3:45 PM: Some Came Running (1958) If you know Vincente Minnelli only for his wonderful musicals, then start with this underrated gem to see how great he was with dramatic films. In one of the earliest “rat pack” films, Frank Sinatra stars as a veteran who returns home to deal with family secrets and scandals. The film also stars Dean Martin and Shirley MacLaine. (more…)

Looking back on a year that many critics hail as one of Hollywood’s best ever, it’s difficult to ignore the fact that many of this season’s Oscar-nominated films bear political undercurrents. There Will Be Blood adapts Sinclair Lewis in its study of money- and power-grabbing in the oil industry; Michael Clayton concerns corporate abuses and high-level legal maneuvering; No Country for Old Men examines the chaos of policing the drug trade at the Texas-Mexico border; even Juno has managed to spark a few fresh salvos in the abortion debate. (Can’t we simply agree that Juno is both pro-choice and pro-life?)

But when future generations look back on this year’s nominees, they could be forgiven for wondering why Hollywood didn’t spend more time addressing what John McCain calls the “transcendent challenge of the 21st century” — i.e., the war on terror and its corollary/non-sequitur, the Iraq War. In fact, only one nominated performance — Tommy Lee Jones’ in In the Valley of Elah — comes from a film that directly concerns events in the Middle East over the last decade. (I’m discounting Charlie Wilson’s War here, and Philip Seymour Hoffman’s typically excellent performance in it, because the modern-day implications of that film’s plot are all implied, never discussed.)

Of course, we know better than our descendants will that Hollywood did address the war on terror in 2007 — but managed to do so in a uniquely forgettable way. Indeed, I’ve already forgotten the name of Brian DePalma’s entry in the Iraq-bashing sweepstakes — oh, right, it’s Redacted. In 25 years, will anyone remember the names The Kingdom, Valley of Elah, Grace Is Gone, Rendition, and Lions for Lambs? (more…)

Hey, it’s Scott again. Thought I’d get this in on time so all of you could catch some more of my suggestions for Turner Classic Movies’ “31 Days of Oscar.” If you’re like me, by the end of the month you’re going to have your TiVo full of old movies. At least you’ll have something to watch until new episodes of your favorite TV shows begin airing in April. All times below are Eastern Standard. Aloha.

Tuesday, February 19

8 PM: The Ox-Bow Incident (1943)

Henry Fonda stars as a rider who gets caught up in a posse out to lynch three suspected rustlers. This western directed by William A. Wellman (The Public Enemy, A Star Is Born) is one of the most underrated films of its genre and a great study of mob mentality. In an interview last year with the Guardian, Clint Eastwood named The Ox-Bow Incident one of his favorite films.

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Okay, I dropped the ball on posting some more of my suggestions for the Turner Classic Movies 31 Days of Oscars fest they have each year. Truth is I’m still recovering from a late-night screening of There Will Be Blood (the powerful combo of Day-Lewis, Anderson, Greenwood and too much coffee kept me awake until three in the morning…damn, I’m getting old). Enough of my excuses! Here are a bunch of movies that There Will Be Blood is worthy of. Pick and choose what you want and set your TiVos.

All times are Eastern time.

Wednesday February 13

The Quiet Man (1952)

8:00 PM John Wayne (proving he can play more than cowboys or commandos) stars an ex-boxer who retires to Ireland to find a wife. Maureen O’Hara stars as the “lucky woman.” (more…)