TV film fare -- week of March 16

NEW YORK (CNS) -- The following are capsule reviews of theatrical movies on network and cable television the week of March 16. Please note that televised versions may or may not be edited for language, nudity, violence and sexual situations.

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Wednesday, March 19, 8-10:15 p.m. EDT (TCM) "The Caine Mutiny" (1954). Involving drama from the Herman Wouk novel in which young Navy officers (Fred MacMurray and Robert Francis) take control of their ship from a veteran captain (Humphrey Bogart) seemingly in a funk during a typhoon, then are defended in a court martial by an officer (Jose Ferrer) who doesn't relish proving the captain's instability. Director Edward Dmytryk gets a powerful performance from Bogart as the shell-shocked Captain Queeg but does less well with the theme of military discipline and questionable commands. Psychological problems. The USCCB Office for Film & Broadcasting classification of the theatrical version was A-I -- general patronage. Not rated by the Motion Picture Association of America.

Friday, March 21, 9:45 p.m.-12:15 a.m. EDT (AMC) "Doctor Doolittle" (1967). Gentle, turn-of-the-century musical fantasy about an eccentric animal doctor's adventures searching for the great pink sea snail. Rex Harrison stars as the doctor who can talk to animals in an attractive but slow-moving production directed by Richard Fleischer. Movie musical purists may be disappointed in Leslie Bricusse's uninspired screenplay, music and lyrics but others, especially children, may be charmed. The USCCB Office for Film & Broadcasting classification of the theatrical version was A-I -- general patronage. The Motion Picture Association of America rating was G -- general audiences. All ages admitted.

Saturday, March 22, 7-11:45 p.m. EDT (ABC) "The Ten Commandments" (1956). Less an inspirational story based on biblical sources than a dramatic vehicle with a sense of history, director Cecil B. DeMille's epic production offers some spectacular re-creations, excellent technical effects and good acting from a fine cast, including Charlton Heston as Moses, Yul Brynner, Anne Baxter, Edward G. Robinson and many other stars of the era. The USCCB Office for Film & Broadcasting classification of the theatrical version was A-I -- general patronage. The Motion Picture Association of America rating was G -- general audiences. All ages admitted.

Saturday, March 22, 8:30-10:05 p.m. EDT (HBO) "Blades of Glory" (2007). Fitfully amusing buddy comedy about rival skating champions -- a macho ladies' man (Will Ferrell) and a former child prodigy (Jon Heder) -- who are banned from the world championships after fighting on the ice and who reluctantly become a team when they learn it's the only way they'll be allowed back to compete. At the same time, a jealous brother-sister act (Will Arnett and Amy Poehler) attempt to sabotage the duo. Will Speck and Josh Gordon direct the sophomoric proceedings capably; the skating stunts are well handled, the leads are well paired and there are apt satirical barbs at the skating industry. The pervasive low humor and vulgarity preclude viewing by the younger viewers who would most appreciate the humor, even as predictable affirmations of friendship and good sportsmanship eventually prevail. Crude language, crass expressions, mild profanity, a couple of brief nongraphic sexual encounters, innuendo, comic violence and mayhem, including a decapitation, brief comic suggestion of incest and drug use. The USCCB Office for Film & Broadcasting classification of the theatrical version was A-III -- adults. The Motion Picture Association of America rating was PG-13 -- parents strongly cautioned. Some material may be inappropriate for children under 13.

Saturday, March 22, 10:15 p.m.-midnight EDT (TCM) "Cabin in the Sky" (1943). Director Vincente Minnelli's now-classic adaptation of Vernon Duke's Broadway hit about Little Joe (Eddie "Rochester" Anderson), an inveterate gambler, torn between the emissaries of God and the devil, while good wife Petunia (Ethel Waters) tries to keep him from the snares of bad girl Georgia Brown (Lena Horne). Despite some period stereotyping, the musical is an incomparable compendium of the top black talent of the period (including Louis Armstrong, Rex Ingram, Duke Ellington, Cab Calloway and the Hall Johnson Choir) and great songs ("Happiness Is Just a Thing Called Joe" and "Taking a Chance on Love"), with a solid, if simplistic, moral underpinning and redemptive ending. Some suggestive elements, gambling, adultery and murder. The USCCB Office for Film & Broadcasting classification was A-II -- adults and adolescents. Not rated by the Motion Picture Association of America.

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