TCM in April: Highlights

April is a big month for Turner Classic Movies, as the annual TCM Classic Film Festival begins in Hollywood on April 30th.

And leading up to that, there's a great month ahead on TCM, with Sophia Loren as the April Star of the Month.

Loren's films will be shown on Monday evenings beginning April 6th.

17 of Loren's films will be shown, along with her LIVE FROM THE TCM CLASSIC FILM FESTIVAL (2016) interview. It's hard to believe it's been over a decade since I saw her introduce MARRIAGE ITALIAN STYLE (1964) at the festival.

The April Noir Alley films will be T-MEN (1948) on the 4th and 5th, BAD BLONDE (1953) on the 11th and 12th, HIS KIND OF WOMAN (1951) April 18th-19th, and 711 OCEAN DRIVE (1950) on April 25th and 26th. All three of the films I've reviewed are very worthwhile; 711 OCEAN DRIVE is seen here on location in Palm Springs. BAD BLONDE is a TCM premiere.

Below are a few more of this month's highlights. Please click any hyperlinked title to read an extended review.

...One more great day of George Brent films on April 1st leads into an evening celebrating Doris Day, including one of my all-time favorite Day films, CALAMITY JANE (1953).  Day and Howard Keel are well matched, and it has a wonderfully bouncy score.  And coincidentally, I saw it at the 2015 TCM Classic Film Festival the very same day I saw Sophia Loren.

...There's a great lineup of minor World War II spy films on April 2nd, including titles like SECRET ENEMIES (1942), ACTION IN ARABIA (1944), BACKGROUND TO DANGER (1943), ABOVE SUSPICION (1943), and ASSIGNMENT IN BRITTANY (1943). I couldn't resist listing several of the day's films; all have great casts and are highly watchable.

...A prime time tribute to Roger Corman on April 3rd includes the Western FIVE GUNS WEST (1955) starring John Lund and Dorothy Malone. I've never seen it, and it sounds like my kind of movie!

...The varied lineup on April 4th includes a very enjoyable Jane Powell musical, LUXURY LINER (1948), costarring George Brent. A fun bit of trivia is that Brent also starred in an related 1933 film with the very same name.

...TCM can happily be counted on to show EASTER PARADE (1948) on Easter Sunday, and this year is no exception!

...Only on TCM: Monday, April 6th, will feature seven of MGM's Andy Hardy movie series. Mickey Rooney's leading ladies in these films include Kathryn Grayson and Bonita Granville.

...April 7th features Leonard and Jessie Maltin's new book, FAMILY MOVIE NIGHT MENUS, and some of the movies in the book, including MEET ME IN ST. LOUIS (1944).

...I really like IMPACT (1949), which stars Ella Raines and Brian Donlevy, airing on April 8th as part of a day of murder mysteries.

...More mysteries are afoot on April 9th, including one of my very favorite "comfort watches," GREEN FOR DANGER (1946). It's a marvelous film, set at a British country hospital during WWII, and has been enjoyed by me many times over the years. Alastair Sim leads a marvelous cast.

...The Musical Matinee on April 11th is MGM's KISMET (1955), starring Howard Keel, Ann Blyth, and Vic Damone. It's a film I've very much come to appreciate over the years.

...Margaret Lockwood is THE WICKED LADY (1945) on April 12th. James Mason and Patricia Roc costar.

...April 13th features one of my favorite little-known musicals, PAINTING THE CLOUDS WITH SUNSHINE (1951), starring Virginia Mayo, Dennis Morgan, and Gene Nelson. When I first saw it I termed it "a delightful surprise."

...There's a memorial tribute to June Lockhart on April 14th. It includes SON OF LASSIE (1945), MEET ME IN ST. LOUIS (1944), and ALL THIS, AND HEAVEN TOO (1940). I had the pleasure of seeing the latter film at the 2025 TCM Classic Film Festival. It's a wonderful costume melodrama, with June as Charles Boyer's oldest daughter.

...April 15th features films from the Brass Bancroft series starring Ronald Reagan, the Nancy Drew series starring Bonita Granville, and the Gildersleeve series starring Harold Peary. A very fun day of 11 short movies. My four Bass Bancroft reviews may be found here (scroll to the end of the review for links to reviews of the others in the series).

...A day of movies about twins on April 16th includes identical twins Lyn and Lee Wilde in the fun TWICE BLESSED (1945).

...April 18th includes Bogart and Bacall in TO HAVE AND HAVE NOT (1944), which I'll be seeing theatrically at this month's Noir City Hollywood Festival, and EXPERIMENT PERILOUS (1944) with Hedy Lamarr and George Brent, which I saw at the 2010 festival. Time flies!

...TCM features the channel's premieres of three Blondie films on April 19th: LIFE WITH BLONDIE (1945), BLONDIE'S LUCKY DAY (19460, and BLONDIE IN THE DOUGH (1947).

...Who could turn down an evening of Kay Francis movies? There are seven of them on April 21st, including the fun MAN WANTED (1932) and the moving melodrama GIVE ME YOUR HEART (1936), the latter of which costars Francis's frequent leading man, George Brent.

...We go from Kay Francis on the 21st to another favorite, Claire Trevor, on April 22nd. Eight Trevor films will be shown, including several all-time classics, including BORN TO KILL (1947) and STAGECOACH (1939).

...The excellent director Frank Borzage worked with Kay Francis and George Brent on LIVING ON VELVET (1935), which airs April 23rd.

...The Paramount Pictures comedy MURDER, HE SAYS (1945) receives a fairly rare TCM showing on Saturday, April 25th. This film starring Fred MacMurray, Helen Walker, and Marjorie Main isn't a favorite of mine, but I know many people are fans, so I wanted to mention it given that it's rarely seen on TCM.

...GIRL SHY (1924), starring Harold Lloyd and Jobyna Ralston, is probably my favorite of the many Harold Lloyd films I've enjoyed. Do watch it! It's on late on April 26th.

...THE HARVEY GIRLS (1946), with Judy Garland and a marvelous cast, never fails to entertain. It's part of a day of MGM musicals with Western settings on April 27th.

...One of my favorite minor '40s crime movies, CRIMINAL COURT (1946), is on April 29th. It stars Tom Conway and Martha O'Driscoll, directed by Robert Wise.

...April wraps up on April 30th with a birthday tribute to Eve Arden, including the classic STAGE DOOR (1937), where Arden is memorable as a boarding house resident who's frequently seen in the company of a white cat.

For more on TCM in April 2026, please visit my Quick Preview of TCM in April and TCM's online schedule.

Tweet