Festive Films
Christmas Day Abominable (2019)
11.00am RTÉ 2 ★★★★
In this charming animated tale from the How to Train Your Dragon team, three Chinese teenagers must help a Yeti return to his family while staying one step ahead of a avoiding a dastardly plutocrat and a sel sh zoologist. The strong roster of voice talent includes Sarah Paulson, Eddie Izzard and Chloe Bennet.
Mary Poppins Returns (2018)
3.10pm BBC One ★★★★
Emily Blunt channels her inner Julie Andrews to tremendous e ect in this charming sequel to the 1964 original. Everybody’s favourite nanny has returned to look after the Banks children (Ben Whishaw, Emily Mortimer) who are all grown up, but facing problems of their own. Director Rob Marshall is smart enough not to tamper too much with a winning formula, so his songwriters, Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman, evoke the spirit of the Sherman Brothers in their musical numbers, while Lin-manuel Miranda steps into Dick Van Dyke’s dancing shoes (but without the dodgy Cockney accent). The superb supporting cast includes Angela Lansbury, Julie Walters and, still sprightly at the age of 93, Dick Van Dyke himself.
The Lego Batman Movie (2017)
3.40pm RTÉ 2 ★★★
The rst Lego movie was a treat but
Lego Batman is an even bigger blast as Chris Mackay and his writing team focus their attentions on Batman and his (lonely) life in Gotham City. No superhero convention is left un-lampooned as our caped hero is forced to defend his city against ranks of supervillains, led by The Joker (Zach Gali anakis) and his sidekick, Harley Quinn (Jenny Slate).
The quips come thick and fast, mostly at Batman’s own expense (the cheesy 1960s Batman series is also fair game), as his e orts are further complicated by his adoption of young Robin (Michael Cera) and the appointment of a new police chief (Rosario Dawson). The strong voice cast includes Ralph Fiennes, Billy Dee Williams and, er, Mariah Carey. Great fun.
Paddington 2 (2017)
4.10pm RTÉ One ★★★★
The rst screen outing for everybody’s favourite Peruvian bear was a hoot: this second instalment is even better. This time around, our ursine friend tries to raise enough money to buy his Aunt Lucy a charming pop-up book, but ends up in all sorts of scrapes that ultimately lead to a prison cell (don’t ask). Director Paul King delightfully balances the dramatic and slapstick elements of a tale which takes place in a pastel-coloured London that itself looks like a living pop-up book. The strong returning cast – Hugh Bonneville, Sally Hawkins, Jim Broadbent, etc – is augmented by a cracking list of newcomers, including Hugh Grant, Joanna Lumley and Jessica Hynes. Grant, in particular, throws himself into his role as a ham actorturned-pantomime villain. But the real treat here is Brendan Gleeson. The Dublin actor brings both emotional depth and comic nous to the role of Knuckles Mcginty, the outwardly fearsome prison cook who makes the biggest impact on our incarcerated bear. In short, Paddington 2 is a treat for kids of all ages.
The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938)
5.20pm BBC Two ★★★★★
“Men, if you’re willing to ght for our people, I want you! Are you with me?” King Richard is away on the Crusades and England is in the grip of the evil Prince John (Claude Rains). Only one man is brave enough to stand up for the common people (even in those green tights). That man is Robin of Locksley (Errol Flynn).
There have been many screen versions of the Robin Hood yarn but this is the de nitive one. Michael
Curtiz’s swashbuckler gave Flynn the opportunity to exchange quips with nasty Claude Rains, cross swords with even nastier Basil Rathbone (Guy of Gisbourne), and woo Olivia de Havilland (Maid Marian) in the third of their eight lms together. And all with Erich Wolfgang Korngold’s rousing score in the background.
It’s hard to imagine anyone but
Flynn in the role, but Robin Hood was originally going to be played by James Cagney. With Cagney involved (not for the rst time) in contractual di culties with Warners, the studio decided to o er the role to the youngster who had been so convincing in their earlier swashbuckler, Captain Blood (1935). It was the second slice of luck for the
Tasmanian actor at the start of his career, since he became Captain Blood only after original choice Robert Donat dropped out. Though Flynn did his own swordplay, the jaw-dropping archery moment where he splits the arrow during the tournament sequence was actually provided by Howard Hill. And he did it on the rst take. The Adventures of Robin Hood was nominated for four Oscars, winning three (Best Art Direction, Best Editing, and Best Score). Had there been a Best Swashbuckler gong, this would have aced it.
John Wick 3: Parabellum (2019)
9.00pm Virgin Media Two ★★★★
While movie sequels tend to follow the law of diminishing returns, fans of the John Wick universe are unlikely to be disappointed by this third entry in the franchise. The original John Wick had a plot (retired hit-man loses wife and dog) and many memorable action sequences. The sequel o ered the semblance of a plot and even more, over-the-top action sequences. John Wick 3 dispenses with such lofty notions as plot. As the credits roll, we learn that blooded but unbowed Keanu Reeves has a bounty of $14 million on his head and every mean, tattooed, gun-totin’ bad guy wants to collect. That’s the one minute of plot out of the way; time for 130 minutes of violence. Director Chad Stahelski understands that Keanu Reeves is not at his best when given plenty of dialogue. Here he is given the opportunity to beat up all-comers with bone-crunching
(you have been warned!) intensity, whether on foot, on horseback or on the back of a motorbike. There are nods to The Warriors, The Raid (watch out for the great Yayan Ruhian) and Enter The Dragon. There are also strong cameos from Halle Berry (plus her two killer pooches), Anjelica Huston and Laurence Fishburne. But John Wick 3 is all about Keanu and he really delivers.
Bohemian Rhapsody (2018)
10.10pm RTE One ★★★★
Is this the real life? Is this just fantasy?
No, it’s the stylish, if highly sanitised account of the life and times of the great Freddie Mercury, from his early days as shy Farrokh Bulsara, to the swaggering frontman of Queen, culminating in their Live Aid triumph. Rami Malek scooped an Oscar for his portrayal of the amboyant singer. The actor spent weeks studying Freddie’s moves (Liza Minnelli’s performance in Cabaret was a key touchstone), while the vocals we hear are a combination of Freddie, Canadian singer Marc Martel, and Rami himself. Malek was tted with special prosthetic teeth to mimic Freddie’s famous overbite. In an interview with Movieguide, the actor revealed that he kept those teeth when lming wrapped and had them cast in gold.
Sing Street (2016)
11.15pm TG4 ★★★★
Following the success of Once (2007) and Begin Again (2013), writer-director John Carney completed his musical trilogy with this, the most autobiographical of his movies to date. Sing Street is the entertaining story of Conor (Ferdia Walsh-peelo), a young Dublin boy forced to change schools when the economic circumstances of his family take a nosedive. Faced with bullies of both the schoolboy and Christian Brother variety, Conor is drawn to the only bright spark of his day; the Clare Grogan-lookalike (Lucy Boynton) who stands opposite the school gates each day.
St Stephen’s Day Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (1968)
3.20pm RTÉ2
This terri c adaptation of the Ian
Fleming (yes, that Ian Fleming) novel never fails to delight audiences. Dick
Van Dyke is superb as Caractacus Potts, the eccentric inventor doing his best to raise his two kids and keep one eye on his equally eccentric dad, Lionel Je ries. When Julie Andrews declined the female lead, Sally Ann Howes took on the role of Truly Scrumptious and she lived up to the billing. In addition to the many
ne musical set-pieces, Chitty Chitty
Bang Bang also contains one of the great screen villains of all time, in the shape of Robert Helpmann’s Child Catcher.
Paddington (2014)
4.20pm BBC One
Hugh Bonneville and Sally Hawkins take the lead roles in this charming tale about a London family who look after everybody’s favourite Peruvian bear. Naturally, the real star of the show is the marmalade-eating creature in the du el coat, voiced by Ben Whishaw.
Rocketman (2019)
9.35pm RTÉ One
With Elton John back in the headlines courtesy of his lockdown album, this is a good time to revisit this Oscar nominated biopic. Taron Egerton is terri c in the central role (Tom Hardy was originally cast) of shy, suburban Reg Dwight who would go on to ll arenas with his eye-popping wardrobe and earpleasing piano hooks. Egerton provided all of his own vocals for the role, notably excelling in the rendition of Your Song, which has always been the actor’s party piece and indeed was the song he chose to sing for his drama school audition. And just in case you’re wondering, Taron wears 53 di erent types of spectacles throughout the lm.
Monday, December 27 Oliver Twist (1948)
12.00pm Virgin Media Two
There have been many screen variations of this classic yarn but, as usual, David Lean has delivered the de nitive one. Beautifully photographed by Guy
Green, Oliver Twist features an all-star British cast including Alec Guinness as a memorable Fagin, Robert Newton as Bill Sykes, plus Anthony Newley, John Howard Davies and a young Diana Dors. John Howard played the role of Oliver.
The Incredibles (2004)
3.40pm RTÉ One
This one is up there with Wall-e in terms of the greatest Pixar movie of them all. A family of Superheroes who have fully embraced the suburban life suddenly
nd themselves called on to save the world. It’s a terri c scenario that o ers some fabulous visual moments (Mr Incredible squeezing into his o ce cubicle and indeed into his superhero costume) and some cracking gags. Craig T Nelson and Holly Hunter are the voice stars, with director Brad Bird himself doing the honours for the character of Edna the fascist fashionista.
West Side Story (1961)
4.35pm BBC Two
With Spielberg’s new version in cinemas, this is a welcome opportunity to revisit the original. Natalie Wood and Richard Beymer topline this landmark screen musical featuring the choreography of Jerome Robbins, the location cinematography of Daniel L. Fapp and the magni cent songs of Leonard Bernstein and the late Stephen Sondheim. No wonder it won 10 Oscars.
Blade Runner 2049 (2017)
9.00pm BBC Two
The story goes that director Denis Villeneuve was reluctant to sign up for this movie, fearful that Blade Runner fans would “arrive in theatres with baseball bats”. He needn’t have worried. Blade Runner 2019 is a fascinating companionpiece to Ridley Scott’s 1982 original, but it also stands on its own two feet as a mythic, visually stunning piece of sci- cinema. It would be unkind to give too much of the plot away. Su ce it to say we’re 30 years in the future and a young Blade Runner (Ryan Gosling) has happened upon a secret that might turn society on its head. Encouraged by his boss (Robin Wright), Gosling goes in search of the one man who just might have the answers: former Blade Runner Rick Deckard (Harrison Ford).
This one boasts a terri c script and a superb ensemble cast (the two lads are well supported by Wright, Sylvia Hoeks and Ana de Armas). Villeneuve handles the directing duties with aplomb, sprinkling Ridley Scott’s supreme prototype with elements of Kubrick, Tarkovsky and Angelopoulos. But this is DP Roger Deakins’ movie. There’s scarcely a frame of Blade Runner 2049 that doesn’t stand alone as a visually arresting image in its own right. After 13 unsuccessful Oscar nominations, it was tting that the genius of this English cinematographer was nally rewarded with his rst golden gong.
Handsome Devil (2016)
11.10pm RTÉ2
John Butler’s coming-of-age drama is a heart-warming story of acceptance and tolerance set in the macho atmosphere of a rugby-centric boarding school. Handsome Devil revolves around two pupils who nd themselves sharing a dorm. One (Nicholas Galitzine) is the archetypal golden boy. The other (Fionn O’shea) is more musical than sporty and accustomed to being bullied by his classmates, not least because of his slight frame, dyed hair and posters of Dita Van Teese. Together they forge an understanding and a trust that has an impact on both their lives. While the newcomers acquit themselves admirably, Handsome Devil boasts a sterling supporting cast, including Andrew Scott, Michael Mcelhatton, Ardal O’hanlon and Amy Huberman. Moe Dunford catches the eye as the nononsense, death-or-glory rugby coach familiar to many Irish schoolboys.