FILM HIGHLIGHTS
SUNDAY The green mile (1999) TV3, 9pm
Frank Darabont’s emotionally powerful drama, based on Stephen King’s novel of the same name, starring Tom Hanks, Michael Clarke Duncan and David Morse. The lives of the wardens at Louisiana State Penitentiary are changed forever when John Coffey, a new prisoner on Death Row, begins to show miraculous powers.
The King’s speech (2010) RTE1, 9.30pm
Tom Hooper’s Oscar-winning period drama, starring Colin Firth, Geoffrey Rush and Helena Bonham Carter. George VI, the Duke of York and future King of England, struggles with a crippling stammer. However, he begins to believe he can banish his affliction when his wife takes him to see an eccentric Australian speech therapist. At first, they clash, but soon develop a bond that lifts the monarch’s confidence as Britain edges towards the Second World War.
slumdog millionaire (2008) Channel 4, 11.05pm
Danny Boyle’s Oscar-winning drama, with Dev Patel, Anil Kapoor and Freida Pinto (right). A young man of humble means is on the brink of winning Who Wants to be a Millionaire? when he is dragged from his seat and interrogated by the police. As they beat him, it is revealed that his adventures through life have provided him with the answers to the show’s questions.
MONDAY sully (2016) Sky Cinema Premiere, 8pm
Clint Eastwood’s fact-based drama, starring Tom Hanks, Aaron Eckhart and Laura Linney. In January 2009, American pilot Chelsey ‘Sully’ Sullenberger lands his passenger jet on the Hudson River after a flock of birds strike the aircraft, crippling the engines. While the press and public hail him as a hero, Sully is shaken by the experience and is haunted by dreams of a plane crashing into buildings. To make matters worse, the National Transportation Safety Board claims that he could have landed the plane back at the airport, and Sully is forced to defend his actions at a public hearing.
pain & gain (2013) TG4, 9.30pm
Michael Bay’s action comedy, starring Mark Wahlberg and Dwayne Johnson. A conman-turned-gym manager recruits two knucklehead bodybuilders to help achieve his twisted version of the American dream, which involves kidnapping a rich businessman and forcing him to sign over his assets to them. However, fuelled by a chaotic cocktail of steroids, cocaine and brazen self-belief, the scheme soon goes horribly awry as the businessman escapes. Anthony Mackie and Tony Shalhoub also feature.
a Time To Kill (1996) Film4, 11.05pm
Joel Schumacher’s racially charged crime drama, based on John Grisham’s novel of the same name, starring Sandra Bullock, Samuel L Jackson and Matthew McConaughey. In Mississippi, an ambitious young lawyer and his assistant defend a black man accused of murdering the two white men who sexually assaulted his 10-year-old daughter. As the case develops, racial tensions boil over, sparking the rebirth of the KKK. Kevin Spacey and Ashley Judd also star.
TUESDAY Ghost (1990) Film4, 11.25pm
Oscar-winning supernatural romance, starring Patrick Swayze and Demi Moore. Molly is heartbroken when her upstanding boyfriend Sam is murdered on a city street. However, her anguish turns to horror when fake psychic Oda Mae walks into her life claiming Sam knows who killed him and why. As Molly struggles to deal with the revelation, she has no idea her life is in danger. Whoopi Goldberg also stars.
The sweeney (2012) More4, 9pm
Crime drama reboot of the 1970s TV series, starring Ray Winstone and Ben Drew. DI Jack Regan’s violent, uncompromising methods cause headaches for his superiors, who tolerate it because it yields results. However, things take a turn when Regan is thrown into prison following a shoot-out with bank robbers in London. His protege helps him escape, and the two embark on a daring but unofficial mission to bring the criminals to justice.
shallow hal (2001) 3e, 1am
Romantic comedy, starring Jack Black and Gwyneth Paltrow. A man vows only to date physically attractive women, thanks to a piece of ignorant advice from his dying father. However, when a self-help guru hypnotises him into recognising only their inner beauty, he fails to see that his new girlfriend weighs 300 pounds.
WEDNESDAY White house down (2013) RTE2, 9pm
Roland Emmerich’s action, starring Channing Tatum and Jamie Foxx. During a tour of the White House with his daughter, a Capitol Hill policeman springs into action to save his child and the president when the building is taken over by a group of armed paramilitary invaders.
The bad lieutenant: port of call — new orleans (2010) 3e, 10pm
Werner Herzog’s action thriller, starring Nicolas Cage and Eva Mendes. Terence McDonagh, a notoriously corrupt and drug-addled New Orleans police sergeant, battles his addictions and escalating psychosis as he investigates the murders of five Senegalese immigrants.
filth (2013) Film4, 11.35pm
Blackly comedic adaptation of Irvine Welsh’s novel, starring James McAvoy, Eddie Marsan and Jamie Bell. Edinburgh Detective Sergeant Bruce Robinson, a sleazy drug addict, jumps at the opportunity to investigate a murder case, believing it will earn him the promotion he craves. However, he instead succumbs to his vices and embarks on a reckless path of self-destruction.
Thursday The a-Team (2010) 3e, 9pm
Joe Carnahan’s big-screen version of the 1980s action TV series, starring Liam Neeson, Bradley Cooper, Quinton Jackson and Sharlto Copley. Cigar-chomping Col ‘Hannibal’ Smith leads his crew — Murdock, Face and BA Baracus — into a daring black ops mission in Iraq, but they are captured and jailed. However, when they discover that they were framed, they break out of prison and try to prove their innocence by tracking down the criminals and exacting revenge. Jessica Biel also stars.
good Kill (2014) Film4, 9pm
Drama, starring Ethan Hawke, January Jones and Zoe Kravitz. A US Air Force pilot is reassigned from flying fighter jets on combat missions to remotely piloting military assault drones in Las Vegas. However, when some of the drones under his command begin to kill civilians, he starts to morally question his post as the demands of the job distance him from his family and friends.
Friday The accountant (2016) Sky Cinema Premiere, 8pm
Gavin O’Connor’s action thriller, starring Ben Affleck, Anna Kendrick and JK Simmons. Christian Wolff is a high-functioning freelance troubleshooter, but moonlights as an accountant to some of the world’s most dangerous criminal organisations. However, with the Treasury Department closing in on him, he is forced to go on the run from both the authorities and his nefarious clients.
The White buffalo (1977) TG4, 10.10pm
Western, with Charles Bronson and Jack Warden. An ageing Wild Bill Hickok, disturbed by a series of dreams involving the titular animal, forms an uneasy alliance with Sioux chief Crazy Horse as they set out to capture and kill the beast. Will Sampson and Kim Novak also star.
Forget paris (1995) RTE1, 12am
Romantic comedy, starring Billy Crystal and Debra Winger. A basketball referee travels to France to bury his father at the resting site of his Second World War Army platoon. However, the airline misplaces the casket, and when a kind-hearted employee helps him retrieve it, they fall in love. Joe Mantegna also stars.
Saturday speed Film4, 9pm
Action thriller, starring Keanu Reeves, Sandra Bullock and Dennis Hopper. Young police detective Jack Traven thwarts a bomber’s plans to blow up a lift. However, as he basks in the glory of his achievement, the villain returns with an even more devilish scheme: planting a bomb on a Los Angeles commuter bus that will detonate if the vehicle’s speed dips below 50mph, forcing Jack into action.
2 Fast 2 furious (2003) RTE2, 9.30pm
High-octane action, starring Paul Walker, Tyrese Gibson and Cole Hauser. Former police officer Brian O’Conner teams up with his ex-con childhood friend to go undercover and take down a ruthless Miami-based drug lord. Eva Mendes also features.