FILM HIGHLIGHTS
SUNDAY
EVOLUTION (2001) Channel 4, 1pm Sci-fi comedy, starring David Duchovny, Orlando Jones, Julianne Moore and Seann
William Scott. Two college professors discover a meteor that has crashed to Earth. They are amazed by the alien life it produces, which is evolving at an incredible rate. However, the government arrives to take their discovery off them, right as the extraterrestrials turn violent. It’s now up to them to save the world. TOY STORY (1995) BBC1, 3.35pm Pixar’s animated classic, with the voices of Tom Hanks and Tim Allen. Cowboy doll Woody is left feeling jealous after a new and more flashy toy, Buzz Lightyear, becomes his owner’s favourite. Woody plots to get rid of Buzz, but the plan goes wrong and they are left having to rely on each other if they are to get home.
BIG MOMMA’S HOUSE (2000) 3e, 6pm Comedy, with Martin Lawrence,
Nia Long and Paul Giamatti. FBI agent Malcolm Turner must take on his most difficult mission yet — disguising himself as a sharptongued grandmother in order to protect a woman and her son from a dangerous bank robber.
THE SECOND BEST EXOTIC MARIGOLD HOTEL (2015) Channel 4, 9pm Touching comedy sequel, starring Judi Dench, Maggie Smith,
Bill Nighy and Dev Patel. The hotel’s business is better than ever, giving Sonny the notion that he should open up a second business. However, there are many pitfalls in store for him and his guests, not to mention his imminent marriage to his sweetheart.
MONDAY
MAMMA MIA! (2008) ITV3, 7.50pm Musical featuring the music of ABBA, with Meryl Streep, Pierce Brosnan, Amanda Seyfried and Colin Firth. Sophie is preparing for her wedding on a Greek island, when she discovers that the father she never knew could be one of three men. She takes it upon herself to invite them all to her big day, certain that her mother will reveal which of them it really is.
THINGS WE LOST IN THE FIRE (2007) TG4, 9.30pm Drama, starring Halle Berry and
Benicio Del Toro. After Audrey’s husband dies she invites his best friend, who is struggling with addiction, to come and stay with her and her two children. Together they will learn how to make it through their individual struggles of loss and recovery. GANGS OF NEW YORK (2002) ITV4, 11.40pm Martin Scorsese’s Oscarnominated drama, starring Leonardo DiCaprio, Cameron Diaz and Daniel Day-Lewis. In 1863 Amsterdam Vallon returns to the infamously dangerous Five Points district of New York. His intention is to confront Bill ‘The Butcher’ Cutting, who was responsible for his father’s death years before, but his quest for revenge proves difficult. THE REWRITE (2014) Channel 4, 1.05am Comedy, starring Hugh Grant. Renowned writer Keith Michaels finds himself rejected by Hollywood and must reevaluate his life. He decides to pack up his things and head for the East Coast, where he takes a job teaching at a college. It is there that he finds something he had no idea he was looking for.
TUESDAY
THE DOG WHO SAVED CHRISTMAS VACATION (2010) Channel 4, 12.25pm Festive family comedy, starring Mario Lopez, Dean Cain and Paris Hilton. The Bannister family and their trusted pooch Zeus head to a resort in the Rocky Mountains for the holidays, only for him to get caught up in a wild adventure involving jewel thieves and Uncle Randy’s pet poodle Bella. MOONRAKER (1979) ITV4, 9pm Espionage action, starring Roger Moore, Lois Chiles, Michael Lonsdale and Richard Kiel. James Bond’s latest mission is literally out of this world when he investigates the mid-air theft of a space shuttle. This leads the smooth-talking secret agent on the trail of its criminal genius Hugo Drax, and to a dangerous reunion with the villainous Jaws.
BULLET TO THE HEAD (2012) Film4, 9pm Action, starring Sylvester Stallone, Jason Momoa and
Christian Slater. Hitman James Bonomo and his partner are double-crossed, leading to mercenary Keegan to kill the partner. Bonomo teams with a cop from Washington DC who has his own scores to settle, and the pair set out to bring the dastardly Keegan down for good.
WEDNESDAY
THE THREE MUSKETEERS (2011) E4, 8pm Swashbuckling adventure, starring Logan Lerman, Matthew Macfadyen, Milla Jovovich (right) and Ray Stevenson.
D’Artagnan dreams of becoming a musketeer, and finds it becoming a reality when he must team with his three heroes to stop an elaborate plot to seize the French throne. THE HANGOVER: PART II (2011) ITV2, 9pm Comedy, starring Bradley Cooper, Zach Galifianakis and Ed Helms. The Wolfpack is back together and this time the gang is in Thailand for Stu’s wedding. Their plans of avoiding a repeat of the Vegas stag do catastrophe fly out the window when they wake up with no memory of the night before, and missing Stu’s future brother-in-law. It is now up to Phil, Alan and Stu to track him down before the big day. THE CONTRACT (2006) 3e, 10pm Drama, starring John Cusack and Morgan Freeman. A father looks to redeem himself in the eyes of his son by bringing a notorious assassin to justice. However, they find themselves fighting for their lives after the killer’s associates attempt to track them down.
THURSDAY
VOLCANO (1997) Film4, 6.55pm Action, starring Tommy Lee Jones, Anne Heche and Gaby Hoffmann. A dormant volcano beneath the streets of Los Angeles awakens, leading to city-wide panic. It is up to city official Mike Roark and a pair of scientists to find a way to stop the disaster from completely
annihilating the city. COMMANDO (1985) Film4, 9pm Action thriller, starring Arnold Schwarzenegger. Retired special forces soldier John Matrix finds his quiet life of peace shattered when his daughter is kidnapped by South American criminals. They want him to assassinate a political leader in exchange for her safe return, but they aren’t prepared for the one-man war the commando wages.
FRIDAY
THE IMPOSSIBLE (2013) E4, 9pm Drama, starring Naomi Watts and Ewan McGregor. A family go to Thailand for a vacation, but find themselves in a fight for survival after the resort is hit by a dangerous tsunami. Separated and injured, it is up to each of them to find a way to reunite against all of the odds. THE HANGOVER PART III (2013) ITV2, 9pm Comedy, starring Bradley Cooper, Zach Galifianakis and Ed Helms. The gang get back together to help Alan after his father dies. However, a series of unbelievable events occur that see them on another wild misadventure. BEFORE I GO TO SLEEP (2014) More4, 9pm Drama, starring Nicole Kidman, Colin Firth and Mark Strong. Christine wakes up every day unable to remember the one before. The doctor treating her has advised her to film her thoughts and progress. However, this soon leads to an unexpected revelation about what is actually going on around her.
SATURDAY
LIAR LIAR (1997) ITV2, 6.10pm Comedy, starring Jim Carrey. A lawyer who has made a living out of bending the truth, disappoints his son once too often. On his birthday the boy makes a wish that his dad cannot tell a lie for 24 hours, which comes true, leading to serious trouble. PITCH PERFECT (2012) Channel 4, 9pm Comedy, starring Anna Kendrick, and Rebel Wilson. Beca joins up with her university’s all-female a cappella group. Although the new arrivals seem like unconventional picks they will have to learn to band together if they are to win an upcoming competition. THE GREEN MILE (1999) be3, 9pm Drama, based on the story by Stephen King, starring Tom Hanks and Michael Clarke Duncan. The guards of a penitentiary’s death row encounter the childlike John Coffey who, despite the serious crimes he has been accused of, soon has the prison guards thinking that there is much more to him than meets the eye.