SATURDAY

Planet 51 M ori TV, 3pm Voices Dwayne Johnson, Jessica Biel. US astronaut Chuck Baker lands on ‘uninhabited’ Planet 51, but finds little green people living in a version of 1950s America, complete with that period’s paranoia about aliens – in a role reversal, Baker himself. Great concept but not up there with the best animated films. ★★★

Bedtime Stories

TVNZ 2, 7pm

Starring Adam Sandler, Keri Russell. Less vulgar than your average Adam Sandler comedy, this can be safely watched by the whole family. That said, while it does possess the requisite amount of warm fuzzy moments and a remarkable supporting cast, it is a trifle uneven – although that will hardly matter to pre-teen viewers. ★★★

Ice Age: Collision Course Three, 7pm Voices Ray Romano, Simon Pegg. Sadly, the Ice Age series crashes a bit here in its fifth movie. ★★

The Dinner Sky Premiere, 8.30pm Starring Richard Gere, Steve Coogan. Two sets of middle class parents get together at a swish restaurant to discuss what to do about their children, who have committed a horrible crime. The underlying theme is obvious, and the execution is somewhat painful. By the end the feeling is akin to sensory indigestion. ★★

Mission Impossible 3

TVNZ 2, 8.40pm

Starring Tom Cruise, Philip Seymour Hoffman. Tom Cruise returns once again as superagent Ethan Hunt in this explosive action sequel. Full of eye-popping special effects and edge-of-your-seat thrills, this quite possibly surpasses the original and definitely eclipses the cheesier Mission Impossible 2. ★★★

Viral

TVNZ Duke, 9pm

Starring Sofia Black D’Elia, Analeigh Tipton. Routine horror about two sisters who have to survive after being quarantined during an apocalyptic viral outbreak. ★★

Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy Three, 10.40pm Starring Gary Oldman, Colin Firth. The BBC bought John le Carre’s classic novel to the small screen in seven episodes in the late 70s and while purists will inevitably pick faults with the way his work has been condensed there is no doubt this is a superb piece of cinema. Oldman delivers as the softly spoken, emotionless spy master George Smiley and the cold, bleak settings perfectly capture the paranoia of the Cold War era. ★★★★

Triple 9

TVNZ 2, 11pm

Starring Casey Affleck, Chiwetel Ejiofor. Pulp-style crime thriller about a gang who are blackmailed by the wife of a Russian mobster. It’s full-on action, complemented by a top cast including Kate Winslet and Woody Harrelson, and lots of fun despite some gaping plot holes. ★★★

Kate And Leopold

TVNZ 2, 1.05am (Sunday)

Starring Hugh Jackman, Meg Ryan. Leopold is an impoverished 19th Century Austrian duke who stumbles into a time warp and finds himself in latter-day New York, where he meets Kate, a brash businesswoman. Meg Ryan excels at this light romantic fluff, and Hugh Jackman is a perfect foil. ★★★

Two Days, One Night Maori TV, 8.30pm Starring Marion Cotillard. A French-Belgian production, this film received rave reviews for its anti-capitalist theme

as well as Cotillard’s stunning performance. She plays Sandra, whose co-workers are offered a $1200 bonus if they share out her work, meaning management can make her redundant. Over a weekend, she has to persuade them not to take up the offer. ★★★★★

In The Valley of Elah Choice, 8.30pm Starring Tommy Lee Jones, Charlize Theron. Tommy Lee Jones owns this mystery-drama about a retired military man whose son has disappeared after returning from a tour of duty in Iraq. Whenever he’s on screen – which is virtually the entire film – it’s almost impossible to look away. Combine this with a script that sucks you in and doesn’t let up until the final frame and you’ve got yourself one incredibly engrossing movie. ★★★★

Truth

TVNZ 1, 10.50pm

Starring Cate Blanchett, Robert Redford. Docudrama about the CBS news team that investigated whether George W Bush received special treatment during his time in the military. The fallout led to long-time 60 Minutes presenter Dan Rather resigning and other team members being fired. ★★★

tale about two children shipwrecked on a desert island, and how they eventually develop a physical relationship. It’s a strange beast, based on a weird 1908 novel, which spawned two earlier movies, and two sequels to this one. ★★

Nurse

TVNZ 2, 12.55am (Sunday)

Starring Paz de la Huerta, Katrina Bowden. Salacious gore and sex-filled thriller packed with nurse uniforms and lesbian encounters aplenty. Probably just avoids being labelled pure female exploitation thanks to the fact that it’s a woman who does all the killing. ★★