Your Movie Planner

SATURDAY

Toy Story (1995) PG 5.10PM, BBC1 The first in Disney-Pixar’s adorable toybox trilogy finds the arrival of high-tech action figure Buzz Lightyear causing a rumpus for old hand Woody and his wind-up pals. The fourth film will be released later this year.

Williams: Formula One In The Blood (2017) 15 9PM, BBC2

PREMIERE This documentary on the F1 team principal Frank Williams features contributions from Frank, his daughter, Claire (below), and his late wife, Ginny, painting a picture that goes far deeper than petrol and speed. The story of Bruce McLaren and his team is on Friday at 11.45pm on ITV4. Spy (2015) 15 9PM, CH4 See The Big Movie (right).

Rocky IV (1985) PG 10.45PM, ITV

The most profitable of Sylvester Stallone’s Rocky pictures provides the back story for the recent Creed II. Rocky and Ivan Drago meet in the ring. Rocky V is on Friday at 11.15pm on ITV. Ride Along 2 (2016) 12 11.25PM, CH4 Ice Cube and Kevin Hart get back behind the wheel in this so-so sequel to their 2014 hit. This time, the mismatched crime-fighting duo are on the trail of a druglord in Miami, where there are scantily clad distractions aplenty. Red Tails (2012) 12 11.45PM, BBC1 Fact-based drama following the courage in the face of racism of the Tuskegee Airmen, African-American military pilots who flew into combat over Europe during the Second World War. David Oyelowo (above), Kevin Phillips and Elijah Kelley make up the ranks. Norfolk (2015) 15 12.40AM, BBC2 Bleak British drama, set in a bucolic but increasingly sinister rural landscape. Barry Keoghan (who was seriously creepy in Yorgos Lanthimos’s The Killing Of A Sacred Deer) stars as a son who is forced to see his father (Denis Menochet) in a chilling new light.

SUNDAY

Comanche (1956) U 9.30AM, MORE4 Run-of-the-mill western trading on frontier tension, starring Dana Andrews (above, with Linda Cristal) as a scout attempting to forge an uneasy peace between Comanche rebels and Mexican scalp-hunters. A Shot In The Dark (1964) PG 1.30PM, BBC2 See Classic Film Choice (right). The Simpsons Movie (2007) PG 4.50PM, CH4 Little more than an extended episode, but none the worse for it, here’s the Simpsons’ first (and, so far, only) foray into movies – a story that sees Homer adopting a pig and causing environmental catastrophe. D’oh!

John Wick (2014) 15 9PM, CH5

PREMIERE Keanu Reeves stays deadpan as he shoots and punches bad guys in this violent, stylised revenge thriller, the first of a franchise, with a third film in cinemas later this year. Reeves is a former hit man (above) who comes out of retirement when Russian gangsters murder his beloved puppy. Blades Of Glory (2007) 12 11.10PM, BBC1 Lycra and hairspray are in abundance in this comedy starring Will Ferrell and Jon Heder as rival figure skaters. Cutting a distinctive path to the world championships, the bitter enemies must set aside their differences when they pair up to circumvent an ice ban. End Of Watch (2012) 15 1.10AM, CH4 Gritty police drama, shot in shaky-cam style. Jake Gyllenhaal (left) and Michael Pena star as cops, honourable men who aren’t afraid to take risks for a just outcome. Getting too close to an LA drug cartel, they become marked men.

MONDAY

Chicken Run (2000) U 8.15AM, CBBC After the success of Creature Comforts and Wallace and Gromit, Aardman started making movies. This punchy PoW spoof, set on a strict Yorkshire poultry farm, is a fabulous flurry of laughs. Ginger and Rocky are the plucky birds planning a great escape.

A Stolen Past (2018) PG 2.15PM, CH5

PREMIERE Jessica Barth stars as a woman determined to get her daughter back when the girl is abducted by her father. But he’s a dangerous man, and it isn’t going to be easy. 27 Dresses (2008) 12 9PM, E4 The very definition of a guilty pleasure, this sweet and sugary romcom stars Katherine Heigl as Jane (above), an idealistic romantic – always the bridesmaid, never the bride – who re-examines her life when her sister sets her sights on the man Jane secretly loves. The Chronicles Of Riddick (2004) 15 10.05PM, ITV4 Mystifying follow-up to 2000’s half-decent space horror Pitch Black. Also starring Vin Diesel – who had high hopes for his own headline franchise – it’s a sci-fi thriller with epic ambitions, but scant plot, confused action and a bizarre cameo by Judi Dench. The Blind Side (2009) 12 11.05PM, 5STAR Inspirational true-life story starring Sandra Bullock as Leigh Anne Tuohy (above), a wealthy woman who takes in a homeless black teenager from the streets of Memphis. The boy, Michael Oher (Quinton Aaron), went on to have a successful football career.

Tangerine (2015) 15 11.15PM, FILM4

PREMIERE Shot entirely using modified iPhones, Sean Baker’s sharp-tongued comedy follows a transgender sex worker (Kitana Kiki Rodriguez) on a rampage to track down her cheating boyfriend in LA. Baker followed this with The Florida Project.

TUESDAY

Legend Of The Lost (1957) U 2.15PM, FILM4 Sophia Loren adds sparkle to this adventure, the second of several collaborations between John Wayne and director Henry Hathaway. Wayne is the guide dragging Loren’s prostitute (above) through the Sahara desert in search of lost treasure. Appointment With Danger (1950) PG 4.30PM, FILM4 Robbers targeting the US postal service come up against Alan Ladd’s inspector in this offbeat B-movie film noir. Phyllis Calvert provides a sly subversion of the usual femme fatale, playing a nun who gets tangled up in the crime as a witness to a murder. Aftermath (2017) 15 9PM, SONY CHANNEL He won’t win any Oscars just yet, but in this drama, Arnold Schwarzenegger delivers a moving performance. He plays a husband and father who reels from grief and strikes out when his wife and daughter die in a plane crash. (Freeview 32, Sky 321, Virgin 425) Red Dragon (2002) 15 10PM, 5STAR Edward Norton is the FBI agent lured out of retirement and turning to Hannibal Lecter (Anthony Hopkins) for advice to help him to capture a serial killer who strikes during every full moon. Unsettling and effective prequel to The Silence Of The Lambs. Black Widow (1954) 12 11.10PM, TALKING PICTURES TV Better-known for her musicals, Ginger Rogers has a stab at a noirish mystery, playing one of a long list of suspects in the murder of an aspiring writer. Prime suspect Van Heflin sets out to find the truth and clear his name. The Bucket List (2007) 12 12.35AM, 5STAR Jack Nicholson (right) and Morgan Freeman play two old-timers who are not long for this world in Rob Reiner’s upbeat comedy. Its tone is celebratory of life, and Freeman and Nicholson look like they are both having a blast.

WEDNESDAY

Stalked: Julie’s Story (2019) 12 2.15PM, CH5

PREMIERE Amber Midthunder, who will be familiar to fans of TV’s Legion as Kerry Loudermilk, stars as an abuse survivor who decides to retaliate against the ex who tormented her and left her for dead. All For Mary (1955) U 2.35PM, TALKING PICTURES TV Directed by the illustrious Wendy Toye – dancer, choreographer, actress and director of stage and screen – this comedy follows Nigel Patrick and David Tomlinson as they both fall for the same woman (pop singer Jill Day) while staying at a Swiss ski resort. Pale Rider (1985) 15 9PM, ITV4 Clint Eastwood’s character (above) in this classy western, which he also directs, is a lone rider drawn into someone else’s battle – this time, by a girl who is praying for her community’s salvation. It ranks among the best of Eastwood’s many excellent westerns. The Prince (2014) 15 9PM, 5SPIKE Testosterone-overdose thriller starring Jason Patric as the humble mechanic who reveals a knack for violence when his daughter goes missing. Bruce Willis and 50 Cent are the bad guys who mess with the wrong man. The Bling Ring (2013) 15 12.40AM, CH4 Sofia Coppola’s sleek satire of celebrity culture was inspired by a Vanity Fair article. Emma Watson (above) and Taissa Farmiga star as members of a gang of girls who rob the homes of the Hollywood elite. 21 Grams (2003) 15 1.05AM, SONY MOVIE CHANNEL Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu examines the before, during and after of a terrible accident – though not in strictly chronological order. Sean Penn, Naomi Watts and Benicio del Toro are the three strangers brought together by tragedy.

THURSDAY

James And The Giant Peach (1996) U 2PM, SONY MOVIE CHANNEL Roald Dahl’s succulent tale follows a young orphan boy (above) who escapes his vile guardians inside an enormous flying fruit that is packed with singing and talking insects.

Deadly Hack (2018) 15 2.15PM, CH5

PREMIERE Molly’s boyfriend is just too good to be true – he likes what she does, and seems to turn up unannounced wherever she goes. Stalking in an age of too much information. Boys In Brown (1949) PG 2.35PM, TALKING PICTURES TV Unlike the gritty borstal dramas that came later, this takes a softer approach, with the emphasis on reform, not correction. Richard Attenborough and Dirk Bogarde are two of the boys, with Jack Warner as the governor. The Artist (2011) PG 10PM, BBC4 A lovely silent-movie revival from French director Michel Hazanavicius. In an A Star Is Born-style story, Jean Dujardin plays the movie idol who suffers a slump, while young Berenice Bejo (above) is about to soar. The Incredible Hulk (2008) 12 10PM, ITV4 Ang Lee’s cerebral Hulk five years earlier wasn’t a hit, so Marvel enlisted action master Louis Leterrier to have another go. Ed Norton is the scientist you wouldn’t like when he’s angry, with Tim Roth as his pantomime foe. Resident Evil (2002) 15 11PM, 5STAR Milla Jovovich tools up in this first in a popular, longrunning horror series.

Based on the hit video game franchise, it’s simple shoot-to-kill stuff, with Jovovich athletically leading a group of survivors who are trapped inside a multilevel research facility.

FRIDAY

Ocean’s 8 (2018) 12 8PM, SKY PREMIERE

PREMIERE An impressive cast assembles for this all-girl version of the popular heist movies, with some quirkier additions (Mindy Kaling, Awkwafina, Sarah Paulson) to the big names (Sandra Bullock, Cate Blanchett, Helena Bonham Carter and Anne Hathaway).

The Rock (1996) 15 9PM, ITV4

A fun, all-action romp, with Sean Connery as a former SAS man who once escaped from the supposedly inescapable prison Alcatraz – and is called in to assist when terrorists run amok. Ed Harris plays the embittered rogue Marine in charge of the bad guys. Alien (1979) 18 9PM, FILM4 Workers on a spaceship are picked off – one by one – by a terrifying, multi-jawed, acid-blooded monster in this first of an inspirational sci-fi horror franchise. Sigourney Weaver stars as the iconic Ripley (above). Ricki And The Flash (2015) 12 9PM, PARAMOUNT Meryl Streep (who we all know can sing) is the headline act in this musical comedy drama. She’s the rock star who gets a second chance with the daughter she abandoned (Mamie Gummer, below, with real-life mum Streep). (Freeview 54, Sky 159, Virgin 188) Whitney: Can I Be Me (2017) 15 11.05PM, BBC2 The pressure of fame and family clearly got to Whitney Houston, but while she met a tragic end, this feature-length unofficial documentary serves as a reminder of her talent as a singer who connected with millions, but lost herself along the way. Fast Girls (2012) 12 12.40AM, CH4 Poor Lenora Crichlow and rich Lily James are the athletes who put their differences aside in a sports drama that was intended as a flag-waver for the 2012 London Olympics. Films by Simone Andrews