Your Movie Planner

SATURDAY

The Battle Of The River Plate (1956)

U 12.30PM, BBC2

Powell and Pressburger’s dramatisation of a Second World War battle that became even more famous, thanks to this film. It stars Anthony Quayle and Peter Finch in a gripping tale of war, men and honour.

Maleficent (2014) PG 3.45PM, BBC1

A visually striking reimagining and prequel for Disney’s Sleeping Beauty. Angelina Jolie, with razor-sharp cheekbones (below), delivers glorious, pantomime villainy in a character who is infinitely more interesting than the young princess (Elle Fanning) she dooms.

Split (2016) 15 9PM, CH4 PREMIERE See The Big Movie (right).

Sliding Doors (1998) 15

10.20PM, BBC1

If you’d done things differently, would your life turn out the same? Gwyneth Paltrow stars as the woman getting two shots at her story, with John Hannah as the right guy.

Everest

(2015) 12 11.15PM, CH4

Tense dramatisation of the 1996 Everest disaster. A blizzard hits soon after climbers reach the summit, making their descent to safety a race against time. The all-star cast includes Josh Brolin and Jake Gyllenhaal.

In The Loop

(2009) 15

11.30PM, BBC2

Tom Hollander is the minister whose quip about ‘climbing the mountain of conflict’ lands him in boiling-hot water with the terrifying Malcolm Tucker (Peter Capaldi, above) – and others. Razor-sharp movie spin-off of TV political satire The Thick Of It.

Good Morning Karachi (2013) 12 1.15AM, BBC2

Drama from Pakistan (in Urdu with English subtitles), following a young woman in Karachi (Amna Illyas) who has a shot at escaping poverty by becoming a model. Her family and fiance, however, do not approve.

SUNDAY

Muppet Treasure Island (1996) U 1.25PM, CH4

Miss Piggy, Kermit and the rest of the fuzzy gang (above) present their take on Robert Louis Stevenson’s pirate yarn. Among the non-felt human cast are Tim Curry, Jennifer Saunders and a young Kevin Bishop.

Monsters vs Aliens (2009) PG

3.35PM, BBC1

In this enjoyable animated sci-fi comedy, Susan Murphy (Reese Witherspoon) is hit by a meteorite on the day she is due to marry her weatherman fiance, and is transformed into the white-haired mutant Ginormica – a monster who really lives up to her name.

Black Hawk Down

(2001) 15 9PM, 5SPIKE Ridley Scott’s harrowing war film chronicles the infamous Battle of Mogadishu, which should have been a simple case of ‘get in, get out’, but turned into a devastating fight. Josh Hartnett (above) and Ewan McGregor are among the soldiers fighting for their lives.

Get Hard

(2015) 15 10PM, 5STAR

This culture- and colour-clash comedy stars Will Ferrell as the wealthy fraudster worried that he’s too soft to survive an upcoming prison term. With 30 days to get his affairs in order, he pays a car wash attendant (Kevin Hart) to teach him to toughen up.

Mum’s List (2016) 12

11PM, BBC1

PREMIERE Well-acted weepy, based on a bestselling book about the real-life Greene family from north Somerset. When Kate Greene (Emilia Fox) learns she has breast cancer, she leaves a trail of wise words and advice for her two young sons. Rafe Spall is the grieving widower who puts it all together.

Learning To Drive (2014) 15 12 MIDNIGHT, CH4 Thoughtful indie comedy drama starring Patricia Clarkson as the New York divorcee who gets a boost to her independence and self-confidence when she learns to drive a car. Ben Kingsley plays the Sikh instructor (right) with words of wisdom to share.

MONDAY

The Life And Death Of Colonel Blimp (1943) U 2.05PM, BBC2 See Classic Film Choice (right).

Pretty Little Killer (2018) PG

2.15PM, CH5

PREMIERE The writer of a self-help book gets unwelcome attention when she and her family are targeted by a stalker. Nicky Whelan, Heather Morris and Cory Hart star.

The Proposal (2009) 12

7.45PM, 5STAR

Sandra Bullock plays an uptight Canadian executive who opts for a marriage of convenience (to Ryan Reynolds) to avoid deportation from the US. Reynolds and Bullock (above) make for a fizzy pair.

Equilibrium (2002) 15

9PM, SONY MOVIE CHANNEL Post-Matrix sci-fi thriller about a future police state and the enforcement officer who breaks the mould by engaging with his emotions. A suitably moody Christian Bale (below) stars. (Freeview 32, Freesat 302, Sky 321, Virgin 425)

The Kitchen

(1961) PG

10PM, TALKING PICTURES TV

The setting for this British drama is, almost literally, the kitchen sink. In a busy restaurant kitchen, tempers and passions boil over. Carl Mohner, Brian Phelan and James Bolam star.

McLaren

(2017) 12 11.05PM, ITV4 Feature-length documentary on motorsport pioneer Bruce McLaren, charting the New Zealander’s rise to the cream of the racing crop through speed, grit and innovation.

The General’s Daughter (1999) 18 11.50PM, PARAMOUNT

Military thriller starring John Travolta and Madeleine Stowe as the investigators looking into the murder of a captain, who is also the daughter of a high-ranking officer (James Cromwell). (Freeview 54,

Freesat 132, Sky 153, Virgin 188)

TUESDAY

Beau Geste (1939) PG 11AM, FILM4

Robert Preston, Gary Cooper and Ray Milland (above) star as the three adopted brothers in arms – Digby, Beau and John – fleeing scandal in England to join the French Foreign Legion. A well-made, strongly acted adaptation, of P.C. Wren’s much-loved, much-filmed novel.

The Killer Trainer (2018) PG

2.15PM, CH5

Adam Huber stars as the personal trainer taking ‘no pain, no gain’ too literally. Taking seriously intense interest in his client, Melissa (Hannah Barefoot), he becomes unhinged when she starts dating another man.

Enchanted (2007)

PG 7.50PM,

5STAR

Amy Adams plays a fairytale princess (left) who is sent by black magic to modern-day New York. Her sunny disposition doesn’t falter, despite the city’s dirt and grime, and she ends up in the care of Patrick Dempsey’s nice guy.

Deceit (2017) 15

9.45PM, SKY PREMIERE

PREMIERE Michelle Pfeiffer delivers a sombre and compelling performance in this downbeat drama. She plays a woman who, in desperation after the death of her mother, makes an immoral and illegal decision. Kiefer Sutherland co-stars.

Escape From LA (1996) 15 11PM, 5SPIKE

John Carpenter’s follow-up to his postapocalyptic classic Escape From New

York puts Kurt Russell’s Snake Plissken back in the firing line. He’s got ten hours to complete his mission, or it’s curtains – for everyone. With Peter Fonda and Pam Grier.

The Brand New Testament

(2015) 15 2AM, CH4 Wacky Belgian comedy in which God is a lazy and mischievous bum (Benoit Poelvoorde, right) who lives in a Brussels apartment with his wife and tenyear-old daughter, Ea, who rebels against her father’s cruelty. Catherine Deneuve stars as one of

Ea’s six new disciples.

WEDNESDAY

Two Wrongs (2015) PG 2.15PM, CH5

Nurse and single mum Sarah (Gillian Zinser) finds herself in a nightmare scenario when her daughter is abducted as a means to force Sarah to take one of her patients hostage.

Sink The Bismarck! (1960) U

2.50PM, FILM4

Muscular war drama cutting between Kenneth More at the Admiralty, Carl Mohner at sea on Germany’s most formidable warship, and other British captains on the wartime waves. Lewis Gilbert’s direction ensures the action has a hypnotic force.

The Last Of The Mohicans

(1992) 12 6.45PM, SONY MOVIE CHANNEL Polished adaptation of James Fenimore Cooper’s adventure novel. Daniel Day-Lewis (above) is a forceful Hawkeye, the white man raised by Native Americans. (This Freeview movie channel changes its name to Sony Movies from today, see page 61).

A Lonely Place To Die (2011) 15

9PM, HORROR

Five friends on an adventure holiday in the Scottish Highlands make a shocking discovery – an underground chamber with a young girl inside. She’s the victim of a kidnapping, and her captors aren’t far away… (Freeview 70, Freesat 138, Sky 317, Virgin 146)

Bride Wars (2009) 12 11PM, 5STAR

Kate Hudson and Anne Hathaway (above) star as the pals putting their friendship to the test when they arrange their upcoming weddings for the same date. It’s no Bridesmaids, but as the bitter rivalry intensifies, there are plenty of laughs.

The Host

(2013) 12 1.50AM, CH4

From the young-adult stable of Twilight writer Stephenie Meyer, this dystopian sci-fi offers more angst and romance. Saoirse Ronan stars as Melanie, trying to gain control of herself when she’s taken over by a parasitic alien. Max Irons is her love interest.

THURSDAY

The Misfits

(1961) PG

12.40PM, FILM4

They bowed out in style. The last film of stars Clark Gable and Marilyn Monroe (above) is a soaring nouveau western, directed by John Huston and written by Monroe’s soonto-be ex-husband, Arthur Miller. Bleak and beautiful, it’s also full of poignant moments.

The Beach Murders: Garage Sale Mystery (2017) PG 2.15PM, CH5

Lori Loughlin’s antiques-loving sleuth helps a friend and client to investigate the death of her husband, which was dismissed as an accidental drowning. The women know better – the dead man was an excellent swimmer.

Men In Black 3

(2012) PG

8PM, E4

Will Smith’s Agent J goes back in time to save his partner, K (Tommy Lee Jones) – and stop an impending Boglodite alien invasion – in this smart sci-fi comedy sequel. The younger K is played by Josh Brolin (above), who does a mighty fine impression of Jones.

Mike And Dave Need Wedding Dates

(2016) 15 9PM, FILM4 PREMIERE Adam DeVine and Zac Efron are brothers who must bring nice girls to their sister’s wedding. But those they find (played by Anna Kendrick and Aubrey Plaza) certainly won’t be keeping them out of trouble…

Georgy Girl (1966) 12 10PM, TALKING PICTURES TV Lynn Redgrave was nominated for an Oscar (the same year as big sister Vanessa, for Morgan: A Suitable Case For Treatment…) for her performance as a frumpy woman who attracts two married men (Alan Bates and James Mason). Neither sister won – this time.

21 Grams

(2003) 15 1AM, SONY MOVIE CHANNEL

Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu examines the before, during and after of a terrible accident – though not in strictly chronological order. Benicio del Toro (right), Sean Penn and Naomi Watts are the three strangers brought together by a tragedy.

FRIDAY

The Ex Next Door (2019) PG 2.15PM, CH5

PREMIERE Katie and Dan (Alicia Ziegler and Philip Boyd) have their marriage tested when Dan’s obsessed ex, Louisa (Maiara Walsh), moves in next door and unleashes mayhem.

The Diary Of Anne Frank (1959) U

2.30PM, BBC2

An excellent, Oscar-winning adaptation of Frances Goodrich and Albert Hackett’s Pulitzer-winning play about the famous diarist, with Millie Perkins note-perfect as the youngster narrating her own sad story.

The Predator (2018) 15 8PM, SKY PREMIERE

PREMIERE Excitable and gory third sequel/ reboot for the sci-fi franchise from Shane Black (Lethal Weapon). This time, the alien predators – or should that be ‘sport hunters’ – have had an upgrade, and there’s an excitable hint at what a sequel could deliver.

The Wolverine (2013) 12 9PM, E4

Set after the third X-Men film, this sees Logan (Hugh Jackman, above) embroiled in a plot against corporate Japan’s dominant family. Logan faces an enemy whose powers are even greater than his – the Silver Samurai.

Darkman (1990) 18

10.50PM, FILM4

The start of a short late-night season of Sam Raimi films. Liam Neeson (above) stars in this heady mix of horror, romance, crime and comic book as the scientist who is left a shadow of his former self after a vicious attack. He uses his new form to his vengeful advantage.

13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers Of Benghazi (2016) 15

1.05AM, CH4

Michael Bay’s fact-based drama follows the blistering action when a US compound in Libya comes under attack. John Krasinski stars.

Films by Simone Andrews