Your Movie Planner

SATURDAY

MEET ME IN ST LOUIS (1944) U 1.15PM, BBC2 See Classic Film Choice (right). THE HOBBIT: THE BATTLE OF THE FIVE ARMIES (2014) 12 Martin Freeman returns as the young Bilbo Baggins as he and his allies gear up for spectacular battles with hordes of killer Orcs in this conclusion of The Hobbit trilogy. TERMINATOR 2: JUDGMENT DAY (1991) 15 11.05PM, ITV This slick sequel pits machine against machine as Arnold Schwarzenegger’s reformed cyborg assassin teams up with a young John Connor (Edward Furlong) and his mum (Linda Hamilton, below) to take on a newer, more advanced T-1000 model. HERE COMES HELL (2019) 15 11.05PM, FILM4 PREMIERE Shot in black-and-white, this indie horror comedy harks back to earlier movies, but adds in the gore that modern audiences have come to expect. It starts like a dinner-party mystery, but the laughs soon dry up as the violence is unleashed. LOVE & MERCY (2014) 12 11.20PM, BBC2 Paul Dano (below) and John Cusack take turns playing head Beach Boy Brian Wilson – one at a time of great professional highs, the other at a time of great personal lows. I, FRANKENSTEIN (2014) 12 11.45PM, CH4 Aaron Eckhart stars in a monster mash-up that has little to do with Mary Shelley’s novel. He’s the manufactured man slapbang in the middle of an almighty battle between gargoyles and demons. THE COMMUNE (2016) 15 1.15AM, BBC2 Danish drama, set in the 1970s, starring Trine Dyrholm as the woman who persuades her husband to open up their sprawling home to like-minded others, and create a commune.

SUNDAY

KISS ME KATE (1953) U 2.15PM, BBC2 Cole Porter’s upbeat tunes, beautifully sung by Kathryn Grayson and Howard Keel – re-creating their Show Boat harmonies – frame this sparkling version of Shakespeare’s The Taming Of The Shrew. Grayson and Keel (above) are the exes sparring backstage. MINIONS (2015) U 2.45PM, ITV Enjoyable prequel to the Despicable Me movies, starring the pipsqueak yellow sidekicks who stole the show from their master, Gru. Looking for a new villain to serve, the Minions join the employ of the ruthless Scarlet Overkill in England. THE BOY WHO HARNESSED THE WIND (2019) PG 10PM, BBC2 PREMIERE See The Big Movie (right). This biopic charts the life of Sylvia Plath (Gwyneth Paltrow, left), her depression and her marriage to fellow poet Ted Hughes (Daniel Craig). The couple’s daughter, Frieda, refused to give permission for Plath’s poems to be used, leaving a gaping hole where Plath’s powerful words should be. THE MORE YOU IGNORE ME (2018) 15 10PM, ITV3 PREMIERE This bittersweet 1980s-set comedy, adapted by Jo Brand from her 2009 novel, follows teenager Alice (Ella Hunt) as she becomes obsessed with Morrissey and The Smiths, while her mother (Sheridan Smith) struggles with her mental health. Adaptation of John Grisham’s 1989 novel, starring Sandra Bullock as the idealist teaming up with Matthew Mcconaughey’s laid-back lawyer to defend a black man accused of murder in a Southern town. PREMIERE Italian crime drama from director Matteo Garrone, and like his acclaimed 2008 feature Gomorrah, this is also based in fact. In a run-down town, dog groomer Marcello sells cocaine on the side. But his best customer is now crippled by paranoia and is dangerously unhinged.

MONDAY

THE RARE BREED (1966) U 12.20PM, PARAMOUNT James Stewart plays a cowboy who becomes a valued employee of Maureen O’hara’s widowed rancher as she introduces Hereford cattle stock to America. But neighbouring ranchers are jealous of her wonderfully named prize bull, Vindicator. PERFECT FAMILY, PERFECT MURDER (2019) PG 2.15PM, CH5 This TV movie starts out as a stalker thriller before veering into truly batty territory. It follows an all too trusting Scottish exchange student (Hayley Mclaughlin) who swaps a college campus for a nest of vipers. THE UGLY DUCKLING (1959) 12 2.35PM, SONY CLASSIC This comic twist on Jekyll and Hyde predates the original Nutty Professor (with Jerry Lewis) by four years. It stars Bernard Bresslaw (of Carry On fame) as the man unleashing a more suave, but also more dangerous, version of himself. Jon Pertwee co-stars. GODZILLA 8PM, SKY ONE The special effects help to cover up the lack of a plot – effects that are a significant evolutionary step from the Japanese cult classics that inspired it. Matthew Broderick and Maria Pitillo (above) are the humans looking up in awe at the radioactive beast. Just like the 1974 version of the Agatha classic, this has a fantastic ensemble cast. Kenneth Branagh directs himself as Poirot, with Judi Dench (above), Michelle Pfeiffer, Olivia Colman, Willem Dafoe, Daisy Ridley and Derek Jacobi on the list of suspects. CRANK 10.30PM, ITV4 Jason Statham (right) plays a hit man who gets a taste of his own medicine when he’s injected with a poison that will kill him unless he keeps his heart rate up – and no, attaching spark plugs to your nipples is not something you should try at home.

TUESDAY

WHISTLE DOWN THE WIND (1961) PG 12.45PM, TALKING PICTURES TV Bryan Forbes’s classic, based on the novel by Mary Hayley Bell, follows three children – among them Bell’s daughter, Hayley Mills (above, with Alan Barnes and Diane Holgate) – whose wild imaginations convince them that the stranger hiding in their barn is Jesus. SHADOW OF A DOUBT (1943) PG 4.20PM, SONY CLASSIC This psychological thriller – unusually for its director, Alfred Hitchcock – centres on a teenage lead. Teresa Wright is the girl who starts to suspect that the uncle (Joseph Cotten) she idolises harbours dark secrets. AFTERMATH (2017) 15 9PM, SONY MOVIES Action man Arnold Schwarzenegger greets older age and flexes his dramatic muscles in this sombre drama. He plays a husband and father reeling from grief and striking out when his wife and pregnant daughter are killed in a plane crash. RUSH HOUR (1998) 12 10.30PM, ITV4 Jackie Chan blasts into Hollywood in his first major undubbed English-speaking role as a fish-out-of-water Hong Kong cop in LA. Can he keep up with his motormouth American counterpart (Chris Tucker, above)? DODGEBALL: A TRUE UNDERDOG STORY (2004) 12 11.40PM, FILM4 This spot-on sports movie spoof stars Ben Stiller and Vince Vaughn as rivals who blast through the cliches as they face off in a Las Vegas arena, dodging balls for cash. Watching grown men taking such a blatantly silly game so seriously is very funny. THE LOOK OF LOVE (2013) 18 1.30AM, FILM4 British film-maker Michael Winterbottom directs Steve Coogan in this biopic of Soho businessman Paul Raymond, who made a fortune in property, strip clubs and porn, but whose private life was beset by tragedy.

WEDNESDAY

THE WARRIOR QUEEN OF JHANSI

(2019) 15 ◆ 6.15PM, SKY PREMIERE ★★★ PREMIERE This historical epic is the story of Rani Lakshmibai, queen of the state of Jhansi in northern India, who was a leading figure in the Indian Rebellion of 1857. Rupert Everett is among the cast representing the British Raj, whom Rani would stand up to.

CREED (2015) 12

9PM, PARAMOUNT

Rocky: The Next Generation, with Sylvester Stallone – older, but not out to pasture – as its guide. Michael B. Jordan stars as Adonis (below, with Stallone), the son of Apollo Creed from the original films. He’s an angry young man who has something to prove. 2 GUNS (2013) 15

◆ 10PM, SKY ONE ★★★ Denzel Washington and Mark Wahlberg are a great match in this darkly comic actioner about a huge wedge of stolen cash that gets lots of people tortured and killed in Mexico. Bill Paxton has fun as an especially twisted and indiscriminate villain in a world that is full of violent and corrupt men.

HULK (2003) 12

◆ 10.30PM, ITV4 ★★★

All brawn over brains, the Incredible Hulk, to give him his full name in earlier incarnations, is here played by Eric Bana. When not green, Bana’s Bruce Banner is the chilled-out son of a scientist who went too far when messing with human DNA. Just don’t make him angry…

SCREAM 2 (1997) 18

▲ 11.15PM, 5STAR

★★★

This sequel to the 1996 horror movie hit is just as much fun, taking a self-aware swipe at sequels and much more. Courteney Cox and David Arquette return as the ‘adults’ in the room, while

Buffy star Sarah Michelle Gellar (above) is one of the teens taking a creepy phone call.

SHE’S FUNNY THAT WAY (2014) 12

◆

1.55AM, CH4 ★★★ Veteran director Peter Bogdanovich (What’s

Up, Doc?) explores life and love backstage on Broadway in this comedy. Among the stars are Imogen Poots and Wandavision’s Kathryn Hahn (left).

THURSDAY

SKY WEST AND CROOKED (1965) PG

10AM, TALKING PICTURES TV

John Mills directs daughter Hayley in this romantic coming-of-age drama. She stars as 17-year-old Brydie, who is haunted by an accident that killed her friend almost a decade ago. Treated with suspicion, Brydie finds love with Ian Mcshane’s traveller (above).

A GAME OF CAT AND MOUSE: AN AURORA TEAGARDEN MYSTERY (2019)

PG 2.15PM, CH5

Another in this cosy Hallmark mystery series finds Aurora (Candace Cameron Bure) on the trail of a criminal who leaves snippy calling cards, aimed directly at Aurora, as the crimes get increasingly serious.

SAVE YOURSELVES!

(2020) 15 ◆ 5.10PM, SKY PREMIERE ★★★ PREMIERE Sunita Mani (left) and John Paul Reynolds have an easy chemistry as the couple in this sparky sci-fi comedy. Deciding to spend a week off-grid, they have no idea that aliens (resembling Star Trek’s Tribbles) have invaded – until the furry pouffe in their secluded cabin starts moving.

THE LONE RANGER (2013) 12

9PM, BBC4

Gore Verbinski directs this ambitious revival of the western serial. Armie Hammer is the Ranger, with Helena Bonham Carter adding colour, while Johnny Depp turns Native American Tonto into a mystical eccentric.

CONAN THE BARBARIAN (1982) 15 10.30PM, ITV4

This sword-and-sorcery epic is among the very best of its kind, carrying off its bold scale and ambition with aplomb. A fresh-faced Arnold Schwarzenegger (above) dons the warpaint as the warrior who is out for revenge on the warlord who made him an orphan.

LOCKE (2013) 15 1.35AM, CH4

Tom Hardy stars as a man in a jam in this evolving one-set one-hander from Peaky Blinders creator Steven Knight. Driving alone at night, he receives a series of phone calls (from famous voices including Olivia Colman and Andrew Scott) as the pressure mounts.

FRIDAY

SIX MINUTES TO MIDNIGHT (2020) 12

◆

6PM, SKY PREMIERE ★★★

PREMIERE British thriller, set on the eve of the Second World War. Judi Dench stars as the headmistress of a finishing school in England attended by the daughters of the German elite. Politics, intrigue and a search for truth collide. With Eddie Izzard and James D’arcy.

JACK REACHER: NEVER GO BACK (2016) 12 ◆ 9PM, E4 ★★★

Tom Cruise returns as the military policeman turned vigilante for this sequel. Here, he springs his old Army contact (Cobie Smulders, below, with Cruise) from prison when she is falsely accused of killing her own men.

PROMETHEUS (2012) 15

◆

9PM, SONY MOVIES ★★★

Ridley Scott returns to Alien, the 1979 sci-fi horror that made his name. Filled with gravitas and a big budget, this prequel/ reboot asks big questions – to do with the creation of life, both on Earth and beyond.

DETROIT (2017) 15

11.20PM, BBC2

Tense dramatisation of the Algiers Motel incident, a two-day siege sparked during the 1967 riots in the US city of the title. Starting with a police clampdown on a party for black veterans, it ends with a shocking injustice.

LA LA LAND

(2016) 12

11.35PM, BBC1

A modern musical set in the mad, mad world of Los Angeles. Emma Stone and Ryan Gosling (above) are the beautiful couple who meet and fall in love, falteringly, amid a series of dream-like song-and-dance routines.

GREEN ROOM

(2015) 18

12.20AM, CH4

Deeply unsettling horror film in which a young hard-core punk band face off against murderous neo-nazi skinheads in the backwoods of America. Patrick Stewart plays against type as the Nazi gang’s sadistic leader.