TV FILMs of the week
1 THE SOUND OF MUSIC Today, BBC1, 2.20pm
This much-loved musical follows novice nun Maria (Julie Andrews), who is employed as a governess to the seven unruly Von Trapp children. Their widowed father (the late Christopher Plummer) runs the house on military lines, but his new employee eventually brings fun and music back into his offspring’s lives and melts his heart in the process. Andrews is on iconic form as the all-singing Maria, while Plummer’s sardonic Captain Von Trapp stops things getting too sugary.
2 SPIDER-MAN Tomorrow, ITV2, 6.35pm
High-school student Peter Parker (Tobey Maguire, left with Kirsten Dunst as MJ) develops strange powers when a spider bites him during a trip to a science lab. After the death of his Uncle Ben, Peter vows to use his powers to rid the world of evil. He is soon put to the test by scientist Norman Osborn (Willem Dafoe), whose experiments spawn his alter ego, the Green Goblin.
3 ALIENS Monday, ITV4, 9pm
In James Cameron’s testosterone-fuelled 1986 sequel, Ellen Ripley (Sigourney Weaver, left) wakes from hypersleep to discover that planet LV-426, home of the wily xenomorph, is now also home to a human colony. When contact is lost with this outpost, Ripley agrees to visit the planet. Aliens manages the unthinkable: it improves on Ridley’s Scott’s masterful Alien, cranking up the tension.
4 ROCKETMAN Tuesday, Film4, 9pm
Taron Egerton, left, dons the rhinestone glasses, sequinned jumpsuits and platform boots to take on the role of Elton John in this biopic of the flamboyant singer. Directed by Dexter Fletcher, the film details Elton’s breakthrough years, touching on his relationships with his lyricist Bernie Taupin (Jamie Bell) and manager-lover John Reid (Richard Madden).
5 THE WORLD’S END Wednesday, ITV, 10.50pm
A prologue set in June 1990 sketches the bonds of friendship between five teenagers, who fail to complete a crawl of 12 local pubs, which would have culminated in a final glorious pint at The World’s End. Two decades later, the ringleader of that motley crew, Gary King (Simon Pegg), decides to bring the ‘lads’ back together to complete the booze-fuelled feat.
6 VENOM Thursday, Film4, 9pm
Tom Hardy, left, stars as reporter Eddie Brock, who gets bonded with a living symbiote suit which bludgeons the senses with digital effects. Riz Ahmed is Carlton Drake, director of the mysterious Life Foundation which harvests amorphous extraterrestrials from a comet, which he then uses for secret experiments. Brock investigates and has an uncomfortably close encounter.
7 YOUNG ADULT Friday, BBC1, 11.25pm
Former high-school queen bee Mavis (Charlize Theron, left) is now a hard-drinking writer who makes her living penning a series of teenage novels that is about to be discontinued. Desperate for creative inspiration, Mavis is distracted by her teenage boyfriend and his wife announcing the birth of their daughter. Mavis is determined to show Buddy that he really belongs with her.