Ruislip & Eastcote & Northwood Gazette
THE HOT LIST
WHAT TO WATCH AND STREAM IN LOCKDOWN
QUIETLY MOVING A BEAUTIFUL DAY IN THE NEIGHBOURHOOD, STREAMING ON VARIOUS PLATFORMS
TOM Hanks is perfectly cast as Fred Rogers, a renowned US children’s TV presenter in Marielle Heller’s subtle, quietly moving bio-pic. Matthew Rhys is Lloyd Vogel, a cynical journalist tasked with interviewing Rogers for his magazine’s Heroes edition and, after his initial scepticism, is won over by Fred’s genuine warmth, empathy and understanding. Rogers isn’t particularly well known this side of the Atlantic but in the US is a national institution and you can see why. Rogers’ honesty and willingness to help others, at no small price to himself, is truly inspirational. The Netflix documentary Won’t You Be My Neighbour? looks at Rogers’ whole career making it an ideal accompaniment to Heller’s feature film.
TRAIN OF THOUGHT SNOWPIERCER, NETFLIX
HAVING bagged best film and best director Oscars for Parasite earlier this year, Bong Joon Ho takes on producer duties for this series based on his 2013 film. Set after a climate disaster in 2031, the world is a frozen wasteland and the only survivors are on a train that travels around the globe. A hierarchy has developed on the train with most people living in poverty and deprivation while the lucky few live in luxury – that is until a group of rebels decide that things have to change as they fight their way through the train. Jennifer Connolly and Daveed Diggs star in this 10-part series with the first two episodes available now.
CELEBRATION OF ALI ALI & CAVETT: THE TALE OF THE TAPES, SKY DOCUMENTARIES, FRIDAY, MAY 29, 10PM
SKY’S new channel launches this week promising a wealth of featurelength documentaries as well as series. On Friday night it’s showing a feature collection of Muhammad Ali’s appearances on US TV’s The Dick Cavett Show with ‘The Greatest’ in his boxing prime discussing things in and out of the ring with his magnetic mix of charisma, humour and mischief. Other subjects in the documentary channel’s diverse line-up include Stephen Hawking, Hilary Clinton, Steve McQueen, Tina Turner and the Lancaster bomber.
MUST-SEE CLASSIC SOME LIKE IT HOT, BBC TWO, SATURDAY, MAY 30, 3.40PM
ONE of the greatest films of all times – and arguably the greatest comedy ever – Billy Wilder’s 1959 masterpiece stars Marilyn Monroe, Tony Curtis and Jack Lemon. Curtis and Lemon are jazz musicians who inadvertently witness the St Valentine’s Day Massacre and go on the run from the mob, winding up in drag in an all-female band heading to Florida to play a convention. The trouble is the convention is a mobster meet-up. A sparkling script, lots of compromising situations and great performances make this a real treat – and it has the best last line in a movie ever. The film is bookended by Talking Pictures profiles of Jack Lemon (3pm) and Tony Curtis (5.40pm).
JUNGLE WARFARE MONOS, NETFLIX
ALEJANDRO Landes’ extraordinary movie was one of the best films of last year but only got a limited release but now it’s on Netflix it should gain a wider audience. Monos follows the fortunes of a group of child soldiers in the mountains of an unnamed South American country where they are holding an American hostage and following the orders of a mysterious leadership. Simmering tensions in the group boil over when things go wrong and they have to relocate to the sweltering heat of the jungle. Brilliantly acted, dripping with atmosphere and with an immersive score by Mica Levi.