The Herald - The Herald Magazine
PICK OF THE BEST FILMS
SATURDAY The Cider House Rules (1999) BBC Two, 11.15pm
Adapted for the screen by John Irving from his own bestseller, The Cider House Rules is a generous slice of Americana about a young man’s coming of age in 1940s New England. Dr Larch (Michael Caine) presides over the St Cloud’s orphanage in Maine. Larch is a fair man, showing love and respect to each of his charges (perhaps a little too much love for some of the nurses), especially Homer Wells (Tobey Maguire), the boy chosen by Larch as his successor. Over the course of a long, hot summer, Homer receives a crash course in the pitfalls and pleasures of growing up, and the agony and ecstasy of first love.
The Drop (2014) (Channel 4, 11.35pm)
Bob Saginowski (Tom Hardy) is a softly spoken soul, who tends a neighbourhood bar owned by Cousin Marv (James Gandolfini in his final performance), and kindles a slow-burning romance with a neighbour called Nadia (Noomi Rapace). Two gunmen hold up Marv’s bar and steal “five large … and change”. Detectives Torres (John Ortiz) and Romsey (Elizabeth Rodriguez) investigate and when the police leave, Chechen thug Chovka (Michael Aronov) arrives with goons in tow, impressing on Marv and Bob the importance of replacing the stolen cash. The Drop is a solid, dependable crime thriller that hits most of the right menacing notes.
SUNDAY The Second Best Exotic Marigold Hotel (2015) (Channel 4, 9pm)
Sonny (Dev Patel) and business partner Muriel (Maggie Smith) travel abroad to seek investment for a second hotel from business chief Ty Burley (David Strathairn) and return to India, mindful that funding is dependent on a review from a secret inspector. English traveller Lavinia (Tamsin Greig) and American novelist Guy (Richard Gere) arrive soon after and Sonny is convinced that Guy must be the inspector so he ignores Lavinia and lavishes attention on the writer. Meanwhile, Sonny is preoccupied with his impending nuptials to Sunaina (Tina Desai) and a simmering rivalry for his fiancee’s affections from snake-hipped family friend Kush (Shazad Latif).
Departure (2015) (Channel 4, 1.55am)
A mother and her teenage son struggle to maintain their close bond in writer-director Andrew Steggall’s debut feature. Beatrice (Juliet Stevenson) and her 15-year-old only child Elliot (Alex Lawther) arrive at their French holiday home for the final time. The relationship between Beatrice and her husband Philip (Finbar Lynch) has deteriorated beyond repair and the family is selling the home. In the midst of this emotional turmoil, Elliot develops a crush on handsome local boy Clement (Phenix Brossard), who kindly agrees to help Beatrice with the move. When Elliot finally plucks up the courage to declare his true feelings, he faces a wall of hurt and rejection.
MONDAY The Way Back (2010) (Film4, 6.25pm)
In Soviet-occupied Poland, officer Janusz (Jim Sturgess) is falsely incriminated as a foreign spy and sent to a gulag in Siberia. Behind the camp’s walls, Janusz meets Khabarov (Mark Strong), who claims that escape is possible if they head south to Lake Baikal, using the elements to cover their tracks. Russian thug Valka (Colin Farrell), enigmatic American prisoner Mr Smith (Ed Harris), youngster Kazik (Sebastian Urzendowsky), Tomasz (Alexandru Potocean), Voss (Gustaf Skarsgard) and Zoran (Dragos Bucur) complete the escape party. Teenage refugee Irena (Saoirse Ronan) joins the remarkable odyssey but as the gulag chief predicted, Mother Nature shows no mercy. The Way Back is a harrowing true story of courage and endurance against the odds during the Second World War.
TUESDAY Arena (2011) (Sony Movie Channel, 9pm)
Unscrupulous businessman Logan (Samuel L Jackson) has made a fortune by preying on the base instincts of human nature, organising cruel games of violence for the enjoyment of the baying masses. However, finding participants for these grotesque spectacles proves tough, so Logan kidnaps unsuspecting victims and forces them to compete against their will. Firefighter David Lord (Kellan Lutz), who is still mourning the loss of his pregnant wife, Lori (Nina Dobrev), becomes Logan’s latest captive. As the firefighter enters the game, all of the rage and grief bubbles to the surface and he unleashes an uncontrollable fury that threatens to destroy Logan’s empire in this watchable action thriller.
WEDNESDAY Bad Teacher (2011) (Film4, 10.45pm)
Elizabeth Halsey (Cameron Diaz) is a cynical teacher who loathes her job and longs for a way out. She thought she had found one in the shape of her wealthy fiance, but when he dumps her, she has to find someone else to sink her claws into. New, rich substitute Scott seems perfect, but Elizabeth has a rival in the form of squeaky-clean colleague Amy Squirrel. This comedy doesn’t really tax the imagination, but game performances from the cast more than make up for any shortcomings.
THURSDAY Commando (1985) (Film4, 9pm)
After his daughter is kidnapped by South American terrorists with whom he has old scores to settle, retired army colonel John Matrix (Arnold Schwarzenegger) boards the next flight and wages a one-man war against those who were foolish enough to harm his nearest and dearest. He takes the opportunity to unleash a formidable arsenal of weaponry in order to exact his violent revenge against a host of unsavoury characters. While Schwarzenegger struggles with some of the more challenging dialogue, there’s nobody better than he when it comes to sticking it to the bad guys.
FRIDAY Before I Go to Sleep (2014) (More4, 9pm)
Following a car accident, 47-year-old Christine Lucas (Nicole Kidman) is diagnosed with anterograde amnesia. Each morning, she wakes in a strange bed next to a man she does not know and creeps into the adjacent bathroom where a series of photographs on the wall begin to fill in the blanks, letting her know that the man is her husband Ben (Colin Firth). Then Christine receives a mysterious telephone call from someone called Dr Nash (Mark Strong), who instructs her to look in the wardrobe, where she finds a video diary that casts doubt on the facts that underpin her fragile existence. Based on SJ Watson’s bestselling novel, Before I Go to Sleep is an ingenious thriller, which drip-feeds us fragmented flashbacks, clouding our judgment of characters as they orbit Christine, purportedly out of love.