The Herald - The Herald Magazine
THIS WEEK’S BEST FILMS
SATURDAY
War for the Planet of the Apes (2017) (C4, 9pm)
Twelve years have passed since the ALZ-113 virus ravaged the globe. Caesar, his wife Cornelia and their sons are living in exile in the woods with the rest of the apes. Under the cover of darkness, Colonel McCullough and his sharp-shooting soldiers stage an assault on the ape stronghold and kill most of Caesar’s family. The grief-stricken leader orders the survivors to flee in search of a new home while he exacts revenge on the Colonel.
Inception (2010) (STV, 10pm)
Brilliant thief Dom Cobb (Leonardo DiCaprio) and his team infiltrate the minds of powerful men and women and plunder their subconscious of its priceless secrets. Powerful businessman Saito approaches Cobb with a proposition: to plant a single idea in the mind of rival Robert Fischer Jr. Dom accepts and enlists the services of regular right-hand man Arthur, novice dream architect Ariadne, forger Eames and chemist Yusuf. However, the projection of Dom’s late wife threatens to sabotage the mission.
SUNDAY
The Croods (2013) (BBC1, 4.05pm)
Enjoyable DreamWorks animation about a prehistoric family embarking on the first ever road trip. Grug Crood has taught his family to be afraid of the dark and new experiences. He protects his family by ushering them into a cave, where they will be safe from the prehistoric creatures that roam the land. During a forbidden nighttime excursion, Eep encounters a nomadic caveboy called Guy, who tells her that the end of the world is nigh. Soon after, the Croods’ cave is destroyed by a massive earthquake.
The Croods join Guy and his pet sloth Belt on the expedition through uncharted territory in search of a new place to call home.
Skyfall (2012) (ITV2, 8pm)
Arguably the best of Daniel Craig’s Bond films to date begins with 007 seemingly killed in action. It’s left to section chief M (Judi Dench) to pen his obituary as a political storm rages around her. A database of MI6 assets has fallen into the wrong hands, which puts M in the firing line and she is summoned to
Westminster to explain her actions. While she fends off sustained attacks on her reputation, news filters through that Bond has survived and M engages her agent to track menacing cyber terrorist Raoul Silva (Javier Bardem).
MONDAY
Paddington (2014) (Film4, 5pm)
Little bear Paddington is raised in Peru by his elderly aunt and uncle. When tragedy strikes, he’s dispatched by boat to London where Mrs Brown and her son take pity on the furry loner. They convince worrywart Mr Brown and moody teenage daughter Judy to allow Paddington to stay, but the bear also unwittingly attracts the attention of despicable taxidermist Millicent. With Hugh Bonneville, Julie Walters and Jim Broadbent
Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation (2015) (Film4, 9pm)
CIA Director Alan Hunley succeeds in shutting down the Impossible Missions Force (IMF). Subsequently, the hunters become the hunted when a shadowy organisation known as the Syndicate, fronted by Solomon Lane, targets IMF for extinction. Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise) covertly reunites with colleagues William Brandt, Benji Dunn and computer hacker Luther Stickell to take on their foes.
TUESDAY
Funny Girl (1968)
(Sony Movies Classic, 1pm)
This amiable romantic musical landed Barbra Streisand her first Academy Award as Best Actress. She essays comedienne Fanny
Brice, who escapes her life as the daughter of a Jewish saloon owner in the slums of the Lower East Side of New York, to become one of the star performers at Ziegfield Follies. The iconic songs include People and Don’t Rain On My Parade. Sadly, the 1976 sequel, Funny Lady, was an unworthy successor.
The Gambler (2014) (Film4, 9pm)
Mark Wahlberg stars as the title character, literature professor Jim Bennett, who finds himself in debt to the tune of $240,000 and is given seven days to pay it back. Determined to gamble his way out of trouble, he borrows from loan
sharks, family and gangsters, intending to play the game of his life. Along the way he spars with his students and sparks an affair with his most talented pupil Amy (Brie Larson, now saving the universe as Captain Marvel). Based on the 1974 James Caan movie of the same name, this thriller co-stars Jessica Lange, John Goodman, Michael Kenneth Williams and George Kennedy.
WEDNESDAY
The Titfield Thunderbolt (1953) (BBC2, 3.25pm)
The inhabitants of a small English village attempt to save their unprofitable local railway from closure by taking it over as a public company. However, they face opposition from the owners of the local bus company, forcing them to resort to devious measures. As much an exercise in whimsical fun as a chance to make some genuine laughs, this enjoyable Ealing comedy is all the more welcome some 67 years since it was first released. Subtle and warm with a healthy dose of irony, it offers a glimpse of something we often lack nowadays – a sense of community. Stanley Holloway, George Relph and Sid James are among the cast.
Layer Cake (2004) (Sony Movies, 11.20pm)
Daniel Craig stars as a drug dealer whose ambition is to earn as much money as possible with the least amount of hassle. The film opens with the nameless businessman explaining how his complicated deals take place and how he’s planning an early retirement. However, as we enter his murky world, we learn the peaceful existence he loves is about to be shattered when his boss Jimmy hands him an assignment to track down the daughter of crime kingpin Eddie Temple.
THURSDAY
Whisky Galore! (1949) (BBC2, 3.25pm)
Alexander Mackendrick’s delightful 1949 Ealing comedy is based on the novel of the same name by Compton MacKenzie. When a freighter runs aground in fog on the close-knit Hebridean island of Todday, the locals are delighted to learn the boat is laden with cases of whisky, supplies of which have been depleted on the island following
wartime rationing. English Sergeant Odd colludes with the islanders to conceal the booty from curious outsiders and enjoy the boozy contents. However, Captain Paul Waggett from the Home Guard is determined to recover the missing alcohol and thus begins a battle of wits between Waggett and the islanders, who must hide the bottles of whisky in ingenious places to avoid confiscation.
GoodFellas (1990) (ITV4, 10.05pm)
Martin Scorsese’s The Irishman picked up plaudits last year, but here’s a chance to remind yourself of his previous Mob masterpiece. Growing up in a poor neighbourhood, Henry Hill (Ray Liotta) harbours dreams of commanding respect by becoming a gangster. He seems to be on course to achieve his ambitions when he starts running errands for the local Mafia and slowly works his way up the ranks, helped by his friendship with Jimmy Conway (Robert De Niro). However, his rise is threatened by his volatile marriage, involvement in drugs and unpredictable mate Tommy. Scorsese effortlessly switches between black humour and menace.
FRIDAY
Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) (BBC1, 6.40pm)
All-action archaeologist Indiana Jones (Harrison Ford) made the perfect debut in this hugely enjoyable adventure from director Steven Spielberg and executive producer George Lucas. Jones goes in search of the legendary Ark of the Covenant, encountering Nazis and his old flame Marion along the way.
The Theory of Everything (2014) (STV, 10.15pm)
Stephen Hawking (Eddie
Redmayne) meets Jane Wilde at a party at mid-1960s Cambridge University. Romance blossoms despite Stephen’s social awkwardness, but then he takes a tumble in the university courtyard and is diagnosed with motor neurone disease. Stephen’s parents initially warn Jane off their son, but she raises the couple’s three children and holds their marriage together. The Theory of Everything is a deeply moving real-life romance that strikes a delicate balance between tearstained drama and comedy.