Top films to watch on TV this week

WEDNESDAY

Titanic (1997) Film4, 9p.m.

Buoyed by the on-screen chemistry of Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet, James Cameron’s mega-budget love story set sailed away with 11 Academy Awards and broke box office records until the filmmaker trumped himself with the equally epic Avatar. Titanic also installed Celine Dion at the top of global charts for what seemed like an eternity with My Heart Will Go On.

The film begins deep underwater with Brock Lovett (Bill Paxton) and his team of hi-tech treasure hunters scouring the submerged wreck. The search comes to naught until Brock meets 101-year-old survivor Rose DeWitt Bukater (Gloria Stuart). Staring transfixed at a sketch of her younger self ( Winslet), Rose recalls her burgeoning romance with spirited artist Jack Dawson (DiCaprio) aboard the eponymous luxury liner.

THURSDAY

Apocalypse Now (1979) BBC4, 10.15p.m.

Director Francis Ford Coppola took inspiration from Joseph Conrad’s novella Heart of Darkness to create his iconic Vietnam War drama. Martin Sheen plays Captain Willard, an assassin assigned to find and kill the renegade Colonel Kurtz (Marlon Brando), who is believed to have descended into insanity.

Winner of two Oscars, including Best Cinematography, and two Baftas, it has gone on to influence countless movies, from Tropic Thunder and Avatar, to the more recent Ad Astra. Dennis Hopper, Harrison Ford and Laurence Fishburne also star, while Robert Duvall has a memorable turn as the surf-obsessed Colonel Kilgore.

FRIDAY

I, Tonya (2017) BBC2, 11.05p.m.

As a girl, Tonya Harding (Margot Robbie) learns to ice-skate at the behest of her domineering mother LaVona (an Oscar-winning Allison Janney). LaVona is far from impressed with Jeff Gillooly (Sebastian Stan) as a potential son-in-law but she is powerless to stop her daughter from falling under Jeff ’s spell.

Tonya trains hard and becomes the first female American athlete to land a triple axel jump in competition but the judges refuse to give her the high marks she thinks she deserves. In stark contrast, rival Nancy Kerrigan (Caitlin Carver) is lavished with praise. As frustration grows,

Tonya’s bodyguard Shawn Eckhardt (Paul Walter Hauser) and Jeff hatch a loopy plan.

I, Tonya is a blackly humorous biopic, which illuminates a grubby episode in sporting history with considerable aplomb.

SATURDAY

The Wizard of Oz (1939) Channel 5, 1.45p.m.

Judy Garland dons her iconic ruby slippers to magical effect in this evergreen 1939 MGM musical, which won two Oscars but lost the Best Picture statuette to Gone with the Wind. Which is ironic, as it tells the story of Dorothy, who is swept away from her beloved Kansas by a tornado only to land in the magical world of Oz, where she must seek the help of the wizard to return home with her trusty canine sidekick Toto.

The luminous leading lady sings Somewhere Over the Rainbow as her magical pals – The Scarecrow (Ray Bolger), The Cowardly Lion (Bert Lahr) and The Tin Man (Jack Haley) – follow the Yellow Brick Road to the Emerald City.

It’s now 85 years since years it first dazzled audiences, but Victor Fleming’s lavish Technicolor fantasy looks and sounds splendid.

SUNDAY

Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (2011) BBC1, 11.30p.m.

This labyrinthine drama centres on the deputy to the head of British intelligence who is forced into retirement after an operation ends in disaster. He is later recruited by the government to return to duty and investigate the possibility of a Soviet mole in a high-ranking position in MI6.

Gary Oldman gives one of his best performances as John le Carre’s ageing hero George Smiley; the scene where he reflects on an encounter with his arch enemy is a masterclass in acting. The book on which the film was based had previously been turned into a hugely popular TV series starring Alec Guinness in 1979, but this is just as impressive.

The cast list reads like a Who’s Who of British acting talent, including Kathy Burke, Colin Firth, Tom Hardy, John Hurt, Benedict Cumberbatch, Mark Strong and Toby Jones.

MONDAY

The Martian (2015) BBC1, 11.20p.m. The six-strong crew of the Ares 3, led by Commander Melissa Lewis (Jessica Chastain), are gathering samples on Mars when sensors pick up an approaching storm. Lewis gives the order to evacuate and during the trek back to the ship, botanist Mark Watney (Matt Damon) is hit by flying debris.

Believing him to be dead, the rest of the crew blasts off without him. Little do they realise that back on Mars, Watney is alive. Meanwhile on Earth, the Nasa top brass cut corners to let Mark know the cavalry is coming, but can he last until they arrive?

Adapted from the bestselling novel by Andy Weir, Ridley Scott’s film is a riveting survival thriller set 140 million miles from home, which bears obvious similarities to the Oscar-winning Gravity in both set-up and execution.

TUESDAY

Molly’s Game (2017) BBC2, 11.15p.m. After an injury ends her skiing career, Molly (Jessica Chastain) lands a thankless job as a personal assistant to real estate wheeler dealer Dean Keith (Jeremy Strong), who organises high-stakes poker games for the Hollywood elite.

Molly learns the tricks of the gambling trade and when Dean betrays her, she retaliates by setting up her own game, luring some of his best punters including celebrity Player X (Michael Cera). As Molly’s reputation grows, along with her financial exposure, she attracts members of the Russian mafia to her table, which makes her a prime target for an FBI sting.

Based on a true story and written and directed by Aaron Sorkin, Molly’s Game is anchored by Chastain, who reflects every facet of her character’s psychology as she weathers a storm of public vilification.