TV Films Fiona Rae
A Guide to the Week’s Viewing
SATURDAY JULY 21
Two Days, One Night (Māori TV, 8.30pm). A beautiful piece of social realism from Cannes darlings Luc and Jean-Pierre Dardenne (they have won the Palme d’Or twice, for Rosetta and L’Enfant) in which Marion Cotillard must plead for her job over a weekend. Her fellow workers at a solar-panels factory will receive €1000 bonuses if she is laid off after a period of medical leave for depression; if they give up the bonuses, she keeps her job. What follows is a series of unflinching encounters and increasing suspense as she goes from one co-worker to the next. (2014)
Mission: Impossible III (TVNZ 2, 8.40pm). JJ Abrams’ filmdirecting career begins and, as co-writer, he gives the franchise a welcome shot in the arm after John Woo’s slightly leaden No 2. We like a director who recognises the essential silliness of a genre, and Abrams has Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise) and his team chasing an object known as the “rabbit’s foot” – should have been called the MacGuffin – up hill and down dale. Philip Seymour Hoffman is the evil arms dealer and Michelle Monaghan is terrific as Ethan’s civilian girlfriend who rises to the challenge. Coincidentally, the new Mission: Impossible movie is out soon. What are the odds? (2006) Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (Three, 10.40pm). Spycraft in the
1970s was so much more fun: sensitive messages are on actual paper, there are information drops and interrogations, teleprinter machines and giant reel-to-reels. The script neatly condenses John le Carré’s book, in which George Smiley (Gary Oldman, perfectly inhabiting le Carré’s mild-mannered, anonymous hero) seeks out a mole at “the Circus”. There are rather a lot
of characters to keep straight, however, played by the likes of Benedict Cumberbatch, Tom Hardy, Mark Strong, Colin Firth, John Hurt, Toby Jones and Ciarán Hinds. Oh, and one woman, Russian actress Svetlana Khodchenkova. (2011)
Truth (TVNZ 1, 10.50pm). Veteran US news anchor Dan Rather has said there is so much right about this movie; the CBS network, on the other hand, said everything is wrong, which is the problem with calling your film Truth. We may be none the wiser afterwards, but still, it’s an interesting journey into a journalistic scandal that ended a distinguished career and severely damaged another. Directed by Zodiac screenwriter James Vanderbilt, the movie is based on the so-called “Killian documents controversy”, which involved Rather and his producer Mary Mapes (who was known for breaking the Abu Ghraib prisoner-abuse scandal) receiving documents in 2004 relating to George W Bush’s military service in the National Guard. The authenticity of these documents was immediately questioned and all hell broke loose in a scandal that went to the heart of journalistic integrity versus corporate forces. Robert Redford is an excellent Dan Rather and it’s another stellar performance from Cate Blanchett as Mapes. The cast also features Elisabeth Moss, Topher Grace, Dennis Quaid and Bruce Greenwood. (2015)
SUNDAY JULY 22
Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (TVNZ 2, 8.30pm). Everything that’s wrong with the DC Extended Universe in one movie: pompous, overblown, incoherent. The only bright spot is the first appearance of Gal Gadot’s Wonder Woman, signalling a new dawn for DC (see Friday). (2016)
X-Men: Apocalypse (Three, 8.30pm). At this point, “waste of time” doesn’t even cover it. The X-Men are again split when the so-called first mutant is awakened – in Egypt, naturally – and a predictable fight ensues. It does set up the younger versions of the characters, including Game of Thrones’ Sophie Turner as Jean Grey, Tye Sheridan as Cyclops and Alexandra Shipp as Storm. They will appear in next year’s X-Men movie, Dark Phoenix. (2016)
Haywire (Choice TV, 8.30pm). Steven Soderbergh tries another genre – action thriller – and why not? He builds the movie around cage fighter Gina Carano, who is no great shakes as an actor, but who beats up every A-lister in her path, including Channing Tatum, Michael Fassbender and Ewan McGregor (reportedly, the guys were reluctant to go toe-to-toe with her).
She’s a black-ops type who is double-crossed and forced to unravel the conspiracy; there’s a no-frills 60s spy vibe and Soderbergh achieves his stated aim to make “a Pam Grier movie made by Alfred Hitchcock”. Bill Paxton, Michael Douglas and Antonio Banderas also star. (2011)
MONDAY JULY 23
RocknRolla (Prime, 9.30pm). Thank goodness Sherlock Holmes came along and prised Guy Ritchie out of his Cockney crims down the rub-a-dub getting into a bit of Barney Rubble shtick. RocknRolla was the last time he used his annoying choppy cut-up method of storytelling, which was new and interesting in Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels, incomprehensible in Snatch and thoroughly empty here. The story focuses on Gerard Butler, a scam artist hoping to learn something from wheeler-dealer Tom Wilkinson. Good luck with figuring out what everyone else, including Mark Strong, Thandie Newton, Idris Elba and Tom Hardy, is up to. (2008)
FRIDAY JULY 27
The Dead Lands (Māori TV, 8.30pm). Māori mythology martial-arts movie from the always surprising Toa Fraser. Young James Rolleston takes on the hero’s journey – as Hongi, the son of a chief, he enters the forbidden
Dead Lands in pursuit of the vainglorious Wirepa (Te Kohe Tuhaka), who has slaughtered his tribe. Hongi is aided in his avenging quest by the Warrior (Lawrence Makoare), who may or may not be a taniwha. It’s a brutal, slightly too long movie with a ton of death-bypatu amid native bush, but it’s beautifully shot by Leon Narbey. (2014)
Wonder Woman (Movies Premiere, Sky 030, 8.30pm). You’re a wonder, Gal Gadot. The 70s cheese factor was always a barrier to reboots of Wonder Woman, but the Israeli actress, who was cast after a long search that included Lucy Lawless, Kate Beckinsale and Beyoncé, is the perfect balance of naivety, compassion and fierceness. Patty Jenkins’ film gives the moribund DC universe a kick in the pants, thanks to a good-humoured script and her calm direction. The film represents a turning point in Hollywood, too: with a worldwide box office in excess of $1 billion, it’s time to give more women the blockbuster reins. (2017)