Stuff to Watch on Sky and free-to-air TV this week
A new doco looks at what happened after Abba broke up, and Bryan Bruce revisits his award-winning 2011 investigation and asks: what’s changed? James Croot reports.
Abba: The Missing 40 Years (7.30pm, Sunday, TVNZ 1)
When the members of Swedish pop sensation Abba went their separate ways in 1982, it shocked fans worldwide. This documentary aims to reveal the rollercoaster story of what happened to Agnetha Fa¨ltskog, Bjo¨rn Ulvaeus, Benny Andersson and Anni-frid Lyngstad, after they decided to break up the band all those years ago. Featuring contributions from Julie Walters and Elaine Paige, it is billed as ‘‘a tale of rifts, adversity and personal tragedy, littered with events that often surpass fiction’’.
Inside Child Poverty Revisited
(8.40pm, tonight, Three) Bryan Bruce revisits his award-winning 2011 investigative documentary exposing the extent of the child poverty problem in New Zealand. A decade on, he asks: ‘‘What have we done to meet the needs of children living in our poorest homes? What haven’t we done? And what do we still have to do to fix it?’’
This promises to crystallise the extent and nature of child poverty in our country, and get to the heart of what we need to do to change things.
Reservoir Dogs (9.30pm, tonight, Duke)
A former video store clerk burst onto the film-making scene with this 1992 crime drama about a group of diamond thieves whose planned heist of a jewellery store goes terribly wrong. Writer-director Quentin Tarantino’s potent combination of memorable characters, pithy, witty dialogue and a toe-tapping soundtrack had a real impact with audiences.
Equals (9.30pm, Thursdays, Soho)
Narrated by actor Billy Porter, this four-part, 2020 docu-series pays tribute to the parents of the modern LGBTQI+ movement. Through stylistic depictions of the icons and unsung heroes of yesteryear – portrayed by a terrific ensemble that includes Cheyenne Jackson, Shannon Purser, Jamie Clayton, Jai Rodriquez, Samira Wiley and others – each episode focuses on the origin story of a ‘‘trailblazer’’.
The Constant Gardener (7.30pm, Sunday, Bravo)
Ralph Fiennes and Rachel Weisz star in this 2005 thriller about a widower determined to get to the bottom of a potentially explosive secret involving his wife’s murder, big business and corporate corruption. ‘‘A masterwork of suspense, romance and political intrigue,’’ wrote USA Today’s Claudia Puig.
Monos (8.30pm, Sunday, Whakaata Māori)
A kind of Apocalypse Nowmeets-lord of the Flies, this arresting 2019 Colombian drama focuses on a group of teenage commandos charged with looking after an American hostage (Julianne Nicholson) and a co-opted cow. When they fail to live up to those responsibilities, they begin to bicker and panic around the likely consequences. A sometimes tense thriller, director and cowriter Alejandro Landes makes great use of his remote locations and young cast.
Snackmasters UK (10pm, Mondays, TVNZ 2)
Crunchy cheesy snack Quavers, Domino’s pepperoni pizza and three chocolates (the purple one, the green triangle and the strawberry delight) from Britain’s beloved Quality Street assortment feature on the second season of the UK version of the hit culinary competition. In it, elite chefs try to recreate some of the country’s best-loved snacks. Fred Sirieix hosts and the judging panels consist of workers and managers from the companies that created the addictive treats in the first place.