Film choice

Shane (1953) MORE4, 11.00AM ★★★★★

There are few Westerns that examine the depths of human emotions, but this film by George Stevens is one of them and has become a landmark of cinema. Shane (Alan Ladd) is a cowboy who finds himself idolised for the way that he handles himself in the face of a landowner’s heavies. The climax is a face-off between Shane and Jack Palance as the original man in black. A must-see.

Hot Pursuit (2015) SKY MOVIES PREMIERE, 8.00PM ★★

The extremely likeable Reese Witherspoon and Sofía Vergara (who’s a treasure in the hit US sitcom Modern Family) are paired on a Midnight Runstyle road trip for this strained witness-protection comedy. Despite their bickering, the pair naturally discover their inner kindred-ness and make a brave stand against the brutish menfolk they’ve been pitted against. But unfortunately, too many of the jokes fall flat.

The Bucket List (2007) W, 10.40PM ★★

Two fine actors on autopilot give this self-indulgent, hopelessly uneven weepie from director Rob Reiner some star power. Jack Nicholson plays a self-serving billionaire hospital magnate and Morgan Freeman a lowly car mechanic. The pair meet on a cancer ward and, against their doctor’s orders, decide to spend their final months on a roundthe-world trip together ticking off their “bucket lists”.