The Herald - The Herald Magazine
PICK OF THE BEST FILMS
SATURDAY Animal Kingdom (2010) (Channel 4, 1.10am)
Crime is a family affair in David Michod’s gritty ritesof-passage drama, blessed with an Oscarnominated performance from Jacki Weaver as a scheming mother who will sink to any depths to protect her boys. The film unfolds through the eyes of 17-year-old Josh Cody (James Frecheville), whose mother overdoses, leaving him alone in the world except for his maternal grandmother, Janine (Weaver), who presides over a Melbourne crime ring, mainly comprising of her own sons. As Josh is embroiled in their illegal deeds, the shy teenager becomes a valuable pawn to police officer Leckie (Guy Pearce), who is out to expose the skulduggery beneath Janine’s roof and put the Cody clan behind bars for good.
Aaaaaaaah! (2015) (Film4, 12.30am)
A father (Julian Barratt) is evicted from the home he shares with his wife (Toyah Willcox) and daughter (Lucy Honigman) by an overly aggressive washing machine repairman (Julian Rhind-Tutt). The patriarch is forced to live in the back garden, watching helplessly as his spouse tends to the cuckoo in the nest. A nomad (Steve Oram, who also directs) and his sidekick (Tom Meeten) emerge from the nearby woods and befriend the father. They are disturbed by his plight and vow to help him return to his rightful place beside his wife and daughter, but the best laid plans go terribly wrong in this quirky horror comedy.
SUNDAY ParaNorman (2012) (Channel 4, 1.25pm)
“What’s happening?” Grandma (voiced by Elaine Stritch) asks Norman (Kodi Smit-McPhee) as he stares at a zombie tucking into the brains of a hapless female victim on the TV screen. “He’s eating her head,” replies the boy. “He’s going to ruin his dinner,” notes the old dear, one of the earthbound spirits that appear to Norman, but remain invisible to the lad’s parents Perry (Jeff Garlin) and Sandra (Leslie Mann), and his sister Courtney (Anna Kendrick). A surprise visit from deranged uncle Prenderghast (John Goodman) casts a dark cloud over the sleepy New England town of Blithe Hollow. “The witch’s curse is real and you’re the only one who can stop it!” Prenderghast instructs Norman. Terrific animated adventure with a huge heart.
Corpse Bride (2005) (ITV2, 2.15pm)
Tim Burton brings his unique vision to bear on this wonderful animated film in the tradition of The Nightmare Before Christmas. In a gloomy 19th-century village, a pair of aristocrats prepare to improve their social standing by marrying off their daughter Victoria (Emily Watson) to the rich but shy Victor Van Dort (Johnny Depp). On the eve of the big day, Victor stumbles over his wedding vows, invoking the wrath of Pastor Galswells (Christopher Lee), who banishes the groom from the village until he has learned his lines. Retreating to the nearby forest, Victor nervously practises his vows, only to inadvertently tie the knot with the decaying Corpse Bride (Carter), who spirits the groom away to the Land of The Dead.
MONDAY Poltergeist (2015) (Channel 5, 10pm)
The malevolent spirits from Tobe Hooper’s 1982 horror resurface in Gil Kenan’s update. Eric Bowen (Sam Rockwell) and wife Amy (Rosemarie DeWitt) move into a new home with their children: teenager Kendra (Saxon Sharbino), scaredy-cat Griffin (Kyle Catlett) and cutie-pie Madison (Kennedi Clements). Spirits make contact with Madison through white noise on a TV and spirit her away to the netherworld. Eric and Amy turn to Dr Claire Powell (Jane Adams), a professor of paranormal psychology, for assistance. Rockwell and DeWitt are solid while Clements exudes sweetness like her predecessor.
TUESDAY Prevenge (2016) (Film4, 10.40pm)
Alice Lowe, co-writer and co-star of Ben Wheatley’s 2012 road trip Sightseers, makes an auspicious directorial debut with this dark comedy thriller about a murderous mother-to-be, who runs amok in the benign surroundings of suburban Cardiff. Ruth (Lowe) is with child, a daughter who speaks to her from the womb and compels her to carry out dastardly deeds for reasons that are initially unclear. A local midwife (Jo Hartley) attempts to soothe Ruth’s fears but the voice in her belly is too loud to ignore and the pregnant single mother targets the deeply unpleasant owner of a pet store (Dan Renton Skinner) and a sleazy pub DJ (Tom Davis) for her first kills. The thorny question of morality results in arguments between Ruth and her unborn child as the truth about the mother’s past comes into focus.
WEDNESDAY Mrs Brown (1997) (BBC Four, 9pm)
It’s been more than two years since Prince Albert died, but Queen Victoria (Judi Dench) is still in the depths of depression and unmoved by public obligations. In the hope that a breath of fresh air may dispel her gloom and quell republican sentiments, John Brown (Billy Connolly) is summoned from Balmoral with the Queen’s nag. What follows, however, is the last thing staid Private Secretary Henry Ponsonby (Geoffrey Palmer) had in mind, as the Scot develops a close relationship with HRH, leading to rumours of a scandalous affair. Thanks to strong performances, this period drama is a good deal more gutsy and compelling than the subject matter might lead you to expect.
THURSDAY Reservoir Dogs (1992) (ITV4, 10pm)
A group of criminals are brought together for a bank heist, but the plan goes awry when the cops show up and one of their number starts murdering hostages. Holed up in a warehouse, the gang must decide whether there is a rat in the ranks, and if so, which of the robbers isn’t all he seems. The movie that made a household name of Quentin Tarantino is every bit as good today as it was on its release in 1992. Vicious, violent and thoroughly cool, it’s one of the most important films of the 1990s, ushering in a whole new school of movie-making. That aside, it also boasts a great cast, including Harvey Keitel, Tim Roth, Michael Madsen and Steve Buscemi.
FRIDAY Boy (2010) (Film4, 10.50pm)
Before he made What We Do in the Shadows or Thor: Ragnarok, director Taika Waititi set records at the New Zealand box office with this funny and touching coming-of-age comedy. Set in the 1980s, it stars James Rolleston as an 11-year-old Maori who lives with his brother and grandmother following the death of his mother in childbirth. The youngster romanticises his absent father Alamein (Waititi) and is thrilled when his dad suddenly re-enters his life. However, it soon becomes clear that Alamein has an ulterior motive for returning and isn’t quite the hero that his son imagined.