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THE WEEK’S BEST FILMS
SATURDAY Ladies in Lavender (2004) (BBC2, 7.20pm)
Dames Judi Dench and Maggie Smith add a golden lustre to Charles Dance’s directorial debut, adapted from William J Locke’s short story. Elderly sisters Ursula and Janet Widdington live in a fishing village in 1930s Cornwall, far removed from the events unfolding in Europe. One morning after a storm, Ursula and Janet discover a castaway washed up on the beach. Nursing the young man back to health with the help of their housekeeper Dorcas and local medic Dr Mead, the ladies learn that the handsome stranger is Polish violinist Andrea Marowski. Both women grow fond of Andrea’s company, especially Ursula, who is profoundly affected by the presence of a dashing young man in the house.
Meet the Fockers (2004) (BBC1, 10.30pm)
Despite their disastrous weekend together four years ago, retired CIA operative Jack Byrnes (Robert De Niro) has given his blessing to bumbling Greg Focker (Ben Stiller) to marry his daughter Pamela. As preparations for the nuptials get underway, Jack and his wife Dina travel with Greg and Pam to sunny Florida to meet his eccentric parents, Bernie and Roz. Embarrassment soon follows as the two sets of parents and their respective pets – Jinx the cat and Moses the dog – clash. Meet the Fockers is a likeable and largely entertaining sequel that wrings laughs from transplanting De Niro’s ice cool paterfamilias into an alien setting where he suddenly feels out of place.
SUNDAY St Trinian’s (2007) (STV, 1.10pm)
For years, headmistress Camilla Fritton (Rupert Everett) has encouraged the free expression of the ‘young ladies’ of St Trinian’s. Unfortunately, her radical approach to teaching has done little to secure the school’s finances and now old flame Geoffrey Thwaites (Colin Firth), the current Education Minister, is determined to dampen the girls’ anarchic spirit once and for all. Head girl Kelly and newcomer Annabelle resolve to save St Trinian’s from the bulldozers by stealing Vermeer’s masterpiece Girl with a Pearl Earring from the National Gallery, then fencing it to Miss Fritton’s art dealer brother Carnaby. Oliver Parker and Barnaby Thompson’s revival of the naughty, hockey stick-wielding minxes is frothy and undemanding fun.
The Pursuit of Happyness (2006) (Sony Movie Channel, 6.35pm)
In early ‘80s San Francisco, Chris Gardner (Will Smith) hopes to support his family by selling expensive bone density scanners. The plan comes to naught. His wife Linda, who works two jobs to support their five-year-old son Christopher, is fed up with her husband’s promises of a brighter future. So when Chris enrols in an unpaid internship at top-flight investment bank, an angry Linda walks out on her husband, who has no money to pay the rent and is soon forced onto the streets with his boy. Will Smith delivers an exceptionally strong lead performance, but it’s a shame Thandie Newton wasn’t given a more nuanced role.
MONDAY The Longest Ride (2015) (Film4, 6.25pm)
Hunky farmer’s son Luke Collins (Scott Eastwood) catches the eye of university senior Sophia Danko (Britt Robertson), They enjoy a magical first date and on the way home, they rescue an injured 91-year-old man from a burning car. The passenger – Jewish art collector Ira Levinson – recuperates in hospital and Sophia offers to read aloud his treasured love letters to his late wife. These gushing missives spark flashbacks to 1930s and 40s North Carolina when Ira became smitten with neighbour Ruth. Based on the book by Nicholas Sparks, The Longest Ride is a leisurely trot across emotional terrain that will be achingly familiar to any tear-stained fan of The Notebook or The Best of Me.
TUESDAY The Odessa File (1974) (Film4, 11am)
Based on the novel by Frederick Forsyth, this thriller stars Jon Voight as Peter Miller, an investigative journalist in 1960s Berlin who gets his hands on the diaries of a former concentration camp inmate. After reading them, Peter is determined to track down the prison’s commandant, who is now living under a new identity, and bring him to justice. However, his efforts are initially thwarted by a secret society dedicated to helping former Nazi officers to escape their pasts. Ronald Neame’s direction can plod a bit, but the gripping plot and first-rate cast ensure it never grinds to a halt. It’s also worth listening out for Andrew Lloyd Webber’s score.
WEDNESDAY The Rewrite (2014) (Film4, 6.50pm)
Fifteen years after winning a Golden Globe for his script for Paradise Misplaced, screenwriter Keith Michaels (Hugh Grant) lands a teaching position as writer-in-residence at Binghamton University on the outskirts of New York. Keith’s young students hang on his every stuttering word, but it’s mature sophomore Holly (Marisa Tomei) who catches Keith’s eye. They spark a simmering attraction but the teacher’s insecurities threaten to derail the fledgling relationship. The Rewrite is a light, frothy if somewhat forgettable tale of second-chance love and self-acceptance.
THURSDAY We Own the Night (2007) (Sony Movie Channel, 11.05pm)
James Gray, writer-director of The Yards, reunites with charismatic lead stars Joaquin Phoenix and Mark Wahlberg for this gritty account of betrayal and retribution, set against a backdrop of 1980s New York street crime. Bobby Green presides over the Russian-owned nightclub El Caribe, where drug deals are brokered as he duly turns a blind eye. Little do the Russians know that Bobby is the son of grizzled deputy chief of police Burt Grusinsky and brother to officer Joseph Grusinsky. When the NYPD resolves to bring down mobster Vadim Nezhinski, Bobby is forced to choose sides in the drugs war, but family loyalty comes at a price.
FRIDAY Dawn of the Planet of the Apes (2014) (Film4, 9pm)
Ten winters have passed since simian flu ravaged the globe. One-time military man Dreyfus (Gary Oldman) leads survivors of the ALZ-113 virus in San Francisco. He dispatches a team led by family man Malcolm to access the O’Shaughnessy Dam, which provides the city with electricity. In the forest that envelops the dam, the scouting party encounters apes led by Caesar (Andy Serkis), including his ambitious second-in-command Koba. Dawn of the Planet of the Apes conjures two hours of animal magic. Serkis’ exemplary work as Caesar is the film’s emotional heartbeat.