The Herald - The Herald Magazine
PICK OF TV MOVIES
SATURDAY
Far from the Madding Crowd (2015) (BBC2, 8pm)
The year is 1870 and Bathsheba Everdene (Carey Mulligan) lives with her aunt on the adjacent property to handsome sheep farmer Gabriel Oak (Matthias Schoenaerts), whose heartfelt advances she rebuffs. Soon after, Bathsheba inherits her uncle’s vast estate and defies expectation to turn around the ailing farm, hiring Gabriel as the estate’s shepherd. Meanwhile, emotionally repressed and wealthy farmer William Boldwood (Michael Sheen) makes his feelings for Bathsheba known, but her head is turned by dashing and reckless Sergeant Troy. Anchored by Mulligan’s nuanced performance, Far from the Madding Crowd is a visually striking portrait of rural desires, even if it can’t quite live up to John Schlesinger’s 1967 version.
Pretty Woman (1990) (STV, 10.35pm)
Julia Roberts gives a truly star-making performance in the rags-to-riches fairy tale of prostitute Vivian, who is plucked off the streets of LA by handsome and commitment-shy businessman Edward Lewis (Richard Gere, who has terrific chemistry with his leading lady). After agreeing to become his paid companion for the week, Vivian’s relationship with Edward threatens to become more than just business – and she also makes a big impression on a kindly hotel manager. However, Edward’s business partner Stuckey (Jason Alexander) is less easily charmed as he fears that the working girl with a heart of gold will wreck everything that he and Edward have built together.
SUNDAY
On the Town (1949) (BBC2, 1.30pm)
Three sailors have 24 hours of shore leave in New York and are determined to make the most of it. One of them decides to seek out the model featured in an advertising campaign, another takes a shine to an anthropologist, while a third finds himself fighting off the attentions of a female cabbie. The plot is slim to non-existent, but this exuberant musical is so brimming with energy, you really won’t care. Leading men Gene Kelly, Jules Munshin and Frank Sinatra are all terrific as the sailors, the music is provided by Leonard Bernstein and the witty script and lyrics come courtesy of future Singin’ in the Rain screenwriters Adolph Green and
Betty Comden. The New York locations just add to the appeal.
Ordinary Love (2019) (BBC2, 10pm)
Lesley Manville and Liam Neeson deliver compelling performances as a married couple in turmoil in Lisa Barros D’Sa and Glenn Leyburn’s intimate drama based on a script by Northern Irish playwright Owen McCafferty. Ordinary Love elegantly captures the minutiae of daily life for a wife and husband, who fondly accept each other’s foibles and find comfort in the easy silences that punctuate their domestic routine. Lasting affection resonates in moments of the mundane – her saucy addition to a soup recipe, a seemingly benign conversation about his fruit and vegetable intake. The opening 15 minutes of McCafferty’s gently paced script encourage us to cosy up to the lead characters in their suburban bubble before giant ripples from a cancer diagnosis test the strength of marital bonds.
MONDAY
The Misfits (1961)
(GREAT! movies classic, 4.20pm)
John Huston’s 1961 drama, based on a script by Arthur Miller, marks the final screen appearances of two Hollywood legends – Clark Gable and Marilyn Monroe. Thirty-year-old Roslyn Tabor (Monroe) divorces her husband Raymond (Kevin McCarthy). She drowns her sorrows with her friend Isabelle (Thelma Ritter) in a local bar, where the two women are approached by cowboy Gaylord Langland (Gable) and his friend Guido. They invite Roslyn and Isabelle to Guido’s half-completed ranch in the country. The women accept the invitation and Roslyn eventually moves into the ranch with
Gaylord to complete the work on the building. An encounter with Gaylord’s friend, rodeo rider Perce Howland (Montgomery Clift), creates friction between the fledgling lovebirds and tests the strength of their relationship.
Pulp Fiction (1994) (GREAT! movies, 9pm)
Following his ultra-hip debut Reservoir Dogs, writer-director Quentin Tarantino delivered an equally confident and more ambitious second film. Multiple storylines interweave as characters from one thread bump into those of another, introducing us to a brutal Los Angeles milieu populated by gangster junkies, honest thieves and tender murderers. Mob boss Marsellus Wallace entrusts low-rent hit men Vincent Vega (John Travolta) and Jules Winnfield (Samuel L Jackson) to collect a stolen
briefcase. He also pays ageing boxer Butch Coolidge (Bruce Willis) to throw his next fight. The fates of these characters collide after Marsellus asks Vincent to entertain his wife Mia (Uma Thurman) in his absence and the cool cats head down to Jack Rabbit Slims for a hip-swivelling turn on the dance floor.
TUESDAY
The Graduate (1967) (BBC2, 11.15pm) Benjamin Braddock (Dustin Hoffman) has just graduated from college and is back at his parents’ home for the summer, with his whole life ahead of him. His parents would like him to get into the plastics industry, but Benjamin isn’t sure. He’s more interested in getting into bed with sexy neighbour Mrs Robinson (Anne Bancroft), although it soon becomes clear that it’s her daughter Elaine (Katharine Ross) who holds the key to his heart. Director
Mike Nichols’ comedy classic still stands the test of time. Hoffman may have been technically too old to play the lead role, but he doesn’t look it; the film turned him into a star after years of struggle.
WEDNESDAY
Disappearance at Clifton Hill (2019) (Film4, 9pm)
When she was a little girl, Abby (Tuppence Middleton) witnessed a young boy being bundled into the boot of a car by two adults on Clifton Hill, close to Niagara Falls. She is haunted by the incident even though her older sister, Laure (Hannah Gross), maintains it never happened and the abduction was merely the product of Abby’s fertile imagination. Abby is forced to return to Niagara Falls to oversee the sale of the family’s hotel, which belonged to her late mother. Charlie Lake, whose family owns swathes of property, is keen to buy the land. As she finalises the deal, Abby decides to uncover the truth about the kidnapping aided by a local conspiracy theorist called Walter in this intriguing thriller.
Crimson Tide (1995) (GREAT! movies, 9pm) A Russian nuclear missile base falls into ultra-nationalist hands, and a US strategic submarine is ordered to prepare for a pre-emptive strike if the rebels begin fuelling their weapons. With the world poised on the brink of war, tensions are running high, and the vessel’s veteran captain clashes with his new by-the-book first mate over what course of action to take when they can’t confirm their attack orders. Tony Scott’s claustrophobic thriller has so much tension you could cut it with a knife. Gene Hackman and Denzel Washington are superb as the US Navy officers whose difference of opinion leads to mutiny and a life-or-death battle of wills over the crew. Hans Zimmer’s electronic orchestration takes the tense atmosphere to a whole new level. With Matt Craven, George Dzundza and Viggo Mortensen.
THURSDAY
Citizen Kane (1941) (BBC4, 9pm)
Told through a series of flashbacks, this ground-breaking drama focuses on how newspaper magnate Charles Foster Kane (Orson Welles) amassed his fortune and power – only to discover life at the top was very lonely. A reporter pieces together the millionaire’s story, uncovering an epic tale of ambition and conflict along the way. But will he solve the mystery of Kane’s final, dying utterance: “Rosebud”? It’s considered by many to be the greatest film ever made, and is Orson Welles’ finest hour as writer, director and star. This is no mean feat, considering he was just 25 when he crafted the film – and he went on to be involved in many other classics.
FRIDAY
Demolition Man (1993) (ITV4, 9pm)
In 1996, LA police officer John Spartan’s (Sylvester Stallone) unauthorised plan to bring down crime lord Simon Phoenix (Wesley Snipes) seemingly results in the deaths of innocent hostages, and both men are sentenced to cryogenic suspension. By the time Phoenix is thawed for a parole hearing in 2032, the US has become a crime-free Utopia, meaning no one knows what to do when the prisoner goes on the rampage. It seems the only answer is to get Spartan out of cold storage and set him on Phoenix’s trail... Despite a third act that resorts to predictable explosions and shoot-outs, this is one of the most enjoyable action films of the 1990s.