Your Movie Planner

SUNDAY

Rio 2 (2014) U n 1PM, CH4 HHH Blu and Jewel (above) take a trip to the Amazon rainforest in this sequel to the 2011 hit from Blue Sky Studios. This time round, our lovebirds come to the aid of some fellow feathered friends in distress.

North By Northwest (1959) PG ● 3.10PM, RTé ONE HHHHH One of Alfred Hitchcock’s most purely enjoyable thrillers stars Cary Grant as an advertising executive who becomes a target after being mistaken for a US intelligence agent.

The King And I (1956) U ● 3.15PM, CH5 HHHH Spectacular-looking musical, with songs by Rodgers and Hammerstein. Deborah Kerr stars as the perfectly poised Anna Leonowens, the British governess turning the head of the perfectly egotistical King of Siam (Yul Brynner, above, who won himself an Oscar).

Changeling (2008) 15 ◆ 9PM, VIRGIN TWO HHHH Angelina Jolie stars in Clint Eastwood’s period drama as a mother whose son goes missing. The authorities claim to have found him, but when she says it’s the wrong boy, she’s dismissed as a hysteric.

Funny Cow (2017) 15 ◆ 12.10AM, CH4 HHH This drama stars Maxine Peake as a fictional female stand-up comic, doing the rounds on the northern club scene during the 1970s. Turning the sexist heckles into a battle cry, she scrambles her way to the top. With Stephen Graham and Paddy Considine.

Tale Of Tales (2015) 15 ◆ 1.55AM, CH4 HHH A sumptuous anthology of dark fairytales. Salma Hayek is a queen who goes to extremes to bear a child, and pays a bloody price. In another tale, Toby Jones (above) is a king who rejects his daughter, bestowing his favour instead on a most unlikely companion.

MONDAY

The Spiderwick Chronicles (2008) PG ● 3.50PM, RTé2 HHHH Freddie Highmore takes a dual role as identical twins in this charming children’s adventure. The brothers and their sister discover a book that opens up a world of supernatural animals.

Willy Wonka And The Chocolate Factory (1971) U ● 3.55PM, RTé ONE HHHH Sorry Johnny Depp, but Gene Wilder remains the definitive Willy Wonka in this fun take on Roald Dahl’s tale about a magical sweet factory.

Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters (2013) 15 ◆ 9PM, 5STAR HHH Supernatural action fantasy, inspired by the Grimm brothers’ fairytales and starring Gemma Arterton and Jeremy Renner as the bounty hunter siblings who take on a coven of witches, led by Famke Janssen (above).

Yesterday (2019) 12 ◆ 9.30PM, RTé ONE HHH Himesh Patel stars in director Danny Boyle and screenwriter Richard Curtis’s comedy as Jack, an aspiring musician who wakes up after an accident to discover he’s the only person who remembers The Beatles.

Brassed Off (1996) 15 ◆ 11.05PM, FILM4 HHHH It’s the romance, the comedy and the brass band music that sell this coal-town tale. Tara Fitzgerald (above) is the Yorkshire lass returning to her roots, where she plays the flugelhorn with conductor Pete Postlethwaite, and falls for the tenor horn (Ewan McGregor).

The Color Of Money (1986) 15 ◆ 11.15PM, TALKING PICTURES TV HHHH Martin Scorsese’s follow-up to The Hustler finds Paul Newman reprising the role of ‘Fast’ Eddie Felson, imparting his wisdom to a young contender (Tom Cruise). Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio also stars, and Newman won a well-deserved Oscar.

TUESDAY

It Should Happen To You (1954) U ● 1PM, GREAT! MOVIES HHHH It’s more than 65 years old, but this romcom is still on the money. Judy Holliday (above, with Michael O’Shea) is a struggling model who takes her career into her own hands, and pays to advertise herself. Jack Lemmon is the film-maker who loves her.

A Mother’s Greatest Fear (2018) PG ● 2.15PM, CH5 HH Hoping for a less stressful life, Alice (Katrina Begin) leaves her job as a hostage negotiator. Instead, her life takes a far darker turn when her daughter is abducted. But with no ransom demand, what are the kidnapper’s motives?

Call Northside 777 (1948) U ● 9PM, TALKING PICTURES TV HHHH In Henry Hathaway’s thriller, James Stewart stars as McNeal, the sceptical Chicago reporter assigned to investigate the case of a man convicted of killing a policeman outside a speakeasy. Can McNeal get to the truth, even if it seems an open-and-shut case?

Halloween H20 (1998) 18 ▲ 11PM, 5STAR HHH The first film, released in 1978, was genuinely unsettling, but the same idea has since been done to death. This is one of the better in the never-ending line of sequels, mainly because it sees the return of Jamie Lee Curtis as Laurie, the sister of slashy killer Michael Myers.

T2 Trainspotting (2017) 18 ▲ 11.45PM, FILM4 HHHH Ewan McGregor (above), Ewen Bremner, Jonny Lee Miller and Robert Carlyle return as the misguided friends – older, but little wiser. This follow-up to the groundbreaking 1996 original feels neat and logical as Renton, Spud, Sick Boy and Begbie are reunited after 20 years apart.

WEDNESDAY

A Case Of Murder: Garage Sale Mystery (2017) PG ● 2.15PM, CH5 HH While bargain-hunting, amateur sleuth Jenn buys an old tape recorder, but when she plays it, she hears what sounds like a man pleading for his life. Can Jenn trace the terrified man?

The Green Mile (1999) 18 ▲ 9PM, 5 USA HHHH There’s a supernatural theme to this unusual but satisfying crime drama, adapted from the Stephen King novel by Frank Darabont (who also made King’s The Shawshank Redemption). Michael Clarke Duncan (above) is the gentle giant prisoner with strange powers.

District 9 (2009) 15 ◆ 9PM, GREAT! MOVIES HHHH Allegorical sci-fi that mixes message and action to thrilling effect. Sharlto Copley (above) is the hero who becomes an unlikely ally for the bug-like aliens in the ghettos of Johannesburg.

Unfinished Business (2015) 15 ◆ 12.05AM, 5STAR HHH Vince Vaughn, Tom Wilkinson and Dave Franco are the hopeless entrepreneurs trying to save their stagnating business in this frantic comedy. When they head to Europe to meet potential investors, their lack of acumen is the least of their problems.

Horns (2013) 15 ◆ 1AM, CH4 HHH When his girlfriend is raped and murdered, Ignatius Perrish (Daniel Radcliffe, right) is the prime suspect. As ‘Ig’ sets out to prove his innocence, he sprouts horns that give him supernatural powers. Radcliffe is good, but the film follows an uneven path.

THURSDAY

Die Hard 2 (1990) 15 u 9PM, ITV4 ★★★ Bruce Willis returns as permanently offduty cop John McClane (above) for a booming sequel to the film that reinvigorated the action genre. Here, wild-eyed William Sadler is the rogue colonel causing chaos at Washington’s Dulles Airport after defecting to the dark side.

A Town Like Alice (1956) PG ● 9PM, BBC4 ★★★★ Virginia McKenna is a British woman taken prisoner by the Japanese in Malaya during the Second World War. McKenna is a force to be reckoned with – a stoic, reassuring presence for her fellow captives – who warms to Peter Finch’s captive Aussie soldier.

Days Of The Bagnold Summer (2019) 12 u 9PM, FILM4 ★★★★ PREMIERE Moody metal-loving teen Daniel (Earl Cave, left) and his dowdy but upbeat librarian mum (Monica Dolan) seem worlds apart – but in this beautifully observed comedy, these two lonely souls slowly come together over the school summer holidays.

Under Suspicion (1991) 18 ▲ 9PM, TALKING PICTURES TV ★★★★ In 1950s Brighton, a disgraced policeman (Liam Neeson) sets himself up as a dodgy private eye, using his wife as a honey trap. When she and his latest patsy are murdered, he must try to clear his name, but falls for the most likely suspect (Laura San Giacomo).

Mistress America (2015) 15 u 12.25AM, FILM4 ★★★★ Second of a double bill of films written by and starring Greta Gerwig (of Little Women fame), both co-written and directed by her long-term partner, Noah Baumbach. After Frances Ha at 10.45pm, this follows creative New Yorkers, played by Gerwig (above) and Lola Kirke, embattled over life and status.

FRIDAY

The Boss (2016) 15 u 9PM, E4 ★★★ Ben Falcone directs and co-stars with wife Melissa McCarthy in this hit-andmiss comedy. McCarthy plays the odious entrepreneur who loses everything, and must learn to be a better person if she’s to get back on top. Kristen Bell and Peter Dinklage also star.

The Contract (2006) 15 u 9PM, VIRGIN ONE ★★★ John Cusack and Morgan Freeman (above) head the cast of this thriller about an ex cop who is hiking with his son when they stumble upon a wanted assassin. Can they bring him to justice?

The Italian Job (2003) 12 u 10PM, ITV4 ★★★ Fans of the original won’t be too put out by this remake, which updates the heist caper in a sensible direction. Mark Wahlberg and Charlize Theron drive their Mini Coopers into action.

Breakheart Pass (1975) PG ● 10.30PM, TG4 ★★★ Adapted by Alistair MacLean from his own novel, this Western mystery focuses on a undercover agent out to solve a series of murders on board a train transporting US Cavalry troops. Charles Bronson stars.

Hail, Caesar! (2016) 12 u 11.15PM, RTé ONE ★★★★ The Coen brothers’ comic take on the golden age of Hollywood stars Josh Brolin as a 1950s studio fixer. Among the problems he has to deal with is the abduction of the star (George Clooney, above) of an epic.

Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story (2004) 12 u 12.10AM, CH4 ★★★ High-scoring sports drama spoof. Ben Stiller and Vince Vaughn blast through the cliches as they face off in the arena and dodge balls for cash.

SATURDAY

Pokémon Detective Pikachu (2019) PG ● 6.35PM, RTé ONE ★★★★ Ryan Reynolds voices the yellow sleuth in this witty adventure. The plot involves a former Pokémon trainer trying to find out what happened to his late policeman father.

Crazy Rich Asians (2018) 12 u 9.30PM, RTé ONE ★★★★ This modern Cinderella story stars Constance Wu as a working-class New Yorker who learns that her boyfriend (Henry Golding) belongs to one of Singapore’s richest families.

Jack Reacher (2012) (12) ★★★u 10PM, VIRGIN TWO A former military police investigator takes on the case of a random shooting for which an army sniper has been framed. Action thriller, with Tom Cruise and Rosamund Pike (above).

Buster (1988) (15) u 10PM, BBC2 ★★★★ Fact-based crime drama about Great Train Robber Buster Edwards, following his involvement in the notorious crime and his escape to Mexico. Starring Phil Collins .

I, Daniel Blake (2016) 15 u 11.40PM, RTé ONE ★★★★ Ken Loach’s award-winning drama. Dave Johns plays the eponymous carpenter, who, after being signed off from work, strikes up an unlikely friendship with single mother Katie (Hayley Squires).

Presumed Innocent (1990) (18) ▲ 11.50PM, RTé TWO ★★★★ A deputy prosecutor is drawn into an affair with a colleague, but she drops him when he fails to help her achieve her goals. However, when she is found dead, he is investigated under suspicion of raping and murdering her. Mystery, starring Harrison Ford.