The Herald - The Herald Magazine
THIS WEEK’S BEST FILMS
SATURDAY
In Which We Serve (1942) (BBC2, 4.35pm)
David Lean is now considered one of the finest British directors ever, but before In Which We Serve was made, he was plying his trade as an editor. But his work had caught the eye of Noel Coward, who asked him to co-direct his first project around the camera – and between them, they made a very good job of it. The script, written by Coward, who also takes the lead role, was inspired by Lord Mountbatten and his exploits with the Royal Navy during the early part of the Second World War. The plot focuses on the crew of a British destroyer as the surviving members cling to life after it’s torpedoed.
Mary, Queen of Scots (1971) (Sony Movies Classic, 6.30pm)
Lavish historical biopic charting the turbulent if relatively short life of the doomed Scottish monarch. The drama chronicles the Catholic Queen’s tempestuous love life, and also sheds light on her struggle to get along with prickly English ruler Elizabeth I, to whom she represented a terrible threat.
SUNDAY
The Lady Vanishes (1938) (BBC2, 3.40pm)
To pass the time during a journey aboard the Trans-Continental Express, Iris Henderson (Margaret Lockwood) befriends middle-aged English governess Mrs Froy (Dame May Whitty). Further down the track, Mrs Froy disappears without trace and when other passengers claim never to have seen the elusive governess, Iris begins to question her sanity. Soon, Iris and dashing stranger Gilbert Redman are embroiled in a frantic race against time to expose the truth.
Mindhorn (2016) (BBC2, 10.45pm)
In the late 1980s, actor Richard Thorncroft (Julian Barratt) set a nation’s heart aflutter as Mindhorn, who could literally “see the truth” using a robotic eye. Twenty-five years later, fame has deserted him. Richard is overweight, self-deluded and has to beg his agent for work. Out of the blue, she offers him a chance at redemption: return to the Isle of Man, where the TV series was filmed, to assist Chief Inspector Derek Newsome in apprehending
suspected serial killer Paul Melly. Melly is a deluded fan of the TV series and tells police he will “only speak to Inspector Mindhorn or more people are going to die!”
MONDAY
Legal Eagles (1986)
(Sony Movies Classic, 4.45pm)
Don’t expect to have your little grey cells tickled by this mix of comedy, romance, mystery and thriller. Instead, it’s one of those movies that allows you to turn off your brain and let it all wash over you. Robert Redford plays an assistant district attorney whose career takes a downward swerve after he becomes embroiled in a complex case involving an artist accused of stealing a valuable painting from her former lover. Murder and intrigue ensue, but the charm of Redford and his co-stars Debra Winger and Daryl Hannah make it all worthwhile. Directed by Ghostbusters’ Ivan Reitman, the film features Terence Stamp, Brian Dennehy and Christine Baranski.
Death Wish (1974) (ITV4, 10pm)
In 2018, director Eli Roth released a remake of this action thriller, but it wasn’t a patch on the original. Michael Winner’s output as a filmmaker was at best hit-and-miss, but he was at the peak of the powers when he cast Charles Bronson as Paul Kersey, a Manhattan architect who becomes a vigilante after his wife is murdered and his daughter assaulted during a home invasion.
TUESDAY Ransom (1996) (ITV4, 9pm)
When a couple’s son is kidnapped and held for ransom, the wealthy dad puts a price on the kidnappers’ heads. Director Ron Howard coaxes good performances from a Golden Globe nominated Mel Gibson and Rene Russo, and although it fails to live up to his other hits, including Apollo 13 and A Beautiful Mind, it’s a decent little thriller.
Enter the Dragon (1973) (ITV4, 11.25pm)
Secret agent Lee is recruited by British law officer Braithwaite to infiltrate a martial arts tournament. It’s the front for an opium-smuggling
racket organised by Han, a former Shaolin monk who went renegade. Although approaching 50 years in age, this is easily one of the best martial arts movies ever and spawned a host of lacklustre imitations. Star Bruce Lee sadly died at the age of 33, just weeks after completing the film.
WEDNESDAY
Dead Reckoning (1947)
(Sony Movies Classic, 12.50pm)
They don’t make them like this any more. Humphrey Bogart is simply outstanding in this classic film noir as Captain ‘Rip’ Murdoch, who approaches a paratrooperturned-padre to tell him about the traumatic event he’s recently experienced. Rip reveals he was en route to Washington DC with his pal Johnny Darke when Johnny suddenly vanished. He later turns up dead, and Rip feels duty bound to discover what happened, falling in love with a femme fatale also embroiled in the whole sorry tale.
White Mischief (1987)
(Talking Pictures TV, 10.05pm)
A British colony in Kenya’s Happy Valley during the early days of World War Two is shattered by lust, betrayal and murder when Sir Delves Broughton (Joss Ackland) enters the idyllic setting with his beautiful young wife Diana (Greta Scacchi). Within days of their arrival, she falls head over heels for the charms of handsome Josslyn Hay (Charles Dance) and the two start a passionate affair. True-life tale with a terrific supporting cast including John Hurt, Geraldine Chaplin and Ray McAnally.
THURSDAY Contagion (2011) (ITV2, 9pm)
Timely, or tasteless, depending on your viewpoint, showing for this thriller. Beth Emhoff (Gwyneth Paltrow) returns from a business trip in Hong Kong with flu-like symptoms. Her husband Mitch
(Matt Damon) dutifully nurses her and their son Clark, who is also feeling under the weather, but both succumb to the fatal illness. Mitch is rushed into isolation but seems to be immune to the outbreak and is soon allowed to return home. More cases are reported by an increasingly hysterical media and Dr Ellis Cheever (Laurence Fishburne) from
the Centre For Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) dispatches one of his best operatives, Dr Erin Mears (Kate Winslet), to trace the pathogen.
The Lost Boys (1987) (5*, 10pm)
A cult classic among people of a certain age, this likeable teen chiller focuses on Michael and Sam, teenage brothers taken to live with their grandfather by their cash-strapped single mother. Unfortunately, he happens to live in Santa Carla, America’s murder capital. The boys are warned that the high death rate is caused by local vampires. They laugh it off – until Michael starts hanging out with a gang of rebellious teens who party all night, sleep all day and seem to have mysterious powers... Jason Patric and Corey Haim play the siblings, but it’s Kiefer Sutherland who steals the show as David, leader of the bloodsuckers.
FRIDAY
Quatermass and the Pit (1967) (Talking Pictures TV, 10pm)
‘Force more powerful than 1,000 H-Bombs unleashed to devastate earth! World in panic! Cities in flames!’ With a tagline like that, there’s no wonder that horror and sci-fi fans eagerly awaited the release of this film back in 1967. Based on a 1950s BBC TV series, the futuristic chiller was produced by Hammer Films. This time around, builders working on a London Underground extension unearth an ancient Martian spaceship containing the remains of insect-like aliens, a discovery which unleashes terrifying primeval forces. Fifty-three years on, the film has lost little of its power; it’s still an edge-of-your-seat project with a huge cult following.
Witness (1985) (BBC1, 10.45pm)
A murder takes place at a city railway station, witnessed by a young Amish boy. Cop John Book is charged with protecting him and his recently widowed mother. After reluctantly taking the case, Book mixes business with pleasure as the assignment ends in an unscheduled bout of romance with the youngster’s mother. The film is littered with several fantastic performances. Harrison Ford shines as Book, and Kelly McGillis is perfectly cast in the female lead.