Films day-by-day
Valerian and the City
of a Thousand Planets
Film4 HD, 9pm/Film4+1, 10pm 3
Sex OOO Violence OOO Language OOOBased on a comic-book series, Luc Besson’s extravagantly loopy sci-fi
adventure proved a box-office flop but, like his The Fifth Element, it is bursting
with knockabout action, visual dazzle and bonkers plotting. On the downside,
Dane DeHaan has zero charisma as a space major, while his co-star, Carnival
Row’s Cara Delevingne is merely decorative as his bickering sidekick. And
both of them are upstaged by Rihanna’s shape-shifting alien. 2017, 12, 134MINSCI-FI ADVENTURE
The Florida Project
Film4 HD, 9pm/Film4+1, 10pm 5Sex OOO Violence OOO Language OOOFizzing with vitality, brimful of empathy and insight, this terrific movie
immerses us in the lives of an exuberantly mischievous six-year-old girl
(Brooklyn Kimberly Prince) and her reckless, feckless single mother (Bria
Vinaite), residents of a tatty Florida motel in the shadow of Walt Disney’sMagic Kingdom. Director Sean Baker conveys the playful exuberance of his
rascally young heroine and her friends, but he also lets us see the heart-
breaking reality of their hand-to-mouth lives on the margin. 2017, 15, 111MINSOCIAL DRAMA
Monday 30 September Tuesday 1 October
ACTION ADVENTURE
The River Wild
Film4 HD, 6.50pm/
Film4+1, 7.50pm 4
Sex OOO Violence OOO Language OOOMeryl Streep makes a mostly successful
attempt at being an action heroine in
this wilderness adventure. She plays a
former river guide trying to patch up her
relationship with her husband (David
Strathairn) on a white-water rafting
expedition when they are captured by a
group of criminals led by Kevin Bacon’s
escaped convict. It is gripping stuff, even
if the film tips over into implausibility in
the closing stages. 1994, 12, 112MINANIMATED FANTASY
ParaNorman
Sky Family HD, 7pm 4Sex OOO Violence OOO Language OOOSuccessfully balancing knockabout
comedy and spooky chills, this animated
fantasy from the makers of Coraline is a
treat for kids and horror buffs alike. Set
in New England, the story’s hero,
11-year-old Norman (voiced by Kodi
Smit-McPhee), is ostracised because
he sees and talks to ghosts, only then
to save the day when a legendary witch
returns and revives the 18th-century
Puritans who put her to death, turning
them into zombies. 2012, PG, 93MINFANTASY DRAMA
Welcome to Marwen
Sky Drama HD, 8pm 4
Sex OOO Violence OOO Language OOOIn a village in World War Two Belgium,
an American flier battles the occupying
Nazis with the aid of a band of female
resistance fighters. The twist in Robert
Zemickis’s bizarre movie is that the
characters are all action dolls, the
creation of Mark Hogencamp, an artist
who fell victim to a brutal hate crime that
left him with brain damage. Steve Carell
portrays both the flesh-and-blood
Hogancamp and his daring action-doll
avatar. Also on Thursday. 2018, 12, 116MINALSO ON MONDAY
Bedknobs and Broomsticks
Sky Disney HD, 1.10pm & 8pm 4
Angela and David go bobbing along.The Prestige
Sky Greats HD, 8pm 4
Hugh and Christian are up to their old tricks.The Cider House Rules
Sony Movies, 9pm 4
Tobey Maguire goes right to the core.Field of Dreams
Paramount HD, 9pm 5
Kevin Costner pitches in.The Howling
Horror, 11.10pm 4
Dee Wallace cries werewolf.Q Full listings start on p53
COMEDY
The 40 Year Old Virgin
ITV2 HD, 9pm/ITV2+1, 10pm 4Sex OOO Violence OOO Language OOOHaving enjoyed well-deserved success in
the US version of The Office, Steve Carell
consolidated his position as one of
America’s most likeable comedy actors
as a fortysomething belatedly seeking
to divest himself of his virginity. The film
provides much amusement at the
expense of preening masculine
sexuality and laddish courtship rituals
but, beneath all the raunchy gags, it also
has something sensitive to say about the
fragility of the male ego. 2005, 15, 116MINACTION THRILLER
John Wick
5Star HD, 9pm/5Star+1, 10pm 4Sex OOO Violence OOO Language OOOThe set-up of this action thriller couldn’t
be more preposterous as Keanu Reeves’
widowed ex-assassin, John Wick, goes
on his killing spree because a Russian
Mafia boss’s slimy son (Alfie Allen) killed
his dog, a gift from his late wife. But the
hyper-stylised world and the fight
scenes are shot with a clarity and grace
that puts most other action movies to
shame, and Reeves’ invincible character
pulls off his improbable feats with
drop-dead cool. 2014, 15, 101MINSCI-FI HORROR
The Predator
Sky Sky-Fi HD, 9pm 3
Sex OOO Violence OOO Language OOOThe intervening years since Arnold
Schwarzenegger battled a dreadlocked
alien hunter in the Central American
jungle in 1987’s original Predator have
seen a couple of variable direct sequels
and a brace of dire Alien vs. Predator
spin-off films. Now the franchise gets
a reboot with Boyd Holbrook as the US
army sniper hero. The film, directed by
Shane Black (who had a small role in
the original film), mixes gory action and
larky banter. 2018, 15, 107MINALSO ON TUESDAY
Back to the Future
E4 HD, 8pm 5
Time McFlys for Michael J Fox.The Truman Show
Sky Drama HD, 8pm 4
Jim Carrey is something on TV.Steel Country
Sky Premiere HD, 10.10pm 3
Andrew Scott suspects foul play.Fright Night
Horror, 10.55pm 4
Roddy McDowall goes vampire hunting.A Nightmare on Elm Street
Sky Greats HD, 12m’t 4
The things that dreams aren’t made of.Q Full listings start on p63
Life wasn’t easy
when your mother
was off her trolleyDane and Cara
were still trying
to figure out what
the buttons did
PREM
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PREM
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