OCTOBER 13 2018 LISTENER 69
SATURDAY OCTOBER 13
Bobby (Choice TV, 8.30pm).
Bobby is less about the 1968
assassination of Robert Ken-
nedy than it is about the mood
and ambience of the period
- the Vietnam War, civil rights
protests, the sexual revolution
- and the star cast assembled
to re-enact it. Notables include
Harry Belafonte, Anthony
Hopkins, Laurence Fishburne
and Helen Hunt. Real-life foot-
age from protests, rallies and
speeches is intercut with acting
that reaches its climax in the
kitchen of the Ambassador
Hotel. (2006)
I, Tonya (Movies Premiere,
Sky 030, 8.30pm). “The figure
skating scandal that shocked
the world” is not something
that would usually keep my
attention. But the story of
world-class, redneck skater
Tonya Harding, whose boy-
friend organised an attack on
her main opponent before
the Olympic team selection
... well, that’s a different
beast entirely. Director Craig
Gillespie (The Finest Hours)
and writer Steven Rogers (PSI Love You) play a little fast
and loose with the truth, but
it’s part of the charm. They
break movie conventions the
way Harding changed figure
skating. Characters talk to
the camera mid-scene and sit
down for mockumentary-style
interviews. Stick around after
the credits for graceful footage
of the real Harding on the ice,
plus real interviews with the
gormless goons behind the
assault. (2017)The Da Vinci Code (TVNZ 2,
9.15pm). By director RonHoward (A Beautiful Mind,
Solo: A Star Wars Story), The Da
Vinci Code is supposed to be
the thinking man’s National
Treasure (see Friday). But
they are equally preposter-
ous. Everyone has read Dan
Brown’s novel and knows his
fictional conspiracy about how
the Catholic Church hid the
true nature of Jesus Christ and
Mary Magdalene’s relation-
ship. What is less known is
how widespread the anger
provoked by the movie was: it
was censored in Syria, Belarus,
Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Samoa,A Guide to the Week’s Viewing
TV Films by RYAN HOLDER
Bobby, Saturday.