New Zealand Listener – June 01, 2019

JUNE 1 2019 LISTENER 69

SATURDAY JUNE 1

The Happy Prince (Rialto, Sky

039, 8.30pm). By 1897, Oscar

Wilde’s star had fallen and the

once-loved poet and play-

wright’s life lay in ruins. The

Happy Prince concerns these

years, after his persecution and

jailing for “gross indecency

with men”, of self-imposed

exile. Estranged from his wife

(Emily Watson) and scorned

by his former friends and

lovers, Wilde, of course, has

the last word: “My wallpaper

and I are fighting a duel to

the death. One or the other

of us has to go.” The princely

Rupert Everett, who wrote and

directed the film, plays Wilde

and the match-up is fitting:

Everett was one of the first

openly gay celebrities of his

era. (2018)

The Queen (Māori TV, 8.45pm).

Director Stephen Frears

(Philomena, Florence Foster Jen-

kins) and writer Peter Morgan

(creator of Netflix series The

Crown) come together in this

film about the British monar-

chy in crisis. And who better

to play the Queen than Her

Majesty of the screen, Dame

Helen Mirren? The crisis is the

death of Diana, Princess of

Wales and whether she should

have a state funeral (no longer

being part of the royal family).

The Queen, in her opposition,

has tradition on her side, but

Prime Minister Tony Blair

(Michael Sheen) has a keen

instinct for the public mood

• or the focus group, at least.
  (2006)

Ocean’s Twelve (TVNZ 2,

11. 0 5 p m). Danny Ocean
    (George Clooney) and his gang
    of smooth criminals are back
    for another heist on another
    continent. If you’ve forgotten
    the stars, don’t worry, there’ll
    be plenty of slow-panning
    across the faces of Brad Pitt,
    Matt Damon, etc ... as they sit
    in a jail cell from which they’re
    inevitably sprung. Director

A Guide to the Week’s Viewing

TV Films

The Happy Prince, Saturday.

by RYAN HOLDER