rabbi
13-01-2009, 11:46 PM
Film4 Listings for Wednesday 14th January
13:00
Highly Dangerous (Film)
The King of the '50s thriller, novelist Eric Ambler, wrote this comedy spy thriller to highlight the talents of Margaret Lockwood. She plays Frances Gray, a prim entomologist recruited by the British secret service to investigate an obscure Balkan state's attempt to develop biological weapons. Unfortunately, she runs into police chief Anton Razinski, who frames her for murder and injects her with a truth serum. But she escapes and teams up with US journalist Bill Casey. Unfortunately, she is still under the influence of the drug and believes herself to be the heroine of a radio play as she and Casey embark on a mission to liberate insects infected with a lethal bacteria.
Director: Roy Ward Baker
Starring: Margaret Lockwood, Dane Clark, Marius Goring, Naunton Wayne, Wilfrid Hyde-White, Eugene Deckers
(Black and White, Subtitles, 1950, U, 3 Star)
14:40
Only The Valiant (Film)
Gregory Peck stars in this Gordon Douglas western as Richard Lance, an army captain charged with defending a small garrison against an Apache attack in order give the main fort a chance to build up forces that will defeat the advance. Already under a cloud of suspicion for surviving a mission in which his friend Gig Young killed, he picks the dregs of the regiment, including those who have little love for him, for the task. Featuring Hollywood stalwarts Lon Chaney Jr, Ward Bond and Neville Brand.
Director: Gordon Douglas
Starring: Gregory Peck, Barbara Payton, Ward Bond, Gig Young, Lon Chaney Jr., Neville Brand
(Black and White, Subtitles, 1951, 12, 3 Star)
16:45
Penny Serenade (Film)
Oscar-nominee Cary Grant stars as Roger Adams in George Stevens' surprisingly successful mix of tragic drama and humour, also starring Irene Dunne as his wife, Julie. As Julie packs in preparation for their divorce, the song Penny Serenade plays, transporting her back to her first meeting with Roger, their marriage and the tragic loss in birth of their son. Unable to bear children, they adopt an infant daughter, only for her to die just a few years later. Roger, wracked by guilt and loathing, sees no future for their marriage but redemption for both awaits. The script mixes cracking screwball comedy lines with scenes of intense emotion but somehow the disparate elements hang together in this romantic drama.
Director: George Stevens
Starring: Irene Dunne, Cary Grant, Beulah Bondi, Edgar Buchanan, Ann Doran, Eva Lee Kuney
(Black and White, Subtitles, 1941, U, 4 Star)
19:05
Freaky Friday (Film)
Fast-moving 'Disney-style' comedy about a mother and daughter who wish they could change places for a day just so the other new how hard it was. However, on this particular day, their innocent wish is granted thanks to a magical talisman, and they find themselves switched into each other's bodies with disastrous results.
Director: Gary Nelson
Starring: Jodie Foster, Barbara Harris, John Astin, Patsy Kelly, Dick Van Patten
(Widescreen, Subtitles, 1977, U, 3 Star)
21:00
Volver (Film)
Pedro Almodóvar's drama stars Penélope Cruz as Raimunda, a single parent looking after her daughter Paula, whose life is turned upside down by a murder. Although Raimunda manages to dispose of the body, further complications arise when her mother Irene, presumed dead, suddenly reappears. But when cir***stances dictate that Raimunda has to re-open a disused restaurant to cover up the murder, she finds that it becomes unexpectedly, and riotously, successful.
Director: Pedro Almodóvar
Starring: Penélope Cruz, Carmen Maura, Lola Dueñas, Blanca Portillo, Yohana Cobo, Chus Lampreave
(Editor's Choice, 2006, 15, 4 Star)
23:15
Trainspotting (Film)
Trainspotting is acknowledged to be one of the most original films to come out of Britain. The multi-award-winning movie, based on Irvine Welsh's novel, stars Ewan McGregor, Ewen Bremner, Jonny Lee Miller, Robert Carlyle, Kelly MacDonald and Kevin McKidd in a story of drugs, survival, scams, friendship and tragedy.
Director: Danny Boyle
Starring: Ewan McGregor, Ewen Bremner, Jonny Lee Miller, Kevin McKidd, Robert Carlyle, Kelly Macdonald
(Widescreen, Subtitles, 1996, 18, 4 Star)
01:05
Keane (Film)
William Keane is a lost soul, haunting a New York bus station asking passers-by if they have seen his daughter, who disappeared when his attention was distracted, days, weeks, even months ago. He lives an aimless life of booze, drugs, *** with prostitutes until he meets Lynn Bedik and her seven-year-old daughter Kira, who move into the same rundown hotel. As Lynn begins to trust Keane more, she asks him to look after Kira as she searches for her feckless husband, but is Keane sane or is his search for his daughter a regular psychotic episode and could Kira's presence tip him even further over the edge? Like his two previous films, Clean, Shaven and Claire Dolan, Lodge Kerrigan's drama features those on the margins who seek happiness through children. Lewis, in an outstanding performance, shows a man driven by demons that he struggles to control.
Director: Lodge Kerrigan
Starring: Damian Lewis, Abigail Breslin, Amy Ryan, Liza Colón-Zayas, John Tormey, Brenda Denmark
(Widescreen, 2004, 15, 3 Star)
13:00
Highly Dangerous (Film)
The King of the '50s thriller, novelist Eric Ambler, wrote this comedy spy thriller to highlight the talents of Margaret Lockwood. She plays Frances Gray, a prim entomologist recruited by the British secret service to investigate an obscure Balkan state's attempt to develop biological weapons. Unfortunately, she runs into police chief Anton Razinski, who frames her for murder and injects her with a truth serum. But she escapes and teams up with US journalist Bill Casey. Unfortunately, she is still under the influence of the drug and believes herself to be the heroine of a radio play as she and Casey embark on a mission to liberate insects infected with a lethal bacteria.
Director: Roy Ward Baker
Starring: Margaret Lockwood, Dane Clark, Marius Goring, Naunton Wayne, Wilfrid Hyde-White, Eugene Deckers
(Black and White, Subtitles, 1950, U, 3 Star)
14:40
Only The Valiant (Film)
Gregory Peck stars in this Gordon Douglas western as Richard Lance, an army captain charged with defending a small garrison against an Apache attack in order give the main fort a chance to build up forces that will defeat the advance. Already under a cloud of suspicion for surviving a mission in which his friend Gig Young killed, he picks the dregs of the regiment, including those who have little love for him, for the task. Featuring Hollywood stalwarts Lon Chaney Jr, Ward Bond and Neville Brand.
Director: Gordon Douglas
Starring: Gregory Peck, Barbara Payton, Ward Bond, Gig Young, Lon Chaney Jr., Neville Brand
(Black and White, Subtitles, 1951, 12, 3 Star)
16:45
Penny Serenade (Film)
Oscar-nominee Cary Grant stars as Roger Adams in George Stevens' surprisingly successful mix of tragic drama and humour, also starring Irene Dunne as his wife, Julie. As Julie packs in preparation for their divorce, the song Penny Serenade plays, transporting her back to her first meeting with Roger, their marriage and the tragic loss in birth of their son. Unable to bear children, they adopt an infant daughter, only for her to die just a few years later. Roger, wracked by guilt and loathing, sees no future for their marriage but redemption for both awaits. The script mixes cracking screwball comedy lines with scenes of intense emotion but somehow the disparate elements hang together in this romantic drama.
Director: George Stevens
Starring: Irene Dunne, Cary Grant, Beulah Bondi, Edgar Buchanan, Ann Doran, Eva Lee Kuney
(Black and White, Subtitles, 1941, U, 4 Star)
19:05
Freaky Friday (Film)
Fast-moving 'Disney-style' comedy about a mother and daughter who wish they could change places for a day just so the other new how hard it was. However, on this particular day, their innocent wish is granted thanks to a magical talisman, and they find themselves switched into each other's bodies with disastrous results.
Director: Gary Nelson
Starring: Jodie Foster, Barbara Harris, John Astin, Patsy Kelly, Dick Van Patten
(Widescreen, Subtitles, 1977, U, 3 Star)
21:00
Volver (Film)
Pedro Almodóvar's drama stars Penélope Cruz as Raimunda, a single parent looking after her daughter Paula, whose life is turned upside down by a murder. Although Raimunda manages to dispose of the body, further complications arise when her mother Irene, presumed dead, suddenly reappears. But when cir***stances dictate that Raimunda has to re-open a disused restaurant to cover up the murder, she finds that it becomes unexpectedly, and riotously, successful.
Director: Pedro Almodóvar
Starring: Penélope Cruz, Carmen Maura, Lola Dueñas, Blanca Portillo, Yohana Cobo, Chus Lampreave
(Editor's Choice, 2006, 15, 4 Star)
23:15
Trainspotting (Film)
Trainspotting is acknowledged to be one of the most original films to come out of Britain. The multi-award-winning movie, based on Irvine Welsh's novel, stars Ewan McGregor, Ewen Bremner, Jonny Lee Miller, Robert Carlyle, Kelly MacDonald and Kevin McKidd in a story of drugs, survival, scams, friendship and tragedy.
Director: Danny Boyle
Starring: Ewan McGregor, Ewen Bremner, Jonny Lee Miller, Kevin McKidd, Robert Carlyle, Kelly Macdonald
(Widescreen, Subtitles, 1996, 18, 4 Star)
01:05
Keane (Film)
William Keane is a lost soul, haunting a New York bus station asking passers-by if they have seen his daughter, who disappeared when his attention was distracted, days, weeks, even months ago. He lives an aimless life of booze, drugs, *** with prostitutes until he meets Lynn Bedik and her seven-year-old daughter Kira, who move into the same rundown hotel. As Lynn begins to trust Keane more, she asks him to look after Kira as she searches for her feckless husband, but is Keane sane or is his search for his daughter a regular psychotic episode and could Kira's presence tip him even further over the edge? Like his two previous films, Clean, Shaven and Claire Dolan, Lodge Kerrigan's drama features those on the margins who seek happiness through children. Lewis, in an outstanding performance, shows a man driven by demons that he struggles to control.
Director: Lodge Kerrigan
Starring: Damian Lewis, Abigail Breslin, Amy Ryan, Liza Colón-Zayas, John Tormey, Brenda Denmark
(Widescreen, 2004, 15, 3 Star)