7 films worth seeking out in the next 7 days.

Saturday/Sunday 24th BBC4 @00.20

Bicycle Thieves. A man's bicycle is stolen and he needs to get it back. A simplistic synopsis for a heartbreaking story of poverty & honour in World War 2 Italy. Once voted the best film ever made and its certainly a contender. The type of movie that when you bring it up in conversation you instantly look like a cineaste.

Sunday 25th RTE2 @21.00

Up In The Air. George  Clooney & Vera Farmiga are top notch in this comedy/drama about two people who make a connection while living very lonely lives due to work. Cracking supporting cast in this too.

Monday 26th TG4 @21.30

Contagion. A star studded, intelligent and terrifyingly realistic depiction of what happens during and after a deadly pandemic decimates the human population. This one will make you hesitate the next time you reach for the antibiotics to cure your cold.

Tuesday/Wednesday 27th Film 4 @0.55

Synecdoche, New York. In a nutshell, a theatre director becomes obsessed with his work. Philip Seymour Hoffman is immense in this. It won't be for everyone but its a very rewarding watch and even better on the second viewing. Touching, humane and ambitious and with a superb supporting cast.

Wednesday 28th ITV4 @23.15

Bullitt. Steve McQueen. That car. That car chase. That music. A witness is killed. A cop sets out to take down the killer. A simple story done with style and verve. You'll recognise parts of this classic thriller even if you've never seen it.

Thursday 29nd 3E @22.00

Bullet To The Head. Sylvester Stallone plays an aging hitman out for revenge in New Orleans. Not well received by critics but very enjoyable stuff. Perfect film to record for some day when you are in a vile mood and want to see numerous baddies get bloodily gunned down.

Friday 30th Film4 @11.00

Forty Guns. Barbara Stanwyck as a tough as nails rancher facing off against the law. For the time (1957) this was an unusual but very good little western. Certainly different from the films of the time, it has a pretty straight forward story line but it full of surreal and odd 
touches. Stanwyck is great plus it looks fantastic.

7 films worth seeking out in the next 7 days. Couple of bona fide classics included this week.

Saturday 17th  BBC 2 @23.25

A Serious Man. A Jewish man's life goes into a downward spiral in 1960's Minnesota in this pretty black comedy. Far more interesting than it sounds. Full of typical Coen Brothers quirkiness. You mightn't enjoy this but you'll be glad you watched it.

Sunday 18th Syfy @21.00 

Eternal Sunshine Of The Spotless Mind. A heartbroken man undergoes a procedure to remove his memories of his ex-girlfriend. That's a very simple explanation for this bizarre and beautiful little film. Kate Winslet is good as always but Jim Carrey is superb, a career best ( so far) performance in a film you wont want removed from your head.

Monday 19th TG4 @21.30

Sweeney Todd. Tim Burton's beautiful looking and spectacularly bloody musical version of the Victorian tale of murder and cannibalism and haircuts. Depp is good but the star if this is imo, Helena Bonham Carter. She steals the show. Not for the faint of heart or the squeamish, this is the polar opposite to musicals like The Sound Of Music.

Tuesday 20th Film 4 @11am

High Noon. 85 minutes of pure tension as an about to be married sheriff has his past come back to haunt him and has his friends and colleagues let him down when he needs them most. Gary Cooper got an Oscar for his role in this classic western and thoroughly deserved it.

Wednesday 21st ITV 4 @22.00

Jaws. Cinematic perfection. Man vs nature. If you've seen it you know its a masterpiece, if not i'm jealous because you are in for a massive treat. Brilliant characters, some great tension & scares and some lovely little moments of comedy to relive the suspense.

Thursday 22nd Film 4 @14.40 

For Whom The Bell Tolls. A wartime romance, once again starring Gary Cooper as an American soldier fighting in the Spanish civil war who falls in love with Ingrid Bergman, a guerrilla fighter with a horrific past. Its a long film, nearly 3 hrs but the acting, both from the leads and the super supporting cast, the scenery and the score make sure the time flies by.

Friday 23rd RTE 2 @22.00

Heat. A crime masterpiece. Pacino & De Niro plus a glorious supporting cast. Cops and robbers on an epic scale. Couldn't get with this at all when i saw it first but i love it now. Everything about this film is quality. Best bank robbery scene ever too. IMHO.

A Date For Mad Mary. A lovely little Irish gem.

Mary has no place in the world. She's just out of jail and her friends are leaving her behind, turning into adults and getting married and all she wants to do is dance and have a few laughs. The wild teen has grown into a wild woman and her friends are ashamed of her. Now she has 3 weeks to find a date to her best friend's wedding and is out to prove she can gets herself one to spite her friends who have wrote her off as undateable.

From the tone of the trailers and what i'd heard i was expecting a full on comedy but this was much better than that. Yes, there's a lot of laughs but there's also a bucket-load of heart. Sad in places, poignant in others and even room for a spot of tenderness. Its a film that's not afraid to wear its heart on its sleeve.

Seana Kerslake is fantastic in the title role. Hardy but fragile. She makes you genuinely care for Mary. Also Denise McCormack as Mary's Mam Suzanne is top notch too. Doesn't have much screen time but still manages to show us that she loves yet is frustrated by her daughter and that she has her own romantic issues. Actually the cast is all round good, not a dud note. Even the bit parts seem lived in. Loads of familiar faces from Love/Hate and Moone Boy on show. Even that chest shaving eejit from a recent McDonalds ad shows up.

A thoroughly entertaining film. No big flashy plot-line and nothing we haven't seen before but it's so well done that it doesn't matter. You'll laugh and probably get a little misty eyed. Plus it's just great to go to the cinema and see an Irish film with accents and places you'll recognise. 

Finally as the icing on the cake, it's only 82 minutes long. Perfect length for a film like this. Manages to do more in that time than a Judd Apatow film can do in twice the time. 

7 films worth watching in the week ahead.

Sat 10th Sept @9.45pm RTE One

Noble. Deirdre O'Kane is great in this simplistic but very absorbing biopic of Christina Noble, an Irish woman who devoted her life to helping the less unfortunate. Good to see RTE showing Irish films in a primetime slot too. More of this.

Sun 11th Sept @11am Film 4

The Producers. A Mel Brooks masterpiece about a very different musical production. Uproarously funny. Starring the late & great Gene Wilder. Great sunday morning fun to blow away the cobwebs.

Sun 11th Sept @11.20pm ITV3

Out Of Sight. A cracking adaption of Elmore Leonard's novel about a robber and the US marshall chasing him.Tense, violent, hilarious and with the best car boot scene you'll ever see. George Clooney & Jennifer Lopez have never been better.

Mon 12th Sept (technically Tues) @01.25 Film 4

Martha Marcy May Marlene. A haunting film about a young woman trying to re-adjust to life after leaving a cult. Elizabeth Olsen gives a performance that will stay with you for a long time. Slow moving but never boring.

Wed 14th Sept @22.00 ITV 4

Senna. Documentary about the rise of Ayrton Senna and his premature death on a F1 track. Ive no interest in racing but was totally hooked by this because of a great mix of race footage and talking heads. Very compelling watch with a heartbreaker of an ending.

Thurs 15th Sept @11.15am More 4

3.10 To Yuma. The original version. Glenn Ford & Van Heflin star in a western about an escaped convict and the farmer who gets in his way. One of the quintessential western classics.

Fri 16th Sept @23.35 BBC1

Swingers. Slightly dated but still hilarious film about 2 chaps looking for love in Los Angeles. Vince Vaughn is great in this, worth watching for his dialogue alone.

A Film A Day Keeps The Doctor Away.

A new thing i'm trying out is a look at 7 films worth looking out for on tv over the next week. Ill pick one a day and give a little info on why its worth watching.

Saturday 3rd September. Film 4 @ 6.25pm

A League Of Their Own. A very entertaining and heartwarming look at women's baseball in the 1940s. Starring Tom Hanks and Geena Davis. A perfect rainy saturday evening film. 

Sunday 4th September. ITV 4 @ 10pm

The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo. American adaption of the Stieg Larsson novel. Starring Rooney Mara & Daniel Craig. A good little mystery thriller about a hacker and a journalist getting caught up in a decades old missing person case. Not for the faint of heart. 

Monday 5th September. TG4 @ 9pm

Alexander. Colin Farrell stars as Alexander The Great. Misunderstood when it was released but well worth a rewatch, especially if you like big epic historical films like Braveheart and El-Cid. 

Tuesday 6th September. More4 @ 11.30am 

Footsteps In The Fog. A noirish thriller about murder and blackmail set in early 20th century London. Well worth a watch if you are a fan of Hitchcock's films, especially his earlier ones. Starring Jean Simmons and Stewart Granger.

Wednesday 7th September. Film4 @ 9pm

The Kings Speech. Everyone knows this one. Cracking little film about a man overcoming a personal affliction after being thrust into a position of great power. Colin Firth and Helena Bonham Carter are excellent and you'll feel good after watching this.

Thursday 8th September. Syfy @ 10pm

Star Trek IV : The Voyage Home. My fave of all the Star Trek films. The crew of the enterprise have to travel back in time to save earth. Funny, tense, entertaining as hell. Even if you haven't seen the others you'll enjoy this one.

Friday 9th September. Dave @ 9pm

Pale Rider. Clint Eastwood as a mysterious stranger who helps the inhabitants of a west wild town fight back against a big time miner who wants their land. Very atmospheric western with a touch of the supernatural running through it. Western fans will love it.