The Best Films On Freeview June 10th – June 16th

Here are my film recommendations you can watch on TV this week on UK Freeview.

Monday 10th June: The Truman Show (1998)

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Film 4, 7.05pm.

The Truman Show marks one of Jim Carrey’s first roles outside of comedy. He nails it as the titular Truman, a man unaware his entire life is a staged TV show complete with actors and product placement. I recall venturing out on a solo trip to the cinema to catch this. The central message is still just as relevant today as it was then: we should always strive for a new horizon. Ed Harris, the brilliant Laura Linney and Natascha McElhone co-star.

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Tuesday 11th June: Jersey Girl (2004)

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BBC 1, 11.35pm.

Jersey Girl received a right critical walloping upon release. What a load of bunkum. From director Kevin Smith, who always tells it like it is, the film follows one Ollie Trinke (Ben Affleck.) A man in love with his wife and his ego-boosting career in New York, Trinke moves back home to live with his Dad after his wife’s death during childbirth. I can’t say enough about how genuinely this film fills me with hope. Hope for a more honest cinema, a cinema that’s not afraid to blub one minute then let out an accidental toot the next. Big laughs come from the sadly now-departed George Carlin and Liv Tyler.

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Wednesday 12th June: Con Air (1997)

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BBC 3, 9pm.

Con Air is a prime example of an action movie done right. Nicolas Cage, John Cusack and John Malkovich all star in this airborne actioner. After an ex-con finds himself awarded early release for good behaviour, the convict cargo flight he is on turns into utter chaos. Because the prisoners seize control of the plane. From director Simon West, who went on to helm Lara Croft: Tomb Raider and The Expendables 2, Con Air is a guilty pleasure you should never feel guilty about.

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Thursday 13th June: A Knight’s Tale (2001)

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Film 4, 6.25pm.

A Knight’s Tale plays out like a Hollywood-ised version of a Monty Python sketch. Its humour slots into the family-friendly PG rating without losing its verve. Heath Ledger stars as William Thatcher, a peasant desperate for the privilege and wealth that comes from being a Knight. Along with his two best mates, he decides to sod class and have a go at entering a jousting tournament. It’s a big adventurous romp and tons of fun.

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Friday 14th June

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Inland Empire (2006). ITV 1, 10.35pm.

David Lynch’s films are an acquired taste. If you like your entertainment wrapped in a bow, with an ending which sews up all the loose ends, then you’d be better off watching The Great British Sewing Bee. Lynch’s Inland Empire is a sort-of companion piece to his 2001 classic, Mulholland Dr. Laura Dern stars as…well, it’s not entirely clear. She navigates through a tangled Hollywood journey riddled with psychosis, with tinseltown’s citizens rearing their masterfully deranged heads. I love Lynch. He’s a genius who strays off the path and shows you what you’ve always known lurked somewhere in the back of your mind. Kick back, zone out, and don’t try to work it out. Enjoy the madness.

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Secretary (2001). Film 4. 11.05pm.

Maggie Gyllenhaal has stepped back from cinema since she had children. This is why Secretary is worth a revisit; to remind us all that she’s one of the very best actresses working in cinema today. A pitch black comedy, Secretary follows the story of Lee Holloway, a young woman out to get a job. When she finds work as a typist for E. Edward Grey (James Spader) their relationship takes an unusual turn. I had so much faith in this film I bought the Region 1 DVD before I’d even seen it.

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Saturday 15th June: Buried (2009)

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ITV 4. 10.00pm.

The idea of being buried in a box, or watching a film about someone buried in a box, sounds horrific. In fact, in sounds so bad thinking about it makes me want to run around a meadow. Thank goodness that Ryan Reynolds pulls it together as the poor soul trapped in coffin buried underground. The film’s short running time keeps it packed together and you’ll be amazed at how riveting a confined, one location thriller can be. Plus, you’ll probably shout at the telly a lot.

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Sunday 16th June: My Afternoons With Margueritte (2010)

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BBC 4. 10.00pm.

Just watching the trailer for My Afternoons With Margueritte is a reminder of the best foreign cinema has to offer. Gerard Depardieu plays a lumbering chap from a small French town who can’t read. When he one day meets an elderly lady with a passion for reading aloud, the two become friends as she teaches him to love literature. Don’t be swayed by the subtitles. People who refuse to watch cinema because they have to read the dialogue are only cheating themselves out of thousands of experiences that smash a lot of Hollywood’s output to a pulp. A heart warming film with razor sharp humour and observations, you’d be really daft not to see this.

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