The Weekly Retro Movie Rundown 140
Sky at night! It's only the weekend!
With our trusty CE sunglasses making us look cooler than ever, we'll gaze up at our big, bright burning star as we watch the cold dusty moon slowly creep it's way across into view. We'll watch as the sky starts to darken and mouths start to widen before reaching for our ever ready cameras and capturing this moment in astronomy forever onto celluloid wonder.
Have a happy retro weekend!
SATURDAY 21st March
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Flight of the Navigator (1986) BBC2 London 2:35pm-4:00pm (1 hour 25 minutes)
A boy mysteriously disappears in 1978, and is found eight years later, having not aged a day. He escapes being experimented on by government scientists by taking off in a crashed alien spaceship. With the help of the robot pilot, he tries to find out what has happened to him and if he can get back home. Sci-fi adventure, starring Joey Cramer and Veronica Cartwright, with the voice of Paul Reubens.
The Wizard of Oz (1939) More4 4:45pm-6:45pm (2 hours)
Youngster Dorothy Gale is whisked over the rainbow by a tornado into the magical land of Oz, where she inadvertently kills a wicked witch - incurring the wrath of another. Setting out to find the wizard who can show her a way home, she is joined on her journey by a scarecrow, a tin man and a cowardly lion, who all hope their own wishes will be granted. Musical fantasy, with Judy Garland, Ray Bolger, Jack Haley, Bert Lahr and Frank Morgan.
Wild Wild West (1999) ITV2 6:50pm-9:00pm (2 hours 10 minutes)
A government agent teams up with a gadget-mad master of disguise to investigate the disappearance of several scientists. Their search leads them to an evil genius who is plotting to kill the US president with some bizarre inventions of his own. Sci-fi Western comedy, starring Will Smith, Kevin Kline, Kenneth Branagh, Salma Hayek and Ted Levine.
Airplane! (1980) Film4 7:15pm-9:00pm (1 hour 45 minutes)
The passengers on board an ill-fated airliner become increasingly jittery when the flight crew flounder during a food-poisoning crisis. As ground control personnel struggle heroically to ensure the plane lands safely, a traumatised war veteran must face his fear to take the controls. Spoof disaster movie, starring Robert Hays, Leslie Nielsen, Robert Stack and Lloyd Bridges.
Lethal Weapon 3 (1992) Sky1 9:00pm-11:20pm (2 hours 20 minutes)
Detectives Riggs and Murtaugh team up with a reformed small-time crook and a tough, female internal-affairs investigator to track down a former policeman trafficking impounded weaponry to the bosses of organised crime. Action thriller sequel, starring Mel Gibson, Danny Glover, Joe Pesci and Rene Russo.
Fun Fact: During the scene where Riggs and Lorna are comparing scars, many of Riggs' were given to him during the events of Lethal Weapon 2 (1989), specifically the gun shots in his lung and the knife wound in the back of his leg..
Alien: The Director's Cut (1979) Syfy 9:00pm-11:30pm (2 hours 30 minutes)
Crew members of a cargo spacecraft answer a distress call from a derelict alien vessel. However, their mission of mercy has fatal repercussions when a deadly, seemingly indestructible monster gets on board their ship and starts killing them one by one. Alternate version of Ridley Scott's sci-fi horror, starring Sigourney Weaver, Tom Skerritt, Ian Holm and John Hurt.
SUNDAY 22nd March
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Fletch Lives (1989) ITV London 1:45pm-3:30pm (1 hour 45 minutes)
Wisecracking reporter IM Fletcher inherits a crumbling plantation in Louisiana from his aunt, and spends his first night sleeping there with a lawyer - who winds up dead the next morning. Suspecting murder, he uses a succession of disguises and uncovers a conspiracy surrounding the crooked owner of a Christian theme park and the dumping of toxic waste. Comedy sequel, with Chevy Chase, Hal Holbrook and Julianne Phillips.
The Borrowers (1997) Channel 5 3:20pm-5:00pm (1 hour 40 minutes)
A family of four-inch-high people living beneath the floorboards of an ordinary human home help the owner's son fight back when a dastardly lawyer plans to demolish the house and make way for a luxury apartment block. Children's fantasy, starring John Goodman, Jim Broadbent, Celia Imrie, Flora Newbigin and Tom Felton.
Edward Scissorhands (1990) Film4 4:50pm-6:55pm (2 hours 5 minutes)
A reclusive genius creates a boy but dies before completing him, leaving his brainchild with scissor-like blades in place of hands. A kindly woman from a nearby suburb takes pity on the lonely figure and welcomes him into her home. He quickly becomes a hit in the neighbourhood - but then his new friends start to turn against him. Tim Burton's fantasy, starring Johnny Depp, Winona Ryder, Dianne Wiest and Vincent Price.
Teen Wolf (1985) Syfy 5:00pm-7:00pm (2 hours)
A teenage misfit is initially dismayed to learn he is a werewolf as a result of a hereditary curse. He finds there are advantages as he becomes a local celebrity, while his enhanced agility makes him the star player of his school's basketball team - but fame quickly goes to his head. Comedy, starring Michael J Fox, James Hampton and Susan Ursitti.
The Fox and the Hound (1981) Sky Movies Disney HD 6:30pm-8:00pm (1 hour 30 minutes)
Category: Animated Movie/Drama Rating 6.7 An orphaned fox cub is taken in by a kindly widow, and becomes firm friends with a puppy belonging to a hunter. However, as they grow to adulthood, the dog is trained to prey on foxes, and the two animals realise their friendship may not survive as they are expected to be natural enemies. Animated adventure, with the voices of Mickey Rooney and Kurt Russell.
Fun Facts: The Bear's snarl is the same snarl as Shere Khan the tiger from The Jungle Book (1967) and Brutus and Nero the crocodiles from The Rescuers (1977). AND... The name "Tod" is derived from the Middle English word "todde", which means "fox".
Aliens (1986) Syfy 9:00pm-12:00am (3 hours)
Lone survivor Ripley is rescued in deep space decades after an alien creature wiped out her ship's entire crew. She is recruited to accompany a military expedition to a colony on the planet where she first encountered the monster, only to find the aliens have been reproducing and there are now hordes of them. James Cameron's sci-fi thriller sequel, with Sigourney Weaver, Michael Biehn and Lance Henriksen.
Whatever you're up to this weekend, make sure you've done enough rice and that you should always just be yourself because everyone else is taken. :)
xoxo