Film4 Listings for Friday 22nd November
Listings: all day morning afternoon evening late night
11:00
The Red Pony (Film) Film icon 3 star rating U certificate
John Steinbeck wrote the screenplay for this adaptation of his own story. Peter Miles stars as Tom Tiflin, a lonely farm boy who takes refuge from his squabbling parents in the company of his beloved foal, the eponymous equine. The pony is owned by ranch hand Billy Buck, who teaches Miles how to tame it and care for it, providing an escape for the boy and a lesson to his parents. Aaron Copland's score and Tony Gaudio's rich Technicolor photography combine with Lewis Milestone's experienced direction in this dramatic western.
Director: Lewis Milestone
Starring: Myrna Loy, Robert Mitchum, Louis Calhern, Shepperd Strudwick, Peter Miles, Margaret Hamilton
(Subtitles, 1949, U, 3 Star)
12:45
Dragoon Wells Massacre (Film) Film icon 12 certificate
This intriguing western from Harold D Schuster stars Dennis O'Keefe as cavalry officer Matt Riordan, assigned to lead marshall Bill Haney and his prisoner Link Ferris through Apache territory. But when they reach Dragoon Wells, they're ambushed and Riordan must lead a disparate band of survivors to safety while trying to prevent Ferris's escape.
Director: Harold D. Schuster
Starring: Dennis O'Keefe, Barry Sullivan, Mona Freeman, Katy Jurado, Sebastian Cabot, Max Showalter
(Subtitles, Audio Described, 1957, 12)
14:30
The Comancheros (Film) Film icon 3 star rating PG certificate
Western starring John Wayne as Texas Ranger Jake Cutter. After taking gambler Paul Regret into custody, Cutter is forced to team up with his prisoner on a covert mission to tackle a band of thieves and gunrunners called the Comancheros. This final film from Casablanca director Michael Curtiz features star support from Lee Marvin and Nehemiah Persoff, and a stirring score by Elmer Bernstein.
Director: Michael Curtiz
Starring: John Wayne, Stuart Whitman, Ina Balin, Nehemiah Persoff, Lee Marvin, Michael Ansara
(Subtitles, 1961, PG, 3 Star)
16:40
Doctor in Distress (Film) Film icon 3 star rating PG certificate
Under the steady hand of Ralph Thomas, who directed the other Doctor... films, Dr Simon Sparrow returns to St Swithins as an experienced doctor but he still has a roving eye for the ladies, which soon settles on Delia Mallory. Once again, Sir Lancelot Spratt is in residence, but this time as a patient who's fallen for physiotherapist Iris. Will Sparrow's tips help him win her hand?
Director: Ralph L. Thomas
Starring: Dirk Bogarde, Samantha Eggar, James Robertson Justice, Mylène Demongeot, Donald Houston, Barbara Murray
(Subtitles, 1963, PG, 3 Star)
18:45
Tooth Fairy (Film) Film icon PG certificate
Dwayne Johnson stars in Michael Lembeck's family fantasy comedy about a tough-guy sportsman who learns the hard way not to puncture a child's illusions. Derek Thompson is an ice hockey pro whose main tactical use is the flattening of opponents - often depriving them of a tooth or two in the process. His aggression has earned him the nickname 'Tooth Fairy', but when he unsportingly tells his girlfriend's daughter that tooth fairies don't exist in reality, he's in for a bit of a shock. Unknown to him they do - and they take great umbrage at his slight. Thompson is whipped away to Fairy Land, where he's tried for his misdemeanour and sentenced to a week's community service as a tooth fairy. Thus he sprouts wings, is furnished with an outfit completely at odds with his usual image and is given Tracy as a mentor. And, as the comedic misunderstandings and slapstick errors steadily mount, it's clear Thompson wasn't cut out for his new line of work.
Director: Michael Lembeck
Starring: Dwayne Johnson, Ashley Judd, Stephen Merchant, Ryan Sheckler, Seth MacFarlane, Julie Andrews
(Widescreen, Subtitles, 2010, PG, 2 Star)
21:00
Shakespeare in Love (Film) Film icon 3 star rating 15 certificate
Tom Stoppard provided the witty and intelligent script for John Madden's romantic comedy in which young Will Shakespeare struggles with writer's block and money worries while trying to complete Romeo and Ethel: The Pirate's Daughter. Gwyneth Paltrow once more employs her faultless English accent, playing aristocratic Viola de Lesseps, who is shortly to be married off but yearns to slum it as an actor. Disguising herself as a boy in order to be allowed on stage, Viola becomes Will's muse, and the more familiar tale of Romeo and Juliet begins to take shape as the couple fall passionately in love. The film is littered with knowing lines and energetically supported by a stellar cast, including Judy Dench as Queen Elizabeth - a cameo performance which earned her one of the movie's seven Oscars. First screening on Film4.
Director: John Madden
Starring: Geoffrey Rush, Tom Wilkinson, Steven O'Donnell, Tim McMullan, Joseph Fiennes, Steven Beard
(Premiere, Widescreen, Subtitles, 1998, 15, 3 Star)
23:25
The Comedian (Film) Film icon 15 certificate
Tom Shkolnik's debut feature film is an intimate drama about an aspiring comedian struggling for a sense of identity in contemporary London. Thirtysomething Ed is a reluctant salesman by day, and hasn't managed to make much of an impression on the amateur stand-up circuit by night. After a chance encounter on a bus, Ed begins an affair with artist Nathan but he's also drawn to French musician Elisa. It's Ed's failure to choose a path and commit to it that provides the film's dramatic engine, and Shkolnik's low-fi improvisational style nicely captures the London lifestyles of these drifting souls. Film4 premiere.
Director: Tom Shkolnik
Starring: Nathan Stewart-Jarrett, Edward Hogg, Steven Robertson, Brett Goldstein, Gerard Murphy, Elisa Lasowski
(Premiere, Widescreen, Subtitles, 2012, 15, 2 Star)
01:00
The Pillow Book (Film) Film icon 3 star rating 18 certificate
Peter Greenaway's film is a feast for the eye, using graphics, subtitles and superimpositions, but the story itself is equally absorbing. Nagiko, who has a fetish for calligraphy on the human body, meets ideal soul-mate Jerome, an English translator sent to Japan. But once Nagiko's father's gay publisher rejoins the scene, the story is overtaken by treachery and bloodlust.
Director: Peter Greenaway
Starring: Vivian Wu, Yoshi Oida, Ken Ogata, Hideko Yoshida, Ewan McGregor, Judy Ongg
(Subtitles, 1996, 18, 3 Star)




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