Best on the box Christmas and New Year movies
John Daly
Last Christmas (RTE 2, Thursday 21st, 9pm)
Nothing seems to go right for young Kate, a frustrated Londoner who works as an elf in a year-round Christmas shop. But things soon take a turn for the better when she meets Tom - a handsome charmer who seems too good to be true for a Yuletide romance.
Bad Boys For Life (RTE 1, Friday 22nd, 9.35pm)
The wife and son of a Mexican drug lord embark on a vengeful quest to kill all those involved in his trial and imprisonment - including Miami Detectives Mike Lowrey and Marcus Burnett. Will Smith and Martin Lawrence star.
Saving Private Ryan (RTE 2, Friday 22nd, 9.40pm)
Tom Hanks plays Captain John Miller, who leads his men behind enemy lines to find Private James Ryan, whose three brothers have been killed in combat. Surrounded by the brutal realties of WWII, each man embarks upon a personal journey and discovers their own strength.
7500 (RTE 1, Saturday 23rd, 10.35pm)
When terrorists try to seize control of a Berlin-Paris flight, a soft-spoken American co-pilot struggles to save the lives of the passengers and crew while forging a surprising connection with one of the hijackers. Joseph Gordon-Levitt stars.
Clockwise (Saturday 23rd, 12.15am)
School headmaster John Cleese is obsessed with timeliness, order and discipline. After meticulously preparing a speech for an education conference, Brian misses his train. With no one else to turn to, he asks a young former student for a ride - only for her parents to believe she’s run away with an older man.
Silent Night (Sky Cinema, from Saturday 23rd)
A gritty revenge tale from director John Woo where a tormented father witnesses his young son die when caught in a gang’s crossfire on Christmas Eve, and makes vengeance his life’s mission after embarking on a punishing training regimen in order to avenge his son’s death.
No Time To Die (RTE 1, Sunday 24th, 8pm)
James Bond has left active service and is enjoying a tranquil life in Jamaica - but his peace is short-lived when an old CIA friend sets him on a mission to rescue a kidnapped scientist and a mysterious villain armed with dangerous new viral technology.
Allelujah (Sky Cinema, from Sunday 24th)
Jennifer Saunders, Derek Jacobi and Judi Dench star in a warm story about old age. When the geriatric ward in a small Yorkshire hospital is threatened with closure, they decide to fight back by galvanizing the local community: they invite a news crew to film their preparations for a concert in honour of the hospital's most distinguished nurse. What could go wrong?
The Young Offenders (RTE 2, Sunday 24th, 9.10pm)
Two teenage boys from Cork steal bicycles and ride off on a quest to find a missing bale of cocaine worth millions of euros. The start of a series that continued on television and the big screen and introduced a global audience to Cork locations and humour.
The Super Mario Brothers Movie (Sky Cinema, from Christmas Day)
Mario and Luigi are transported down a mysterious pipe and wander into a magical new world. With the assistance of Toad and some training from the strong-willed ruler of the Mushroom Kingdom, Princess Peach, Mario taps into his own power.
Some Like It Hot (RTE 1, Christmas Day, 8am)
After witnessing a Mafia murder, saxophone player Tony Curtis and his buddy Jack Lemmon improvise a quick plan to escape from Chicago with their lives. Disguising themselves as women, they join an all-female jazz band while competing for the affection of sexy singer, Marilyn Monroe. A classic.
Belfast (RTE 1, Christmas Day, 9.35pm)
A movie from director/actor Kenneth Branagh's own experience where a nine-year-old boy must chart a path towards adulthood through a world that has suddenly turned upside down - but where joy, laughter, music and the formative magic of the movies remain.
The Great Escape (RTE 2, St Stephen’s Day, 3.20pm)
Imprisoned during World War II in a German POW camp, a group of Allied soldiers outwit their captors by digging a tunnel out of the prison grounds, only to face bigger tests than they ever imagined. James Garner, Richard Attenborough, Donald Pleasance, James Coburn and Charles Bronson are just some of the starry cast. Plus of course Steve McQueen and that legendary motorcycle ride. A cracker.
The Longest Day (RTE 2, Friday 29th, 3.20pm)
One of the greatest war films ever made, telling the story of the Normandy invasion and the many stories, small and large, that happened in that epic struggle, A stellar Hollywood and European cast makes this a definite for the recorder.
Polite Society (Sky Cinema, from Friday 29th)
A merry mash-up of sisterly affection, parental disappointment and bold action, it follows martial artist-in-training Ria Khan who believes she must save her older sister Lena from her impending marriage via a wedding heist in the name of independence and sisterhood.
Sisu (Sky Cinema, from Saturday 30th)
During the last desperate days of WWII, a solitary prospector crosses paths with Nazis on a scorched-earth retreat in northern Finland who steal his gold. But they quickly discover that they have just tangled with no ordinary miner as this legendary ex-commando will embody what sisu means: a white-knuckled form of courage in the face of overwhelming odds
Arthur’s Whiskey (Sky Cinema, from New Year’s Day)
A feel-good comedy about living in the moment. When Patricia Hodge’s husband dies, she discovers he had invented an anti-aging elixir that literally takes the years off. Sharing it with her two friends, Diane Keaton and Lulu, the three rejuvenated women waste no time in painting the town red in a world very different to the one they remember.