Finnegan On Films: A Diverse Range Of Movies To Enjoy This Week

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In amongst the Olympic coverage, there are plenty of alternative entertainment options to watch some old favourites once again says our movie guy, James Finnegan…

It now appears that we are going through the series, which is great news for the young fans of Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (Saturday 6.35 RTE One).

This, the third in the series, has Harry finding out that he is the target of the sinister Sirius Black (Garry Oldman).  However Harry has an ally in a new teacher at Hogwarts, as well as, of course, Ron and Hermione.

This is a darker tale than the previous parts, and none the worse for that.  Director Alfonso Cuaron does a fine job in eliciting performances from the trio of heroes at the centre of the stories.

Continued below…

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Bridesmaids (Saturday 9.00pm RTE Two) seems almost a nostalgia piece now with big weddings and Hen Parties.

Annie (Kristen Wiig) is asked by her best friend to be Maid of Honour at her wedding.

She is determined to make the pre-wedding celebrations the best ever, but unfortunately a lack of organising skills and a very competitive fellow bridesmaid, makes this a fraught experience.

Also starring Rose Byrne, Maya Rudolph, Chris O’Dowd and Melissa McCarthy, who steals every scene she is in, this is very, very funny.

A personal favourite, Fiddler on the Roof (Sunday 3.20pm TG4) is one of the best movie musicals ever.

Tevye (Topol reprising the role he made popular on stage) is a poor Jewish peasant milkman living in the Ukraine.

He has the challenge of marrying off his five daughters in a background of social unrest and changing traditions.  He wants to arrange their marriages.  They want to marry for love.

Mary Queen of Scots (Sunday 9.30pm RTE One) has been filmed a number of times before, but this version is at least as good as any before.  Mary Stuart (Saoirse Ronan) attempts to overthrow her cousin Elizabeth the First (Margot Robbie).

Not a good career move in Tudor England, as Mary finds herself condemned to years of imprisonment, as it would have been bad form to execute a fellow Queen.

A much underrated historical drama that also stars Jack Lowden, David tenant and Guy Pearce and directed by Josie Rourke.

Now comes a film that unleashed a thousand memes, as well as launched Liam Neeson as an action hero.

Taken (Monday 9.00 pm RTE2)  is what happened when kidnappers take an American teenager. What they don’t realise is that dad (Neeson) is a former CIA operative with, yes, a specific set of skills who is going to come looking for them and rescue his daughter.

Starring Famke Jansen, Maggie Grace and Holly Valance, directed by Pierre Morel and written by Luc Besson and Robert Mark Kamen, this has spawned a number of film sequels and a television series. Enjoy and Stay Safe!