Jigsaw, Taken 2, Casino Royale: films on TV today

Talking Pictures TV is a small channel with a big idea: to show old films, especially British, that are rarely seen on telly any more. It’s aimed at an older demographic all too often ignored by schedulers, and I welcome the endeavour, especially now it’s launching on Freeview. Take this lost gem from 1962 from producer/writer/director Val Guest (The Quatermass Xperiment, The Day the Earth Caught Fire), a British noir you might say, starring Jack Warner not as an honest uniformed copper but a plain-clothes detective investigating a grisly murder in an overcast Brighton, with Ronald Lewis (Nurse On Wheels, anyone?) as his younger DS. It’s precisely the sort of film to induce warm nostalgia in film fans. Why not give the channel a spin?

The Four Feathers ★★★
10.00pm-12.35am C5

This lavish version of AEW Mason's classic tale stars Heath Ledger as a man branded a coward by his family, friends and fiancé, who sets out in secret to prove them wrong by showing what he's made of during the Sudan campaign.

Taken 2 ★★★
9.00-10.50pm Film4

Geri-action hero Liam Neeson once more demonstrates his "particular set of skills" when the father of a kidnapper killed by Neeson's ex-CIA agent sets out for revenge.

Casino Royale ★★★★
9.00pm-12 midnight ITV2

Daniel Craig effortlessly makes James Bond his own as the 21st movie in the series goes back to basics, and establishes a 007 fit for the 21st Century.

Reservoir Dogs ★★★★★
11.00pm-1.05am Spike

Quentin Tarantino's barnstorming debut announced the birth of a maverick talent, as he expertly details out the fallout of a jewel heist gone spectacularly wrong.

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