Sunday Blockbuster
Sunday 3 September 2017
Criminal Activities
M-Net Movies Premiere, DStv Channel 104, at 20:30
Year: 2015
Cast: John Travolta, Michael Pitt, Dan Stevens
Director: Jackie Earle Haley
Genres: Crime, Drama, Thriller.
Rating:16VSNL
John Travolta stars as a ruthless mob boss in a neo-noir crime thriller in which an investment that “simply cannot fail” does exactly that, resulting in massive debt that can only be repaid by a heinous crime.
Four young men reunite at a friend’s funeral, and one of them shares an insider tip-off that will turn anyone willing to take the risk into an instant millionaire. But there’s a catch, and before they know it, their lives are on the line.
Sunday 10 September 2017
Garage Sale Mystery: The Art Of Murder
M-Net Movies Premiere, DStv Channel 104, at 20:30
Year: 2016
Cast: Lori Loughlin, Sarah Strange, Steve Bacic
Director: Kristoffer Tabori
Genres: Crime, Mystery.
Rating:PG13V
The seventh instalment of the popular crime thriller series enters the billion-dollar art scene, which, alas, has become a playground for mobsters and high rollers who will stop at nothing to lay their hands on a masterpiece.
Jennifer, an antique dealer, is organising a charity fund raising and is shock when a woman who promised to make a huge donation slips and falls to her death. Was it really an accident? Jennifer has her doubts.
Sunday 17 September 2017
The Infiltrator
M-Net Movies Premiere, DStv Channel 104, at 20:30
Year: 2016
Cast: Bryan Cranston, John Leguizamo, Diane Kruger
Director: Brad Furman
Genres: Crime, Biography.
Rating:16VSL
The true-life crime drama of a US Customs official who risked everything in his quest to nail one of the most ruthless – and successful – criminals of all time. Painful death awaits him if his mission is discovered.
Robert Mazur is a straight-laced government official who goes undercover as a corrupt businessmen. As planned, he becomes embroiled in the dirty business of money laundering and connects with the notorious Pablo Escobar.
Read the SAMDB review of The Infiltrator.
Sunday 24 September 2017
Mojave
M-Net Movies Premiere, DStv Channel 104, at 20:30
Year: 2015
Cast: Oscar Isaac, Garrett Hedlund, Louise Bourgoin
Director: William Monahan
Genre: Thriller
Rating:16VSL
A tale of suspense and intrigue set in the Mojave desert, one of the driest patches on earth. Two troubled souls cross paths in a desolated region – and one of them appears to have no scruples or feelings of any kind.
Tom’s life has fallen apart in the wake of a tragedy, which he refuses to discuss. Suicide seems to be his only option. In a last-gasp effort to regain his equilibrium, he undertakes a trip to the barren Mojave desert.
Movies available to DStv Premium customers
Tuesday 5 September 2017
Underworld: Blood Wars
M-Net Movies Premiere, DStv Channel 104, at 20:30
Year: 2016
Cast: Kate Beckinsale, Theo James, Tobias Menzies
Director: Anna Foerster
Genre: Action
Rating:16VSL
A vampire action horror film with Kate Beckinsale in the role of Selene, perhaps the sexiest vampire in the history of cinema. It is the fifth instalment of the Underworld series, and the sequel to Underworld: Awakenings.
The Lycans and Vampires are at war, and it appears as though the violence will never end. Selene, a death dealer, believes she has the power to put a stop to conflict, but first she must settle a score of her own.
Read the SAMDB review of Underworld: Blood Wars.
Saturday 9 September 2017
Garage Sale Mystery: The Novel Murders
M-Net Movies Premiere, DStv Channel 104, at 18:30
Year: 2016
Cast: Lori Loughlin, Sarah Strange, Steve Bacic
Director: Norma Bailey
Genre: N/A
Rating:E13
An intriguing whodunnit that explores the thin line between fact and fiction. Truth, the saying goes, is stranger than fiction, and in this instance, fiction may be more truthful than facts! Now try to get your head around that one as you make yourself comfy on the couch.
A murder has been committed, and the killer has left two important clues on the scene of the crime. Antiques expert Jennifer Shannon has a sneaky suspicion that she has come across the self-same clues in a crime novel.
Tuesday 12 September 2017
Johnny English Reborn
M-Net Movies Smile, DStv Channel 104, at 19:00
Year: 2011
Cast : Rowan Atkinson, Rosamund Pike, Dominic West
Director: Oliver Parker
Genres: Comedy, Action, Adventure.
Rating:PG13V
Rowan Atkinson made his name as Mr Bean, but also delighted audiences as Johnny English, a James Bond wannabe who has all the attributes of a superspy… or so he seems to think. He is back for another head-on collision with the underworld. And with common sense, it seems.
Assassins have a world leader in their sights and who is better equipped to stop them than Johnny English? He comes armed with astounding technological devices to help him in his quest to save lives and avert disaster.
Wednesday 20 September 2017
Pelé: Birth Of A Legend
M-Net Movies Premiere, DStv Channel 104, at 18:10
Year: 2016
Cast: Vincent D’Onofrio, Rodrigo Santoro, Diego Boneta
Directors: Jeff Zimbalist, Michael Zimbalist
Genres: Biography, Drama.
Rating: PG
Walk into a sports bar during a soccer match and at some point you are likely to overhear a heated discussion: who is the greatest player of all time, Lionel Messi or Christiano Ronaldo? It might not be either, but a legend from many decades back. This is his story.
A boy from the slums of Sao Paulo sees soccer as a way out of a life without prospects, and starts practising tirelessly, inventing a new style along the way. Down the road he will become the greatest player Brazil – and perhaps the world – has produced.
Tuesday 26 September 2017
Bad Moms
M-Net Premiere, DStv Channel 104, at 20:30
Year: 2016
Cast: Mila Kunis, Kathryn Hahn, Kristen Bell
Directors: Jon Lucas, Scott Moore
Genre: Comedy
Rating:16SNL
One of the hit comedies of 2016 set a new film franchise into motion. It is impossible to choose one stand-out performance from a rocking ensemble cast of mothers, kids and goodie-goodies. They’re all totally convincing; you’ll recognise your mom’s personality – or your own – in one of them.
If there is a single term to describe mothers the world over, it won’t be “loving” or “devoted”, as the popular myth would have it. It will be “fed-up”. Three moms sharing similar burdens decide they’ve had enough of being everyone’s slave. It’s party time!
Thursday 28 September 2016
Deepwater Horizon
M-Net Movies Premiere, DStv Channel 104, at 18:15
Year: 2016
Cast: Mark Wahlberg, Kurt Russell, Douglas M. Griffin
Director: Peter Berg
Genres: Drama, Thriller.
Rating:13VL
A real-life drama with a powerful ensemble cast. It is based on the Deep Water Horizon explosion, which resulted in millions of litres of oil being spilt into the sea in the Gulf of Mexico – with a disastrous effect on marine life.
Senior executive of a major oil company issue instructions to reduce safety inspections in order to speed up the drilling process on a massive rig in the Gulf of Mexico – in spite of warnings that this will endanger the lives of everyone on the rig. The result? The biggest oil spill in US history.
Read the SAMDB review of Deepwater Horizon.
Saturday 30 September 2017
War Dogs
M-Net Movies Premiere, DStv Channel 104, at 20:00
Year: 2016
Cast: Jonah Hill, Miles Teller, Steve Lantz
Director: Todd Phillips
Genres: Comedy, Crime.
Rating:16VNL
Creating laughs in a story about a war sounds like a formidable challenge, but sometimes humour is the best way to deal with disaster, as in this fictionalised account of a massive true-life arms deal that took place with the war in Afghanistan as backdrop.
$300-million is the kind of amount people will kill for, despite the risk involved, and so it is for two young men who stumble upon the deal of a lifetime. Even their paymasters – the US Government – cannot be trusted.
Read the SAMDB review of War Dogs.
Compact
Monday 4 September 2017
Fallen
M-Net Movies Action, DStv Channel 110, at 17:55
Year: 1998
Director: Scott Hicks
Cast: Joely Richardson, Addison Timlin, Hermione Corfield
Genres: Crime, Drama, Fantasy
Rating:16VL
An American fantasy romantic comedy aimed at young adults. The theme is simple but powerful: Even those who have “fallen” in the eyes of the community can get a second shot at redemption; there is more to the universe than we can ever hope to fathom.
A young girl is falsely accused of having caused the death of a boy, and is sent to reform school. It is a miserable place… until she falls in love with the kindest boy she has ever met. Unbeknownst to her, he is an angel, who has cared for her for centuries.
Tuesday 5 September 2017
Barbie: The Princess & The Popstar
M-Net Movies All Stars, DStv Channel 111, at 18:00
Year: 2012
Cast: Kelly Sheridan, Jennifer Waris, Ashleigh Ball
Director: Zeke Norton
Genres: Animated, Family animation, Music.
Rating: Family.
A rockin’-and-rollin’ animated musical extravaganza inspired by one of Mark Twain’s best-loved stories, The Prince and the Pauper. It is the 23rd instalment of the Barbie film series.
Two teenagers, one a princess, the other a popstar, whose lives differ in every respect, find that they nonetheless have a lot in common – and that each would prefer the other’s life to their own. They trade places – and have to rethink their decision.
Access
Monday 18 September 2017
Mama I Want To Sing!
M-Net Movies Zone, DStv Channel 139, at 19:30
Year: 2011
Cast: Ciara Harris, Lynn Whitfield, Patti LaBelle
Director: Charles Randolph-Wright
Genres: Music, Drama.
Rating: PG
A highly entertaining musical film loosely based on the life of Doris Troy, the daughter of a preacher. Like Whitney Houston and several others, she developed her love of singing as a member of a church choir.
Amara Winter’s rise to fame is spectacular, which, for the once-modest daughter of a pastor, comes as a cultural shock. When she moves away from Gospel music to reach a larger audience, her mother disapproves and does everything in her power to force Amara back to her roots.
Friday 22 September 2017
Walking On Sunshine
M-Net Movies Zone, DStv Channel 139,at 21:00
Year: 2014
Cast: Annabel Scholey, Greg Wise, Leona Lewis
Directors: Max & Dania
Genres: Music Romance.
Rating: PG13L
The brilliant singer-songwriter Leona Lewis makes her film debut in a British romantic musical comedy for which you will certainly have to put on your dancing shoes. It features many of the most popular hit songs from the 80s.
Some might say France is the romantic capital of the world. It can mean only one thing: they haven’t been to Italy! Maddie falls in love with an Italian hunk, and instantly accepts his wedding proposal. Oh dear. He turns out to be her sister’s former beau.. and the love of her life.
