‘Mr. Harvey’ offers food for thought
On a night when much programming is background noise for family gatherings or gift wrapping, one quiet offering stands out.
The British film “Mr. Harvey Lights A Candle” (5 p.m., BBC America) stars Timothy Spall, best known for his role as Peter Pettigrew in “Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban.”
In “Mr. Harvey” he plays the title character, a curmudgeonly high school teacher taking a busload of unruly students on a class trip to England’s Salisbury Cathedral. The trip is also a personal pilgrimage, a chance for him to return to the place where he proposed to his now-deceased wife and where he will light a candle in her memory.
A religious man, he’s given to seething at the casual agnosticism that surrounds him. His fellow teachers and even the school bus driver dismiss religion as a relic at best and rubbish at worst.
One fellow teacher says he doesn’t mind believers just as long as they don’t bother anybody, particularly himself. Harvey replies with a hiss, “That’s not tolerance. That’s indifference.”
But by the end of the bus trip, a bumpy ride that includes random acts of theft and thoughtless cruelty, both Harvey and some of his undisciplined charges find themselves undergoing an unanticipated spiritual awakening resulting from their visit to the sacred site and from a surprising revelation that should be as shocking to viewers as Harvey’s students.
Hardly your typical feel-good movie, “Harvey” thoughtfully tackles such subjects as life, death, despair, hope and transcendence. Not bad for a little movie about a bus trip.
The documentary series “Off to War” (10 p.m. tonight, Discovery Times), following a National Guard unit in Iraq, ends its second acclaimed season.
To the cynical, “The Yule Log” (11:30 p.m., WGN) is merely a televised fireplace with accompanying Christmas carols. But for millions, it’s a heartwarming holiday staple.
For more than five decades the late funnyman Bob Hope spent holidays entertaining American troops stationed in far-flung outposts from Germany to Vietnam. The Military Channel invites viewers to spend Christmas with a six-hour marathon of Bob Hope specials beginning at 9 a.m. Sunday
The 12-hour “MerryThon” (3 a.m. Sunday, TV Land) offers Christmas stories from classic shows, including a memorable moment from “The Andy Griffith Show” (11:30 a.m.) when Barney and Andy throw a Christmas party at the jail.
Tonight’s highlights
Jimmy Stewart stars in the 1946 evergreen “It’s a Wonderful Life” (8 p.m., NBC).
Eddie Murphy talks to the animals in the 2001 comedy sequel “Dr. Doolittle 2” (8 p.m., Fox).
Tom Bergeron hosts a Christmas-themed episode of “America’s Funniest Home Videos” (8 p.m., ABC).
The annual 24-hour marathon airing of “A Christmas Story” (8 p.m., TBS) begins. A dozen chances to shoot your eye out, kid.
A college kid (Jonathan Taylor Thomas) rushes home to claim his Porsche in the 1998 comedy “I’ll Be Home for Christmas” (9 p.m., ABC).
“Warm Weather, White Christmas” (10 p.m., HGTV) celebrates holiday decorations in sunnier climes.
Scheduled on “48 Hours Mystery” (10 p.m., CBS): a policeman suspects that his father may have been the infamous “Black Dahlia” killer from the 1940s.
A six-episode “South Park” (10 p.m., Comedy Central) marathon begins.
Sunday’s highlights
Scheduled on “60 Minutes” (7 p.m., CBS): Pacific islanders who anticipated last year’s tsunami; Tina Turner; Lebanon.
Scheduled on “Dateline” (7 p.m., NBC): a leukemia patient has his identity stolen while at the hospital.
Leo’s (the late John Spencer) slot on the ticket catches flack on “The West Wing” (8 p.m., NBC).
Hard times in the Big Easy on “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition” (8 p.m., ABC).
The 2004 special “Star Wars: Empire of Dreams” (8 p.m., A&E) examines the impact of George Lucas’ films on pop culture, moviemaking and merchandising.
Whitney Houston and Brandy star in the 1997 adaptation of “Rodgers & Hammerstein’s Cinderella” (8 p.m., Disney).
David Cubitt and Valerie Bertinelli star in the 2003 fantasy “Finding John Christmas” (9 p.m., CBS).
Diamonds are forever on “Law & Order: Criminal Intent” (9 p.m., NBC).
Phyllis needs help on “Desperate Housewives” (9 p.m., ABC).
Aging evidence and a ticking clock on “Crossing Jordan” (10 p.m., NBC).
A family’s woes begin with a car accident on “Grey’s Anatomy” (10 p.m., ABC).