Our TV movie pick for tonight (Tuesday, 13 May) is Wild Card, the 2015 underseen action thriller gem with a great cast led by Jason Statham (Crank, The Transporter).
In the film, Statham plays Nick Wild – a gambling addict who takes odd jobs in Las Vegas as a bodyguard to support his addiction.
Amidst this work, he helps an old friend (Dominik García-Lorido, Mr. Robot) get revenge on a sadistic thug (Milo Ventimiglia, Land of Bad) who beat her.
However, the attacker turns out to be employed by a powerful mob boss (Stanley Tucci, Spotlight), which causes Wild all sorts of additional problems.
Wild Card was directed by Simon West (Con Air, Lara Croft), while its script was penned by two-time Oscar-winner William Goldman (All the President’s Men, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid) based on a novel he wrote.
Its cast also includes Anne Heche (Volcano), Hope Davis (Succession), Jason Alexander (Seinfeld), Max Casella (Boardwalk Empire), Michael Angarano (Horizon) and Sofía Vergara (Modern Family).
And though it earned mixed reviews from critics and was a box-office flop, we’d argue that the flick’s athletically bone-crunching action set-pieces, its cool Vegas setting, its pulpy story and its fun performances make it worth seeking out.
Wild Card is airing on TV on Film4 at 11.15pm. It is also currently streaming on Channel 4’s website.
Here are the other movies on TV tonight:
Ted – Comedy Central – 9pm
Thunder buddies for life.
Men in Black: International – Film4 – 9pm
Chris Hemsworth and Tessa Thompson take over from Tommy Lee Jones and Will Smith in this sci-fi action comedy sequel. Liam Neeson also features.
Entrapment – Legend – 9pm
The caper flick with Catherine Zeta-Jones, Sean Connery and a whole bunch of lasers.
The Resident – Legend Xtra – 9pm
In this horror, a woman (two-time Oscar-winner Hilary Swank) comes to suspect she is being stalked after moving into a new Brooklyn loft.
Bad Lieutenant – Legend Xtra – 10.50pm
The dark ’90s crime drama starring Harvey Keitel that is about to get a surprise sequel.
Imposter – Legend – 11.10pm
A decent sci-fi thriller based on a Philip K. Dick story about a man (Gary Sinise) in a near-future who is accused of being an alien replicant.
Related: Netflix is about to remove an overlooked action thriller movie gem