WEEK 39: Saturday 26 September - Friday 02 October 2009

TV2 starts the week off with a brand new season of the hit teen drama One Tree Hill, on Sunday at 3pm. In the season premiere, Lucas (Chad Murray) decides to pursue his dream with the woman he loves, but who has he chosen?

It's School Holidays again and TV2 has another outstanding line-up of family movies to keep the kids entertained through the weekday afternoons. Tune in Monday-Friday at 12.30pm to catch Sword In The Stone followed by Robin Hood, Pop Rocks!, Twitches, Inspector Gadget 2 and George Of The Jungle 2.

On Tuesday at 7.30pm, The Apprentice sees The Donald forcing one of the apprentices to make an agonising choice, and the teams start an all-out war in the quest to win the latest task, as the boardroom back-biting continues. Also visit www.tvnz.co.nz/theapprenticenz to apply to become New Zealand's first apprentice in the local version, coming soon.

Movie - Hoodwinked, Saturday 26 September, 7.30pm: Forget everything you know about Little Red Riding Hood, because the story is about to be turned on its head, in TV2's star-studded Saturday Family Blockbuster, Hoodwinked.

In the charming animated movie, police gather around a crime scene at Granny's cottage in the woods: it looks like an open-and-shut case of a woodsman assaulting a wolf impersonating an old lady.

But as the police start to question the suspects, they discover that each one has a very different version of events, and a secret they're trying to hide. The seemingly innocent Red (Ann Hathaway-The Devil Wears Prada) is more worldly-wise than she's letting on; the big, bad Wolf (Patrick Warburton-Less Than Perfect) has been terribly misunderstood; and Granny (Glenn Close-Mars Attacks!) and the Woodsman (Jim Belushi-According To Jim) have secret lives and plans of their own.

Cory Edwards, who directed the film with his brother Todd, was determined to make the story compelling. "One of our creative edicts in the beginning was this: 'Thou Shalt Not Bore' - and I think we've really stuck to that," he laughs.

"Our take was that, thanks to music videos, commercials and video games, kids are now quite used to non-linear stories," he continues. "So, in Hoodwinked, we thought they'd have a lot of fun going back in time to learn how these four classic characters ended up in the cottage on that fateful night in the first place. Anybody who thought they knew the story of Red Riding Hood is bound to be in for some surprises."

The filmmakers always intended for the movie to have a wide appeal. "This is not a lightweight re-telling of the tale," producer Preston Stutzman says. "We knew from the beginning that it had to go way beyond a simple bedtime story and bring a completely new twist. In the tradition of The Incredibles and Toy Story, we hope it's the kind of smart, yet fun-loving tale that appeals equally to kids and adults."

What was the Wolf's true motive? Where was Granny anyway? Why did the Woodsman raise his axe? And just who was Red Riding Hood deep down inside that red robe? Find out tonight on TV2.

Movie - Blades Of Glory, Sunday 27 September, 8.30pm: Disgraced champion figure skaters Chazz Michael Michaels (Will Ferrell-Anchorman: The Legend Of Ron Burgundy) and Jimmy MacElroy (Jon Heder-Napoleon Dynamite) must learn to love each other and team up as the first male/male pair if they are to reach skating glory once more, in TV2's Sunday Premiere Movie, Blades Of Glory, produced by Ben Stiller (Meet The Parents).

Swaggering Chazz Michael Michaels (Ferrell) is the rock star of the rink, a sex addicted, improvisational master who leaves a trail of thrashed ice and shrieking female fans in his wake. Michaels' arch rival is the driven former child prodigy, Jimmy MacElroy (Heder), who was spotted as a youth executing triple lutzes on the frozen pond of an orphanage and whisked away to days of endless training, and skating glory. When the two champion skaters have a bust-up on the awards platform, they are banned for life, and it looks like their careers are over. But when a fan of theirs finds a loop hole in the system, and announces that they can skate again if they team up as a male/male pair, Chazz and Jimmy must put aside their long festering hatred of one another and join forces if they are to reach the podium once more.

For directors Will Speck and Josh Gordon, the world of skating presented a fertile ground for satire: a realistic setting, rife with some wonderfully over-the-top elementsthe sometimes overblown musical accompaniment, the lavish costumes, the behind-the-scenes personal dramasall of which could be turned on their head to comic effect.

"The commitment the two main characters have made to this sport, which has so many fantasy and fashion elements to it, opened the story up to many levels of comedic possibility," says Speck. "The thing we loved is that the world of figure skaters is such a specific sort of strange little universe that has its own brand of caste system, logic, sense of style, rules and celebrity."

Gordon says it was the dichotomy of the two leads that drew them to the script. "They're such opposites. Chazz Michael Michaels is a guy who wears all his emotions on his sleeve, and yet is very vulnerable, whereas Jimmy MacElroy is someone who's led a very sheltered life."

Speck agrees, adding, "They perfectly mirror one another, yet both are completely dysfunctional. Each needs to learn from the other guy a little bit in order to get on with his life."

Ferrell says it was these personality differences between his character, Chazz, and Jimmy, and the antagonism that develops because of that, that sold him on the project.

"Chazz is someone who plays to the crowd. He has his own fan section. He's very rock 'n' roll, all sex and showmanship. Jimmy is all about technique and form, kind of like classical music. They're from two separate worlds and that drives the rivalry between them."

Local Drama - Shortland Street, Weekdays, 7pm: Dr Oliver Ritchie (Mark Warren) makes his entrance this week on Shortland Street, causing a few eyebrows to be raised around the hospital. The attractive, yet mysterious new doctor quickly settles into Ferndale, but his unusual behaviour doesn't go unnoticed.

With his good looks and charms, the ladies of Shortland Street are immediately curious about this dashing new doctor. But what you see is perhaps not what you get with Oliver, when some of his very strange habits begin to shine through.

"Oliver is an intense character. Though on one hand he's social, he also really likes to keep to himself," says Warren. "Oliver prefers to eat by himself and has a habit of locking himself in his bedroom. As you can imagine, people find this behaviour a little odd."

Originally from Gisborne, Warren has enjoyed roles in numerous New Zealand productions, including Xena, Street Legal, Mercy Peak, Outrageous Fortune, and a even a small role on Shortland Street several years ago.

"My first big break was on Xena playing a Roman Emperor," says Warren. "That was awesome and acting with Lucy Lawless was fantastic. I will always treasure those couple of months."

Warren, who initially auditioned for the role of Maxwell Avia, was thrilled at the chance to join the Shorty team.

"Having had a passion for acting since I was a little kid, this is a really fantastic opportunity," says Warren. "Being able to act every day, with such a great cast and crew is just amazing."

This week on Shortland Street, Oliver is pleased at the opportunity to move in with Scotty (Kiel McNaughton) and Shanti (Nisha Madhan). Though with his out-of-the-ordinary habits, viewers will wonder how long this strange living situation will last.

Watch Shortland Street this week to meet Mark Warren in his new role as Dr Oliver Ritchie.

If you have missed an episode, full episodes of Shortland Street will be available free online 12 hours after the show has aired on TV2. Go to tvnz.co.nz and click the 'ondemand' button.

Drama - Neighbours, Thursday 1 October, 6pm: Karl Kennedy finds himself flirting with Lily Allen, when she drops into Erinsborough to appear on Zeke's radio show, today on Neighbours.

Zeke (Matthew Werkmeister) asks Karl (Alan Fletcher) to sit in on his radio shift at Pirate Net, but immediately begins to regret it, as Karl shows up and creates a mess. Zeke soon realises that his problem doesn't lie with Karl's untidiness, however, but Karl himself. He turns out to be popular with listeners and the station organisers, and Zeke begins to feel pushed out - and then Lily Allen turns up at the studio to perform an acoustic version of her hit song 22.

Werkmeister was excited but scared by the prospect of meeting the singer, who headed to Ramsay Street during the Melbourne leg of her tour in June to film her stint. "I'm freaking out," he revealed at the time. "I'll be star-struck for sure but will try my hardest to stay professional. I'll definitely want her autograph but will probably be too scared, so I'll ask someone to get it for me."

Allen, whose latest album, It's Not Me, It's You, has gone double platinum in Australia, expressed, on her Twitter page, her delight at the cameo role. "Neighbours, everybody needs good Neighbours. OMFG! Just saw Paul Robinson and Libby Kennedy."

Lily Allen joins an elite group of celebrities to have stepped onto the hallowed tarmac of the famous Australian suburb. Little Britain's Matt Lucas and David Walliams appeared in the background of the pub in 2007 as their characters Lou and Andy, and, in 1995, Chris Lowe of the Pet Shop Boys cropped up as himself, when he pulled into the cul-de-sac in a white Porsche to ask Helen Daniels and Marlene Kratz for directions.

Later, after filming, Allen tweeted, "Ok so I did my scene. Me and Dr Karl get our flirt on. Quite Funny."

Back in Erinsborough, Dr Karl annoys Zeke further by interrupting his interview with Lily to talk to the popstar, who is happy to oblige, asking him, provocatively, "So Dr Karl, does your wife know you listen to my music?" As Karl hijacks Zeke's big moment, can he claim back his radio show?

If you have missed an episode, full episodes of Neighbours will be available free online 12 hours after the show has aired on TV2. Go to tvnz.co.nz and click the 'ondemand' button.

Local Drama - The Cult, Thursday 1 October, 8.30pm: With Daniel (Simon London-Legend Of The Seeker) missing and the Liberators warned to stay away from the police, Michael (Renato Bartolomei-Shortland Street) and the others are learning that to get their people out of Two Gardens, and away from Edward North (Latham Gaines-Law & Order: Special Victims Unit) is going to require more risky measures, this week on The Cult.

Michael, using some of his more unsavoury contacts from his client list, makes a plan to plant a drug lab in Two Gardens so that police will have grounds to shut the place down. But when all doesn't go to plan, the Liberators discover that someone else wants to know what they're up tobut who?

Inside Two Gardens, Michael's son Ryan (Gareth Reeves-Go Girls) is having problems keeping on the right side of Edward. Despite having helped his brother Nathan (Dwayne Cameron-Shortland Street) escape from Two Gardens, and conducting a forbidden relationship with another compound member - Hannah (Chelsie Preston Crayford-Eagle vs Shark), he's desperate to stay and be with Edward, but he hasn't made things easy for himself.

Co-creator and writer Peter Cox, who teamed up with former writing partner David Brechin Smith (both worked on the award-winning local drama The Insider's Guide To Happiness) to write The Cult, says that while Michael and Edward stand on opposite sides, the two characters share many similarities.

"Both are leaders, both are convincing talkers, both believe strongly in what they are doing. They are equals."

"In terms of the mystery element of the series, Michael takes the position of the audience: he wants answers. His drive makes him the de facto leader of the 'liberators,'" Cox explains. "And Edward has to be strong and convincing, not just to the characters, but also the audience. Ultimately, you want people to wonder, 'hell, maybe Edward is actually in the right all along...'"

Cox says that when developing the characters, the aim was to allow them to function in a way that would embody the themes of the series.

"I guess that's kind of an obvious statement, but it's the difference between the audience exploring the themes and stories of the show in a removed, outward way versus emotionally living it through the eyes of the characters," Cox explains. "We have a lot of big cultish themes in the show: family, loss, love, life/death, the rational/mystery, physical/metaphysical, so as the series goes on you'll see our characters directly confronted and effected by these ideas, and hopefully, the audience will be confronted and effected by them too."

If you have missed an episode, full episodes of The Cult will be available free online 12 hours after the show has aired on TV2. Go to tvnz.co.nz and click the 'ondemand' button.