Tonight in HD: April 1

Sky Movies Premiere: True Grit (Sky 20, 8.30, 5.1)  True Grit is true bliss in HD. The transfer does breathtaking justice to the autumnal, painterly compositions that grace the Coen Brothers’ darker, more sophisticated – but not necessarily superior – spin on the 1969 western that won John Wayne his first Oscar. Leaner and meaner, but also more lyrical and elegiac, it’s peppered with the filmmakers’ trademark quirkiness and violence. The first half is mesmerising, as 14-year-old spitfire Mattie Ross (Hailee Steinfeld) recruits a “one-eyed fat man” (Jeff Bridges), who esteems the bottle more than the badge, to help track her father’s killer (Josh Brolin). But the second half falters, largely because of an unlikely outcome at odds with the authenticity that hitherto has oozed from every frame. (2010) ✮✮✮✮

Touch (TV3, 8.30, 5.1) A pawn shop robbery connects a distraught flight attendant, a magician in Moscow and a mobster in the Bronx. As The AV Club observed: "Touch is remarkable for being simultaneously ambitious and half-assed, pretentious and cheeseball. Jake’s featureless blandness—he’s a totally self-sacrificial dad, and so far, that’s all he is—is the first clue that we’re watching a cosmic we-are-the-world fantasy, with Everyman for a hero. He’s the constant in a string of scenarios designed to show how so many people from so many different cultures and walks of life could be connected to each other in significant but hidden ways. Tim Kring seemed to want to drag the whole world into his previous series, Heroes, but for the first season or so, he also wanted to tell a rousing adventure yarn. Here, he and his creative team just seem to want to bask in the concept of universal oneness, and the gimmicks they come up with to illustrate this idea barely qualify as storytelling." ✮✮

Pretty Little Liars (TV2, 5.30) When Emily’s dad surprises her before a big swim meet, the pressure sends her to the hospital; Spencer and Aria use the opportunity to dig for clues about Alison’s death. ✮✮

The War at Home (TV2, 6.30, R) With Vicky working, Larry becomes the maid, and Dave has a hard time dealing with the things Vicky used to handle. ✮✮✮

The Politically Incorrect Guide to Grown-Ups (TV One, 7.00) Humans are obsessed with beauty, but is it true that attractive people have it easier in life?  Nigel Latta thinks they do, and explains the reasons why. ✮✮✮✮

The Big Bang Theory (TV2, 7.00, R) Koothrappali becomes overwhelmed when his parents arrange a blind date for him, but he discovers he actually can talk to a member of the opposite sex after a few drinks. ✮✮✮✮

Mike & Molly (TV2, 7.30) When Mike encourages his mom, Peggy, to get a job, he never imagines how it will interfere with Molly’s life. ✮✮

Enlightened (TV One, 10.30) Amy’s hopes of landing a dream job take a hit when she’s demoted to the basement of Abaddonn, working in data entry amongst a group of social misfits. ✮✮

The Almighty Johnsons (TV3, 10.30, R) There are new women in the lives of both Axl and Ty – but are they here to stay? ✮✮✮