Easter on TV with Sissi and Winnetou: The television highlights on Easter Sunday

7:25 a.m., The first

sleeping Beauty

When she pricks herself on a spindle, Sleeping Beauty (Lotte Flack) falls into a hundred-year sleep. The reason is a curse from the evil fate fairy Maruna (Hannelore Elsner). All rescue attempts fail until a brave stable boy named Flynn (François Goeske) decides to wait for the right moment. So he secretly trains as a knight and ventures through the deadly thorns that have surrounded Sleeping Beauty’s castle since she fell asleep … Fairy tales have to be on Easter Sunday and if a German grande dame like Hannelore Elsner is part of the party, do it right away all the more joy.

9:25 a.m., RTL

Beauty and the Beast

Once upon a time… there was a village where all the young men were idiots. That’s why the clever Belle hardly hesitates to go to the cursed castle of the beast, where her careless father should stew as a prisoner. Lo and behold, the beast isn’t that beastly! – Dark moments, a gentle feminist undertone and many catchy tunes (which exceptionally retain their charm in the German version as well) make the fairy tale the best film of the “Disney Renaissance” alongside “The Lion King”, i.e. the musical success wave of the studio between 1989 and 1999. It was the first animated film to be nominated for an Oscar in the Best Picture category in 1992, winning the trophies for song and music.

10:15 a.m., ZDF

Winnetou II

Apache chief Winnetou (Pierre Brice) and his blood brother Old Shatterhand (Lex Barker) want to make peace between whites and Indians. The blood brothers negotiate a peace plan with the soldiers and the Assiniboin tribe – much to the displeasure of the Forrester Gang. During the mission, Winnetou falls in love with the beautiful chief’s daughter Ribanna (Karin Dor), who is already promised to the soldier Merrill (Mario Girotti = Terence Hill) as a sign of peace… The second part of the legendary Winnetou trilogy is probably the best and therefore a logical choice for fans of cult films on Easter Sunday.

10:50 a.m., SWR

Sissy

Austria’s Emperor Franz Joseph (Karlheinz Böhm) is to step in front of the altar. Mother Sophie has already found a suitable princess, but the emperor falls in love with her sister Elisabeth (Romy Schneider). Although “Sissi” doesn’t care much about etiquette, Franzl leads his great love down the aisle against his mother’s will… The royal romance attracted more than six million viewers to the cinemas in the mid-1950s. “The ‘Sissi’ was like a block on my leg,” said Romy Schneider about her role, which made her immortal at the age of 17. in France, Romy Schneider was voted the greatest actress of the 20th century.

12:15 p.m., VOX

In my sister’s shoes

Apart from party scandals, Maggie (Cameron Diaz) gets nothing settled in life. When the slob gets thrown out of her solid sister Rose (Toni Collette), she travels to Florida: A grandmother who until recently was believed to be dead lives in a nursing home. But Maggie’s plan to save the old lady a few dollars doesn’t work out – instead, meeting the resolute Ella (Shirley MacLaine) changes the lives of everyone involved … What begins as whimsical cat war clothes gently and convincingly turns into a psychogram a defective family, including therapy.

2:30 p.m., RTL

Cinderella

After the death of her father, the good-natured Ella (Lily James) lives as a maid with her evil stepmother (Cate Blanchett) and her narcissistic daughters. One day, Ella meets a young man she thinks is an employee of the royal court – but it’s the prince himself (Richard Madden). When Ella wants to see the fascinating stranger again at a ball, her stepmother forbids her to go. A fairy godmother (Helena Bonham Carter) rushes to help… The visually intoxicating fantasy love story by Kenneth Branagh (“Thor”) has a top-class cast, but lives on the sheer endless charm of the enchanting leading actress. The best Disney remake so far.

4:25 p.m., ONE

Pretty much best friends

Paraplegic Parisian aristocrat Philippe (François Cluzet) has almost given up looking for a carer when Driss (Omar Sy) rushes in. All the welfare recipient fresh out of jail needs is a signature confirming that he is trying to find a job. But Philippe likes his refreshingly pitiless manner. He hates dismay hypocrisy and offers him a job as a trial. Driss isn’t thrilled, but accepts. This is the beginning of a wonderful friendship…! Sensitive, with a lot of humor, but without a gesture of dismay, a true story has become a wonderful culture clash and buddy comedy.

6:10 p.m., Cable One

Two like bad luck and brimstone

At a motocross race, warhorses Ben (Bud Spencer) and Kid (Terence Hill) win a buggy together. But before the two can agree in the hustle and bustle who owns the “box”, a gang of thugs appears and demolishes the vehicle. Ben and Kid carry their lot with ease until they learn that a well-known land speculator known as “The Doctor” (Donald Pleasence) is behind the operation. He wants to drive out the residents of the district with all means and gild his nose. But he didn’t reckon with the two and their “powerful” arguments … All day long Kabel Eins shows films with Bud Spencer and Terence Hill – but this one is still considered by fans to be their best ever.

8:15 p.m., The first

Crime scene: Nothing but the truth (1)

Robert Karow (Mark Waschke) is called to a crime scene. Everything indicates that a young security police officer took her own life in her apartment the night before. But when Karow finds her frightened four-year-old son in the garden, he has doubts about the suicide. What mother does that in front of her child? Suddenly he has a new partner at his side: the former LKA size Susanne Bonard (Corinna Harfouch) was called by the dead shortly before her death. At 62, she quit her apprenticeship at the police academy and returned to active duty to investigate the matter… A “Tatort” double episode for Easter! The second part will follow on Easter Monday.

8:15 p.m., ProSieben

The Gentlemen

Marijuana king Mickey Pearson (Matthew McConaughey) wants to sell his empire. The eccentric US billionaire Berger (Jeremy Strong) seems interested, but not only him. London’s gangster world is upside down, as is triad boss Lord George (Tom Wu) and his insane henchman Dry Eye (Henry Golding). And what is the purpose of the sleazy private snoop Fletcher (Hugh Grant), who keeps interfering? Pearson sends his right-hand man Raymond Smith (Charlie Hunnam) to find out. – “There is only one rule in the jungle: if the lion is hungry, he eats!” With easygoing types, snotty macho sayings and dirty gags, Guy Ritchie delivers a stylish farce with a brilliantly acting star ensemble.

8:15 p.m., Sat.1

Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald

In a spectacular action, the magical criminal Grindelwald (Johnny Depp) breaks out of prison and heads to Paris. With the Obscurus, a powerful black energy, he wants to defeat his former companion Albus Dumbledore (Jude Law) and subjugate humanity. Albus enlists the help of his former student Newt Scamander (Eddie Redmayne). – The beginning is rapid, then the magic adventure loses itself somewhat in routine. But again there are amazing (family) revelations and: a Hogwarts reunion! The right program for “Harry Potter” fans to end Easter Sunday.

8:15 p.m., cable one

jumanji

In 1969, two children made a mysterious discovery: they found the board game “Jumanji”. Twelve-year-old Alan Parrish is sucked in from the very first game, and the boy has disappeared. When the house is occupied again in 1995, Jumanji also attracts siblings Judy (Kirsten Dunst) and Peter (Bradley Pierce). They manage to free the now adult Alan (Robin Williams). But only if they win the game can the demonic forces from the game that unleash hordes of elephants, earthquakes, monster mosquitoes and torrents be defeated. The fast-paced film is dominated by an overpowering thunderstorm of effects that could frighten young viewers.

8:15 p.m., Art

Ben Hur

Jerusalem in the time of Emperor Tiberius. The power-hungry Roman Messala (Stephen Boyd) betrays his childhood friend Judah Ben-Hur (Charlton Heston) and banishes him to a slave galley. Since then, Ben Hur has been plotting revenge. His chance comes at the great chariot race in Antioch. In the arena, the two fight a duel of life and death… In 1959, the visually stunning ham blew up all dimensions: 50,000 extras were hired by the Roman Cinecittà Studios, the costs rose to a gigantic 16.2 million dollars at the time. It all depends on the size: there were eleven Oscars for these efforts and an enthusiastic audience to this day.

9:45 p.m., 3 sat

What’s left of the day

For years, Mr. Stevens (Anthony Hopkins) has been a dedicated butler at Darlington Hall, an old English country house. Even when his own father is dying, Mr. Stevens never neglects his duties. If this man has any feelings at all, he never shows them. Much to the chagrin of the clever, lovable housekeeper Miss Kenton (Emma Thompson), who harbors feelings for him… The fantastical epic is about unrequited love and at the same time a meditation on self-denial, dubious secondary virtues and the decline of the British nobility. The icing on the cake of the dark chocolate film is the fascinatingly nuanced play of the two main actors.

10:35 p.m., ProSieben (free TV premiere!)

cash truck

Two armored personnel carrier guards are killed in a robbery. Five months later, Patrick “H” Hill (Jason Statham) joins the same security company. On his very first tour, his van is ambushed — H takes on the gangsters alone and shoots them down one by one. His “heroic deed” immediately makes him a star among colleagues and superiors. But the silent fighter has his very own plan… You have to be careful here, because the story is told in several chapters that jump back and forth in time. Spectacular gunfights are available for those who make the effort. An exciting thriller with aha effect.

12:00 a.m., RTL

The White shark

Early morning tide washes a mangled corpse onto the beach at Amity Island. Apparently the victim of a shark attack. Two vacationers have to die before the mayor, who is worried about the tourists’ money, acts. And so police chief Brody (Roy Scheider), marine biologist Hooper (Richard Dreyfuss) and sea dog Quint (Robert Shaw) go to sea to attract and neutralize the monster. They’ll soon be wanting a bigger boat… If you’re up late on Easter Sunday, you can look forward to this mega-classic. The perfect game with the human primal fears made Steven Spielberg, who was only 27 at the time, a director’s legend.