IF you did not see the first part of The Bible - Abraham II (Pearl, 9.30pm) last week, you will not be interested in the second and final part. It starts with a row between Abraham (Richard Harris) and Lot's shepherds over who last saw the sheep. It continues with unpleasantness in Sodom, the city of infamy that was destroyed by fire and brimstone, or brimstone and treacle, because of its corruption and wickedness. There is some archeological evidence that Abraham, said in the Bible to be the first of the Hebrew patriarchs and father of faith for Judaism, Christianity and Islam, actually existed. God called him to found a new nation with a repeated promise that his 'seed' would inherit the land. The film, directed by Ermanno Olmi, has come to Hong Kong late. It has already been shown in the US, as a mini-series, and in Spain it was watched by 'an extraordinary share of 31.6 per cent'. The synopsis carefully refrains from saying 31.6 per cent of what. When Abraham was broadcast in Italy it attracted an audience of more than 10 million, which shows either that Abraham is captivating, or that Italy is a boring place with buildings that lean over. It also captured two Emmy nominations earlier this year. EARLIER in the day there is leftover Christmas cheer sloshing around on Pearl, for the children at least. The Nutcracker Prince (11.25am) is a cartoon version of the famous story, also a famous ballet, with famous music by Tchaikovsky. The Nutcracker, set in Toyland, goes down well in Hong Kong. The Hong Kong Ballet does it every year. This version features a really mean mouse and the voices of Kiefer Sutherland, Megan Follows and Peter O' Toole. The Christmas Stallion (12.45pm) is a film about which no-one knows anything, even Pearl. Presumably, like me, they cannot have seen it. But Puss in Boots (2.25pm) we do know something about. It's a musical adaptation of the story, starring Christopher Walken as Puss, the cat who is transformed into a man by the magical boots, Jason Connery, son of Sean, as Corin, and Carmlla Marner as Princess Vera. UP for its third showing this year is Plymouth (World, 9.30pm), a 'science fact' film about the men and women who establish the first lunar colony. It stars Richard Hamilton as a grizzled mayor who would rather stay on Earth and Dale Midkiff as a rocket jockey who has to cart him off to outer space. Once there, Addy Mathewson (Cindy Pickett) throws a spanner in the works by getting pregnant. Does she return to Earth and risk losing the baby during the journey? Or does she give birth on the moon, where the baby might never develop the lung capacity it needs to leave? THE end is nigh for Marie Antoinette (Jane Seymour) in The French Revolution (World, 1.00am), which will be a relief for the audience. This is the penultimate episode; the six-part series - also starring Sir Peter Ustinov, Sam Neill and the late Christopher Lee - concludes next week. THERE is something moronic about Ski School (Pearl, 1.35am). It stars former Playboy Playmate Ava Fabian and tells of a group of fun-loving students who arrive for a skiing holiday and quickly discover that to be the best, you have to party the most. The slopes are fast, the girls are faster still - this comes from the synopsis - and the hot tubs are in use around-the-clock. RELIGION is making a comeback in China, albeit a limited one. And Hong Kong, typically, is cashing in. In Inside Story (World, 8.30pm) James La-Giglia investigates the Bible business in the territory and how believers from overseas are risking their necks to spread the word, allelujah, in China. The programme's second report focuses on the plight of rare dolphins found in Hong Kong and Chinese waters and how they are becoming much rarer still.
