Thrills, ‘Pocahontas’ and ‘Life as a Dog’

This weekend’s movie fare runs the gamut from spy thriller to Disney animated musical to lush period drama.

Michael Caine reprises his role as bespectacled British spy Harry Palmer in the new Movie Channel thriller “Bullet to Beijing,” airing Saturday at 9 p.m. Caine originally played Palmer in the 1960 flicks “The Ipcress File,” “Funeral in Berlin” and “Billion Dollar Brain.” Jason Connery and Mia Sara co-star in this edition, shot in the former Soviet Union.

“David,” TNT’s latest biblical epic, airs Sunday and Wednesday at 5, 7 and 9 p.m. Nathaniel Parker plays the king of the Israelites who beheads the Philistine’s Goliath. Jonathan Pryce and Leonard Nimoy also star.

The Disney Channel premieres the 1995 animated hit “Pocahontas,” Sunday at 7 p.m., featuring the voices of Mel Gibson, Irene Bedard and David Ogden Stiers.

Showtime’s new series “My Life as a Dog” kicks off as a movie special Sunday at 8 p.m. The comedy-drama, based on the hit 1985 Swedish film, stars Michael Yarmush as an 11-year-old sent to live with his relatives in a little fishing town after the death of his mother and abandonment by his father.

Meredith Baxter, Tom Conti, Thomas Gibson and Cari Shayne star in the CBS adaptation of Louisa May Alcott’s “The Inheritance,” airing Sunday at 9 p.m. on Channel 2. The author of “Little Women” was all of 17 when she wrote this story about an orphan who finds her love and birthright.

Gregory Harrison, Lacey Chabert and Timothy Busfield star in ABC’s murder-mystery thriller “When Secrets Kill,” airing Sunday at 9 p.m. on Channel 7.

PBS’ “Masterpiece Theatre” presents “Persuasion,” airing Sunday at 9 p.m. on Channel 28. The acclaimed 1995 film adaptation of Jane Austen’s novel boasts fine performances by Amanda Root, Ciaran Hinds and Corin Redgrave.

Other weekend fare:

Today

On the latest installment of PBS’ “Live From Lincoln Center,” airing at 8 p.m. on Channel 28, maestro Kurt Masur conducts the New York Philharmonic and Westminster Symphonic Choir in a performance of Debussy’s “The Martyrdom of St. Sebastian.”

Friday

The Learning Channel’s new series “Legends of the Isles,” airing at 5:30 and 8:30 p.m., explores Old World myths and folk tales.

A “Firing Line Special Debate,” airing at 9 p.m. on Channel 28, asks whether environmentalists have gone too far. William F. Buckley and former Gov. Edmund G. Brown debate the issue.

ABC News and the Discovery Channel have teamed up for “Planet Discovery News,” airing at 9 p.m. on the Discovery Channel. The new science series features reports from ABC correspondents.

Saturday

MTV’s annual charity softball game, “Rock N’ Jock Softball Challenge,” airing at noon, features Mike Piazza, Eric Karros, Bobby Bonilla, Kenny Lofton, Derek Jeter, Alex Rodriguez, David Justice, Jonathan Silverman, Carmen Electra, Dan Cortese and Queen Latifah.

Richard Kiley narrates NBC’s new “National Geographic” special, “Tigers of the Snow,” airing at 8 p.m. on Channel 4. The one-hour documentary by Mark Stouffer (“Wild America”) explores the world of the endangered Siberian tiger.

Fox Sports presents “The $1,000,000 Wrangler Bull Riders Only Championship,” airing at 9 p.m. on Channel 11. The rodeo competition airs on tape from the Thomas and Mac Center in Las Vegas. Terry Bradshaw reports from the event, and veteran rodeo broadcaster Bob Tallman provides commentary.

Sunday

The South Bank Show explores “Tony Bennett’s New York,” airing at 5 and 10 p.m. on Bravo.

Egyptologist Bob Brier hosts “The Great Egyptians,” airing at 5 and 9 p.m. on the Learning Channel. The three-part documentary unearths little-known facts about the life and death of King Tut, Cleopatra and Sneferu, the pharaoh who built the first true pyramid.

The Discovery Channel’s “The Ultimate Guide: Elephants,” airing at 8 p.m., explores the ancestry, behavior and social hierarchy of the pachyderm.

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar guests as himself on NBC’s comedy “Boston Common,” airing at 8:30 p.m. on Channel 4.