Michael Sheen (“The Queen,” “The Deal,” “Frost/Nixon” and “Twilight: New Moon”) has made a career out of playing former British prime minister Tony Blair. He returns to the role of his lifetime in “The Special Relationship” (8 p.m., HBO, today), a smart and entertaining historical film and character study of the friendship turned rivalry between Blair and his mentor, Bill Clinton, played with casual authority by Dennis Quaid.

A tale of history and of a master-student relationship turned on its head, “Special” is also a story about married power couples. Helen McCrory portrays Cherie Blair, a role she had in “The Queen,” and Hope Davis (“In Treatment”) almost steals the film from the two leads with her convincing and understated performance as first lady Hillary Clinton.

None of the performances descend into mere impersonation. Neither Quaid nor Davis resemble either Clinton, but you can’t help believing them from the moment they open their mouths.

“Special” covers a lot of ground in a brisk fashion, beginning in 1992 when British Labor leader Blair visits the campaign staff of the just-elected Clinton to learn a few pointers on winning. We fast-forward to 1997 when a just-re-elected Clinton welcomes Blair’s landslide parliamentary victory and the two men discuss changing the world and permanently shifting world opinion toward center-left progressive politics.

After a bright moment when Clinton helps bring warring Irish parties to the peace table, their personal and political friendship becomes overshadowed by the toxic Lewinsky scandal. The film does a remarkable job recalling the atmosphere of the times, when children often had to be rushed from the room whenever the news came on, and simple conversations about politics and law took on a vaguely pornographic tone. But the film is not really about the scandal, and viewers looking for tabloid-worthy brawls between the Clintons will be disappointed.

After standing by the wounded Clinton, Blair would go on to outshine the president on the world stage. The film ends with the muddled 2000 election and offers hints that Blair’s penchant for military action, his frequently religious and moral pronouncements and his eagerness to work with the White House would lead him toward his fateful partnership with George W. Bush. And all of that points in the direction of a possible sequel.

• “Lost” (7 p.m., today, ABC) fans who missed the big finale, or want to see it again, have one more time to revisit the head-scratcher. Not to read too much into things, but between the time Jack and Locke finished their epic battle on the cliff and when Kate dived into the surf, I distinctly remember a moment when the weather started getting rough, and the tiny ship was tossed.

Today’s highlights

• Catch a 12-hour “Doctor Who” (7 p.m., BBC America) marathon.

• Nothing says the unofficial start of summer like “Amusement Park Eats” (7 p.m., Food).

• Dylan Walsh stars in the 2009 shocker “The Stepfather” (8 p.m., Starz), a remake of the superb 1987 classic starring Terry O’Quinn (“Lost”).

• Ryan Phillippe hosts “Saturday Night Live” (10:30 p.m., NBC), featuring musical guest Ke$ha.

Sunday’s highlights

• Spike channels the force with a “Star Wars” marathon beginning with “Star Wars: Episode I: The Phantom Menace” (8 a.m.) and ending with “Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back” (8:40 p.m.).

• As it has for 46 Memorial Day weekends, ABC will broadcast the Indianapolis 500 (noon).