What's new in Odeon's this week : Thursday 18th April 2019.

As reported in last weeks segment of this regular weekly latest release feature, April 25th sees the release of the hotly anticipated final instalment in the Avengers saga with 'Avengers : Endgame'. But this film is just one of nine Superhero movies being released in 2019 - quite possibly the most in any single year since the genre really launched way back when.

As a recap, and as a reminder of what is to come this remaining year, here is a quick summary of those Superhero movies you may have already seen, and those scheduled later this year.

* 'GLASS' - released January 18th and Directed by M. Night Shyamalan and starring Bruce Willis, Samuel L. Jackson and James McAvoy. The direct sequel to 2000's 'Unbreakable' and 2016's 'Split'. The film took US$247M at the worldwide Box Office.
* 'CAPTAIN MARVEL' - released March 8th and Directed by Ryan Fleck and Anna Boden and starring Brie Larson, Samuel L. Jackson and Ben Mendelsohn. An origin story and serving as the 21st film in the MCU. The film has so far taken US$1.05B at the global Box Office.
* 'SHAZAM' - released April 5th and Directed by David F. Sandberg and starring Zachary Levi, Mark Strong and Asher Angel. An origin story and serving as the seventh film in the DCEU. The film has so far taken US$261M in world wide Box Office receipts.
* 'HELLBOY' - released 11th April and Directed by Neil Marshall and starring David Harbour, Milla Jovovich, Ian McShane and Daniel Dae Kim in this supernatural Superhero film. It is a reboot of 2004's 'Hellboy' and 2008's 'Hellboy : The Golden Army' both Directed by Guillermo del Toro and starring Ron Perlman as Hellboy. The film has so far grossed US$24M.
* 'AVENGERS : ENDGAME' - due for release on April 25th and Directed by Anthony and Joe Russo and starring a truly ensemble cast of all your favourite Superhero talent. It is the direct follow on film to 2018's 'Avengers: Infinity War', a sequel to 2012's Marvel's 'The Avengers' and 2015's 'Avengers: Age of Ultron', and the 22nd film in the MCU. Box Office expectations are huge!
* 'X-MEN : DARK PHOENIX' - due for release on June 7th and Directed by Simon Kinberg and starring James McAvoy, Michael Fassbender, Jennifer Lawrence, Sophie Turner and Nicholas Hoult. This film is a sequel to 2016's 'X-Men: Apocalypse', is the twelfth instalment in the 'X-Men' film series and the seventh and intended final instalment in the main series.
* 'SPIDER-MAN : FAR FROM HOME' - due for release on July 5th and Directed by Jon Watts and starring Tom Holland, Samuel L. Jackson, Jake Gyllenhaal, Cobie Smulders and Zendaya. This is a direct sequel to 2017's 'Spider-Man : Homecoming' and the 23rd film in the MCU.
* 'THE NEW MUTANTS' - due for release on August 2nd and Directed by Josh Boone and starring Anya Taylor-Joy, Maisie Williams and Charlie Heaton, this horror film out of the Superhero genre is based on the Marvel Comics of the same name and is intended to be the thirteenth and final instalment in the 'X-Men' film series.

* 'JOKER' - due for release on October 4th and Directed by Todd Phillips and starring Joaquin Phoenix, Robert De Niro, Zazie Beetz and Frances Conroy. This film is intended to be the first in a series of DC based films separate from the DCEU and is an origin story of how Arthur Fleck back in the early '80's slowly rises up to become the menacing underworld legend and arch enemy to Batman.

And so turning attention back to this weeks latest release films to tease you out to your local Odeon, of which there are five this week, we launch with the sixth film in this successful supernatural horror franchise that takes us back to the LA of the '70's where the ghost of a mysterious woman is likely to claim your children for her own, and scare the bejeezus out of you in the process. We then turn to an Irish horror thriller which sees a single Mum and her young son rent a house in the rural Irish countryside in which is a massive menacing sinkhole, into which clambers the young lad only to return as a very different version of himself. Next up is an acclaimed South Korean drama offering of three friends and a mysterious incident they experience that changes their lives for ever. This is followed up by a Christian drama film recounting the true story of an adopted son who falls into a frozen lake, is retrieved but has no pulse for a staggering 45 minutes, and miraculously comes round later as though nothing happened at all - clearly touched by the hand of God some would argue. We then close out the week with the bizarre true story of a high flying corporate executive type who gave it all away to very successfully grow medicinal marijuana in the face of local community, thieves, drug cartels and the authorities while practicing her new found faith in God as a 'Sister of the Valley'.

Whatever your taste in big screen film entertainment is this week - be it any of the five latest release new movies as Previewed below, or those doing the rounds currently on general release and as Reviewed and Previewed in previous Blog Posts here at Odeon Online, you are most welcome to share your movie going thoughts, opinions and observations by leaving your relevant, succinct and appropriate views in the Comments section below this or any other Post. We'd love to hear from you, and in the meantime, enjoy your big screen Odeon outing during the week ahead.

'THE CURSE OF THE WEEPING WOMAN' (Rated M) - aka 'The Curse of La Llorona' is an American supernatural horror thriller Directed in his feature length debut by Michael Chaves and Co-Produced by James Wan. This film serves as the sixth instalment of 'The Conjuring Universe' following 2013's 'The Conjuring', 2014's 'Annabelle', 2016's 'The Conjuring 2', 2017's 'Annabelle : Creation' and 2018's 'The Nun'. Michael Chaves is also slated to be on Directing duties for the eighth film in the franchise 'The Conjuring 3' due for release in September 2020, following the June 2019 release of the seventh film 'Annabelle Comes Home'. The first five films in the series have collectively grossed US$1.569B from combined budgets of US$104M, making the ongoing future of this franchise a no-brainer I guess. This film has however, garnered mixed or average Reviews so far.

Anna Garcia (Linda Cardellini), is a social worker and widow raising her two children in  Los Angeles during the '70's. She is called to check in on one of her cases, and finds signs of foul play. As she digs deeper, she finds striking similarities between the case, and the terrifying supernatural occurrences haunting her own family. Enlisting the help of a local faith healer, she discovers that La Llorona has latched herself onto Anna and will stop at nothing to take her children. La Llorona, also known as the Weeping Woman, is a female ghost in Latin American folklore who drowned her children and now cries while looking for them in the river, often causing misfortune to those who are near, or hear her. As she searches for them, she takes other lost children, making them her own. Anna's only hope of surviving La Llorona's deadly wrath is a disillusioned priest who practices mysticism to keep evil in check. Also starring Raymond Cruz, Patricia Velasquez, Sean Patrick Thomas and Tony Amendola.

'THE HOLE IN THE GROUND' (Rated M) - Lee Cronin Directs and Co-Writes this Irish horror thriller offering that saw its World Premier screening at the Sundance Film Festival back in January this year and was released in the UK and Ireland on 1st March, and this week on limited screens in Australia too. One night, Sarah O'Neill's (Seana Kerslake) young son Chris (James Quinn Markey) disappears into the forest behind their rented rural home, where there is a large sinkhole. When he returns, he looks the same, but his behaviour grows increasingly disturbing. In time, Sarah begins to believe that the boy who returned, may not be her son at all - a notion first introduced to her by the husband of a woman who was mysteriously murdered in the community. Also starring James Cosmo, Simone Kirby and Steve Wall.

'BURNING' (Rated M) - this psychological drama film is from South Korea and is Directed, Co-Produced and Co-Written by Lee Chang-dong and is based on the short story 'Barn Burning' from the collection of seventeen short stories as found in 'The Elephant Vanishes' written between 1980 and 1991 by author Haruki Murakami. The film premiered at the May 2018 Cannes Film Festival, where it was in competition for the Palme d'Or, and it was also selected as South Korea's entry into the Best Foreign Language Films category at this years Academy Awards making it into the final nine shortlisted films amongst its haul of 32 award wins and a further 104 nominations from around the circuit. Telling the story of three individuals, and a mysterious incident they experience. Lee Jong-su (Yoo Ah-in) bumps into an old friend, Shin Hae-mi (Jeon Jong-seo), on a part-time delivery job. Hae-mi asks Jong-su to take care of her cat while she leaves on a trip to Africa. When she returns, Hae-mi introduces Jong-su to Ben (Steven Yuen), a man she met in Africa. One day, Ben and Hae-mi pay Jong-su a visit, and Ben reveals his secret interests to Jong-su, that has life changing consequences for them all.

'BREAKTHROUGH' (Rated PG) - here we have an American Christian drama offering Directed by Roxann Dawson and based on the 2017 book titled 'The Impossible : The Miraculous Story of a Mother's Faith  and her Child's Resurrection' by Joyce Smith and collaborator Ginger Kolbaba. The film tells the true story of a suburban St. Louis fourteen year old teenager, John Smith (Marcel Ruiz), a Guatemalan adopted child, who slipped through an icy Lake St. Louis while playing with friends in January 2015 and had no pulse for nearly 45 minutes. He was put in a coma after being rescued by first responder Tommy Shine (Mike Colter) who had a moment with God to save the young lad. The film follows his parents Joyce and Brian (Chrissy Metz and Josh Lucas respectively), whose faith in God keeps their hope alive that John will pull through. The film also stars Dennis Haysbert and Topher Grace.

'BREAKING HABITS' (Rated M) - Directed and Written by Documentarian Robert Ryan this unbelievable true story tells of former high flying corporate executive Christin Meeusen who was cheated on by her stealing, polygamist husband of seventeen years, and who fled penniless with her three young children as her American dream began to unravel. Determined to make a living for her family, she discovered the lucrative business of cannabis farming, and met her calling as founder of medicinal-marijuana empire 'Sisters of the Valley' (a group of feminist activists who present themselves as non-affiliated nuns that grow and sell medical marijuana products to ill patients). Shedding her former life, Christine became Sister Kate, now on a mission to provide her products to those in need, fighting off the County Sheriff and protecting her crop from deadly black market racketeers, thieves and drug cartels in the years before marijuana was legalised in California. This is the true story of nuns, guns and drugs.

With five new release movies this week to tempt you out to your local Odeon, remember to share your movie going thoughts with your other like minded cinephile friends afterwards here at Odeon Online. In the meantime, I'll see you sometime somewhere in the week ahead at your local Odeon.

-Steve, at Odeon Online-