What's new in Odeon's this week : Thursday 22nd August 2019.

The 76th Venice International Film Festival is organised by La Biennale di Venezia, and will be held on the Lido di Venezia from Wednesday 28th August through to Saturday 7th September 2019. The aim of the Festival is to raise awareness and promote international cinema in all its forms as art, entertainment and as an industry, in a spirit of freedom and dialogue. In addition to the films shown within the categorised sections, the Festival also organises retrospectives and tributes to major figures as a contribution towards a better understanding of the history of cinema.

This year, Argentinian film Director, Producer and Screenwriter Lucrecia Martel was appointed as the President of the Jury. The Japanese and French Co-Produced film 'The Truth', Directed by Japan's Hirokazu Kore-eda, was selected to open the festival and is also running in the main international competition.

This years main competition entries, all of which will have their World Premier screenings, include :-

* 'AD ASTRA' - from the USA and Directed by James Gray this SciFi film stars Brad Pitt, Tommy Lee Jones, Donald Sutherland, Ruth Negga, Liv Tyler, John Ortiz and LisaGay Hamilton. 

* 'BABYTEETH' - from Australia and Directed by Shannon Murphy this drama film stars Ben Mendelsohn and Essie Davis. 

* 'EMA' - from Chile and Directed by Pablo Larrain, this drama film stars Gael Garcia Bernal. 

* 'GUEST OF HONOUR' - from Canada and Directed, Co-Produced and Written by Atom Egoyan, this drama offering stars David Thewlis, Luke Wilson and Rossif Sutherland. 

* 'JOKER' - from USA and Directed, Co-Produced and Co-Written by Todd Phillips this psychological thriller film is based on the DC Comics character of the same name and stars Joaquin Phoenix as 'The Joker' with Robert De Niro, Zazie Beetz and Frances Conroy. 

* 'THE LAUNDROMAT' - from USA and Directed, Co-Produced, Edited and lensed by Steven Soderbergh this drama film stars Meryl Streep, Gary Oldman, Antonio Banderas, Jeffrey Wright, Matthias Schoenaerts, James Cromwell, Will Forte, David Schwimmer, Robert Patrick and Sharon Stone. 

* 'MARRIAGE STORY' - from USA and Directed, Co-Produced and Written by Noah Baumbach this comedy drama film stars Adam Driver, Scarlett Johansson, Alan Alda, Ray Liotta and Laura Dern. 

* 'No. 7 CHERRY LANE' - from Hong Kong and Directed and Writer by Yonfan, this animated feature film stars the voices of Silvia Chang, Zhao Wei, Alex Lam, and Kelly Yao.

* 'AN OFFICER AND A SPY' - from France and Directed and Co-Written for the screen by Roman Polanski this drama film stars Louis Garrel, Jean Dujardin, Mathieu Amalric, Emmanuelle Seigner and Melvil Poupaud.

* 'THE TRUTH' - from France and Japan and Directed, Written and Edited by Hirokazu Kore-eda and starring Catherine Deneuve, Juliette Binoche and  Ethan Hawke and this will be Kore-eda's first film set outside Japan and not in his native language.

* 'WAITING FOR THE BARBARIANS' - from Italy and the USA and Directed by Ciro Guerra in his English-language film making debut and stars Johnny Depp, Mark Rylance, Robert Pattinson and Greta Scacchi. 

* 'WASP NETWORK' - from France and Brazil and is Directed and Written by Olivier Assayas this drama film stars Penelope Cruz, Edgar Ramirez, Wagner Moura and Gael Garcia Bernal.

For the full run down on all the screenings, the news and views from the 76th Venice International Film Festival, you can go to the official website at : https://www.labiennale.org/en/cinema/2019

This week we have three latest release films coming to your local Odeon, kicking off with the third instalment in a fast paced shoot 'em up all guns blazing explosive action franchise that sees a crack Secret Service Agent go head to head and toe to toe with them darn pesky terrorist types for the third time as he tries to save the bacon of the US President, but first needs to clear his own name after being framed for an attempted assassination on the President. We next turn to an Aussie doco centering on an indigenous AFL legend who found himself the subject of a racist campaign against him and the subsequent fallout on his own career and the debate it created in the ensuing years Australia wide from all corners of our society. Wrapping up the weeks new releases we have a Christian film about a basketball coach turned cross-country coach who mentors and inspires a schools least likely athlete to win, and win big.  

Whatever your taste in big screen film entertainment is this week - be it any of the three 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 coming week.

'ANGEL HAS FALLEN' (Rated MA15+) - here we have the third instalment in the 'Fallen' franchise  following 'Olympus Has Fallen' in 2013 (about a terrorist attack and the subsequent fall of the Whitehouse), 2017's 'London Has Fallen' (about a terrorist attack on London and the subsequent fall of London) and now we have 'Angel Has Fallen' (about a terrorist attack and assassination attempt on the POTUS). Are you getting a recurring thread here?? The first film in the franchise was Directed by Antoine Fuqua, the second by Babak Najafi, and this offering is Directed by Ric Roman Waugh whose previous film making credits include 'In the Shadows', 'Felon', 'Snitch' and 'Shot Caller'.  The first two films had a combined Production Budget of US$130M and grossed between them US$376M, with this film weighing in with a budget of US$80M. The film opens in the US this week too.

Following on from the events of the previous film, Secret Service agent Mike Banning (Gerard Butler) finds himself framed for an assassination attempt on President Allan Trumbull (Morgan Freeman). Pursued by his own agency and the FBI, Banning turns to unlikely allies in a race against time to clear his name and uncover the real terrorist threat. Also starring Danny Huston, Tim Blake Nelson, Nick Nolte, Piper Perabo, Jada Pinkett Smith and Lance Reddick.

'THE AUSTRALIAN DREAM' (Rated MA15+) - this Australian and UK Co-Produced documentary is Directed by Daniel Gordon and Written by Stan Grant and opened the Melbourne International Film Festival on 1st August, before its wider theatrical release this week, and follows hot on the heels of that 'other' Adam Goodes film that aired on Australia's Channel Ten earlier last month 'The Final Quarter'. In October 2015, Wiradjuri man and renowned journalist Stan Grant delivered a stirring speech at Sydney's Ethics Centre as part of a debate on Australian racism. His starting point was the mass booing of the Australian Football League (AFL) Sydney Swans star Adam Goodes, who holds an elite place in AFL history as a dual Brownlow Medallist, dual premiership player, four-time All-Australian, member of the Indigenous Team of the Century, and representative of Australia in the International Rules Series. He was also named as Australian of the Year in 2014. From 2013, his outspokenness on racial issues, a couple of incidents on the field, along with commentary by some media figures, contributed to him being the target of a sustained booing campaign from opposition fans, causing him to take indefinite leave from the AFL and eventually retire from the game at the end of the 2015 season. 'The booing saga' sparked a national debate about racism in Australia and became the subject of two documentary films, of which this is the second. A compelling story about race, identity and belonging told from the perspective of a true Aussie sporting legend.

'OVERCOMER' (Rated PG) - this American Christian drama film is Directed by Alex Kendrick and also written by him and his brother Stephen Kendrick. This is the sixth film production put out under their Sherwood Pictures banner and their second by their subsidiary company Kendrick Brothers Productions (including the third sibling Shannon). Stephen Kendrick also acts as Co-Producer and Alex Kendrick also stars in the film and Co-Edits. Here, John Harrison (Alex Kendrick) is a high school basketball coach whose state championship dreams vanish when he receives some unexpected news. Meanwhile, the largest manufacturing plant in his town closes, and he questions what his and his family's future will look like. John agrees to take a job as a cross-country coach, and, inspired by a friend's prayers, decides to help one of the least likely athletes win the biggest race of the year. The film is released Stateside too this week.

With three 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-