And so the 76th annual Venice International Film Festival drew to a close on Saturday 7th September with the World Premiere screening of 'The Burnt Orange Heresy' Directed by Giuseppe Capotondi and starring Claes Bang, Elizabeth Debicki, Mick Jagger and Donald Sutherland being the closing film and shown after the awards ceremony. And speaking of which, the winners and grinners of this years top awards, selected by the official Jury from 21 films in competition, were as follows :-
* The Golden Lion for Best Film was awarded to 'JOKER', Directed by Todd Phillips and starring Joaquin Phoenix (from the USA).* The Silver Lion - The Grand Jury Prize was awarded to 'J'ACCUSE' (aka 'AN OFFICER AND A SPY'), Directed by Roman Polanski and starring Jean Dujardin (from France).
* The Silver Lion - Award for Best Director was awarded to Roy Anderrson for 'ABOUT ENDLESSNESS' (from Sweden).
* The Volpi Cup for Best Actress was awarded to Ariane Ascaride for 'GLORIA MUNDI' Directed by Robert Guediguian (from France).
* The Volpi Cup for Best Actor was awarded to Luca Marinelli for 'MARTIN EDEN' Directed by Pietro Marcello (from Italy).
* Best Screenplay was awarded to Yonfan for his animated 'No. 7 CHERRY LANE' also Directed by Yonfan (from Hong Kong).
* Special Jury Prize was awarded to 'THE MAFIA IS NO LONGER WHAT IT USED TO BE' Directed by Franco Maresco (from Italy).* The Marcello Mastroianni Award for for Best New Young Actor or Actress was awarded to Toby Wallace for 'BABYTEETH' Directed by Shannon Murphy (from Australia).
You can get the full run down on all the news and views, the awards, the celebrations and much more from the 76th Venice International Film Festival, by visiting the official website at : https://www.labiennale.org/en/cinema/2019
This week we have four new cinematic releases to tempt you out to your local Odeon on an early Spring day. We start with a big screen adaptation of a much loved and hugely popular British television series set in the post WWI era on a lavish country estate involving the trials and tribulations of a very well do to family and their brigade of servants above and below stairs. This film carries on where the series left off and involves the household preparing for a very important visit. This is followed by a Sci-Fi thriller about a somewhat unhinged father and his seven year old daughter who live in a boarded up home sheltered from the outside world because of the risks and dangers inherent with venturing outside . . . but then the young girl does! Next up is a drama offering about two party animal best friends whose life comes under scrutiny when one of them becomes engaged to a concert pianist who gives up alcohol for good shortly afterwards. We then close out the week with an animated sequel to a 2016 film that sees a bunch of island dwelling birds join forces with a neighbouring islands green pigs to thwart a power hungry bird that is in possession of an advanced weapon that threatens both islands.
Whatever your taste in big screen film entertainment is this week - be it any of the four 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.
'DOWNTON ABBEY' (Rated PG) - legions of fans the world over will be salivating at the prospect of this feature length film that is a continuation of the massively popular and successful television series of the same name, created by Julian Fellowes, that ran on British television and was syndicated around the world from 2010 to 2015. The film, set in the Autumn of 1927, follows on from the TV series, which ended its original run in December 2015, after 52 episodes, with its final episode set at New Year's Eve, 1925. Directed by Michael Engler and Written and Co-Produced by Julian Fellowes, many of the original cast members here return for this big screen feature length instalment.
'FREAKS' (Rated MA15+) - is an American and Canadian Co-Produced Sci-Fi thriller Co-Directed, Co-Written and Co-Produced by Adam Stein and Zach Lipovski that saw its worldwide Premier screening at TIFF back in September 2018, and only now does it go on general release in the US and Australia this week. Kept locked inside their dilapidated house by her father (Emile Hirsch), seven year-old Chloe (Lexy Kolker) lives in fear and fascination of the outside world, being forbidden from even looking outside their bordered up windows. It's a place where 'Abnormals' are a constant threat, or so she is led to believe. But when a mysterious stranger driving a creepy ice cream truck with a handprinted 'Mr. Snowcone' sign appears outside her house she eventually builds up the courage to defy her father and escape the house. She climbs onto the truck with Mr. Snowcone (Bruce Dern) and into an adventure filled with hope, fear, and violence, but what are Mr. Snowcone's somewhat suspicious reasons for doing so?
'ANIMALS' (Rated MA15+) - this Australian and Irish Co-Produced drama film is Directed and Co-Produced by South Australian film maker, Producer and Writer Sophie Hyde who is perhaps best known for her award winning feature debut '52 Tuesdays' in 2014. This story is adapted from the 2014 book of the same name by Emma Jane Unsworth and saw its Premier screening at the Sundance Film Festival back in January this year. Here best friends Laura (Holliday Grainger), a struggling writer working as a barista, and her best friend and flatmate Tyler (Alia Shawkat), an American woman who is estranged from her family, are both late 20's heavy partyers living in Dublin consuming large quantities of wine and drugs by night, sometimes engaging in casual sex with a man but mostly just enjoying each other's company. However, their lifestyles soon start to come under scrutiny after Laura gets engaged to a concert pianist Jim (Fra Fee) who shortly afterwards gives up alcohol completely, and then the pair form a friendship with a poet, Marty (Dermot Murphy) to whom Laura also is attracted. The film has so far garnered largely positive Reviews.
'THE ANGRY BIRDS MOVIE 2' (Rated PG) - this sequel to the 2016 'Angry Birds Movie' which grossed US$353M off the back of a US$73M production budget received mixed reviews from critics but was a box office success, and became the third highest-grossing film of all time to be based on a video game, behind 'Warcraft' and 'Detective Pikachu'. This film is Directed by first-timers Thurop Van Orman and John Rice, was made for US$65M, has so far grossed US$105M since its UK and US release earlier in August and has fared better than its predecessor with positive reviews from Critics who praised the animation, cast, humour and soundtrack. And so, Red (voiced by Jason Sudeikis), Chuck (Josh Gad), Bomb (Danny McBride) and the rest of their feathered friends are surprised when a green pig suggests that they put aside their differences and unite to fight a common threat. Aggressive birds from an island covered in ice are planning to use an elaborate weapon to destroy the fowl and swine way of life. After choosing their best and brightest, the birds and pigs come up with a scheme to infiltrate the island, deactivate the device and return to their respective paradises in one piece to live happily ever after. Also starring the voice work of Leslie Jones, Bill Hader, Awkwafina, Sterling K. Brown, Peter Dinklage, Nicki Minaj, Tiffany Haddish and Gaten Matarazzo.With four 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-
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