What's new in Odeon's this week : Thursday 15th September 2022.

And so the 79th Venice International Film Festival drew to a close on Saturday evening 10th September. In the main international competition this year, which was overseen by Jury President, Julianne Moore, there were twenty-three films in official competition, with the winners and grinners in this category being :-

* The Golden Lion Award was presented to : 'All the Beauty and the Bloodshed', Directed and Co-Produced by Laura Poitras. The documentary film examines the life and career of photographer and activist Nan Goldin and her efforts to hold Purdue Pharma, owned by the Sackler family, accountable for the opioid epidemic. 

* The Grand Jury Prize was presented to 'Saint Omer', Directed and Co-Written for the screen by Alice Diop. This French film sees Rama, a pregnant young novelist who attends the trial of Laurence Coly, a Senegalese woman accused of murdering her fifteen-month-old child by leaving her on a beach to be swept away by the tide, in order to turn the tragic event into a modern day literary retelling of the Greek Medea myth. The film is released in its native France on 23rd November. This film also won several other awards including the Luigi De Laurentiis Lion of the Future Award for a Debut Film. 

* The Silver Lion Award was presented to 'Bones and All', Directed by Luca Guadagnino. The film follows cannibalistic lovers, Maren and Lee, as they embark on a road trip across Reagan-era America. To be released in the US on 23rd November.

* The Volpi Cup for Best Actress was presented to Cate Blanchett for 'Tar', Written, Directed and Co-Produced by Todd Field. Set in the international world of classical music, the film revolves around Lydia Tar, widely considered one of the greatest living composer/conductors and first-ever female chief conductor of a major German orchestra. The film is released in the US on 7th October. 

* The Volpi Cup for Best Actor was awarded to Colin Farrell for 'The Banshees of Inisherin', Directed, Written and Co-Produced by Martin McDonagh. Conflict arises between two friends when one of them abruptly ends their friendship, with alarming consequences for both of them. The film goes on limited release from 21st October.

* The Golden Osella Award for Best Screenplay was presented to Martin McDonagh for 'The Banshees of Inisherin'. 

* The Special Jury Prize was presented to 'No Bears', Directed, Written, Produced and starring Jafar Panahi. The film portrays two parallel love stories in which the lovers struggle with hidden and unavoidable obstacles, the force of superstitions and the mechanics of power.

* The Marcello Mastroianni Award (for an emerging Actor or Actress) was presented to Taylor Russell for 'Bones and All'. 

* The Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement Award was presented to American Screenwriter and Film Director Paul Schrader and French Actress Catherine Deneuve.

For the full rundown on all of the proud recipients of an award, plus a whole lot more besides, you can go to the official website at : https://www.labiennale.org/en/cinema/2022.

Turning attention then back to this weeks eight new release films coming to an Odeon near you, we kick off with a story of a divorced couple who find themselves on a shared mission to stop their lovestruck daughter from making the same mistake they once made. Next up we have a documentary exploring David Bowie's creative and musical journey; and this is followed by a black horror comedy when a group of rich twenty-somethings plan a hurricane party at a remote family mansion, and their party game turns very deadly. We then turn to an action thriller horror offering about a pastor who uncovers a dark and twisted underworld as he searches for answers surrounding his daughter's brutal murder. Following on we have a story of a garbage collector who is sucked into the orbit of a local crime boss and must face the violence of his past in order to find redemption; and then we have a New Zealand film about a young boxer on the cusp of a professional career who must rethink his chosen path after coming into contact with a gay Maori lad. Next is a sequel to a 1970 film about a group of children who are evacuated to a Yorkshire village during WWII, where they encounter a young soldier who, like them, is far away from home; and closing out the week is a computer animated film that sees Krypto the Super-Dog and Superman as inseparable best friends, sharing the same superpowers and fighting crime side by side in Metropolis, however, Krypto must master his own powers for a rescue mission when Superman is kidnapped. 

Whatever your taste in big screen film entertainment is this week - be it any of the eight latest release new films as Previewed below, or those doing the rounds currently on general release or 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.

'TICKET TO PARADISE' (Rated M) - this Australian, UK and US Co-Production is Co-Written and Directed by Ol Parker in his fourth feature film following 'Imagine Me & You' in 2005 with Lena Headey, Piper Perabo, Matthew Goode and Celia Imrie, then 'Now Is Good' in 2012 with Dakota Fanning, Paddy Considine, Josef Altin and Jeremy Irvine, and 'Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again' in 2018 with Lily James, Meryl Streep, Cher, Amanda Seyfried, Andy Garcia, Colin Firth and Pierce Brosnan. Principal photography occurred in Queensland, Australia most notably on the Whitsunday Islands, the Gold Coast and Moreton Island. This film is released in the UK this week too and not in the US until 21st October. 

Here, former married couple but now divorced parents David (George Clooney, who Co-Produces here) and Georgia (Julia Roberts, who also Co-Produces) travel to Bali after learning their daughter, Lily (Kaitlyn Dever), is planning to marry a local, Gede (Maxime Bouttier), whom she has just met. They decide to work together to sabotage the wedding to prevent Lily from making the same mistake they made twenty-five years previously.

'MOONAGE DAYDREAM' (Rated M) - is a documentary film about the English singer songwriter David Bowie and is Written, Produced, Directed and Edited by Brett Morgen whose previous documentary films include 'The Kid Stays in the Picture' in 2002, 'Chicago 10' in 2007, 'Crossfire Hurricane' in 2010, 'Kurt Cobain : Montage of Heck' in 2015 and 'Jane' in 2017. The film utilises previously unreleased footage from Bowie's personal archives, including live concert footage, to illuminate the life and genius of David Bowie, one of the most prolific and influential artists of our time to explore his creative, musical and spiritual journey. The film is guided by David Bowie's own narration and is the first officially sanctioned film by the Bowie estate. The film takes its title from his 1971 song of the same name. It saw its World Premier screening at this years Cannes Film Festival, and has garnered universal critical acclaim.

'BODIES BODIES BODIES' (Rated MA15+) - this American black comedy horror film is Directed by the Dutch Actress, Writer and film maker Halina Reijn in her English language debut, and only her second feature film after 'Instinct' in 2019. Here then, when a group of twenty-somethings gets stuck at a remote mansion during a hurricane, a party game gone very, very wrong ends with a dead body on the ground and fake friends at every turn as they try to find the killer among them. The film saw its World Premier screening at the South by Southwest Film Festival in mid-March this year before its release in the US from early August, having so far taken US$10M at the Box Office and generated largely positive reviews. Starring Amandla Stenberg, Maria Bakalova, Myha'la Herrold, Chase Sui Wonders, Rachel Sennott, Lee Pace, and Pete Davidson.

'THE RETALIATORS' (Rated R18+) - is an American action thriller horror film Directed by Samuel Gonzalez Jnr., Bridget Smith and Michael Lombardi. The film follows an upstanding pastor and father named John Bishop (Michael Lombardi) whose daughter is brutally murdered and he seeks vengeance for her death, while also finding out about the dark and twisted underworld she was involved in. The World Premier was held in London, England at FrightFest 2021 at the end of August last year and now gets its worldwide release this week. The film also features appearances by musicians Tommy Lee, Jacoby Shaddix, Zoltan Bathory, and The HU.

'CLEAN' (Rated MA15+) - this American Action thriller is Co-Written, Co-Produced and Directed by Paul Solet and is also Co-Written, Co-Produced, stars and scored by Adrien Brody. Solet's prior film making outings are 'Grace' in 2009, 'Dark Summer' in 2015, 'Bullet Head' in 2017 and the documentary 'Tread' in 2020. Tormented by his past, a garbage man named Clean (Adrien Brody) attempts a quiet life of redemption but when his good intentions make him the target of a local crime boss, he soon finds himself forced to reconcile with the violence of his past. Also starring Glenn Fleshler, Chandler DuPont and RZA. 

'PUNCH' (Rated CTC) - is a New Zealand drama film Written and Directed by Welby Ings in his feature film making debut, although he has Directed three short films and two segments of other feature films previously. Here, Jim (Jordan Oosterhof) is a seventeen-year-old boxer living in a small town preparing for his first professional fight, under the tutelage of his alcoholic father Stan (Tim Roth) that will potentially propel him into early professional status. However, he begins to rethink his life's trajectory and his sexuality after tangling with Whetu (Conan Hayes), a gay Maori boy who spends his days in an old shack down by the beach. It saw its release in its native New Zealand at the end of July, after its World Premier screening at the New Zealand International Film Festival in early July. 

'THE RAILWAY CHILDREN RETURN' (Rated PG) - this British family drama film is Directed by Morgan Matthews in only his second feature film outing following 'A Brilliant Young Mind' (formerly titled 'X+Y'), however, he has also Directed nineteen documentary films with his most recent 'Williams' in 2017 about the William's Formula 1 racing family. This film is a sequel to the 1970 film 'The Railway Children' and was based on the 1905 book of the same name by Edith Nesbit. The film follows a group of children who are evacuated to the village of Oakworth in the West Riding of Yorkshire in 1944 during the Second World War, where they encounter a young soldier who, like them, is far away from home. Starring John Bradley, Jenny Agutter, Tom Courtenay and Sheridan Smith the film has so far taken US$3.2M at the Box Office since its UK release in mid-July. 

'DC LEAGUE OF SUPER-PETS' (Rated PG) - is an American computer animated superhero comedy film based on the DC Comics 'Legion of Super-Pets' and is Directed and Co-Written for the screen by Jared Stern in only his second Directorial outing following 'Happy Anniversary' in 2018. Originally scheduled for release towards the back end of May 2021, that date was pushed back a year to the end of May this year before finally being pushed back to its US release at the end of July having so far grossed US$170M off the back of a US$90M production budget. The film has generated mixed or average reviews yet is reportedly the beginning of a new franchise based on the financial result and audience reception. Here then, Krypto the Super-Dog (voiced by Dwayne Johnson) and Superman (voiced by John Krasinski) are inseparable best friends, sharing the same superpowers and fighting crime side by side in Metropolis. However, Krypto must master his own powers for a rescue mission when Superman is kidnapped, while relying too on a team he puts together of shelter-pets who were given super-powers, a hound named Ace (Kevin Hart), who becomes super-strong; a pig named PB (Vanessa Bayer), who can grow to giant-size; a turtle named Merton (Natasha Lyonne), who becomes super-fast; and a squirrel named Chip (Diego Luna), who gains electric-powers. Also starring the voice talents of Kate McKinnon, Keanu Reeves, Olivia Wilde, Jermaine Clement, Daveed Diggs, Alfred Molina, Lena Headey, Keith David and Dan Fogler. 

With eight new release movie offerings 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 at your local Odeon in the week ahead.

-Steve, at Odeon Online-