What's new in Odeon's this week : Thursday 6th July 2023.

The 34th FIDMarseille - the Marseille International Film Festival - launched on Tuesday 4th July and runs through until Sunday 9th July, in the port city of Marseille, in southern France. It offers a programme of about one hundred films consisting documentaries, fiction, short and feature films. FIDMarseille is a reference point for the independent cinema of today and tomorrow, offering a challenging selection to a wide local, national and international audience. Every year the festival attracts professionals from all across the world. The programme of films showcased is also divided into several competitive strands presenting World or International Premieres.

In the International Competition, which carries an award prize of €8K, the following titles are being screened :-

* 'An Evening Song (for Three Voices) - from the USA and Directed by Graham Swon. World Premiere.

* 'Background' - from Germany and Directed by Khaled Abdulwahed. World Premiere.

* 'Twittering Soul' - from Lithuania and Directed by Deimantas Narkevicius. World Premiere.

* 'De Facto' - from Austria and Germany and Directed by Selma Doborac. International Premiere.

* 'Losing Faith' - from Austria and Germany and Directed by Martha Mechow. World Premiere.

* 'The Diagonal Force' - from Belgium and Directed by Annik Leroy and Julie Morel. World Premiere.

* 'The Bus Station' - from Argentina and Directed by Gustavo Fontan. World Premiere.

* 'Undefined Things' - from Argentina and Directed by Maria Aparicio. World Premiere.

* 'Monisme' - from Indonesia and Qatar and Directed by Riar Rizaldi. World Premiere.

* 'The Mariner' - from Portugal and France and Directed by Yohei Yamakado. World Premiere.

* 'Of Girls' - from Japan and the Netherlands and Directed by Wendelien van Oldenborgh. World Premiere.

* 'Ricorda Ti Che E Un Film Comico' - from France and Directed by Cesar Vayssie. World Premiere.

* 'Night Work' - from Spain and Directed by Christian Bagnat and Elvira Sanchez Poxon. International Premiere.

The other competitive sections held at FIDMarseille are the French Competition which carries an award prize of €5K, the First Film Competition awarding a prize of €3K, the Flash Competition €2K and the Cine + Competition €15K. For the entries into these competitive sections, plus a whole lot more besides, you can go to the official website at : https://fidmarseille.org/en/

Turning attention back to this weeks four new movies gracing a big screen Odeon close to home, we begin with the fifth outing in this hugely successful supernatural horror franchise that is a follow on from the second film in the series that sees the father driving east to drop his oldest son off at university, but the son's college dream soon becomes a living nightmare when the subdued demons of his past suddenly return to haunt them both. This is followed by an Aussie drama offering set in the 1940's in which a somewhat rebellious nun takes in a nine year old Aboriginal orphan lad. Next up is a French drama film in which a childless woman forms a deep bond with her boyfriend's young daughter; and closing out the week we have an American comedy offering that follows four Asian-American friends as they bond and discover the truth of what it means to know and love who you are, while they travel through Asia in search of one of their birth mothers.

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

'INSIDIOUS : THE RED DOOR' (Rated M) - this American supernatural horror film is Directed by Patrick Wilson in his Directing debut and is seen as a direct sequel to 2010's 'Insidious' and 2013's 'Insidious : Chapter 2' and is the fifth film in the 'Insidious' series which also consisted 'Insidious : Chapter 3' in 2105 and 'Insidious : The Last Key' in 2018. Based on a story once again written by Leigh Whannell (who also Co-Produces here with James Wan and Jason Blum) those first four films in the series grossed worldwide US$543M off the back of combined production budgets of just US$27M making the continuation of this saga a foregone conclusion. The film is released in the US this week too.

Set ten years following the events of 'Insidious : Chapter 2', Josh Lambert (Patrick Wilson) heads east to drop his son Dalton (Ty Simpkins) off at an idyllic, ivy-league University. However, Dalton’s college dream becomes a nightmare when the repressed demons of his past suddenly come back to haunt them both. To end the haunting and to put the demons to rest once and for all, Josh and Dalton must return once again to the Further (a purgatory dimension inhabited by the tortured spirits of the deceased) in order to stop the Lambert nightmare for good. Also starring Rose Byrne as Renai Lambert and Lin Shaye as Elise Rainier. 

'THE NEW BOY' (Rated M) - is an Australian drama film Written, Directed and photographed by Warwick Thornton who made his feature film Directing debut with 'Samson & Delilah' in 2009, and would follow this up with 'The Darkside' in 2013, 'We Don't Need a Map' in 2017 and 'Sweet Country' in 2017 too. This film saw its World Premier showcasing at the Cannes Film Festival in May this year, was the Opening Night film at the recent 70th Sydney Film Festival and is released this week here in Australia. Here then, set sometime in 1940's Australia, a nine-year-old Aboriginal orphan boy (Aswan Reid) is taken in at a remote monastery in the dead of night, run by a renegade nun, Sister Eileen (Cate Blanchett who also Co-Produces here with her husband Andrew Upton). Also starring Deborah Mailman and Wayne Blair. 

'OTHER PEOPLE'S CHILDREN' (Rated M) - this French drama film is Written and Directed by Rebecca Zlotowski who feature film credits take in her debut 'Dear Prudence' in 2010 with Lea Seydoux, then 'Grand Central' in 2013 with Lea Seydoux again, 'Planetarium' in 2016 with Natalie Portman and Lily-Rose Depp and 'An Easy Girl' in 2019. Rachel (Virginie Efira) is forty years old, single and has no children. She is working as a teacher at a middle school. She has a large circle of friends and also keeps in touch with her ex-husbands. Then one day, she falls in love with Ali (Roschdy Zem) and his four-year-old daughter Leila (Callie Ferreira-Goncalves) also enters her life. Rachel takes care of the toddler, cares for and soon loves it like her own. But she must recognise that the close bond with Leila also harbours a possible risk, especially in relation to her birth mother Alice (Chiara Mastroianni). Rachel doesn't want to put up with just being an 'extra' in Leila's life. Time is also not on her side and she needs to make a decision whether she should have a child of her own at this age. The film saw its World Premier showcasing at the Venice International Film Festival in early September last year, went on release in its native France towards the end of September and only now is it released here in Australia having garnered generally positive critical reviews and grossing so far US$2.8M at the Box Office.

'JOY RIDE' (Rated MA15+) - this American comedy film is based on a story jointly conceived by Adele Lim and Co-Produced and Directed by Adele Lim in her Directorial debut. The film saw its World Premier screening at SXSW in mid-March this year, is released Stateside and here in Australia this week and has generated universal critical claim. Here then, childhood best friends Audrey (Ashley Park) and Lolo (Sherry Cola), accompanied by Audrey's former roommate Kat (Stephanie Hsu) and Lolo's cousin Deadeye (Sabrina Wu), set out on a journey across China to find Audrey's birth mother. Their epic, no-holds-barred experience becomes a journey of bonding, friendship, belonging and wild debauchery that reveals the universal truth of what it means to know and love who you are. 

With four 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-