What's new at Odeon's this week : Thursday 28th August 2025.

This year marks the 20th annual Martha's Vineyard International Film Festival running from Tuesday 2nd through until Sunday 7th September, on the Massachusetts island of Martha's Vineyard sitting in the Atlantic Ocean just south of Cape Cod. The Martha’s Vineyard International Film Festival is presented by the Martha’s Vineyard Film Society. The Film Society presents award-winning feature films, documentaries, animation, and shorts from around the world, paired with topical speakers throughout the year. It aims to bring together people of all ages, foster appreciation of the world’s diversity, and stimulate discussion through the universal language of film. The Martha’s Vineyard Film Society has become a much loved year-round arts organisation screening over two hundred films annually, with a membership of over 2,500 and annual patronage of over 35,000. About 90% of all film selections are non-US productions, helping to fulfil the festival mission of promoting cross-cultural understanding through film - so reads the official website.

This years Opening Night Film is 'Dreams (Sex Love)' is the second part of the Oslo Trilogy and is a Norwegian drama film Written and Directed by Dag Johan Haugerud. In between 'Sex' and 'Love',  Haugerud deals with the complexity of human relationships, sexuality and social norms. Here, Johanne falls in love with her teacher and records her fantasies and feelings in writing. Together with her mother and grandmother, they debate the literary potential and whether to publish it. The film was selected for the Main Competition at the Berlin International Film Festival, where it had its international Premiere in mid-February this year, and won the Golden Bear.

The Closing Night Film is 'Four Mothers' from Ireland and is Co-Written and Directed by Darren Thornton and is an Irish-set, English-language remake of the 2008 Italian film 'Mid-August Lunch'. An author is saddled with caring for his mother after she suffers a stroke. His plans for a book tour are thrown into disarray when three more elderly women arrive on his doorstep in Dublin for what turns out to be a chaotic weekend. The film had its World Premiere screening at the BFI London Film Festival in mid- October last year and was theatrically released in Ireland and the UK in early April this year.

The feature films in the Spotlight section of the festival are as briefly shown below :-

* 'Checkpoint Zoo' - from the US and the UK and Co-Written, Co-Produced and Directed by Joshua Zeman. The documentary deals with the 71-day rescue mission to evacuate thousands of animals from Kharkiv’s Feldman Ecopark, which was shelled with Russian artillery during the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

* 'Grand Tour' - from Portugal, Italy, France and Germany, this historical drama film is Co-Written and Directed by Miguel Gomes. In 1918, Rangoon is a city under British colonial rule. Civil servant Edward abandons his fiancee Molly on the day they are to be married. He flees in a state of melancholy, contemplating Molly's condition. Determined to be married, Molly follows his trail. The film had its World Premiere at the main competition of the Cannes Film Festival in late May 2024 where Gomes won the Best Director award.

* 'The Marching Band' - from France and this drama film is Co-Written and Directed by Emmanuel Courcol. Acclaimed conductor Thibaut has leukemia and needs a bone marrow donor. Learning he was adopted, he finds his biological older brother, a musician in a small marching band in Lille and cook in a school canteen. Their reunion sparks a fraternal, musical journey. The film Premiered in mid-May 2024 at the Cannes Film Festival.

* 'Odd Fish' - from Iceland and this drama film is Written and Directed by Snaevar Solvi Solvason. Two childhood friends get a long-awaited opportunity to found and run a seafood restaurant together. When one of them comes out of the closet as a trans woman, their friendship gets tested.

* 'Oceans Are The Real Continents' - from Spain and Written and Directed by Tommaso Santambrogio in his feature film debut. Three stories of migration, exile, and memory develop in the Cuban town of San Antonio De Los Banos, a place that time forgot. The film had its World Premiere screening at the Venice International Film Festival in September 2023.

* 'On Becoming a Guinea Fowl' - from Ireland, the UK, the USA and Zambia and Written and Directed by Rungano Nyoni. On an empty road in the middle of the night, Shula stumbles across the body of her uncle. As funeral proceedings begin around them, she and her cousins bring to light the buried secrets of their middle-class Zambian family. The film competed in the Un Certain Regard category at the Cannes Film Festival in mid-May 2024.

* 'The Black Sea' - from the USA and Bulgaria and Directed by Crystal Moselle and Derrick B. Harden. A charismatic big dreamer from Brooklyn with no follow-through gets stuck in a small Bulgarian resort town and finds unexpected connection. 

* 'The Making of a Japanese' - from Japan, the USA, Finland and France this documentary film is Directed by Ema Ryan Yamazaki. The film follows a year long journey at a Japanese elementary school, whose system is based on old military training and strict hierarchy, where children learn good manners early on, learn to follow rules and show respect for others.

* 'The Dating Game' - from the USA, the UK and Norway this documentary film is Co-Produced and Directed by Violet Du Feng and follows three Chinese men - Zhou, Li, and Wu, as they attend a seven-day dating camp in Chongqing to learn how to find love from two dating coaches - Hao and Wen, who are married to each other. 

* 'Don't Lets Go to the Dogs Tonight' - from South Africa this drama film is Written, Co-Produced, Directed and stars Embeth Davidtz in her feature film making debut. The films depicts eight-year-old Bobo's life on her family's Rhodesian (now Zimbabwe) farm during the Bush War's final stages. It explores the family's bond with Africa's land and the war's impact on the region and individuals through Bobo's perspective.

* 'Pink Lady' - from Israel and Italy this drama film is Directed by Nir Bergman. Battie and Lazer, a Jewish ultra-Orthodox young couple with three children are being blackmailed by the Wolf's gang. Both are going to fight the gang in a journey that will test their love and faith and change their lives forever.
* 'When Fall is Coming' - from France and Written, Produced and Directed by Francois Ozon. Michelle, a well-behaved grandmother, lives quietly in a Burgundy village near her long time friend Marie-Claude. Michelle's stressed out daughter Valerie visits on All Saints' Day to drop Lucas off for a vacation. Unexpected events disrupt their plans.

For the details of the Short Film Juried Competition and the Animation Showcase, plus more from the Martha's Vineyard Film Society, you can go to the official website at : https://mvfilmsociety.com/festivals/marthas-vineyard-international-film-festival/

Turning back to this weeks four hot new release movies coming to your local big screen Odeon, we begin with an action crime thriller in which a former baseball player finds himself immersed in the criminal underworld of New York in the 1990's. This is followed with a black comedy splatter offering in which a downtrodden janitor is exposed to a catastrophic toxic accident, resulting in his transformation into a new kind of hero who uses his newfound superhuman strength to battle slimy criminals and a corrupt CEO. Then we turn to a comedy drama film that sees old tensions resurface when former bandmates who were former lovers reunite for a private show at the island home of an eccentric millionaire. And closing out the week we have a French legal drama about a man who is accused of murdering his wife, and his lawyer must defend him against all odds, and especially against himself.

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 week ahead.

'CAUGHT STEALING' (Rated MA15+) - is an American action crime thriller film that is Co-Produced and Directed by Darren Aronofsky who made his feature film Directorial debut with 1998's 'Pi', and which he would follow up in the ensuing years with 'Requiem for a Dream' in 2000, 'The Fountain' in 2006, 'The Wrestler' in 2008, 'Black Swan' in 2010, 'Noah' in 2014, 'Mother!' in 2017 and 'The Whale' in 2022. This film is based on Charlie Huston's book of the same name. 

When his punk-rock neighbour Russ (Matt Smith) asks him to take care of his cat for a few days, New York City bartender and burned-out ex-baseball player Henry 'Hank' Thompson (Austin Butler) suddenly finds himself caught in the middle of a motley crew of threatening gangsters who all want a piece of him as he is forced to navigate a treacherous underworld he never imagined, in 1990's New York. Also starring Zoe Kravitz, Regina King, Liev Schreiber, Vincent D'Onofrio, Griffin Dunne, Bad Bunny, D'Pharaoh Woon-A-Tai and Carol Kane. The film is released Stateside this week also.

'THE TOXIC AVENGER' (Rated MA15+) - this American Superhero black comedy splatter film is Written and Directed by Macon Blair who made his feature film making debut with 'I Don't Feel at Home in This World Anymore' in 2017. This film is the fifth film and a reboot of 'The Toxic Avenger' film series and a remake of the 1984 film of the same name and has continued through three film sequels, a stage musical, a comic book series from Marvel Comics, a video game, and an animated television series. Here then, set in a fantasy world following Winston Gooze (Peter Dinklage), a stereotypical weakling who works as a janitor at Garb-X health club and is diagnosed with a terminal illness that can only be cured by an expensive treatment that his greedy, power hungry employer refuses to pay for. After deciding to take matters into his own hands and rob his company, Winston falls into a pit of toxic waste and is transformed into a deformed mutant monster vigilante known as Toxie, that sets out to do good and get back at all the people who have wronged him. Also starring Jacob Tremblay, Taylour Paige, Kevin Bacon and Elijah Wood, the film saw its World Premiere screening at Fantastic Fest in late September 2023, and is released this week too in the US having garnered generally favourable reviews.

'THE BALLAD OF WALLIS ISLAND' (Rated PG) - is a British comedy-drama film Directed by James Griffiths, and written by Tim Key and Tom Basden, and is based on their 2007 short film 'The One and Only Herb McGwyer Plays Wallis Island' which won the best short film at The Edinburgh International Film Festival and was nominated for the 2008 BAFTA Award for Best Short Film. This is James Griffiths second feature film Directorial offering after 2014's 'Cuban Fury'. This film follows Charles (Tim Key), an eccentric two time lottery winner who lives alone on a remote island off the Welsh coast and dreams of getting his favourite musicians, Herb McGwyer (Tom Basden) and Nell Mortimer (Carey Mulligan) of the aptly named folk band McGwyer Mortimer, back together. His fantasy turns into reality when the bandmates and former lovers are reunited for the first time in many years, accept his invitation to play a private show at his home on Wallis Island. Old tensions resurface as Charles tries desperately to salvage his dream gig. The film saw its World Premiere at this years Sundance Film Festival back in January, had a limited US release in late March, was released in the UK in late May, has so far grossed US$5.4M at the Box Office and has received generally positive press. 

'THE THREAD' aka 'AN ORDINARY CASE' (Rated M) - this French legal drama film is Co-Written, Directed and stars Daniel Auteuil who has numerous acting credits to his name and a handful of feature film Directing credits taking in his debut with 'The Well-Diggers Daughter' in 2011, 'Marius' in 2013, 'Fanny' also in 2013 and 'The Other Woman' in 2018. Here, Jean Monier (Daniel Auteuil), a troubled lawyer, agrees to represent a client named Nicolas Milik (Gregory Gadebois). The latter has been accused of murdering his wife. While trying to prove his client's innocence, Monier finds himself more and more involved in the case. Also starring Sidse Babett Knudsen. The film had its World Premiere showcasing at the Cannes Film Festival in late May 2024, was released in its native France in mid-September last year, and only now is it released here in Australia. 

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 coming week.

-Steve, at Odeon Online-