What's new at Odeon's this week : Thursday 20th November 2025

Established in 1987 and marking its 38th year this year the Foyle Film Festival is Northern Ireland's longest running film festival. Taking place from Wednesday 19th through until Sunday 30th November in venues across Derry~Londonderry, the festival aims to bring the best of international cinema and industry players to the city. Over twelve days in November, Foyle Film Festival brings together all the expertise in film, music, creative learning and culture, in a unique celebration of local, national and international cinematic excellence. The festival also delivers screenings, events and workshops throughout the year, as well as Educational and Community Outreach Screenings. The prestigious Light In Motion (LIM) competition is open to filmmakers and animators across the world, with winners qualifying for consideration in the Live Action and Animated Short Film categories of the Academy Awards and BAFTA . . . . . so reads the official website.

This years Opening Night Gala film presentation is 'Trad' from Ireland and Written and Directed by Lance Daly. The film follows gifted fiddle player Shona McAnally (Megan Nic Fhionnghaile) and her young brother (Dallan Woods) as they leave their home in the Donegal Gaeltacht and take to the road with a troupe of wandering musicians on a cross-country journey of adventure, romance, and musical exploration. The Closing Night Gala film screening is 'Rental Family' from Japan and the USA and is Written and Directed by Hikari. Set in modern-day Tokyo, the film follows an American Actor (Brendan Fraser) who struggles to find purpose until he lands an unusual gig - working for a Japanese 'rental family' agency, playing stand-in roles for strangers. As he immerses himself in his clients’ worlds, he begins to form genuine bonds that blur the lines between performance and reality. Confronting the moral complexities of his work, he rediscovers purpose, belonging, and the quiet beauty of human connection.

In the World Cinema section of this years festival are the following seven titles :-

* 'The Voice of Hind Rajab' - from Tunisia, France and the USA and is Directed by Kaouther Ben Hania. On 29th January 2024, Red Crescent volunteers receive an emergency call. A six-year old girl is trapped in a car under fire in Gaza, pleading for rescue. While trying to keep her on the line, they do everything they can to get an ambulance to her. Using actual call recordings and scripted re-enactments based on first-hand testimony, Oscar nominated Director Kaouther Ben Hania blends documentary and fiction to devastating effect.

* 'Alpha' - from France and Belgium and Directed by Julia Ducournau. Alpha (Melissa Boros), a troubled thirteen-year-old lives with her single mother (Golshifteh Farahani). Their world collapses the day she returns from school with a tattoo on her arm. Blending coming-of-age story, melodrama and Ducournau’s trademark body horror, Alpha features a trio of mesmerising central performances including Tahar Rahim as Alpha’s uncle Amin and with supporting cast including Emma Mackey and Finnegan Oldfield.

* 'Romeria' - from Spain and Germany and Directed by Carla Simon. Marina, eighteen and orphaned at a young age, must travel to Spain’s Atlantic coast to obtain a signature for a scholarship application from the paternal grandparents she has never met. She navigates a sea of new aunts, uncles, and cousins, uncertain whether she will be embraced or met with resistance. Stirring long-buried emotions, reviving tenderness, and uncovering unspoken wounds tied to the past, Marina pieces together the fragmented and often contradictory memories of the parents she barely remembers.

* 'The Love that Remains' - from Iceland, Denmark, Sweden and France, and Directed by Hlynur Palmason. Though in the throes of splitting up, Anna and Magnus still spend time together for the sake of their three children, Ida and twins Porgils and Grimur. While there are clear indications of why the separation is happening, there's also the familiarity of a long-held love and a glimmer of a chance of reconciliation.

* 'Nouvelle Vague' - from France and the USA and Directed by Richard Linklater. After several years writing for Cahiers du cinema, a young Jean-Luc Godard decides making films is the best film criticism. He gets producer Georges de Beauregard to fund a low-budget feature, creating a treatment with fellow new-wave icon Francois Truffaut about a gangster couple. This is the story of Jean-Luc Godard making the 1960 influential film 'Breathless' told in the style and spirit in which Godard made that film.

* 'A Private Life' - from France and Directed by Rebecca Zlotowski. When renowned Paris-based psychiatrist Lilian Steiner (Jodie Foster) learns of the death of one of her patients, she is deeply troubled. Convinced that it was murder, she decides to investigate with help from her ex-husband Gabriel (Daniel Auteuil), tumbling further down the rabbit hole in the process, as the mystery unravels with unexpected results.

* 'It Was Just an Accident' - from Iran, France and Luxembourg, and Directed by Jafar Panahi. What begins as a minor accident sets in motion a series of escalating consequences. Vahid, an Azerbaijani auto mechanic, was once imprisoned by Iranian authorities. During his sentence, he was interrogated while blindfolded. One day, a man named Eghbal enters his workshop. His prosthetic leg creaks, and Vahid thinks he recognises one of his former torturers.

For the other film strands being showcased including the Light In Motion Competition, and the Documentary and Irish Films sections, plus a whole bunch of other good stuff, you can go to the official website at : https://www.foylefilmfestival.org

This week there are four new movies coming to your local big screen Odeon, kicking off with a coming of age comedy drama film about a famous movie Actor who embarks on a journey of self discovery confronting both his past and present, accompanied by his devoted manager. This is followed by a wartime action film about a man who returns to dismantle his family's house, where they were murdered in war, to rebuild it elsewhere, but when the killer, a Red Army commander, tracks him down, a brutal cross-country pursuit begins. Next up is a musical fantasy sequel that follows Elphaba, the future Wicked Witch of the West, and her relationship with Glinda, the Good Witch of the North; before closing out the week with a documentary film that offers an intimate, first-hand perspective of life in war torn present day Gaza, told through a series of video calls between the filmmaker and a young Palestinian photojournalist.

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.

'JAY KELLY' (Rated M) - this coming of age comedy drama film is Co-Written, Co-Produced and Directed by Noah Baumbach whose prior feature film making credits take in his debut with 'Kicking and Screaming' in 1995, and which he would follow up with the likes of 'The Squid and the Whale' in 2005, 'Greenberg' in 2010, 'Francis Ha' in 2012, 'While We're Young' in 2014, 'The Meyerowitz Stories' in 2017, 'Marriage Story' in 2019 and 'White Noise' in 2022. This film had its World Premiere in the main competition of this years Venice International Film Festival in late August where it was nominated for the Golden Lion. It is released in select theatres from mid-November, followed by its global release on Netflix on 5th December. The film has generated largely favourable critical reviews.

Here, we follow famous movie Actor Jay Kelly (George Clooney) and his devoted manager Ron (Adam Sandler) as they embark on a whirlwind and unexpectedly profound journey through Europe. Along the way, both men are forced to confront the choices they've made, the relationships with their loved ones, and the legacies they'll leave behind. Also starring Laura Dern, Billy Crudup, Riley Keough, Grace Edwards, Jim Broadbent, Stacy Keach, Patrick Wilson, Greta Gerwig, Emily Mortimer, Isla Fisher, Lenny Henry and Alba Rohrwacher.

'SISU : ROAD TO REVENGE' (Rated MA15+) - is a Finland and US Co-Produced war action film that is the sequel to 2022's 'Sisu' and like the first film is once again Written and Directed by Jalmari Helander. Here, after returning in 1946 to Soviet-occupied Karelia, where his family was brutally murdered toward the end of World War II, Aatami Korpi (Jorma Tommila) aka 'the man who refuses to die', dismantles his old family house, loads it on a truck, and is determined to rebuild it somewhere safe in their honour. When the Red Army discovers Korpi's arrival on their soil, Igor Draganov (Stephen Lang), the man who killed his family, comes back hellbent on finishing the job, by killing the legendary ex-soldier by any means necessary. Also starring Richard Brake as the KGB Officer who sends Draganov to capture Korpi. The film cost US$12M to produce, has so far grossed US$2M, saw its World Premiere screening at Fantastic Fest in late September, was released in its native Finland in late October, is released in the US and here in Australia this week and has garnered universal critical acclaim. 

'WICKED : FOR GOOD' (Rated PG) - this American musical fantasy film is is a direct sequel to 2024's 'Wicked' which grossed US$756M off the back of a production budget of US$150M and, like this film, was also Directed by Jon M. Chu. This film adapts the second act of the 2003 stage musical, which was loosely based on Gregory Maguire's 1995 novel, a reimagining of L. Frank Baum's 1900 novel 'The Wonderful Wizard of Oz' and its 1939 film adaptation. Here then, years after the events of 'Wicked', Elphaba Thropp, now known as the Wicked Witch of the West (Cynthia Erivo), continues her fight for animal rights while living as a fugitive. Meanwhile, Glinda Upland, now recognised as the Glinda the Good (Ariana Grande), is a public figure watched over by the Wizard (Jeff Goldblum) and Madame Morrible (Michelle Yeoh). As they face the consequences of their actions, their relationship is put to the test by a series of events, which includes the surprising arrival of Dorothy Gale from Kansas, that will change the Land of Oz forever. Also starring Jonathan Bailey, Peter Dinklage, Colman Domingo and Marissa Bode. The film saw its World Premiere in Sao Paolo, Brazil on 4th November, is released in the US and here in Australia this week and cost US$150M to produce.

'PUT YOU SOUL ON YOUR HAND AND WALK' (Rated M) - is a French, Palestine and Iran Co-Produced documentary film that is Co-Produced, photographed, Directed, stars and Edited by Sepideh Farsi. The film depicts life in Gaza during the ongoing Israeli military campaign, captured through Farsi's year long video calls with a young female Palestinian photojournalist Fatima Hassouna living there, who was interviewed by Farsi for the film, and was killed in an Israeli airstrike alongside nine members of her family on 16th April 2025, the day after the film was selected for the ACID parallel section of this years Cannes Film Festival in mid-May where the film had its World Premiere showcasing. 

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-