AVENGERS: INFINITY WAR - Monday 30th April 2018.

'AVENGERS : INFINITY WAR' which I caught earlier in the week has arrived, finally, into our cinemas after much hype, eager anticipation, and huge expectations. This is the 19th film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe and the sequel to 2013 'The Avengers' which grossed US$1.52B off the back of a US$200M Budget outlay, and 2015's 'Avengers : Age Of Ultron' which grossed US$1.4B off a Budget of US$267M. Directed by Anthony and Joe Russo who also Directed 'Captain America : Winter Soldier', and 'Captain America : Civil War', as well as the post-credits sequence that rounded out 'Ant-Man' and featuring a huge A-List ensemble cast, the like of which has quite possibly never before been seen on the big screen to such an extent. The Russo Brothers are also Directing the as yet unnamed sequel to this film which is due for release in early May 2019 and which was shot back to back over a twelve month period from January 2017 through January 2018. The film cost somewhere northward of US$300M to make and is one of the most expensive films ever made, and Marvel's most costly to date. In its opening weekend the film took US$641M making it the highest grossing opening film of all time, with the tally standing at US$858M at the time of posting.

Here all The Avengers we have come to know, love and respect from the previous two instalments and their own stand alone films, plus a few ring-ins must unite two years following the events of 'Captain America : Civil War' and following on directly from the closing scene in 'Thor : Ragnarok'. Here we see the ship that Thor commandeered from The Grandmaster to take the survivors of a destroyed Asgard to the relative safe haven of Earth, all but destroyed by Thanos (Josh Brolin) and his 'children' Ebony Maw (Tom Vaughan-Lawlor), Cull Obsidian (Terry Notary), Proxima Midnight (Carrie Coon) and Corvus Glaive (Michael James Shaw). All around are dead Asgardians save for a captive Thor (Chris Hemsworth) held in a vice like head grip by Thanos, an injured Heimdall (Idris Elba), a right as rain Loki (Tom Hiddleston) and Hulk (Mark Ruffalo).

Thanos is already in possession of the first of six all powerful Infinity Stones, having secured the Power Stone already. He knows that someone on board the stricken ship has the Tesseract, which holds the Space Stone, and he is determined to get his hands on it. Thanos kills Heimdall but not before the revered sentry of Asgard summons the Bifrost sending Hulk back to Earth.

At this Loki tries to bargain with Thanos giving up the Tesseract in exchange for sparing Thor's life, but ultimately the Titan crushes Loki's throat with a single hand, squeezing all life from him, watched on by a helpless Thor. Thanos now armed with two Infinity Stones departs the stricken ship with his children, destroying it in the process.

Back down on Earth, Dr. Stephen Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch) and Wong (Benedict Wong) are going about their daily business in Strange's New York residence the Sanctum Sanctorum when crashing through the window and through the grand staircase of the household lands Hulk who has now reverted to Bruce Banner, via the Bifrost. Banner announces to an unsuspecting Strange and Wong that Thanos is coming and he's hellbent on destroying half the known universe. Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jnr.) is contacted by Strange and their introductory encounter is a little strained, but distraction is provided by Maw and Obsidian who arrive via a giant rotating circular spaceship to take possession of Doctor Strange's Time Stone, which he ain't gonna give up for anyone!

A battle ensues in the streets of downtown New York which Peter Parker (Tom Holland) gets involved in too, swinging into action as our favourite web slinger, Spider-Man. With five Avengers against two Thanos thugs, the odds would be stacked in favour of the former, but not so. Maw takes Strange prisoner aboard his ship with the aim of removing the Time Stone, followed in hot pursuit by Iron Man and Spider-Man. Before doing so, Banner urges Tony Stark to contact Steve Rogers/Captain America (Chris Evans) using the cell phone given to him after the pair fell out following the events of 'Captain America : Civil War'. Stark was reluctantly about to do so before the attack, and now he is gone heading into deep space somewhere. Banner retrieves the phone after the battle, and calls Rogers.

Meanwhile up in Scotland, seemingly away from the fray living their private lives Wanda Maximoff/Scarlet Witch (Elizabeth Olson) and Vision (Paul Bettany) are ambushed by Midnight and Glaive seeking to retrieve the Mind Stone from Vision's forehead. Coming to the rescue just in the nick of time are Rogers, Natasha Romanoff/Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson) and Sam Wilson/Falcon (Anthony Mackie), who jet off to the new Avengers facility to meet with James Rhodes/War Machine (Don Cheadle). Vision offers to sacrifice himself by having Wanda Maximoff summons her powers to destroy the Mind Stone rather than letting it fall into the hands of Thanos. Rogers however, suggests an alternative strategy. That they fly to Wakanda as the only place equipped with the technology to remove the Mind Stone safely so allowing Vision to live, and Rogers has some connections there too.

In the meantime, somewhere in deep space The Guardians of the Galaxy have responded to a distress call from the stricken Asgardian ship, and rescue Thor. Following rather protracted introductions with a few laugh out loud one-liners, Thor surmises that Thanos is in pursuit of the Reality Stone, which is in the possession of The Collector (Benicio del Toro) located on Knowhere. Rocket (the Racoon, voiced by Bradley Copper)  and Groot (an extraterrestrial tree like humanoid voiced by Vin Diesel) accompany Thor to Nidavellir to locate a weapon that is capable of killing Thanos. There they find the industrial planet shut down, the lights are off and nobody's at home. Except for Eltri (Peter Dinklage) a weapons forger who crafted Thor's hammer Mjolnir. To forge a new weapon for Thor means restarting the giant turbines now frozen that heat the furnace that melts the metal to create The Stormbreaker, a magical battle axe with similar properties to Mjolnir. Job done, Thor, Rocket and Groot get outta there.

In the intervening period Peter Quill/Star Lord (Chris Pratt), Gamora (Zoe Saldana), Drax (Dave Bautista) and Mantis (Pom Klementieff) arrive on Knowhere, but after Thanos has arrived and has his giant foot resting menacingly on The Collectors chest, with the Reality Stone already embedded in his gauntlet with the others. Gamora confronts Thanos, for she is his adoptive daughter, and she reluctantly reveals the location of the Soul Stone to save her adoptive sister Nebula (Karen Gillan) from torture at the hands of Thanos. Thanos and Gamora travel to the planet Vormir where Red Skull (Ross Marquand replacing Hugo Weaving) is the keeper of the Stone, which can only be retrieved by sacrificing someone he loves. With a tear in his eye and a heavy heart, Thanos throws Gamora over a steep cliff where she falls to her death, so securing him the Soul Stone.

Nebula is able to effect her escape from the clutches of Thanos, and establish contact with the remaining Guardians asking them to rendezvous with her on the now destroyed home planet of Thanos, Titan. Meanwhile Stark and Strange are are able to over power Maw with the help of Spider-Man and eject him out of the ship floating to his death in infinite space. They crash land the now stricken ship on Titan where they meet Quill, Drax and Mantis. After the initial introductions are dispensed with, they hatch a plan to relieve Thanos of his Infinity Gauntlet.

Thanos duly arrives and during a momentary lapse of concentration, Mantis subdues him using her empathic powers. Nebula draws the conclusion that Thanos has killed Gamora which he admits to while under the spell of Mantis. Quill, however, becomes enraged at this revelation and lashes out at Thanos breaking the hold that Mantis had on him. Quickly, Thanos gains the upper hand and overpowers the entire group, including the three Avengers (Spider-Man was hastily inducted as an bona fide Avenger by Stark after the trio dispensed with Maw) and impaling Iron Man with a long blade. Strange gives up the Time Stone in exchange for him sparing the life of Stark. Thanos departs for Earth.

Back on Earth in Wakanda, Rogers in reunited with an exiled Bucky Barnes/Winter Soldier (Sebastian Stan). The Avengers seek that Shuri (Letitia Wright) extracts the Mind Stone from Vision using their cutting edge technology to save his life in the process. But time is ticking away and the army of Thanos is anticipated imminently. The army invades trying to break through the Wakandan force field. The Avengers, together with T'Challa (Chadwick Boseman) mount a defensive attack together with the might and strength of the Wakandan forces. Thor, Rocket and Groot arrive and join the fray. Midnight, Obsidian and Glaive leading the charge of the invading army are killed in battle and their army flees when they succumb to the wrath of Thor and his new Stormbreaker Axe.

Thanos arrives, and at Vision's insistence Maximoff destroys his Mind Stone shattering it into a thousand fragments, preventing Thanos from securing the final Infinity Stone to complete the full set of brightly coloured all powerful gems. With the Avengers scattered having failed in their attempts to overpower Thanos, the Titan shows empathy towards Maximoff before activating the Time Stone and reversing her most recent actions to the time just a few minutes before. Vision lives, with the Mind Stone in tact, which Thanos plucks from his forehead, killing Vision in the process once and for all. At that Thor appears and impales Thanos with his Stormbreaker Axe. Just when you thought you could breathe a sigh of relief Thanos activates the now complete Infinity Gauntlet and is teleported off this little blue planet.

Thanos plans for the universe are thrown into motion with a click of his fingers as life begins to disintegrate quickly. Those first to disappear like ash in the wind are the likes of Strange and Parker, and Drax, Quill and Mantis still on Titan, then T'Challa, Barnes, Groot, Maximoff and Wilson in Wakanda. Stark and Nebula remain intact on Titan, as do Banner, Rogers, Thor, Okoye (Danai Gurira), Rhodes, Rocket and Romanoff on the battlefield of Wakanda. Meanwhile, Thanos has arrived on his home planet, walks into his mountain top home from home and watches a sun setting on another day as he recovers from his injury.

In the post credit sequence, we see Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) and Maria Hill (Cobie Smulders) driving through a busy street when a car in front spins randomly out of control and collides with theirs. Getting out to investigate Hill sees that the car is driverless, just as a helicopter flying overhead spins recklessly out of control smashing into an office tower. Looking on, Hill begins to disintegrate, and as Fury sends a distress signal so he too begins to disintegrate.

The 'Avengers : Infinity War' is a movie of epic proportions and it certainly helps if you have sat through the previous instalments of the MCU that feature those characters portrayed in this film. This is not intended to be a standalone instalment, but rather a continuation and a culmination of the previous ten years, eighteen films and several MCU tie-ins and cross-overs. Directors the Russo brothers under the watchful gaze of Marvel Studios Producer Kevin Feige, have crafted a film that delivers on many levels - the action set pieces, of which there are plenty, are delivered effectively and expertly on a grand scale, there are moments of emotion and there are laugh out loud one liners too. Never does the ego of one Superhero get in the way of another, and each character is given sufficient latitude and screen time to advance their story arc just a little further without it being repetitive. Josh Brolin as Thanos gives a convincing performance as a giant of a man whose universe crushing outwardly persona gives way on more than one occasion to inner emotion and a level of thinking that reveal more than a cardboard cut out of an intergalactic arch villain. As for the rest of the cast, they too can be hardly faulted - after all we know them all well and have seen them conquer Earth based enemies and otherworldly foe too, but this time, have they met their match - it sure looks like it! As the closing credits says 'Thanos will be back' - one year from now. This fact of course may disappoint some viewers expecting closure, as will the death of several of their favoured characters, the omission of some others (most notably Hawkeye, Ant-Man or Valkyrie), the fact that every otherworldly planet visited has a breathable atmosphere and appears to have a temperate climate, and the elongated running time may be too big an ask for some. My advice however, if you are a follower of the MCU, then watch this film on the biggest screen and be prepared to sit through two and a half hours of solid Marvel movie entertainment at its biggest, boldest and brashest - you won't be disappointed.

-Steve, at Odeon Online-

What's new in Odeon's this week : Thursday 26th April 2018.

In the week ahead we have the 19th film in Marvel's Cinematic Universe, with the arrival of the first instalment in a two parter, that concludes in May 2019. The first eighteen films in this Superhero shared universe launched ten years ago in 2008, when Robert Downey Jnr. burst onto our screens as Tony Stark, aka 'Iron Man'. Currently there are a further fourteen films all at various stages of development going through to the mid-2020's, and this is hardly surprising given that the first eighteen films have raked in a grand total Box Office haul of US$14.83B off combined Budgets of US$3.3B. The headliners contributing to this world beating film franchise are 'The Avengers' (2012) grossing US$1.52B and ranking #5 of all time highest ranking films; 'Avengers : Age of Ultron' (2015) brought home US$1.40B standing at #7; released earlier this year, 'Black Panther' (2018) currently stands at US$1.31B and occupies the #10 spot; and 'Captain America : Civil War' (2016) took US$1.15B and stands at #16. In the meantime, there have been three standalone 'Iron Man' features, three of 'Thor', three of 'Captain America', three for 'The Avengers' including that which is released this week; two for 'Guardians of the Galaxy' and one so far for each of 'The Incredible Hulk', 'Doctor Strange', 'Ant-Man', 'Spider-Man' and 'Black Panther'.

And what does the future hold for the MCU and its ardent followers the world over? Hot on the heels of this years recently released 'Black Panther' and the upcoming 'Avengers : Infinity War', in 2018 we still have yet to come 'Ant-Man and the Wasp' due for release in July as Directed by Peyton Reed; in March 2019 there is 'Captain Marvel' Directed by Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck. Then in May 2019 is the follow up and as yet untitled follow up to 'Avengers : Infinity War'; and in July 2019 sees the return of 'Spider-Man' in an also untitled sequel to 'Homecoming' Directed by John Watts, and 2020 sees 'Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol. 3' Directed once more by James Gunn. Two other untitled films are due also in 2020, with three films slated for 2021 and 2022 also. Let's also not forget the upcoming release of 'Deadpool 2' in May this year too, which although not part of the MCU, is a Marvel creation nonetheless and fits more into the 'X-Men' series.

This week with five new release movies coming to an Odeon near you. There is the eagerly awaited Superhero extravaganza, the third instalment in this story line and the 19th film in this particular universe, and its gonna be massive as our ever expanding group of superheroes must band together to overcome the super badass of all time from trashing Earth and possible half the known universe. We then go to an ultra low budget psychological horror film shot on a iPhone by an alleged retired Director, and starring The Queen no less (well perhaps not quite!) This is followed up by a tale of three Vietnam Vets who reunite after thirty years to bury a soldier son killed in Iraq, and the road trip of reacquaintance, rediscovery and retelling of old war stories that accompanies their journey. Then we move to a Russian foreign language offering of a parents very bitter divorce and their twelve year old son caught in the middle; before closing out with a Doco about a highly acclaimed Australian indigenous singer and musician who on the cusp of global fame died just three days after this film was in the can.

Whatever your taste in big screen film entertainment is this week - be it any of the five latest release new films 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 here warmly invited 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 meanwhile, enjoy your big screen Odeon outing during the coming week.

'AVENGERS : INFINITY WAR' (Rated M) - and so finally after much hype, eager anticipation, and huge expectations comes the 19th film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe and the sequel to 2013 'The Avengers' which grossed US$1.52B off the back of a US$200M Budget outlay, and 2015's 'Avengers : Age Of Ultron' which grossed US$1.4B off a Budget of US$267M. Directed by Anthony and Joe Russo who also Directed 'Captain America : Winter Soldier', and 'Captain America : Civil War', as well as the post-credits sequence that rounded out 'Ant-Man' and featuring a huge A-List ensemble cast, the like of which has quite possibly never before been seen on the big screen to such an extent. The Russo Brothers are also Directing the as yet unnamed sequel to this film which is due for release in early May 2019 and which was shot back to back over a twelve month period from January 2017 through January 2018. The film cost somewhere northward of US$300M to make and is one of the most expensive films ever made, and Marvel's most costly to date.

Here all The Avengers we have come to know, love and respect from the previous two instalments and their own stand alone films, plus a few ring-ins must unite two years following the events of 'Captain America : Civil War', to thwart their most powerful enemy yet, the evil Thanos (Josh Brolin). Arriving on Earth on a mission to collect all six Infinity Stones, Thanos plans to use the artifacts to bend reality at his will. He is an intergalactic despot from Titan who wants to rebalance the universe using the Infinity Stones after his home planet was destroyed because he believes the universe is becoming overpopulated, and wants to ensure that such an occurrence never happens again. The fate of our little blue planet and existence itself has never been more uncertain as everything The Avengers have fought for has led up to this moment. Starring, and forgive me if I miss some off the list, Robert Downey Jnr. as Iron Man, Mark Ruffalo as Hulk, Chris Hemsworth as Thor, Chris Evans as Captain America, Benedict Cumberbatch as Stephen Strange, Tom Holland as Spider-Man, Chadwick Boseman as Black Panther, Paul Bettany as Vision, Jeremy Renner as Hawkeye, Scarlett Johansson as Black Widow, Don Cheadle as War Machine, Paul Rudd as Ant-Man, Tom Hiddleston as Loki, Idris Elba as Heimdall, Sebastian Stan as Bucky Barnes, Anthony Mackie as Falcon, Benicio del Toro as The Collector, the collective known as The Guardians of the Galaxy (Chris Pratt, Bradley Cooper, Dave Bautista, Vin Diesel, Zoe Saldana) and also featuring the likes of Elizabeth Olsen, Karen Gillan, Gwyneth Paltrow, Danai Gurira, Cobie Smulders, Angela Bassett, Jon Favreau, Letitia Wright, Terry Notary and of course Stan Lee. It's gonna be big!

'UNSANE' (Rated MA15+) - here we have an American psychological horror film shot entirely on an iPhone 7 Plus by that 'retired' Director, Editor and Cinematographer Steven Soderbergh, and released through his own Production Company too. Clearly being very budget minded, this film cost a mere US$1.5M to make, has so far grossed US$12M since its World Premier screening at the Berlin International Film Festival in late February and its US release in late March, and has garnered generally positive press. Here Claire Foy plays Sawyer Valentini (in a role about as far removed from her award winning turn as HRH QEII in 'The Crown' as you can possibly imagine) who relocates from Boston to Pennsylvania to escape from the man who's been stalking her for the past two years, David Strine (Joshua Leonard). While engaging with a victims support group, she consults with a therapist, resulting in Valentini unwittingly signing herself up for a voluntary 24-hour commitment to the Highland Creek Behavioural Centre. Her stay at the facility soon gets extended to a week when doctors and nurses begin to question her sanity. It soon dawns on Valentini that one of the staffers is her stalker and she'll need to resort to whatever means necessary to stay alive and fight her way out. Also starring Juno Temple, Matt Damon and Amy Irving.

'THE LAST FLAG FLYING' (Rated M) - this American comedy drama film is Directed by Richard Linklater and Co-Written for the screen by him too in conjunction with Darryl Ponicsan, who wrote the 2005 novel of the same name upon which the film is based, which in turn is described as an unofficial sequel to his earlier 1970 work 'The Last Detail' which was adapted into a film in 1973 starring Jack Nicholson. The film here surrounds Vietnam War vets, the recently widowed Larry 'Doc' Shepherd (Steve Carell), Sal Nealon (Bryan Cranston) and the Rev. Richard Mueller (Laurence Fishburn) who reunite thirty years after serving together during that War, but this time for a very different type of mission: to bury Doc's son, a young Marine killed in Iraq. Deciding to bypass a military burial at Arlington National Cemetery, Doc and his old buddies take the casket on a bittersweet trip up the coast to New Hampshire. Along the way, the three men find themselves reminiscing about their previous wartime exploits and adventures, whilst coming to terms with the shared memories of a war that continues to shape their lives. The film was released in the US in early November, has so far taken just US$1.5M at the Box Office and has met with generally positive Reviews.

'LOVELESS' (Rated MA15+) - is a Russian language film Directed and Co-Written for the screen by Andrey Zvyagintsev (whose previous credits include 2014's 'Leviathan'). This film was entered in to official competition at the May 2017 Cannes Film Festival where it took out the Jury Prize, and it was also nominated for the Best Foreign Language Film at this years 90th Academy Awards, as well as a Golden Globe and BAFTA nods in the same category. The film was released in Russia in mid-2017, has since taken US$4.5M at the Box Office, has garnered seventeen award wins and a further thirty nominations from around the festival circuit and has received much Critical acclaim. The story here is about a missing twelve year old lad Alyosha (Matvey Novikov) and his parents, father Boris (Aleksey Rozin) and mother Zhenya (Maryana Spivak) who are going through a bitter divorce, in which young Alyosha is caught up in front and centre. Feeling unloved, unheard, unhappy and unwanted by either side, Alyosha carries an enormous weight upon his shoulders. So much so that his constantly fighting parents don't even register his disappearance until 48 hours after the fact. Both parents have moved on with their lives and are with different partners, but the young boys disappearance forces them back together as they struggle to come to terms with his missing, and whether he is alive, dead or simply on the run and rebelling against them.

'GURRUMUL' (Rated PG) - Directed and Written by Paul Williams this Bio-Pic of celebrated Australian Aboriginal artist Geoffrey Gurrumul Yunupingu was one of the most important and acclaimed voices to ever come out of Australia as well a being a talented musician and multi-instrumentalist playing the drums, guitar, keyboard and didgeridoo. Blind from birth, he found purpose and meaning through songs and music inspired by his community and country on Elcho Island in far North East Arnhem Land in Australia's Northern Territory. Living a traditional Yolngu life, his breakthrough album ‘Gurrumul’ released in 2008 and going triple platinum on the ARIA Charts brought him to a crossroads as audiences and artists around the world began to embrace his music. This is a portrait of an artist on the brink of global reverence, and the struggles he and those closest to him faced in balancing that which mattered most to him and keeping the show on the road. Gurrumul approved the final version of this film just three days before his death from liver and kidney disease on 25th July 2017.

With five new release films out 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-